Skatopia facts for kids
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| Skatepark | |
| Industry | Skateboarding |
| Founded | 1995 |
| Headquarters |
,
United States
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| Owner | Brewce Martin |
Skatopia is a huge skatepark located on 88-acre (36 ha) of land. It is near Rutland, Ohio, in the United States. A professional skateboarder named Brewce Martin owns and runs it. Skatopia is famous for its independent spirit. It is also known for its yearly music festivals, Bowl Bash and Backwoods Blowout. One writer called it a "utopian skateboard society." This means it's a dream place for skateboarders.
Contents
What You Can Find at Skatopia
Skatopia has many cool structures for skateboarding. These include:
- Lula Bowl
- Epcot Bean
- Church of Skatin'
- The Full Pipe
- The Amity Whitelight Amphitheatre (a place for shows)
- The Skateboard Museum
There used to be a ramp called King Dong, but it is no longer there.
Skatopia's Story
Brewce Martin says he first built a small Skatopia in 1977. He used old closet doors and wood in his parents' basement. In 1979, he built his first quarter pipe, which is a curved ramp. He kept building skate ramps even after moving to Florida in 1988 for college. After touring the world as a skateboarder, Martin decided to make his dream of a big Skatopia come true.
How Skatopia Started (1995–2003)
Martin moved back to West Virginia in 1995. He started building a permanent Skatopia there. But in October of that year, Skatopia had to move from West Virginia.
In just seven days, Martin found a new spot in nearby Meigs County, Ohio. He bought the land and, with friends, moved all the ramps there. During this time, a group of 50 friends helped pay for the land. They called themselves the CIA, or Citizens Instigating Anarchy. In 2003, a writer called Skatopia "88 Acres of Pure Skateboarding Anarchy." This phrase became famous and was used for a later movie.
During these years, Martin started holding two yearly parties: Bowl Bash and Backwoods Blow Out. The Epcot Bean bowl and King Dong Ramp were built then. In 2000, a TV show called Real TV showed Skatopia. This made more people want to visit. The Full Pipe was finished in 2002, and the Church of Skatin' in 2003. Famous punk bands like JFA played at Skatopia during these early years.
Skatopia in the Media (2004–2009)
Skatopia became even more famous in 2004. It was shown on the TV show Viva La Bam. Because of this, Skatopia became the final level in the video game Tony Hawk's Underground 2 that same year. A shoe company, Draven Shoes, even made a shoe line in 2005.
Filming for a movie called "Skatopia: 88 Acres of Anarchy" began in 2006. Around this time, Fuel TV named Skatopia the #1 backyard skate scene in the US. Rolling Stone magazine also wrote about Skatopia.
After the Accident (2010–Present)
In early 2010, Skatopia announced a big event called American Skatefest. Famous bands like Gwar and Meat Puppets played there. MTV also filmed a show about Skatopia, which became an episode of their series True Life.
Later, Skatopia worked with Bones to create a line of skateboard wheels. The Skatopia movie DVD came out in 2011. Skatopia continues to build new skate areas. It still holds its two yearly parties and attracts skateboarders from all over the world.
Skatopia in Movies and Games
Skatopia has been featured in several media projects:
- It is the main topic of the 2010 movie Skatopia: 88 Acres of Anarchy. This film was made by Headlamp Pictures.
- It was a level you could play in the 2004 skateboarding video game Tony Hawk's Underground 2.
- In 2004, Bam Magera, Tony Hawk, and the CKY crew visited Skatopia on an episode of Viva La Bam.
- In 2019, Vice Media made a 23-minute mini-documentary about Skatopia.
