EMP's
Skate Punk
Event
Seattle Center Skatepark Torn to Shreds
By Steve Pingelton and Michael
Cornelius
Very conveniently located
across the street from EMP is the Seattle Center Skatepark. Although
not a large park it is a triumph for skaters. It started as a collection
of quarter pipes and jump ramps in a parking lot but after years of pressure
on the city a nice burly concrete bowl was placed and adopted as a city
skatepark. The park is right on the edge of Seattle's City Center
and Space Needle; in the true heart of the city and an unusual spot for a
skatepark. The outdoor EMP festivities took place in the skatepark
and in the adjacent parking lot.
The EMP "When Skate Met Punk" weekend brought together a solid crew of punk skate dogs. Tony Alva, Duane Peters, Doug "Pineapple" Saladino, Brian Brannon, Salba and Steve Olson made up the visiting skaters. There was also a crew of locals to show them where the nice lines were in the bowl. Mark Hubbard, the master skatepark builder was showing that his knowledge covers both form and function. Red's mastery of speed allowed 50-50's around 3 curves of the pool and rocket airs over the tricky bowl to snakerun deck. Pro snowboarder Mike Ranquet even made a brief appearance.
The park was equipped with a sound system so that the music from the stage was blasted directly into the bowl. This of course kept the action at a fever pitch all afternoon. Alva vainly tried to organize a demo session for the crowd in the bleachers but the session was already too intense. They got to witness a real pool session, snakes and all.
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Check out these animated gif's of skate action:
(Click for a pop-up box)
Duane Peter - layback |
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