Two lifelong friends are building a new multi-generational community in the Ohio Valley and it’s all happening at the Wheeling Skate Park. Erik Longshaw and Luke McKaye met skateboarding in Wheeling 35 years ago and recently have been sharing their love of the sport with an enthusiastic group of newcomers.
The two old friends share the experience of finding camaraderie outdoors through skateboarding in their youth. McKaye, who has made a professional career of documenting the sport through photography, says skateboarding helped him build community, make friendships, and learn determination at a young age. Longshaw, meanwhile, recently began acquiring skateboarding equipment after learning that some area distributors were going out of business.
From One Lesson to a Movement
That timing proved fortuitous. When local mother Bethany Decker contacted Longshaw about teaching her daughter, Greta, how to skateboard, he had all the equipment needed to make it happen, and then some. Through the Facebook group Ohio Valley Skateboard Advocates, Longshaw began offering free skateboard decks, wheels, and safety equipment, along with posting dates and times for informal meetups that included free instruction.
What began as one mother’s request for a lesson quickly blossomed into a roughly bi-weekly gathering of parents, lifelong skate buddies, and kids of all ages, each learning to love skating while building the same sense of community Longshaw and McKaye cherished decades ago.
Passing the Board Between Generations
I went out to the skate park to check out the meetup in late October and there were s’mores, Halloween candy, parents, grandparents, kids and old time friends enjoying the crisp fall air and skateboards, roller skates and scooters. Longshaw said it was their 6th meetup and they have even had folks from as far away as Pittsburgh who heard about their group and came to check it out. What really struck me initially was how varied in age everyone in attendance was. McKaye and Longshaw spoke about the community of skateboarders in their youth and how welcoming it was. They reminisced about how there were always older generations and younger generations sorta helping each other out and it’s apparent they are carrying on that tradition today in Wheeling. The addition of free equipment at the events removes the financial barrier that some may face in wanting to try the sport for themselves. Â
My main takeaway from a chilly October afternoon at the skatepark is that watching people come together to share their passion and build something for youth purely because they love it will warm every part of your soul. The skatepark might a little quieter with the colder temps, but it’s clear many are already counting down the days until warmer weather breaks in a couple of months.
You can find out when future meetups will occur and learn more about events at the Wheeling Skate Park by joining the Ohio Valley Skateboard Advocates group on Facebook.
