Taking pictures in a skatepark is not easy. Step back and the topography of the place just flattens. Up close you just see the graffiti. And then there are the skaters who just want that weird lady to go away. And action shots? If the skater’s feet and board dip behind a feature and out of the shot, it just looks like some guy walking around. Plus, they just want that weird lady to go away. I have decided to show how nicely the designers tucked the skatepark into the hill.
I also happen to like having skateboarders zooming around the city — the sound and ambiance they create is pleasing to me. Even when I know they are inflicting damage on the edges of things not specifically created for this purpose. Even that one time when I looked in my rear view and realized with horror that some guy was hitching a ride on my bumper. I just like having them around.
In related news: Providence was bidding for the 2017 summer X Games which would be amazing. According to the Channel 10 report the decision was supposed to be announced on July 1st but I can find no evidence of that. ESPN wanted to move the event deeper into the summer schedule and their latest regular venue in Austin was deemed way too Texan for July events. Rhode Island was the birthplace of the X Games (then the Extreme Games) and it was awesome. The street luge down Angell Street was insane.
The Avenue Concept crew have gotten behind the effort with an XHQ Prov Facebook page — Bring the X Games Back. There is no sign there that the decision has been made. Feel free to edify me if I missed the announcement.
In the meantime head over to the Neutaconkanet Skatepark at 675 Plainfield Street. Dave L of Concrete Disciples had this assessment;
The layout and flow are really fun. The problem with this park is local insurance laws only let you build public tranny 4 ft tall. Most of the transition is steep elliptical with burly pool coping to compensate. there is also a real steep china bank type deal that is definitely the most fun part. No pics now, I’m at work, but I can find some at home later. This is a surprisingly good time for a place with no deep end.
My thoughts exactly.
As a skater that grew up in Providence, I remember the X-Games and Gravity Games fondly. I also recall a subsequent crackdown on the activities shown in these competitions after they left town. To simultaneously bring millions of dollars to the city with an internationally broadcast skateboarding event while handing out $100 fines and confiscating boards from local youth is convoluted if not exploitative.
According to Providence Parks Department the Neutaconkanut skatepark is the highest use facility in their entire parks system. With skateboarding becoming an event in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics its growing popularity is now surely in internationally recognized phenomenon. A parks department alone cannot be expected to handle the growth of this uniquely immersive urban activity. Providence’s law banning skateboarding on all public streets, sidewalks and pedestrian malls needs to be reconsidered as part of broader efforts to be a socially progressive and in turn an economically competitive city.