Write-up & photo by Christoph Böttcher
Edit by Mark Stamer & Christoph Böttcher
The featured skatepark is part of internationale gartenschau hamburg 2013 (igs), a landscaping exhibition that has been around since the 1970’s. In recent years, having a skate park as part of this exhibition has become a matter of good form. Almost 1500 sqm of perfectly shaped concrete, peppered with ledges, rails, curbs and parking blocks now make up one of the most generous parks ever built for a Gartenschau. The park is also home to one of the largest bowls in Northern Europe, complete with snake run and pool coping all around.
Everything has been built by Minus Ramps, a company from Germany that has made a name for itself by building great parks all over Europe. The kind of parks you actually want to skate. Hit them up when your local town is thinking about “doing something for the youth”.
If you’re interested in visiting the park, your best bet is to travel by public transport. The train station Wilhemsburg is just two stations away from Hamburgs main station, that’s just 8 minutes in the overcrowded S3. If you travel by car, you’re in for the challenge of parking your car as close to this place as possible.
As long as igs will be running, it costs a whopping 21 € entrance fee a day. If you can settle for an after work session after 6 pm you’ll pay a not less expensive 9 € to skate the perfectly lit park up until 11 pm. More info about admission here. If the pricing is too steep for you, you may as well wait for mid October till the igs closes its doors and the area will be made available to the public at no charge.
The igs Skatearena has been awarded the Stamer Seal of Approval. Travel to Hamburg to check it out yourself!
-Christoph Böttcher
Links:
Stale air in the street quarter, shot from bowl
