LOOKS LIKE THINGS ARE REALLY RAMPING UP. Ramps from the old YMCA Skate Park are being repurposed for the new indoor Urban Roots Skate Park on Louis Avenue on Eau Claire’s north side.

If we drivers think we have it bad on snowy winter days, it’s nothing compared to what some of our small-wheeled friends have to deal with. Perhaps that’s why the indoor skate park in Minneapolis is one of the most successful in the country, and – even more to the point – why the planned indoor skate park, Urban Roots, is such an important step for BMX bikers and skaters in the Chippewa Valley. Urban Roots, already tricked out with the moniker “UR Skate Park,” will be an impressive 7,500-square-foot indoor space on Louis Avenue (in the industrial area off of Melby Street). UR Skate Park will be putting the ramps and rails from Eau Claire’s recently closed YMCA Skate Park to good use.

The visionaries behind the design of Urban Roots Skate Park include manager Tommy Adams and owner Christian Peterson, as well as Pinehurst Bike Park jump builder Cody Curry and Passion Board Shop owner Christopher Johnson. In recent years there has been subtle shift both inside and outside the skater community. “I think skaters used to be perceived as a group of kids that try to cause trouble,” Adams said. “As skateboarding has grown in the Chippewa Valley, more skateboarders have come out to prove that skateboarding isn’t about being loud and destroying property.” This increased respect and understanding extends well beyond our local borders, as Adams added, “World-wide there’s been talk of putting skateboarding into the Olympics.”

Peterson is determined to make the new indoor park inviting in more ways than just as an escape from the elements. “The park will be open to skaters of all ages, and everyone is welcome,” he said. “Eventually there will be lessons for anyone who is looking to learn or to brush up on some skills.”

Gabe Brummett of the Eau Claire Skaters Association shares similar hopes for UR Skate Park: “I hope that this new park will continue to foster the sense of community, place, and belonging for skaters that has been growing here since Lakeshore (Skateboard Plaza) was built and Passion Board Shop opened its doors. I hope it furthers local skaters’ sense of pride in living in Eau Claire.”

A somber note in a tide of exciting possibilities, a family from Chippewa Falls has reached out to Peterson and Adams to discuss their desire to memorialize the passion of their son, Riley McCanna, who tragically died last year. Riley was an avid skater, and through the foundation his parents started, Ride on Riley, they have donated funds to create a large mural for Riley on a wall of the new skate park. 

Recently Peterson started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for the UR Skate Park. “We have a very limited budget and a big dream,” he said. “We’re not looking to get rich with this project, but rather to give an opportunity to kids and adults that just isn’t available around here. This concept came from the passion to create a space for skaters and BMX bikers in western Wisconsin that does not exist to date, and the momentum has been building.”

Peterson continued” “Our goal is to open our doors as of Feb. 1, but we need your support. If you believe in giving kids a healthy, year round skate-life experience with their peers and mentors, consider giving a contribution to our project. Community first!”

To donate or to find more information about Urban Roots Skate Park go to https://www.gofundme.com/bkf9tgba.