Skateboarding at Alondra Park in Lawndale, California

By Rick Bickerstaff

When I moved to Los Angeles five years ago, I have to admit I was a little unsure about what to expect from LA skaters. It's a big city where the level of skating is sky high, and so I imagined territorial skaters protecting their pieces of turf in the vast concrete expanse of Southern California skateparks. To my surprise, though, I found the opposite...

Most skateparks I visit are filled with kids who love skating and love the people they skate with. But I just had a particularly awesome skate session at the Alondra Park in Lawndale, CA, and as I reflected on the sweetness that happened, I wanted to share some things that made it stand out amongst the plethora of skate spots LA has to offer.

1. The vibe at the park was great.
I love going to a park where people actually enjoy skating together. High-fives abounded as friends challenged each other to skate better, along with typical skater hijinks. The park was even crowded with both bikes and boards, but I saw no run-ins. And though I was a stranger, the local guy shredding one of the bowls gave me some tips on working the angles. Solid park, solid people.

2. Live music
Two dudes were jamming on guitar by the bowl the whole time! It was probably the first time I've experienced a live music skate session, but it was totally rad, and added to the homey feel.

I also love to skate a pool in Culver City where a bunch of old rippers from the 80's come out and play music on a huge boom box -- usually skater punk, but sometimes Devo! These guys are also top notch skaters, minus the ego, and are happy to share the space for a rad Saturday session.

3. SoCal summer weather
As I stood by the bowl, listening to Sublime, I looked up to the sky and watched the sun setting; a ball of fire enveloped by the clouds while silhouettes of tall palm trees lined the skyline. The air was cool as a Pacific ocean breeze wafted through the park.  The weather was perfect to join people of all ages having fun skating together...and it was good.

Skate sessions like that don't come along too often, but today I was lucky enough to get one. Southern California has a lot to offer as far as skating goes, but it doesn't mean you can't have just as awesome a session wherever you're at. So go out and find your chi session...then come back here and tell me about it



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