There are now a handful of DIY skate spots in Calgary. DIY stands for “do it yourself”. That means that individuals or groups of individuals have used their own time and resources to design and build these skateparks.

DIY skateparks aren’t a new concept. Burnside Project in Portland, Leeside in Vancouver, FDR in Philadelphia, and Channel Street in San Pedro are some of the best known ones.

Burnside

Skaters at these DIY parks adhere to a specific set of rules and often self-police them with tenacity that comes from pride– pride from pouring their hearts and souls into these parks. And it a many cases, a lot of funds.

Rules at Burnside, for example, include no scooters, no bike pegs, and no drugs or alcohol. It comes down to respect. If you respect the builders and the park, you’ll be allowed to skate there. If you disrespect it, chances are you will be very unwelcome by the locals and likely banned.

Channel Street

The function of “harsh locals” is two-fold– they keep out riff raff like drug users and others who seek out places to engage in illicit behaviours. They also ensure that no one is disrespecting their park. And make no mistake– it is their park. They built it so they get to say who uses it. Think of it as their house.

Leeside

These rules aren’t that different from the sanctioned skateparks we have. PLEASE respect our parks, both DIY and legit. Don’t litter, don’t loiter, don’t snake, and just treat people how you would like to be treated. Offer help– chances are it will be accepted. Who knows, maybe you’ll become a local one day.

FDR