Father of local skating

Elia Powers

In his most carefree days, as an 18-year-old professional

skateboarder, Jim Gray made tracks all over Orange County. He used

sidewalks as freestyle courses and contorted his body to meet the

steep slopes of concrete skate park bowls.

The spiky hair, baggy shorts and low-top shoes remain staples of

Gray’s style.

He is 42 now, a businessman, a husband, a father of three -- or as

he likes to say this summer, a father of four.

After years of campaigning, networking and listening to promises,

Gray finally got what he wanted: a new playground.

In late June, the $1-million, 15,000-square-foot Volcom Skate Park

of Costa Mesa opened near the corner of Arlington and Junipero

drives.

The park is in its infancy, and Gray, the site’s primary advocate,

gushes like a father watching over his newborn.

“It was like the birth of my fourth child,” he said. “This was a

long time coming. It’s such a good feeling to look at it every

morning.”

A board life

Local skaters, like Gray, have had first crack at the park, which

doesn’t officially open until a dedication ceremony on Aug. 23.

Work and family responsibilities prevent Gray from picking up his

skateboard and riding at will, but he still finds time to weave

between teenagers at the skate park, navigating the curves with his

7-year-old daughter, Brooke, wedged between his legs.

Eleven-year-old Skyler and 13-year-old Hunter, both owners of

floppy blond hair, prefer to watch their dad ride from a distance.

“It’s kind of cool,” Hunter said as he grabbed a fence that

circumvents the park. “Most dads are all business. Sometimes our dad

will get us out of things to come and skate.”

Skyler and Hunter have been skating for more than eight years

combined. On this Wednesday morning, the dry heat hasn’t dissuaded

Hunter and his friends from crisscrossing each other in the upper

area of the skate park.

From his perch atop a ramp, Skyler observes his father scraping

his board along the edges of the deepest bowl, creating a piercing

sound.

“I like how you can get into the flow, except for when it’s

crowded,” Skyler said.

The park is filled with riders throughout the day, from 9 a.m.

until 9 p.m. closing time. The evening is one of Gray’s favorite

times to come.

He is a known quantity around these parts, a man whose business

card tells the story -- “Jim Gray: Skateboarder since 1970.”

Raised in Westminster, Gray bought a home in Costa Mesa two

decades ago and befriended key players in the skateboarding industry,

including the founders of Volcom.

He began his own company 14 years ago: ABC Board Supply, which

manufactures hundreds of thousands of skateboards per year. Gray

created his own brands, including Acme and Scarecrow, but most of the

equipment he manufactures is for other companies.

Gray’s children sport his company’s products. They get free gear

and unlimited access to skateboards.

“It can be annoying, though,” Skyler said. “Kids at school ask if

I can get free stickers and stuff from my dad.”

Sometimes, a bumpy ride

Gray is no stranger to acts of goodwill. On slow days at work, he

gives his employees the morning off to skate.

In his quest to give skateboarders a public place to ride, Gray

has navigated some roadblocks, though.

For more than a decade, he pitched the idea to Newport-Mesa

politicians while slowly building a coalition of supporters.

Former Costa Mesa City Councilman Mike Scheafer is one of them.

Two years ago, he invited skate park advocates to participate in a

discussion with city officials on possible park dimensions.

Bill Sharp, a skateboarder who is known for his involvement in the

surfing community, is another staunch supporter of the park. When he

was 15, he stood in front of the Newport Beach City Council and made

his case for a park.

He was angered by a city ordinance that banned skateboarding on

hills that had more than a 6% grade.

“I was promised by the council in the 1970s that we’d get a place

to skate after we were kicked off the streets,” Sharp said.

Changing council regimes posed another problem for Gray and park

supporters. He knew the group had to become more organized, so he

developed Skate Park Coalition and began a website to drum up public

interest.

Gray said the final straw was a comment from Newport Beach City

Councilman Tod Ridgeway that skaters were part of an inherently

defiant subculture.

“My comment motivated him more than anything,” Ridgeway said.

Gray said he mostly took issue with the Ridgeway’s generalities.

“Here I am, a family guy, running a business, no shaved head or

tattoos; I didn’t fit the stereotype,” Gray said.

Both Gray and Sharp began citing statistics -- that more youth

were skating than playing tennis. They publicly posed the question:

Why are there dozens of public tennis courts but no skate parks?

But neighbors continued to express concerns. Some complained that

noise and loitering would become issues at the proposed TeWinkle Park

site. Dog owners who use the adjacent Bark Park wanted the space to

expand the dog park.

But in the fall of 2003, Gray and skate park supporters won out.

The Costa Mesa City Council agreed to open the facility.

This April, Volcom signed a 10-year, $300,000 sponsorship deal

with the city that will basically cover the city’s costs to run the

park. Company logos are posted throughout the park, and most of the

skateboarders wear at least one piece of Volcom apparel.

Helmets, arm pads and knee pads are key parts of a skaters’

attire. One of the stipulations to the park’s opening was that users

follow state law by wearing protective gear.

In order to enforce the rule, extra Costa Mesa Police officers

have been dispatched to TeWinkle Park, said Steve Calles, senior

patrol officer for the Costa Mesa Police Department.

Calles said 100 citations were given out from July 1 through July

18 at the park, 98% of which were for lack of proper equipment. He

said only two arrests have been made, both stemming from a fight

between a pair of park users.

And since the park opened, many neighbors say their concerns have

been quelled.

“I was worried that it would be too noisy,” said Carla Mayer, who

lives a block away from the park. “That hasn’t been an issue.”

Costa Mesa City Councilwoman Katrina Foley, whose son skates

regularly at the site, said the opening has gone as planned.

“I’m pleased with the park,” she said. “There was a fear of the

unknown. Now that we have it, I can tell by the number of users that

it was needed in the community.”

Paving the way

Foley has worked with Gray to ensure $150,000 worth of park

improvements, including adding spectator seating outside the fence.

Both Gray and Foley said they are looking to build a second park

in Costa Mesa. Foley mentioned one possible site as being in the

vicinity of Estancia High School. Some council members have mentioned

Lions Park as another potential location.

Sharp said he is already looking at Newport Beach for the next

skate park. He is planning to survey users of the Volcom Skate Park

of Costa Mesa to prove that a sizable number are from Newport Beach.

That’s his home, and the Newport Beach City Council can no longer

deny a skateboarding presence there, he said.

“It has become a completely accepted business and lifestyle,”

Sharp said. “You have second- and third-generation skaters now whose

parents appreciate the sport.”

Still, Ridgeway said a skate park in Newport Beach would be a

tough sell. He said high property values is one obstacle.

“It’s not an asset in a residential neighborhood,” Ridgeway said.

“The noise, the gathering of a group of young teenagers, residents

would come out in droves to oppose a stake park.”

He said there is the continued possibility of a park being built

in Newport Beach away from residential communities. And Ridgeway

added that the opening of Volcom Skate Park of Costa Mesa has been

positive.

That’s a sentiment shared by Skyler, who moves from his post near

the ramp to a spot in the shade while talking to his dad.

After an hour of skating in the sun, Gray is fatigued and Skyler

slightly burned.

“He hated having to go to other parks far away,” Skyler said as he

is lifted into the air by his father. “He stood up for what he wants,

and now there’s a place for him.”

* ELIA POWERS may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or by e-mail at

[email protected].