YA TWEETIN?!

Monday 24 October 2011

Social Meet Up

I get hassled more often when I'm skateboarding. It’s usually not so bad, I like to bite the bullet and just handle whatever is going on so I can continue to skate. Certain people don't see a skateboarder as someone having fun. Usually if you’re calm and respectful, others are too. It’s not always the case, but I find myself talking my way out of plenty of confrontations. Not all, but plenty. There are cases in which people become simply belligerent, which is when I often disregard whatever their saying and continue to skate. Only when you are calmly and politely asked does it become difficult to ignore someone. Case and point; the City of Vancouver is building a new park on Ontario and 15th. There is a playground for kids, lots of new paths, and what looks like a large gazebo, all under construction still. Yesterday was Sunday, and although the construction is still incomplete, there were plenty of people around with their kids to check it out. Children were playing on the half built playground, people were using the paths, it was a sunny afternoon in the city. Being that it was Sunday, there were no crews working on any of the aspects of the park. A lot of it was sanctioned off, with minor fencing and some caution tape here and there. It was certainly not much of a hazard, parents were bringing their kids here to check out the new park. Now I wouldn’t be on such a rant for no reason, because the reason me and two buddies drove down to this incomplete park was because they had also been constructing a skatepark at the same location, and it was finished today! I figured it was a suitable "social meet up" because the park has just opened, and everyone was on their way there. Although this wasn't the official opening of the park, it seems that this was it's biggest first turn out for sure. I want to note that this is a rather small skatepark, one of the smallest in Metro Vancouver. Regardless, it’s one of the most fun parks! That being said you must have already guessed that about thirty-five or so skaters had heard through the grape vine that the park was skateable. I had been there only ten minutes and already more skaters were flooding in, crowding the small park. Everyone made room for new arrivals, the majority of the crew knowing people who were arriving. In no time at all, a dense and heated session was happening at the new park! It was really fun to see some of the cities best guys all at one place; it doesn’t happen too often. I was having a blast, so was everyone else enjoying the multiple venues of the new park. Not even twenty minuets into the session, and we realize it’s too good to be true. Two Rangers from the Parks of Vancouver (or whatever) showed up at the park, and headed swiftly over to the skatepark (passing families enjoying the incomplete play ground). The officer nicely asked everyone at the park if we would leave until the official opening of the entire park, sometime next week. Some skaters were passive, others questioned. “This is a completed skatepark,” one rider said “what is wrong with riding it a week early? Nothing else has to be done to it.” He was right, it was totally finished, unlike other aspects of the park that were still under construction. “It’s not safe until next week” announced the female Ranger. “That can’t be so!” proclaimed another rider “This skatepark is safer than the half completed playgrounds, walkways, and other features still in construction. Kids and parents are right over there, do they have to leave to?” The officer went on to explain they had received a complaint call about skaters breaking into the park. No onetook accountability, but one rider even said he was the first person here and that he just walked up the park to start skating it. In the end, all the skaters cleared out the skatepark, but people continued to occupy the rest of the park. The officers were being nice, and no foul arguments came out of it. They explained that their job was to monitor the park until it officially opened, at which time no one could ride the skatepark. They said that if people kept coming back that they would have to inform the police. This didn't make sense to me, it all seemed almost the same. How were we being any less safe than everyone else at the park? I was unsatisfied to say the least, and contemplated calling the police to report “children and their parents breaking into the incomplete playground!” as it had been done to my peers and I, but again, I bit the bullet. I’ll be back to shred it next week; hopefully the park is much safer by then.

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