Rolling Thunder UK
Built inside the Old Market in
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
,
Chiswick
Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...
(
London,
England), Rolling Thunder was one of the first wave of British
skateparks to be made in the late 1970s. Designed by Richard Wrigley (co-designer of London's first skatepark – Skate City), it was built by Mayway Construction Ltd. Building started early in 1978 but the park did not open officially till September 1978 due to various setbacks such as a water mains bursting. Sections of the park however had been open and skated prior to the official opening.
Layout
The park covered some 3,000 square meters and was unusual for the time in that it was a series of interlinking bowls, banks and half pipes that could be ridden individually or as part of a whole. This is much more in keeping with the modern parks of today. The park consisted of: The Channel Run, Clover Leaf Pool, Freestyle Area, Reservoir, The Ramp and Death Valley Run, The Whiplash, Kidney Bowl, Pool Bowl, Mini Bowls, Half-pipe. The Half Pipe was 55 meters long and stretched across one side of the building.
[Skateboard! Magazine December 1978 http://vintageskateboardmagazines.com/Skateboard!(UK)Issues/Skateboard!(UK)Issue16.html]
Rolling Thunder USA
In the western United States - Dwight Cushman & Jane Cushman, designed built owned and operated the
Northern California
Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...
Yreka
Yreka ( ) is the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River; the city has an area of about , most of it land. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 7,807, reflecting a meager increase fro ...
, Rolling Thunder Skatepark between 2001 - 2003 at 429 N. Foothill Drive. Named after the sound made by the "Blue Goose" railroad locomotive which traveled the tracks just behind the skatepark's warehouse. The two story indoor outdoor skatepark catered to Skateboards &
BMX
BMX, an abbreviation for bicycle motocross or bike motocross, is a cycle sport performed on BMX bikes, either in competitive BMX racing or freestyle BMX, or else in general street or off-road recreation.
History
BMX began during the earl ...
. The first Northern California indoor skatepark and outdoor vert ramp was open late 7 days a week. Rolling Thunder also hosted the "Best in the West" Skate/BMX contest series in Northern California and
Southern Oregon. One of its contests in the series was the very first organized "Game of skate" ever hosted and took place at the Medford skateboard park in 2003. This contest (sponsored by the
Emerica Footwear Company) went on to inspire the world-famous "
Eric Koston Game of Sk8" contest series. Rolling Thunder also sponsored and nurtured riders in the CASL (California Amateur Skateboard League) including such infamous NorCal skaters as Mike Pennings and Jeff Ward. Various concerts were held at Rolling Thunder including performances by High Wire Days, Bent, and many others. After closing its doors, Rolling Thunder's ramps, and rails were purchased and incorporated into the "Ramp Rats" indoor Skatepark in Petaluma, CA.
References
Sport in the London Borough of Hounslow