LAKEPORT – The community rallied to show its support for the sport of skateboarding at the very first Skate Jam skate competition that took place at Library Park on Saturday, April 24.

People of all ages gathered to enjoy a gorgeous day, cheer on their skater friends and family, and spend their money at the vendor booths, with proceeds going toward building a skate park on Lakeport’s side of the lake.

 

For a high quality video of the event, see Patrick Armstrong's work at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcdqVxBv9cw .

Westside Community Park has a designated area for a skate park, but that’s about it. It will cost a lot of money to build a quality cement skate park for skaters on this side of the lake to enjoy.

Event organizers Bill Bibler, owner of Paradigm Concrete Artisans, and Adam Bulik, owner of Freedom Skate Shop, both came together in an effort to provide youth with a fun, safe and local area to skate.

There was a large turnout for the event which, aside from fierce competition, had entertainment including live music.

The idea for the event began with a group of mothers who were trying to gain support for a skate park in Lakeport – but they needed a lot of help.

Bibler learned of this group one day when he walked into Freedom Skate Shop, owned by his friend Bulik, to talk about a skate park in Lakeport as well. They tried to meet with the group of moms but the meeting fell through.

It was Bulik who suggested that they needed a skate jam, and that was the beginning, Bibler said.

After two months of planning, the Skate Jam hit Library Park’s sidewalks. Bibler estimated the event attracted more than 700 skateboarders and their supporters.

Many skaters around Lakeport can’t get to the skate park in Clearlake, let alone the next county over in Ukiah. So, they have ended up shredding the concrete around local businesses and public streets.

Bibler he's watched the local skaters get hassled by the police, and added that if local businesses and authorities are tired of dealing with the kids on the streets, then they should help to raise money for somewhere the kids can go.

“Let’s get some money raised as fast as possible and build a skate park, please,” he said.

There is already a designated plot of land for a skate park within the Westside Community Park project, but the grant money that has gone toward the park hasn't been used for that purpose yet. Bibler thinks it will cost roughly $300,000 for a quality skate park to be built there.

It's hoped that the event, and those to follow, will put a big dent in that number so that Lakeport can soon have a skate park to call its own.

Many businesses made donations such as Molly Brennan’s, Kelseyville Wine Co. and Main Street Pizza, as Lake County News has reported.

Big fund generators were the raffles. The big prizes were a Temper-Pedic bed, donated by Pam Scully of Lakeport Furniture, the YZ 110 Yamaha pit bike partially, donated by Hillside Honda, and a hand-carved water feature donated by Paradigm Concrete Artisans.

To donate funds to help construct a skate park in Westside Community Park, visit Freedom Skate Shop, Lakeport Furniture or Mendo Lake Credit Union to make a deposit into the skate park fund account.

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