Skateparks

Extreme sports are something that connects people. Both at skateboard and multi-sport international competitions different nationalities meet to compete on the highest-level side by side. For those who take a more amateur approach to this kind of activities but still want to fulfil themselves in it, the city of Gdansk prepared something special.

There are a couple of skateparks in Gdansk. Not all of them are well made and some things could be improved, however it’s the thought of the city that counts. When somebody from abroad who likes extreme sports comes to Poland and decides to stay in Gdansk, they surely won’t have anything to complain about. The first place worth visiting is skate-arena situated in the territory of Stadion Energa. This skatepark is not big, there are no big ramps, high pipes or stairs there. Despite this it has its charms, thanks to smaller obstacles you can let your imagination run wild and let yourself go by creating one’s own sequences of obstacles, according to your vision and preferences. In the territory of skatepark there’s also a mini ramp placed against the wall so that skaters riding exclusively on ramps would not hinder the others in the meantime riding on manual pads or trying to learn new tricks on low rails adapted for training. The biggest advantage of this skatepark is that it’s indoors. Thanks to this solution skaters can train their skills even when it’s raining or just cold and they can’t ride outside.

The next place worth giving attention to is a skatepark, or rather more of a skate plaza built beside Ergo Arena. Skate park is different from plaza in that that on the plaza the obstacles are arranged so that you could perform many tricks in one sequence, there are no ramps there except quarter-pipes and a small bank standing on two opposite sides of the plaza. In the middle of the square, where the plaza is situated a box on which or to which most of the obstacles are attached was placed. On one side down this box there are stairs. There’s a pipe by the stairs and on the other side a parapet going downwards so that you could perform tricks on it. The box is long enough for every manual lover to like this place. On the right side of the box there’s a manual pad – a place designed for doing a special trick – the manual. It involves balancing on the back wheels of your vehicle while riding. On the other side of the box there’s a pyramid. It has the right angle and a very enjoyable transfer. Besides the pyramid there are concrete blocks shaped into stairs, on which we usually sit. It’s my local skatepark and it’s where you can meet me most often.

The last place I consider worth checking out are the streets of Gdansk, typically street skaters while skating through the city find a lot of places where you can ride. Parapets, stairs, pipes, manual pads and many other obstacles are ordinary functional objects located on the street. And that’s what’s beautiful about this kind of sports. We create something from nothing.