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Calgary Millennium Park article
and photos by Brad Kirk
 Have
you been there? In this article you will witness the essence of
North America's largest concrete skate park. Located in the city
of Calgary, Alberta where about 900,000 residents call home. Around
4% of those people are participants in the sport of skateboarding.
This means that there about 6300 rippers in the city of Calgary
alone. After strong suggestion and skaters going door to door with
petitions, City Hall finally hooked them up. Jay Balmer designer
of Vancouver's famous Slam City Jam, Jim Barnum of spectrum skate
park creations, and the fellowship of Calgary skateboarders
worked together to build this $1.8 million, 63,000 square foot skate
park.
The Calgary Millennium Park consists
of 4 distinct areas. Whether your learning ollies down the four
set or lip sliding 8 set handrails, Millennium Park has the stuff
to satisfy skaters at any skill level. The Beginner/Intro Park contains
a low four set with a mini rail going down the middle and a ledge
to the left of the stairs. There is also a mellow banked bowl with
a rail, and a 100% skateable pyramid. Then its got plenty of ride-on
rails, curbs, and banks to keep you busy for hours a day.
The Intermediate central park
surrounds you in a 6 foot half pipe with a spine, a large pyramid,
fun boxes, huge banks, transitions, roll-ins, rails, stairs, curbs,
and drops. I'd say this is the best part of the park for any street
skater.
The Expert Park is crazy. It's definitely
for the big boys of vert and street. It consists of huge banks,
quarter pipes, fun boxes, rails, and ledges. There is a enormous
30 foot bowl with a 9 foot and 13 foot vert area surrounding it.
 And
last there is the Clover bowl which contains three bowls inside.
Next summer a snake run will be built making the park a whopping
area of 74,000 square feet.
Calgary Millennium Park is completely
free, lighted and opened 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There
is always a food/drink stand opened in the day, men and women's
washrooms, a drinking fountain, a sky view from the top of the park,
and many great restaurants and skate spots surrounding it.
In closing, if your ever in the beautiful city of Calgary,
the Calgary Millennium Park is a must skate.
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