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<p>September usually marks the start of a new semester at the
University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona – but for the local skating community,
the month will signal the start of a new era in the sport.</p>
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<p>Skateboarder Aaron Reid, who has plans to launch a bustling skate park at the university to renew interest in the sport, gave <strong><em>BUZZ</em></strong> an exclusive on the latest development.</p>
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<p>Reid, 23, who is known to his peers as ‘Redman’, told <strong><em>BUZZ</em></strong> that he saw how inadequate public spaces were towards skaters and decided to build one for the growing community.</p>
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<p>“I always had a vision for the sport in general, to create facilities, as I was noticing there weren’t any at all,” Reid explained.</p>
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<p>“For me, personally I know it would be a great thing to have, so my intention is to create [these spaces] so that others can enjoy them. It’s more for the upcoming generation,” the skater told <strong><em>BUZZ</em></strong>.</p>
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<p>Reid added the skate park’s construction started in January, and he and his partner Kayla Wheeler have been pulling all the stops to ensure that the unveiling goes as planned in early September.</p>
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<p>“My partner in this project, Kayla Wheeler, started a
GoFundMe to get sponsorship and it’s our vision to push the sport and culture
of skateboarding and BMX in Jamaica – that’s what Ignite Extreme is about,”</p>
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<p>“This project started on January 6 this year, we brought the club here to UWI as it was a club at the Moneague Community College in St. Ann. Where the project is at right now, we’re at 80 percent completion,” Reid, a student at the UWI, told <strong><em>BUZZ</em></strong>.</p>
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<p>Unlike its predecessor in Bull Bay, St. Andrew, which is considered a DIY project by skaters for skaters, the Ignite Skate Park will be ‘official’ in every sense of the word.</p>
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<p>As the first skate park of its kind in Jamaica, the facility is being designed and managed by a contractor from Russia, Reid indicated.</p>
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<p>While the sport isn’t widely popular, Reid told <strong><em>BUZZ</em></strong> he believes Jamaicans have a latent potential to master skating – becoming among the world’s best.</p>
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<p>“Well, skateboarding is making its Olympic debut in Tokyo 2020, we have good skaters here, but we have none on an Olympic level. That’s because we don’t have the facilities. Things like these are necessary to get persons involved in the sport," he said.</p>
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<p>“Since the university is pushing Olympic sports so much – track and field [and] swimming – why not have a skate park? And for this we need facilities,” the 23-year-old BMX rider and skater told <strong><em>BUZZ</em></strong>.</p>
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<p>“This is Jamaica’s first, it’s perfect! It will get the younger kids more involved, build them from the ground up, getting people to compete at an international level,” Reid added.</p>
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<p>According to Reid, it is recommended to have one person
skating at any time, but depending on the skill level, the park can accommodate
up to five skaters simultaneously.</p>
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