2B | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2019 | COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
Skatepark
from B1
a leg up from those in a
position to help.
The rules board at
the park states that us-
ers may use a provided
broom to sweep up de-
bris, rocks and glass that
may be presenting a haz-
ard to their fun; a task
that becomes much more
difficult when the tool is
nowhere to be found.
“The broom got stolen,
then one of us brought
our own, then that one
got stolen too ... we used
to use them to sweep up
but we just don’t want
more to get stolen,” said
one of the BMX riders.
Some people believe
the skatepark has become
an eyesore, a local park
not far from downtown
that has fallen into disre-
pair. Some users believe
the skatepark - in their
minds, their only place
to socialize and practice
their hobby - has become
a dilapidated hazard. It
seems that a number of
possible solutions could
be amenable to both
sides of the debate.
Despite a five-year de-
lay before finally open-
ing and an effort which
raised tens of thousands
of dollars, it remains pos-
sible that Cottage Grove
skatepark was, to a cer-
tain extent, doomed to
routinely relive its rocky
start.
Skateboarding, BMX
bikes and scooters took
off in popularity in the
late ‘90s and early 2000s
and with them, so did
the concrete skatepark
construction boom. To-
day, there are over 100
concrete skateparks in
the state of Oregon, from
several in both Eugene
and Portland, to Astoria,
Hood River, Florence,
Halsey and every other
nook and cranny of the
state.
Some of these skate-
parks were designed
by professionals, often
brought in from Port-
land. Others were pri-
marily built and paid
for by community fund-
raising efforts and local
construction companies.
Cottage Grove falls into
the second category and
the design of the skate-
park remains one of the
users’ biggest complaints.
According to a group
of users, the bowls and
ramps are of an older, less
vertical and somewhat
outdated design. The
fences are too close to
the lips of the bowls and
ramps, causing a sizable
safety hazard when exit-
ing for a jump on a bike,
scooter or skateboard.
Users last week said a
friend recently cut their
ear open on the fence
when exiting the bowl
and most users claimed
to have torn at least one
shirt on a jagged piece
of chain link fence. The
rails need to be moved
away from the fence to be
usable and the pyramid
at the main entrance of
the park is effectively un-
usable due to its proximi-
ty to the southern side of
the perimeter fence.
Most of the young us-
ers say the skatepark’s
ideal solution would be
an entirely new park,
but they, along with city
officials and residents,
are eager for something
to change and there may
be solutions that serve to
please all groups.
“I mean, we want a
new broom. Maybe the
fence could get moved
back, I don’t know. It’d be
nice if we had a chance
to tell someone our ideas
for the park since we use
it so much,” said one of
the older kids.
In the very first arti-
cle published about the
Cottage Grove skatepark
in The Sentinel on Aug.
11, 2004, the story ended
with a quote from a local
mother: “I hope every-
one takes care of it.”
While users see a situ-
ation where the city can
do more to help them,
the city sees a situation
where users could ideal-
ly take on more respon-
sibility themselves in
maintaining what is their
preferred activity space.
The future remains un-
clear, but all parties in-
volved seem motivated
to find ways for improve-
ment.
Local cyclist completes the
possible on 100-mile ride
By Nick Snyder
nsnyder@cgsentinel.com
Have you ever wanted to play basketball in sandals? How
about race at Cottage Grove Speedway in a minivan? Have you
ever had the desire to ride a simply-designed rideshare bike
over 100 miles? No? Well, on the last point, Sam McCamant
can’t relate.
On Sunday, Aug. 4 at the 21st annual Greater Eugene Area
Riders (GEARs) Blackberry bRamble, GEARs member and
software developer Sam McCamant, 28, hopped on a Peace-
Health Rides shared-use bicycle and completed the longest of
the courses available at the cycling event, the 102.5-mile Wolf
Creek classic century.
“Earlier this year [GEARs] asked at one of their meetings
if anyone was interested in riding a PeaceHealth bike in the
Blackberry bRamble, so I decided that sounded interesting and
volunteered,” said McCamant.
As bicycle rideshare programs have popped up around the
country, PeaceHealth Rides is Eugene’s own local version that
began on April 19, 2018. In total, the service provides a network
of 300 bikes available in over 40 stations for local residents to
rent for recreation or, most commonly, short-term, point-to-
point commutes.
The average commute on a PeaceHealth bike is around 1.6
miles, a far cry from the 100-plus miles McCamant rode.
The primary mission of GEARs is to promote riding bicycles;
whether the promotion is for transportation, fitness, or recre-
ation. In a time where the cost of some bicycles - particularly
the types of road bikes used on very long rides - approaches
that of a decent used car, McCamant’s ride provided an illustra-
tive example of GEARs’ stated goal.
“A lot of people feel that you need a light, high-performance
bike in order to do things like go on a 100-mile bike ride and I
disagree somewhat. So it was sort of an opportunity to demon-
strate that you can do this with a heavier bike. It might take a bit
more work, but it’s doable,” said McCamant.
For Lindsey Hayward, General Manager of PeaceHealth
Rides, McCamant’s goal of challenging himself on this partic-
ular type of bike was perfect for an organization that’s always
looking for new ways to promote their service.
“It’s definitely one of those things that’s outside the scope of
what bikeshare is typically used for … but one of the goals of
PeaceHealth Rides is to really have it integrated in the commu-
nity and bike culture,” said Hayward. “Sam came up and was
really excited about the potential and just the concept to be able
to challenge himself and show people what they can do with
something as simple as a bike. So it was great to have him be
interested.”
The Wolf Creek Classic Century Route that McCamant
followed began near Amazon park in South Eugene, traveled
West through downtown before reaching almost as far North
as Junction City, West out to Noti around the entirety of Fern
Ridge Reservoir, and as far South as Lorane before heading
northbound back to the starting point.
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Sam McCamant poses with a PeaceHealth rideshare
bike during his training. PHOTO C/O SHERI MCDONALD
Luckily for most people, 100-mile bike rides are a rare if
non-existent occurrence throughout a lifetime. But, for those
who were reticent to make use of the PeaceHealth Rides bikes
in Eugene, McCamant’s accomplishment should erase most
doubts. After all, the 1.6-mile average trip is slightly less daunt-
ing than 100.
“You maybe want to avoid some of the steeper hills because
of limitations with the brakes in going down, but you can go
quite reasonable distances with them and the ergonomics on
them are actually pretty nice. Before I’d ridden on one I thought
maybe I’d need to swap out the seat, but it was actually pretty
reasonable,” he said.
McCamant next plans to take on a 250-mile plus ride from
Pacific City to Brookings, Oregon, but worry not, Sam plans to
be back on his own bike for that even more daunting journey.
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