Winter Skating

The snow has fallen upon our playground, discouraging us from roaming the sidewalks. As the weather gets colder, it gets harder to skate. We the snow is a big problem for us skaters, but it doesn't stop those of us who really love to skateboard. A new lifestyle for skaters comes during these winter months, from having the broom, and spare plywood for landings or run ups, you now have to throw in a shovel to help get the snow out of the way of your skate spot. If your lucky you have a church near you with a nice stair set that is already shoveled and a nice parking lot plowed for you. Or you go to the indoor skatepark and pay big $$$ bucks to skate. Some of us that have big enough basements, do a little cleaning for our parents, well actually for our skating, but our parents like the help around the house. Playing games of skate inches from your head hitting the ceiling or trying to do slap grinds on a rail, because doing ollies gets a little tricky.

This year I don't have any room in my basement, with the new house we have moved to a few years back. I miss the old sessions in the basements trying to find the friend with the best basement, on the fresh snow falls before the sidewalks and parking lots get shoveled.

For the first time this year I got out for my first Winter Skate Jam. The roads got played and dried up, I skated down to a friends house who had a quarter pipe in his back yard, on his basket ball court thing, all cleared off, for an icy ramp jam. Which is also a sweet new factor, and you all now what I am talking about who try to skate ramps left outdoors in the winter. I had on my flannel and enjoyed a cold/hot session. Yes it is cold, and you get really hot at the same time, you don't know to take off your coat or to leave it on. Here are 7 Tips for you who want to keep skating this winter and don't have the money to go to those fancy indoor parks.

Tip #1
Carry two pairs of shoes with you, so then you can walk through snow, and put on a nice fresh pair of shoes that aren't wet, or salty, when you arrive at your skateable spot.

Tip #2
Find a church or go to business with parking lots that have something to skate. Stairs with landings into parking lots are perfect.

Tip #3
Carry a broom, shovel, and plywood in your car. It also might be fun to carry a skate rail to put in a plowed parking lot when you can find anything dry to skate.

Tip #4
Put a quarter pipe in the back of your garage, that way the ramp and part of the run up stays dry. You will just have to keep your driveway shoveled.

Tip #5
Shovel a spot, let the sun sit on, go back the next day, it should be dry.

Tip #6
Clean out the basement, or find friends with good basements, build some ramps or a small mini, depending on the hight of your ceilings. Also pole barns are a really nice place to build skateparks.

Tip #7
For skating outside, wear something like a flannel or button up long sleeve shirt not something to warm, but it can breath, and keep you warming then if you get to hot skating and take off your coat ending up wearing only a t-shirt.

Good luck kids Enjoy skating this winter!