Talonis

...which is fine. Plenty of folks have enthusiast events to celebrate their hobby or whatever. If 'go skateboarding day' was a day to protest skateboarding laws, there are certainly better ways to accomplish that instead of grabbing a video camera and pissing off a couple cops and pedestrians. If anything, they not only demonstrated the need to keep that particular law in place, but perhaps allocate more resources to enforce it. Totally counterproductive.

Their little video fails. It highlights breaking the law, defiance of authority, crappy law enforcement procedure, and immaturity. Way to be ambassadors of 'go skateboarding day'. Fail.

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Lamil

Ok, then you get into the argument about skating in the middle of the street, which is just as stupid. Then they can't skate at all, then you argue about bikes/rollerblades. Vicious cycle.

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Talonis

Pretty sure bikes aren't allowed on sidewalks in most places either. Dunno about rollerblades, probably not a large enough number of them or incidents requiring laws / ordinances. I don't have anything against skateboards, I just think they get fewer municipal type improvements targeted to benefit them due to the relatively small minority (and specific demographic) that uses them.

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Lamil

The problem is, most of the time, people are afraid that someone will get hurt on their property and try to sue them.

http://www.gooutandskate.net/video/1105.mov

In that video I made.. almost 2 years ago actually.. wow.. anyway, the guy came out and talked to one of us saying that we couldn't skate there cause if someone gets hurt that they will get in trouble. Well we talked to him and told him if someone did get hurt we would jump in the cars and leave right away and everything will be on video so he didn't have anything to worry about, he said well alright that's fine then just try not to get hurt .

And this is what happens when you don't get a skatepark, you go street skating

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MysidiaDrakkenbane

And we started petitions, fund raisers... Our "schpiel" was "We know you hate seeing is skate in your parking lot, why not help us get a place where we can skate? Please donate or sign."

Four years later, we got our park.

Bikes and rollerblades aren't allowed on sidewalks. Jogging routes, yes.

If you know that people don't like skating when others are around, why piss them off even more and do it anyway? Work around them. It's not impossible.

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Lamil

8 years and 2 mayors later, still no skatepark. Fund raisers, full money raised, plot found, all turned around and they said we don't care. What was that?


edit - Oh, and a few years ago everything was going perfect. We had our weekly meetings, people supporting us, everything was going great...

..Then the mayor died..

And shit hit the fan. The end.

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MysidiaDrakkenbane

Then you find businesses willing to sponsor the park. You get petitions out there, contact your state senator, your govenor, work the system.

Contact an attorney and get a waiver drawn up where each skater signs saying that if they are injured on (whatever empty lot you skate on) you won't sue the business.

Contact your Chief of Police in the area and see if you can get an ordinence (sp?) where you can only skate at certain times of the day. (They have them for loud music, construction, curfews for kids in certain areas...)

Giving up and saying "Screw it, we'll skate anyway" won't get you the support you need.

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Lamil

I don't think you understand how much we did actually do. We didn't say just screw it, they told us No, no chance, stop now, bye. We had the money we didn't need a sponsor, we had the plot of land picked out by the city for us. We had plenty of people supporting us, including the police. The mayor died.. and a new mayor came in. Threw out everything we had and said no. Flat out. the next few years were met with everything getting shot down and thrown out. The idea is scrapped, and people gave up. After 8+ years.

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MysidiaDrakkenbane

You don't stop there, though. You don't give up.

Generate publicity by submitting editorials, ask your local news to cover the story. (They just love doing stories with kids trying to work the system.)

Then you go higher than the mayor. And if he or she won't help you, higher than them. Sooner or later, someone will help you just to "shut you up" so to speak.

And politicans hate having negative publicity around voting season.

You want something bad enough, you go for it. You never give up.

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Lamil

Here's the thing tho. I'm now 19, and don't plan on living here much longer. 4 cities surrounding us all got skateparks built, and our city feels we don't need one so the main group of kids and parents that were all for this and leading the way, are all driving and not staying in this city anymore. That is what killed the drive once we got shot down. Bad timing. Oh well

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