Local skate park gets 'adult' into trouble

Column by Sam Kaufman

Many small cities around the United States have discovered the solution to the decades old problem of "giving area youths something to do." The cure-all in the minds of many? A skateboard park to keep younger people active and out of trouble.

Locally, Kalispell has a nice one and another in Whitefish should be ready by fall. Kalispell's caters mainly to those who specialize in bowl tricks and jumps. The one in Whitefish, on the other hand, will emphasize both street and bowl skating.

Skaters like Bigfork's Ricky Clarke and Joey Norris are highly anticipating the street aspect of Whitefish's park.

Clarke, Norris and a host of Bigfork skaters regularly visit Kalispell's skateboarding facility at Woodland Park. They're apt to hang out there many hours on the weekend.

Skating is a scene and somewhat of a lifestyle embraced by many of America's youths. The goal of most skaters is to attract sponsors who dish out free equipment and gear.

Clarke said he's ready to prepare a video of himself that he'll send to several skateboard companies.

Others who regularly frequent the local park are already sponsored. They are skateboarding advertisements to others who look up to them.

Last Saturday provided some great photo opportunities at Kalispell's park. Some of the buzz there pertained to a 14-year-old friend who was seriously injured at the park earlier in the week. The boy lost control on his bike and hit his head on the concrete. He had to be airlifted to a hospital.

Had the boy been wearing a helmet - as park rules dictate - the injury perhaps would not have been as serious. Helmets are a must at the park - even if some skaters and bikers find them uncomfortable or unfashionable.

That's why I wasn't totally upset when two of Kalispell's finest arrived on the scene last Saturday afternoon. I had been photographing skateboarding action part of the day. To get the best shots, I felt I had to be inside the park with the skaters. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't wearing a helmet in there. That's where the cops came in.

They had a report of someone in the park without a helmet. One of the cops entered the park, addressed skaters with what seemed to be some pleasantries and asked me to step out to the parking lot.

At first, he thought I was a skater. Upon closer examination, he figured out I was an "adult" without a board. He saw my camera and I told him I was shooting for the newspaper. My wife who was also there told the officer she wouldn't let me skate if I wanted to. Anyway, back in the day when I did skate, it was more about doing "360s" and hills than some of the tricks and street skating of today.

The officer said he understood the situation but he still had to issue me a citation for not wearing a helmet. I think he felt kind of bad about it. The whole situation was a bit uncomfortable. However, I did gain support from the skaters, who stopped their action to witness the event. Some skaters from Bigfork even came out to the parking lot to back me. One even showed me a similar ticket he'd received not long ago.

I know these types of skate parks are meant to keep youths out of trouble. But what about the adults I thought to myself.

In all sincerity, I was glad to see the officers monitoring the park so carefully. With the injury that occurred earlier that week, police need to gauge activity there for two imperative reasons. The first, of course, is for the protection of those who use the park. The other is to protect the city for liability purposes.

One of the cops told me to contest the ticket, that it probably would be thrown out. He didn't know the amount of the citation but it is probably between $25 and $40.

After getting the ticket, my wife and I left the skate park and headed for a walk by the pond. I didn't win there, either. This time, I stepped out on the pond to check the ice and went through to about my knee.

We returned to the skate area about a half-hour later and talked to Clarke, Norris and some of their friends. It turned out to be a nice day, even with the ticket and ice incidents. My wife and I were happy to help purchase a neat board for one skater who came up a little short on his money. We went to a local business with him and found pleasure in making up the difference.

We made a lot of friends that day.