Save ballard: bowl benefit/Mar. 6, 2004/Seattle, WA

Thrasher Magazine, July, 2004 by Joe Hammeke

"STAND UP AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE!" ... A common political rallying cry often encouraging people to vote. Some people respond, but many still think, "What difference would I make?" I tend to feel the same way often, and wasn't too sure why I was driving several hours to Seattle for a crowded weekend session at a bowl I had skated many times before. Add into the mix that the forecast called for rain, and I was hard pressed to get anyone to come along--after a dozen or so calls, I could only muster up two people to ride with me: Northwest concrete ripper Brent Atchley and my roommate Matt "I can only do inverts" Limo. Both of them had the same reason for going--they just wanted to get out of town. Can you see where the apathy towards supporting a cause comes from?

We arrived at the bowl to find it extremely crowded. There were lots more older guys than younger ones. I guess bowls have a tendency to bring old guys out of the wood work. There were also quite a few guys wearing cheetah print knee pads and even a few with Kevin Staab hip pads. But I guess these are the guys that know standing up can make a difference, and that's what they did. The event caught the attention of the local news media. It turns out some city official saw it on TV or in the paper and started to investigate. Turns out there may have been some palm greasing involved by the contractor who was awarded the bid to replace the park with high-priced condos. As of press time, the bowl still stands, and the city is seriously looking into either letting the bowl remain or having a replacement built in another suitable location.