![]() |
![]() |
The Gibraltar Extreme Sports Association or
to use its less formal name, the Skate Park, is nestled
amongst the derelict buildings of Coaling Island. It
was officially opened on4th October 2001 by the Sport
Minister Ernest Britto, since then it has had a somewhatsee-saw
membership. |
Eric Young the present keeper of the keys, has been trying
to raise it’s fortunes for the past few months although
because of the heat it was closed during July and August.
It opened again early in September and alongside Eric there
is a revamped committee that is keen to promote the benefits
and fun to be had either skating on the ramps or playing
skate hockey.
 |
I spoke to several committee members including Secretary
Mark Payne, Steve Heritage and under 12s’ hockey coach
Sandra Harris. “We’ve recently appointed a new
President, Peter Yeoman”, Mark said, “his aim
is to increase the numbers of young people and children
coming down and basically enjoying themselves in a fun,
safe environment”.
Previously you had to be a member to join in but that’s
all changed and you can turn up and skate when you like
for only £3 per session, they’ll even loan you
a helmet because safety is paramount here. There is someone
around whilst they are open ensuring the safety and keeping
a careful eye on everything. The skate park has several
ramps for both the beginner and the skilled and has all
the usual props for those keen on trying out the tricks
of the trade like pipes along the ground, boxes for leaping
over and take off ramps for the flyers.
The big draw though is skate hockey, Eric is both a hockey
and referee coach. With Sandra Harris also qualified there
is plenty of expert help and tuition for all ages. They
are hoping to start a mini hockey league and build upon
their recent successes like the recent in house competition
they held prior to national day with the winners enjoying
a visit to the Mount, with tapas, drinks and the presentation
of a trophy from the Sports Minister. Also for the first
time, this year they entered an under 12s team in the Strait
Games, organised for hockey teams in the Campo area.
They are waiting to register in the Andalucian hockey league
which starts soon and includes teams from Seville, Jerez
and Algeciras amongst others. At the moment they have two
teams with five young people per team and three on the side
as rolling substitutes but they would like more. They took
the girls to UK recently and a reunion for Eric Young with
the British Flyers, a team he used to coach. The girls mixed
in with the Flyers and played games against Manchester and
Sheffield as a touring side to further relations with a
view to training and meetitings in order to hopefully form
an all girl team to enter UK tournaments sometime in the
future.
Girls like Louise Perez, pictured in goal, who’s been
playing for 2 years now and looks every inch the pro hockey
player in all the gear. I asked what she liked about and
she said with a smile “I like it because it’s
rough.” So I asked Sandra Harris, “Exactly how
rough is it?” “It’s not rough, just good
clean physical fun and with the proper equipment injury
is very rare.” She went on to say, “At first
it is quite scary for people but after a week or two, especially
after they learn to skate well enough, they crack on and
really get stuck in no matter what their age.
 |
In the Strait Games we had 7, 8 and 9 year olds against
a team of 14 year olds and they absolutely loved it!”
The smiles on their faces even convinced me as they chased,
scrambled and threw themselves together chasing the puck,
hockey sticks clashing and waving about. At one point the
puck came too close forcomfort so I rushed from the arena
just before five or six skaters all half my size whizzed
past me not caring about the wall they were heading towards
nor each other. Sandra told me that the benefits are enormous,
fitness, hand/eye co-ordination, confidence, meeting new
friends and that team bonding you only get when working
for each other for a common cause.
So how easy is it to get started? Mark Payne explained that
they have a limited amount of safety gear so if people want
to try it out they can and if they decide they like it then
they might consider buying their own equipment. For starters
it is best to have skates, a helmet, knee and elbow pads,
oh and don’t forget that all important weapon known
as a stick.
The Gibraltar Extreme Sports Association is open and trains
on Mondays and Wednesdays for the 7 -13 year olds between
5 and 7.30pm. For the 14 to adult teams it is Tuesdays from
6-7.30pm. If you have thought about hockey on skates and
think you’re tough enough then don’t talk about
it, ring Eric Young on 70710. As for me, seeing the look
on children as young as eight flashing past on skates reminds
me my days of thrill seeking are gone although watching
them battle it out from the safety of the seats comes a
good second. sacred? You bet I am.
|
