My Skatepark Rating Scale
I'm often asked 'what is the best skatepark in Canada?'
How do you define best? I definitely have some favorite parks and memorable skateparks in the 440 parks I've skated. Millennium in Calgary & The Forks in Winnipeg stand out. I've had great sessions at objectively bad skateparks. For simplicity, I usually say my single favorite single park is Campbellford, Ontario for a lot of reasons including layout, features, history and setting.
With skateparks being so varied I made up my own scale based on the overall functionality and enjoyment of a skatepark. It has noting to do with the size or cost of the park & is based on my personal opinion of the park. I'll give some examples and try to explain myself.
I present the EGAD Scale
ExcellentExcellent parks are rare (& remember, this is my personal judgement and opinion). An Excellent park has to cater to all levels and all styles of skating. It has noting to do with size of the park. A park that only pros can rip isn't functional for everyone and would bump it down. I would consider Winnipeg's The Plaza at the Forks an Excellent park. Despite being known as a plaza, it also has a world class bowl with a small end. The plaza has features of different sizes making it a wonderland for beginners to top level skaters.
Stair sets from 2 to 8 steps, multiple ledges and rails of different heights & skatable art features set this park out as one of the best in Canada.
The world class bowl has a 5 foot mini section leading to a flowing bowl with a 17 foot cradle. See more from New Line's own page HERE. An example of a small park that rates an 'E' is Six Nations Skatepark in Ohsweken, ON
Starting with Transition, the QP is not huge but there is an extension, a hip, a fly out to big bank as well as a beautiful Wampum Belt in-lay.There are multiple ledges, both stone and metal, and rails on flat as well as down rails. There are many unique features like the Wampum Belt, the stone ledge and a scooped step-up that set this park apart.
Good
Good parks are plentiful and the majority are Poured in Place Concrete. A few pre-fab parks make the grade (see Richmond Green). A good park may just have that one thing that holds it back from being an Excellent Park but is faaaaar from being a bad park. The Ashbridges Bay Skatepark in Toronto is a favorite of many but I rate it as Good. Its lack of a started level transition is what holds it back in my mind. Feel free to argue in the comments and I'll delete it if you're mean. ABB is undoubtedly a fantastic park but this bowl is gnarly and there's no other QP to try out. There are other levels of ledges, stair sets, skateable art and replicated street spots.
On the other end of the size spectrum,
Angus Glen Skate Spot in Markham is another good park. It has a QP with a feature, ledges and rails. It doesn't have a big variety of obstacles but it's fully functional to all levels of skater.
AcceptableAcceptable parks are pretty much everything else. They're the bread & butter of my life list. It's the old, concrete parks (Pickering, Cummer), the less than stellar concrete parks, the Seasonal DIY's (tons of fun, no doubt) & most of pre-fab and pre-cast skateparks. They may be someones favorite park. Some of these parks are objectively bad but I've had ton of fun at these parks, both alone and with friends. The whole point of my blog, directory, life list and map is to point skaters to something they can skate, no matter where they might be. 'There's always something to skate, but it might not be great' - Me
Midland. I don't like this park. The bowl is poorly poured with no-ping and the centre section has its failings. Still, it works.
The Skateboard Philosopher did a good video here.
Malton. This neighbourhood park in Mississauga was my go-to before and after work for years. Not great but functional.
South Innisfil Community Centre. An objectively bad park. Rough Asphalt. Pre-fab obstacles sinking into the asphalt. A really funky flat bar & a big concrete stair set/out ledge combo you hit after dropping in and trying to keep your speed on the bad asphalt. I had a blast at this park figuring out ways to hit these unique obstacles. Is this a good park? No. Did I have fun? Yes. Is it better than nothing? Yes.
and now..
The Despicable
It truly takes a significant effort for me to classify a park as despicable. It needs to be practically unskatable, dangerous or both without any redeemable qualities. One 'D' rated park was just a rainbow rail and a bench on rough, seagull poop covered asphalt and actually made the 'Certified Piece of Suck'. It's thankfully gone now. Here are some more, status unknown.
This Northern Ontario park was 4 years old when I stopped by on my way to Winnipeg. The layout doesn't look awful ( but note those stairs and step-up) but on closer inspection you can see big gaps in the ramps with filler concrete. Every part of the park was 4 foot sections with filled gaps and coping welded together. The bowl was by far the worst. The filler concrete has deteriorated, the concrete ramps had deteriorated and shifted, leading to broken welds in the coping and half inch differences between the flat and the bottom of the transition. There were holes in the filler big enough to stick my hand in.The saddest part is this is a Memorial Skatepark.
Just an all-round bad park. I don't know if the fence is a permanent feature or was still up following Covid restrictions. Either way, the bank in the back is 45 degrees (steep) with no deck and drops of onto the fence or into the woods. The really rough asphalt was littered with seed pods (think rock farts) and the flat rail shot me into the fence. The 'manny pad' is at least 18 inches high with no grindable/slidable edge and the other ledge was busted up (see below).
I, fortunately, don't have many examples of Despicable parks.
Let me know what you think.
SL
Check out some of my other articles in the Features section on the right.
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