Skateboarding Down Memory Lane

Wanted to get out of the house yesterday so took my kids skatepark hopping.

The first stop was a skatepark that was the first in Northern Utah when I was their age.

I have a picture of me and some friends ollying the four stair in a newspaper clipping, because it was such a big deal to open a skatepark back then.

Crazy thinking back that none of this existed when I was a kid, and now we hit four in one day all within 20 miles. We even skipped over one or two in between.

After that we went to a newer one that I’d never taken them to. It was pretty cool. I liked the set up because it had some continuous flow.

What I noticed the most was it was pretty much all dads. Four 30-40 year olds with a kid or two + me with my boys. Thought that was cool.

We also packed their bikes and hit a place called 9 Lines. It’s a public bike park that SLC built under an overpass. Pretty cool functional use of previously wasted space.

Last skatepark we hit was the Vans skatepark. Always sentimental when I go here. Not because of the park, but because the state fairgrounds are right next door.

Walked over and told the kids how it’s where their mom and I had our first informal date.

Back then I worked in radio and the station rented out the whole fairgrounds and threw a massive concert.

I invited my wife to model at the show. Where I’m pointing you can see the stage the concert pic was taken from. Her and I on stage SuperSoaking thousands.

What my finger is pointing to in the distance is where I was sitting when I first saw her walk in to help that day. Her skinny waist and tight shirt are a favorite memory of mine still 20 years later.

After the show we went to the after party. Stayed up until 2-3 in the morning.

I don’t know how we did it back then, but she had to go to work at like 4 am the next day. Pretty sure she got about 15 minutes of sleep is all. Honestly, she might not have slept at all and drove an hour north, straight to work.

I drove up to see her after work the next day, and asked her on a formal date.

Two days after that we went out on our “first date.”

Hottie and the kids go everywhere with me. Other than a trip or two we couldn’t coordinate with kids school, it was a good 12 years before we were ever apart more than 24 hours since that Wednesday. She’s been with me literally nearly every day of my life for 20 years.