An announcer through a microphone wired to a small amp, bellowed at the 20-odd skateboarders cruising on concrete to clear the ramps.

But two months ago, you’d have been lucky to see a longboarder rolling past Lakeshore Park on the bike path.

Oregon-based Evergreen Skateparks completed Eau Claire’s first public skatepark at Lakeshore Park, July 30, after years of obstacles holding the Eau Claire City Council from approving the project. Last Sunday, an Eau Claire online skateboarding group hosted the first contest on fresh concrete.

“The park is the best we could get for what we have,” Dane Neville, a freshman at UW-Stout said. “The quality is very professional and it’s unique. We don’t have many parks like this in the Midwest.”

The contest was divided into three different skill divisions: beginner, intermediate and expert. Toppers Pizza in Eau Claire donated a stack of free pizza and skateboard companies donated prizes for top-placing riders.

Nineteen-year-old Nikko Osterkamp won first place in the intermediate division, taking home a new skateboard, Toppers Pizza coupons and $25.
After his run, Osterkamp walked around the park, pizza boxes in tow, urging spectators and skateboarders to gobble up the last of the free pizza.

“To be able to skate was a privilege,” Osterkamp said. “I’ve been down to the park every day since it opened. I hope to see all the kids stick to it and continue to ride.”

Gabe Brummett launched the Eau Claire Skaters Association when he moved to Eau Claire in 2009, the Facebook group that hosted Sunday’s contest. He said he started the group after he found out Underloud Skate Shop in Eau Claire was closing.

“It’s a way to get skaters to come together,” Brummett said. “Eau Claire didn’t have a park or a shop then, so there was nowhere for skaters to meet.”

City Council approved $55,000 for the 2,000 square-foot project in early June. Local skateboarders chipped in about 17 percent of the total park cost, Brummett said.

Brummett said the Eau Claire Skaters Association was also able to secure grant funding from the Tony Hawk Foundation, an organization that doles out money to towns and organizations interested in building skateparks.

Skateboarders also held fundraisers at restaurants and held small skate competitions to raise money for Lakeshore Park.

But the path to the construction of an actual skate park was a long one, Brummett said. It took about seven years for council to come to a decision on the project.

Thomas Kemp, an economics professor at UW-Eau Claire, grew up skateboarding in the mid-80s in Milwaukee, building backyard half-pipes and skating The Turf, one of the nation’s first indoor.

Kemp served on City Council for four years, and during his tenure, pitched a skatepark plan to the Parks and Recreation Commission.

Building a skatepark was a tough sell, he said. Council members were suspicious of the high cost of the park, and skateboarding culture.

“There are a lot of bad stereotypes with skateboarders,” Kemp said. “If you think of all sports, skateboarding is almost completely unstructured. There aren’t any adults in charge. And it’s a relatively new sport, so most of the decision makers have zero knowledge about skateboarding.”

Kemp said the city laid out several potential spots for small skate parks along the Chippewa River State Trail. The city will continue to work to map out plans for future parks. Brummett said he plans to use Lakeshore Park as a platform to raise money for future parks.

Kemp sat on a picnic table watching the contest and eating pizza Sunday. He doesn’t ride nearly as much as he used to, but watching the contest Sunday brought back strong memories.

“Skateboarding taught me persistence,” Kemp said. “You have to keep trying a trick over and over until you finally make it. If today is any indication, skateboarding has a bright future.”