VENICE SKATE PARK FILLED WITH SAND
It's a phrase, or even a call to arms, that has emblazoned many a shirt over the years: Skateboarding is not a crime. Technically, that is still true. It is not illegal to skateboard most places, including in California. However, in light of the current pandemic, certain activities that were previously commonplace have become verboten in the eyes of the law in the name of health and safety. Public gathering places around the globe are getting shut down, and skate parks have not been spared from this.
Check out this Instagram video above by Venice Beach-based skater Greg Lutzka. Your eyes are not deceiving you. They have filled the Venice skate park with sand. We don’t need to tell you that sand and skateboarding are not exactly a chocolate and peanut butter combination. This is entirely designed to get skaters to stay away from the skate park, where they aren’t really supposed to be anyway.
The state of California has had a stay at home order in place for several weeks now. People are supposed to be self-isolating in their places of residence and only heading out into the world when necessary. Exercise is allowed, and so is skateboarding. Want to skateboard down the street while staying six feet away from people, perhaps while wearing a face mask? Go for it! The problem with a skate park is that it is a place where people gather. Technically, you could use it while staying six feet apart from other skaters, but given the number of people who have been disobeying stay at home order across the globe, we can assume that some skaters weren’t exactly practicing physical distancing.
So it has come to this. They felt it was necessary to fill a skate park with sand in order to prevent skaters from congregating there. Of course, the sight of a skate park that looks more like a beach is a weird one, and might actually draw gawkers in its own right. It’s a weird situation all around. Practice safe skateboarding out there while the pandemic is still going on. Otherwise next time they might have to fill our skate parks with, like, a bunch of brass tacks or super glue.
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