Kings Park Skatepark

September 4th, 2007

Kings Park is one of many new concrete skateparks springing up on the south-coast. It is essentially an L-shaped concrete bowl sweeping from the shallow to the deep with rails, ledges and hips thrown into the mix. There’s also an 8-stair for the little kids with metal knees, and a steep handrail for the big kids with metal knees.

Some of the obstacles need a second glance to judge whether they’re skateable, such as the step-up in the deep end of the bowl which is a solid two foot of vert, but having seen Marcus whip a back-tail on it trust me, everything’s skateable in this park. The quirky grind block embedded into a steepish bank will probably be the first thing you spot when you walk through the gates. Thanks to the local pressure group KPSK8 every possible skating style has been catered for in this park. It seems the local council, with a huge effort from KPSK8, at last did a good job (with a budget of £257,588 its hard not too!)

This park should be near the top of any UK skater’s hit-list. It’s a refreshing break from the average council built joke. Just beware: If you’re not prepared to be a shark, prepare to be shark bait. This place gets packed in the evenings and at weekends. If your planning to head down that way go during the day, mornings would be best, there’s a lot of BMX-icans throwing their frames about and a lot of skaters with the wrong attitude.

Getting There

If you’re coming from the East (Portsmouth, Chichester) head westbound on the M27 following the signs for Bournemouth. Follow the motorway just past Ringwood and then take the Southbound A338, again following the signs for Bournemouth. From there it’s dead easy to get too. Follow the signs for Kings Park or the Football Traffic signs. As you get closer you’ll see signposts for parking at King’s Park. Follow these signs and keep on going through the park. The skatepark will be right in front of you opposite the running track.

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