A group of skateboarders made their pitch to the Encinitas Parks and Recreation Board this week for the construction of a skate bowl. It would be the second in Encinitas but the first on a North County public beach.
By most accounts, Encinitas holds the unofficial claim to the title "Skateboard Capitol of the World." With the many world-class skate parks in the San Diego area and a skate bowl in Encinitas Community Park, is more better?
"It keeps you out of trouble. It keeps you out of your head, too," skater Jacob Yocum said.
The force behind a second skate bowl in Encinitas doesn't hail from Generation Z or Alpha. Instead, they are three sexagenarians.
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"Pushing our minds, bodies and balance — I think that positive stress on a person keeps you sharp. It keeps you young," said Douglas Marker, an advocate for the new skate bowl.
Encinitas residents Marker, Barry Blumenthal and David Skinner brought to the Encinitas Parks and Recreation Tuesday a rare standing-room-only gallery and a plan to build a 6,000-square-foot skate bowl in the northeast corner of Moonlight Beach.
"That shows the world that we are absolutely the mecca of skateboarding," Marker said.
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Marker is a former professional skateboarder. Even at 62, Marker and his group, Deathracer413, dare the depths of the skate bowl called "Poods" in the community park.
The bowl in Encinitas Community Park attracts skaters from all over the world, but it has its limits.
"Sometimes I come here, and there is crowds of people around the entire park, but there is only two people allowed in the bowl at a time," skater J.J. Hurd said.
Marker says that 70 years ago, when the waves were flat, surfers would attach wheels to wood and practice their tricks on land. A bowl at the beach is a logical return to skateboarding roots.
"I hope the city sees how much they need it, how much we want it, and I hope they help us move forward to make our dream come true," Marker said.
Tuesday night's Parks and Rec meeting was the first chance for the group to officially make a formal request.
There are still a lot of hoops to jump through, but one thing that could work in their favor is the construction cost. The group says they'll get the million dollars it will take to build the skate bowl from the private sector.
