Skater’s delight as indoor park comes to Fountain Street

THE start of what will hopefully be a skating revolution for Strabane took place recently when Fountain Street Community Centre hosted the first indoor skate park in the town. The park has been a long-held dream of local man and skating enthusiast Liam Cannon, whose group Strabane Urban Sport (SUS) has been lobbying to have a permanent fixture in the area for skaters.

The recent session was hosted by Fountain Street and facilitated by Omagh-based company Urban Motion, who run parkour and skateboarding classes all over the North and who brought their facilities to the town.

Reflecting on a ground-breaking day for skaters locally, Liam explained, “It was great to have our first proper skate park experience in Strabane, hopefully the first of many. Admittedly the turnout wasn’t what I was hoping, however the fact that there were fun days already taking place in the Head of the Town and in the Alley Theatre undoubtedly dwindled the numbers as we know that the desire for a skate park in Strabane is there. This was proven by the fact that the kids and parents who did turn up are already part of the skate classes I run, so their attendance only shows a skate park is wanted.”

Liam has been pushing the idea of a skate park in Strabane for a considerable period of time and has held talks with people at council level and is hoping this will be the beginning of a permanent skate park in the town.

Jamie from Urban Motion also praised the day, saying, “I personally felt that the whole event went brilliantly and it was a pleasure to facilitate it.

“Like Liam I was hoping for a larger turnout but clashing with other major events in the town, it’s understandable. Nevertheless, it was a great event for Strabane Urban Sport, ourselves and for Fountain Street. Those who did turn up showed a great interest in the sport and hopefully, this will now show the council and the public that this type of facility has the backing and is warranted by the Strabane people.

“Going forward the plan is to bring the park back to its Fountain Street location on a monthly basis in the hope it will ignite a spark which will eventually see a permanent park available in the town.”