With one of the finest indoor skateboarding facilities in the Maritimes at their disposal, Riverview youth are taking advantage of every opportunity they can get to grab a board

Stumble Upon

del.icio.us

Digg

Facebook

Print

Email

Speak Up

The Riverview Skate Park is in full swing for the summer season as skateboarders both new and old have been hitting the ramp at every opportunity.

Enlarge Photo

Skateboarders in Riverview are taking full advantage of the Kiwanis Skatepark.

"We run skate camps every week of the summer from 9 a.m. until noon each day," says Ross Smith, owner of East Coast Street Styles, which manages the day to day operations of the park. "They're based on skill level, so there are two different camps that can run - level one and level two.

"Level one is for beginners or people who may have never even tried it before, while level two is more for the competitive or training side of things, so there we see people that have been on a board for a couple of years and maybe been to a few level one camps and worked their way up."

Now in their third summer of operations, the camps have become a fixture for local boarders and have grown each year.

"We're booked solid for the next few weeks and we're certain that the rest of the camps will fill up too," explains Ross. "As people try it and enjoy it they tend to register for another camp.

"A lot of people will register for several camps throughout the summer. With only 16 kids in every camp all the participants get a lot out of it. There are a lot of returnees and we also have helped a lot of kids get started which is really terrific."

With new skaters getting into the sport, it means new experiences for parents of kids that have never tried skateboarding before either which can mean adjustments for the parents too.

"There are a lot of parents that are nervous about having their kids start skateboarding but when they hear about a camp like ours they feel better," says Ross. "A lot of kids come in with an inexpensive board just to see if they like it and then upgrading if they really get into it.

"When we have a new person come in we're more than willing to jump in, take them out on the floor and show them around and teach them a few things to get going. We're very lucky because we've got a lot of experienced kids here and they're always welcoming to the new skaters."

Other than the camps themselves, at several times throughout the summer the skate park organizes trips to other skate parks in the area.

"The kids have to be 12 or older to go on these trips and there's no cost for them at all, they just have to pay for their lunch," says Ross.

With a recent redesign having taken place within the past year, there are no major alterations planned for the park in the near future and the focus now is on maintaining the available camps and programs currently run in the skate park as well as the youth centre.

For more information about the summer camps or other regular programs at the Riverview Youth Centre, contact the Riverview Kiwanis Skatepark at 387-2213 or Paulette Tingley at 387-2032.