Skateboarding a year-round sport in Victoria

Winter. Rain. Cold. Skateboarding?

Not four words normally associated with each other. For skateboarders in the Greater Victoria area, winter usually means more videogames and less skateboarding.

Or at least it used to.

With a little creativity, some good friends, and help from some local businesses, skateboarders might be able to skate every day of the week, all winter long.

To start, November 26 will see “one of the greatest in-store skateboarding events this city has ever seen,” says Alex Eddy of Sanction Boardshop on Herald Street. “We’re clearing out everything in the lower level of the store for a game of S.K.A.T.E. and a video premiere. It’s going to be nuts!”

Nick Simeoni also has a dry spot at his disposal to skateboard during the winter months. The 20-year veteran skateboarder owns One Six Boardshop on Quadra Street.

Contained within the walls of the shop is a “repair and test facility” that consists of a 25-foot wide, 65-foot long mini ramp. “Kids as young as seven years old and guys in their early ‘40s skate it,” says Simeoni.

Simeoni also explains that there are dry places to skate in the city that require a bit more stealth. “Undergrounds [parking lots] have always been a staple for us,” he says. “It’s Victoria; it’s all we’ve got.”

Dave Opperman, head of Skatelife Victoria, a non-profit, non-denominational Christian organization that runs drop-in skateboard sessions, knows all about skateboarding underground.

Three nights a week Opperman can be found shredding in the basement of Glad Tidings Pentecostal Church. A four-foot-high mini-ramp, a fun-box, two grind rails, and a good attitude might be all some skaters will need to keep their skateboarding skills honed through the winter.

“My spot’s probably the best,” quips Opperman, when prodded for other winter options. “There’s a couple really rad parkades for a quick bomb, but there’s usually water rushing down the whole thing if it’s rainy.”

Also, skateboarding in a parkade could land skateboarders in some hot water as the “no-skateboard zone” spans the downtown core.

One way of avoiding that issue might be to head out of town. What was once a secret, do-it-yourself spot has become widely known as Sixside. Located under a bridge near the Six Mile Pub, this spot is designed for the skilled transition lover.

“Sixside is gnarly,” says Opperman, “but it’s a legendary spot.”