Eastern Pulse, Milford, CT

Many thanks to the skater's grandmother we met in Rhode Island yesterday, who told us about Eastern Pulse, an indoor skatepark in Milford, Connecticut.  Sk8terdad took Sk8terdude there this afternoon, since I was skateparked out and busy with OlderBrother, who needed to finish collecting data for his (required) school science fair project.

And many thanks also to Sk8terdad, who dutifully took photos and reported back with details.

The park is about 6500 square feet, smaller than some, but a fun skate (reports Sk8terdude).  According to their website, the park "features 5' kidney shaped pool, mini ramp, rails, wallrides, rollers, hips, boxes, and pyramids."  Not bad for a Sunday afternoon.

The "parent lounge," on the other hand, leaves a little something to be desired...

Less of a lounge and more of a loft above the skatepark, the word on the street (or, in this case, the text message from Sk8terdad's iPhone) was that the lounge was cold and a little lacking in some standard amenities.  Neither of the two televisions were working although Sk8terdad was able to access the internet through the park's wifi.  And there's only one bathroom for everyone at the park, which Sk8terdad reports was really dirty, which might explain why there were no moms in sight.

Of course, if you're a teenager, you might find that the lounge is exactly what you're looking for, as it did boast an air hockey table, a foosball table, and a great view of the giant skull painted on the far wall.

Sk8terdude put in about two hours at Eastern Pulse, which may be our go-to place for the remainder of the winter, with Haven reporting on Facebook that they may be closed until the end of April.  Although Eastern Pulse is smaller than Drop In, it's considerably closer to home.

Meanwhile, the weather report is for warmer temperatures over the next ten days.  Maybe the snow will melt and the outdoor parks will be able to open before March ends...

Make It Count part 2 - Greenside Skate Park Post-Mortem

After seven straight hours in the skatepark, three more hours in the car, and one drive-thru Burger King meal later, we are home.

Sk8terdude was amazing.  Okay, okay, I admit I'm not even remotely objective, but in my defense let me say that I'm NOT talking about his skateboarding, even though I'm going to take a minute or two to describe it.

He was surely one of the youngest kids in the competition today...or at least one of the shortest.  The 14+ skaters outnumbered the 13 and under group (contrary to early predictions by Greenside staff) and within the 14+ group it looked like the 18+ skaters may have held the majority.  In the too-blurry-to-paste-here-photo I took, he barely reaches the other skaters' shoulders.  As I watched from the parent lounge, I could see that he was intimidated by the size, speed, and temerity of the other skaters.  For a good twenty minutes he stood in the pack, waiting for an opening to take a practice run down the ramp toward the A-frame, while skater after skater stepped in front of him or raced toward him from the other side.

Eventually, either impatience or determination took over and he launched himself down the ramp, early-grabbed the transfer, kickturned on the wall, and olley/nose-grabbed the a-frame.  (Don't worry if you have no idea what that means.  He had to dictate that last sentence to me!)

He managed to get about three practice runs in and then it was time for the 13 and unders to skate.  The only problem was that they were starting on the pyramid....which he hadn't had a chance to practice since earlier in the day.  Bravely he stood at the top of the ramp (he says 7-feet...), then took his turns across the pyramid, kickturning and coming back to manual the pyramid.  (Again, dictated.  Let's just agree that from now on anything technical that I write about skateboarding was something someone else told me to write.)

He skated the zone 1 competition (the pyramid), then waited while the older group took their turns.  Eventually the winners of zone 1 were announced and, to no one's surprise except maybe his own, Sk8terdude did not win his age group.  More everyone-for-themselves practice time ensued.  Sk8terdude was able to get in some runs on the pyramid, then of course it was time for the zone 2 competition on the A-frame.  He skated better in this round, but again did not walk away with the prize.

Let me be clear.  I'm not complaining that he didn't win, or suggesting he should have.  The winners definitely outskated him.  But Sk8terdude is not generally a good loser.  And by this point he had been at the skatepark for almost seven hours.  And he hadn't really eaten lunch (Chipotle Grill, a sponsor of the Make It Count tour, provided burritos to the skaters, but he only had a few bites of his).  So he was hungry and tired and it had been a VERY long day....but he didn't complain.  Not once.  Not a tear.  Not a whimper.  Not even an argument when I said he could not stay for the third and final competition (the stair set - which was bigger than any stair set he'd ever skated and which, I knew, would be a recipe for disaster, not to mention injury, if he tried to compete at that point in the day).

So although he didn't end the day with a trophy (or, more precisely, a new skate deck, skate bag, Skull Candy headphones, new wheels, etc.), he did come home with a sense of accomplishment for having skated with the "big boys" and for having survived the day.

And I couldn't be more proud.

(p.s. Congrats to the under-13s who DID win today...whose parents were my fellow lounge-lizards!)

Make It Count Competition at Greenside Skatepark

It's been a long, frustrating, no-internet-access morning...but finally we're back in business!

Sk8terdude was the first person at Greenside this morning, and for about 20 minutes he was the only person in the park.  Slowly but surely the other skaters started to arrive along with a small but dedicated group of parents.

Some, like me, traveled across state lines:  three from Vermont, one from Maine, a handful from Connecticut.  The general consensus is that we may get less press than the soccer moms, but we're no less dedicated!  (And, by the way, there are an awful lot of dads in the room.)  We're a grumbling group.  And although no one is listening, I'm posting our official list of demands in the hopes that future skate competition organizers might take note.

Skateparks and skate competitions seem to be run primarily by a bunch of young guys who don't have kids.  That's great.  But maybe they could take a few pointers from us parents in terms of organization and communication.

Early promotions for this event said admission to the competition was a can of food (presumably for a local foodbank).  But on arrival yesterday, we were told that they would take the food as a courtesy but there would be a fee to enter the event.  That's fine for us.  But what about the kid who gets dropped off in the parking lot and isn't prepared to pay?

The Element pros headlined to appear changed at least three times that I know of.  Again, maybe not a big deal for most people, but what if you traveled here specifically to meet your skating "idol," only to find he is a no-show?

Let's talk registration, too...  The pre-event advertising talked about pre-registration on Friday night, with giveaways, at the local Chipotle Grill.  Only it turns out the "local" Chipotle is an hour away from here...so they didn't run the pre-registration last night.  And this morning, instead of registering skaters as they arrived, the organizers decided to wait until noon to open registration.  I'm not sure why it is preferable to have a big line of people trying to register all at the same time instead of getting as many pre-registered beforehand as possible, but so it goes.

That said, the park has filled up nicely.  The older skaters look like a solid bunch and I'm looking forward to seeing what they can do.  And Sk8terdude is really excited, a little nervous, and completely out of his league, even if he doesn't know it!

Greenside: Frusration

The wifi connection keeps failing. I've given up the ghost and put away the laptop. Can't keep you all updated via iPhone (too hard on the thumbs) so you'll have to wait for the recap later tonight.

Am I a Helicopter, or Just Human? Greenside Parent Lounge - end of day 1

I'm exhausted...and I wasn't the one skating.  Sk8terdude is exhausted, too.  He's half-asleep beside me, trying desperately to stay awake just a little longer since, even long distance, he somehow knows that OlderBrother is not yet in bed!

We had an amazing dinner at Sunrise Viet Restaurant, conveniently located in the same parking lot as Greenside.  In fact, if it hadn't been pouring rain and windy, we could have walked.  Sk8terdude and I each had a bowl of pho (chicken for him, beef for me) - the perfect food for this nasty weather.

We went back to Greenside for one additional hour of skating.  The park was busy with (mostly) older skaters preparing for tomorrow's competition.  Greenside is laid out so that skaters go both front to back (ramps, stair set, funbox, etc.) and side to side (across the "plaza" bordered by quarter pipes at either end).  Somehow the skaters manage - most of the time - to take turns and avoid collisions, but for a younger skater it can be a bit overwhelming.  Sk8terdude migrated to the bowl, where it was a little less crowded and where he made a few friends closer to his age.

We came back to the hotel for a little post-skate relaxation session.  Through the windows, we could see the rain turn to snow, as fluffy flakes started to float into the hotel courtyard.

I parked myself in a lounge chair by the side of the pool (no lifeguard = mom on duty) and thought about the day I spent at the skatepark.  Usually Sk8terdude wants me nowhere in sight.  His typical request goes something along the lines of "Mom, you're not going to STAY, are you???"  But today he did not make the request, which I don't think I would have honored, anyway.

He's skating in a new park, in a new town, in a new state.  No one we know was there, or anywhere nearby.  While I might have considered leaving him alone during the clinic this morning, I certainly wasn't going to leave the building this evening.  The park was crowded.  Most of the other skaters were easily five years older than him and many were significantly older than that.  I don't know the culture at this skatepark like I do at some of our regular haunts.  (Do they get annoyed at younger, less capable skaters, or are they friendly and considerate?)  So I never even considered leaving, despite the fact that they had my cell phone number on file (part of the waiver every skater is required to have before entering the park) and despite the fact that the hotel is right next door.

And I began to wonder...am I a hovering helicopter parent?  Or just human?

What do you think?

Greenside Parent Lounge - part 3

Guilty confession:  remember the work I said I was going to do?  It turns out, not so much.

 

Skating in the park are Element pros Donnie Barley, Chad Tim Tim, and Mark Appleyard.  Skating with them?  Sk8terdude!  Oh, and all the other kids from this morning's skate clinic, too!!

 

 

 

I have to admit that I'm really enjoying watching the pros skate the park in addition to enjoying the fact that Sk8terdude is in seventh heaven.  He just ran up here to the parent lounge to hand me a tech deck and stickers he won in the mini "clinic competition" the kids just had in the bowl.

 

Doesn't he know it's lunchtime?  I don't think I'll ever get him out of here!

Greenside Parent Lounge - part 2

This is what the park looked like this morning when we first arrived.