Skateboarders will travel thousands of miles for new terrain. Thanks to a clutch of innovative skater-designed concrete parks that have cropped up in cities as unassuming as Hailey, Idaho, and Donald, Oregon, family skate vacations have never been more practicable. More than 2,000 skate spots are listed on concretedisciples.com and skateboardpark.com. Below are some of the biggest and best skate parks around the country.
Chehalem Skate Park
Newberg, Oregon
Gaudi-esque shapes that make the idea of concrete waves literal.
Louisville Extreme Park
Louisville, Kentucky
40,000 square feet of bowls, a street course, rails, and fun boxes.
Etnies Skatepark of Lake Forest
Lake Forest, California
BMX enthusiasts can also bring their bikes at designated times.
Kona Skatepark
Jacksonville, Florida
Includes a '70s snake run, a pool, a vertical ramp, and street courses.
Snedigar Sports Complex
Chandler, Arizona
A 35,000-square-foot park in the Phoenix area designed by Site Design.
Magdalena Ecke Family YMCA
Encinitas, California
Home of the 2003 X-Games ramp, Encinitas is a magnet for vertical pros but also has concrete bowls and a fine wood street section.
Skatelab
Simi Valley, California
This indoor park north of Los Angeles has a huge skate museum.
Denver Skatepark
Denver
With 70,000 square feet of ultrasmooth rust-colored concrete, it starts with shin-high moguls for warming up and progresses through a series of bowls for every size—and that's before you even address the street plaza or the snake run.
Green Skate Lab
Washington, D.C.
It's small and can be a trek, but this new park, made by community volunteers using recycled materials, is still worth a look.
Rippin Riverside Skatepark
Oviedo, Florida
A 30,000-square-foot park in the Orlando area designed by Team Pain.
Skatepark of Athens
Athens, Georgia
A 14,000-square-foot park designed by Grindline.
Next Page: More of the country's most notable skateboarding destinations.
