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September 8, 2008
Skateparks : Europe vs America
Skateboarding, building obstacles, lighting ramps on fire and drinking legally. These would be normal sights if you visited my local skatepark when I was living in Vienna Austria. After living in Europe for 7 years I have become completely spoiled by the hassle free, do it yourself, skate environment. For some reason, the Europeans view skateboard parks and skateboarding exactly as it should be; as hobby and sport. The skate park I used to skate by American park standards was perfect. With its freshly paved concrete and array of boxes and rails, they could have charged money. Instead, there was no fee, no cops, no pads and basically no rules. It was made right in the middle of a public park, and was viewed as an extension of a playground. In playgrounds, you don’t have to wear safety gear. You don’t need to sign waivers. It is your responsibility, and if you get hurt, you take care of yourself. This mentality is the way the Europeans view public skate parks.
When I moved back to America, I realized that tickets, insurance waivers, cops and knobs plague any decent skatespot. Weather you are skateboarding your local parking lot, skate park or backyard concrete slab, it seems that odds are always against you. With its increasing popularity and now mainstream appeal, someone would have thought that skateboarding would be heading in a more socially accepted direction.
Thankfully, people like Rob Dyrdek and Tony Hawk are creating better atmospheres and homes for skaters all across America. The Tony Hawk Foundation raises thousands of dollars a year, and gives it to communities with limited areas to skateboard. Rob Dyrdek pioneered the concept of the skate plaza, the ideal street skate spot to learn to skateboard real street obstacles in a more “safe” environment. Let’s hope things continue to progress in this direction. At this point in time, we don’t need any more parks badly managed by non-skateboarder government workers.
Authored by ianmichna | Permalink | Links to this Post | Comments (0)
