A new mini-bowl has just been completed in Rattingen, Germany, about 15 minutes north of Düsseldorf. According to Baum who built this in cooperation with Camp Ramps, the city wanted a “u-miniramp”, but luckily they were talked into something a little more creative that will stand the test of time…
When I arrived in Ayacucho, I was invited with Bruno (Concrete Dreams) and Benoit (BRUSK) to build a mini-ramp for Mama Alice, a dutch NGO which works with children and wanted an infrastructure for teenagers. I used to organize concrete skateparks workshops in Belgium, and we did the same here (http://www.brusk.be/home/spip.php?rubrique19). I met a girl and decided to come back and try to live my life here. It was four years ago now, my Peruvian child is two…
Ever since I started skateboarding, it was not only about standing on a piece of plywood, but also about using all kinds of readily available material to shape your surroundings in order to be able to skate them – that’s what skateboarding to me is all about. The more skateparks that are being built, the harder it gets to deliver this message to the kids. It makes a huge different if you skate something that you built with your own hands. A homemade ramp can be all shitty and bumpy but it doesn’t matter because you designed and constructed it yourself.
A short view on the Mellowpark bowl project in Berlin, Germany. With helping hands of the locals the bowl was finished in the spring of 2011.
I think it’s a dream of every skater to have his own ramp at home. Sure, I have my own ramp at home. Sure, it’s a crazy big ramp, half bowl half mini ramp, etc. But sure its not a pool….
October 1st was a momentous day in Cologne with the opening of the first concrete bowl in Germany’s fourth largest city. Built by IOU Ramps and the local skaters of Cologne, the OWL BOWL is located at the NorthBrigade Skatepark, which has been open since the 1980s. Skaters from around Germany showed up for the opening party which was graced with sunny skies, which at this time of the year is a treat, as there was just as much chance the rain would shut down the event.
The concrete bowl at Berg Fidel in Münster, Germany was built in 1989 and marks the early development of concrete bowl skateboarding in Europe. It was the same year Titus held the world championships in Germany, and pros from America like John Cardiel, Matt Hensley, Chris Miller, Christian Hossoi and Danny Way all have skated the Monster Bowl in it’s early beginnings. 22 years later…
The bowl is located in Konstanz. The construction company is Bowl Construction from Switzerland (they also built Hard, St. Gallen and München Hirschgarten to name the good ones).
In the 3rd year of the Ultrabowl, they decided not to have the contest in the ‘backyard’ style pool, but instead to have it in the whole park (except in the pool). Skaters from all over the world attended and as could be expected, some serious shredding went down. I wasn’t there as I decided to explore previously unvisited lands in Croatia and Slovenia, so there’s not much for me to say, so look at the photos and watch the replay of any heat you want.
Finally, in Cologne, Germany, at the NorthBrigade skate park a new concrete bowl is being built!