The Cherry Creek Skatepark.

The area around my town is primarily farmlands once you drive a minute or two away from the minor metropolitan sprawl that is Dunkirk and Fredonia. There are a variety of farms scattered about the countryside with small village centers to go with them. The range of crops grown includes grapes, apples, corn, and much more. There are a number of dairy and cattle farms, too. My grandparents used to own a dairy farm. Most of the villages have one stop light, a post office, a pizza place, assorted businesses, and a school district. It's small town America. I'm describing the scene so you have a sense of what it is like and not making fun of it. Somehow there ends up being enough pavement so that the few kids who find skateboarding have a place to roll.

Cherry Creek is about sixteen miles or so away from where I live. You are going out into the country to get there as the drive involves a hilly and winding road to the middle of nowhere. It is not a fun place to get to in the winter. At the end of the 1990s, I think it was either 1998 or 99, the crew of skaters living there took over the village's basketball court since it was a large patch of smooth asphalt that wasn't being used. I don't recall the details, but it might have been a borderline hostile takeover. With the newly acquired field of blacktop, they built a collection of ramps, ledges, and other rickety wooden things to do tricks on. There was a little launch ramp, a big quarterpipe that was on the mushy and mellow side, and a fun box type of creation. They filled up the space and you had a bunch to skate. All in all, they did a good job, especially considering they were probably still in high school and you wouldn't expect a skatepark in a town like this.

We went out there a handful of times since it was a bit of drive to get there. I'm not sure how we found out about the spot, but I imagine either my friend Paul or Mikey met this kid Seth from Cherry Creek at some point skateboarding somewhere and got a phone number. Things always worked out back then in the days before social media. I doubt the skatepark lasted beyond that summer. Seth went to college in Fredonia in the early 2000s. I'd go skateboarding with him sometimes. He moved to Buffalo and I would see him at shows occasionally. I've lost touch with him in the years since. The other thing I remember about the place was that there would be a couple of cats hanging around the ramps. This was a good spot to hit up for a change of pace and some fresh air.

Note: The photo is of a farm by the school in Cherry Creek. I snapped the picture back when I worked for the newspaper and was out that way covering an event of some sort. I know Paul and I filmed a couple of video clips at the park, but I have no idea where that tape would be.