Courtyard Skate park in N. Charleston, South Carolina

    The Carolina Ice Palace is proud to announce the addition of an exciting new recreational complex at our facility in North Charleston. The Carolina Ice Palace Skate Park, nicknamed the "Courtyard", features over twenty-five sections of ramps, rails, spines, launch boxes, quarter pipes, and grind boxes for both skateboards and in-line skates.
The Skate Park covers an area greater than 17,000 square feet and is one of the largest extreme sport complexes in the Southeast. The Courtyard will be able to have 80 participants per session and contains a large observation deck for guests and parents to view the fun. This Skate Park is partially covered by an awning to allow skaters to utilize portions of the Courtyard, rain or shine.
Schedule & Admission

The Skate Park can be rented during non-session times for $100.00 an hour. Reservations are required on a first come first served basis and need to be scheduled no later than one week prior to use.

Memberships will be offered to those customers who plan on utilizing the Skate Park on a regular basis. Membership will include significant discounts on daily sessions and a picture identification card. The membership fee is $25.00 per year.

All participants must have a separate waiver form on file. All bike riders must wear a helmet, elbow pads and knee pads.

Winter & Spring 2006/07

Sunday - Thursday CLOSED
Friday 4:00 pm - 11:00 pm
Saturday 10:00 am - 1:00 pm (Age 12 & under only)
Saturday 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm (BIKES ONLY)
Saturday 4:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Members Weekend $5.00
Saturday (Age 12 & under only) $3.00
Nonmembers - Weekend $7.00
Bikes $7.00

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How to Build a Backyard Skate Ramp

 

The freedom and joy of childhood cannot be programmed into a video game or saved on TiVo. It takes real-life play, preferably outdoors. But to get kids off the couch, and keep them off it, you need to provide something that is active and exciting—and maybe even feels a little bit dangerous. What follows is a  DIY projects that can turn a backyard into a place of adventure, where parents can keep an eye on the fun and (we hope) join in on it.

A simple half-pipe design consists of two quarter-pipe ramps connected by a flat base and is typically made out of a wooden frame covered with plywood sheathing. Each of the curved ramps are made out of two upright plywood support panels, which are tied together with 2 x 4s. The flat base is made by securing decking to a framework built of closely spaced 2 x 4s

To construct the frame, marked and cut the curved plywood supports with a jigsaw, using the first as a template for the other three, before screwing the joists to the supports.

For the skating surface, use a layer of 3/4-in. exterior-grade plywood for the flat base and the platforms at the top of the ramps. For the curved surfaces, you need a more flexible material, such as two layers of 38-in. plywood. To secured these surface layers to the cross joists use 2-in. galvanized wood screws placed 6 to 8 in. apart.

To ensure decent drainage, one option is to set the ramp on a gravel bed. To keep the sound of wheels screeching along plywood from annoying the neighbors, you could  fill the interior of the ramp with sound-muffling spray foam.

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How to Ollie on a Skateboard

Step 1   Ollie Set-up

The Ollie is the first trick that most skateboarders learn. Learning to ollie makes sense – the ollie is the foundation of almost all flatland and park skateboarding tricks. Once you learn how to ollie, you’ll be able to move on to learning all kinds of other skateboarding tricks, or inventing your own skateboarding tricks.

            The rolling ollie was invented by Alan "Ollie" Gelfand in 1977. If you are brand new to skateboarding, you may want to take some time getting used to riding your skateboard before learning to ollie. Of course, it is totally up to you – if you are aggressive and want to learn to ollie on your skateboard before learning how to actually ride, that’s up to you! Make sure you read all of these instructions before you try to ollie. Once you feel ready, jump on your board and ollie!

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Step 2  Stance

To ollie, place your back foot so that the ball of your foot is on the tail of your skateboard. Place your front foot between the middle and front trucks of your skateboard. That’s where you want your feet to be right before ollying. If you find that it works better for you to have your feet shifted to other places on your skateboard, that’s fine.

            You can learn to ollie while standing stationary, or while your skateboard is rolling. Ollying while standing still works the same way as while rolling, but I think rolling ollies are easier than stationary ollies. If you would like to learn to ollie with your skateboard stationary, you can place your skateboard on some carpet or grass to keep it from rolling. If you prefer to learn to ollie while your skateboard is rolling, don’t go very fast at the start. Whichever way you learn to ollie, once you feel comfortable you should try to ollie the other way as well.

            But, a quick warning! If you learn to ollie while standing still, you can develop some bad habits. Some skaters end up turning in the air a little, and not landing straight. You might not even notice, until you try to ollie while rolling. So, if you practice while standing still, I highly recomend also practicing while rolling. Maybe only practice in one spot for a few days - maybe a week or two - and then give the rolling ollie a shot. That way, if you are developing bad habits, you can shake them off before they really mess you up.

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Step 3   Pop

           When you are ready to ollie, bend your knees deeply. The more you bend your knees, the higher you will go. Slam your back foot down on the tail of your skateboard as hard as you can. At that moment, you want to also jump into the air, off of your back foot. This part is key, and takes practice. The trick is in getting your timing right. You want to slap the skateboard’s tail down, and as it hits the ground, jump off of that foot into the air. Make sure to pull that back foot high into the air. It's a quick, snapping motion.

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Step 4  The Front Foot

           As you jump into the air, your front foot needs to roll slightly inward, and with the outside of your foot, you want to guide the skateboard as it flies into the air. Some people describe this as dragging the side of your front foot up the skateboard – that’s more or less what is happening, but what you are doing is using your shoe and the griptape on the board to pull the skateboard higher into the air with you, and guiding the skateboard to where you want it.

            This can be tricky to figure out, so just take your time and relax. The first few times you try and ollie, it helps to not worry about this part. You will end up doing a sort of half-ollie, popping just a little in the air. Or, you might fall! But, don't worry, this is all part of learning. If you want though, you can certainly start with rolling your ankle when you try and ollie - whatever works for you! Eventualy, you will need to roll and drag, and you'll figure it out. Just take your time!

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Step 5  Level Out 

            When you jump, pull your knees as high as you can. Try to hit your chest with your knees. The deeper you crouch down before the ollie, and the higher you pull your feet, the higher your ollie will be.

            All during the ollie, try and keep your shoulders and body level, as in don't lean toward the tail or nose of your skateboard too much. This will make the whole ollie easier, and it will make it easier to land on your skateboard after the ollie.  At the apex (top) of your jump, when you are as high in the air as you will go, you want to flatten out the skateboard underneath you. Make both feet level on the top of the skateboard.

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Step 6  Land and Roll Over

            Next, as you fall back toward the ground and land, bend your knees again. This part is vital! Bending your knees will help absorb the shock of landing on your skateboard, it will keep your knees from getting hurt from the impact, and keep you in control of your skateboard.

            Finally, just roll away. If this sounds simple, then great – get out there and practice! If this sounds too complicated, don’t worry. Just go slow, and take your time. There is no time limit to learn how to ollie – some people learn in a day, and I know one guy that took over a year to learn how to ollie on his skateboard. Also, like with most things in skateboarding, your body is learning how to ollie more than your mind is. So with practice, you’ll eventually get it.

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 Step 7 Practice

Here are a few tricks to help you out, if you are having a hard time learning how to ollie on your skateboard:

Ollie next to a curb

            This is how I learned how to ollie. Place your skateboard next to a curb, right up against it. This will help keep your board from rolling. Next, do everything that I just described, but don’t worry about what your board does. Just do it, and land up on top of the curb, on the sidewalk. Don’t stress about whether the skateboard will be there, or if you will get hurt – just go through the motions of ollying up the curb. If you do it right, the skateboard will be there. If you do it wrong, you’ll probably just land on your feet on the sidewalk. Here’s the key – just do it and expect it to work. Your body understands what you are trying to do, and the less you stress, the more it can kick in and fill in the blanks.

Ollie on the carpet or in grass

            This will keep your board from rolling. Most people think that ollying whiles standing still is a lot harder than while rolling, but practicing like this can help your body learn how to do it. And, if you are worried about the skateboard shooting out from under you, practicing on the carpet or grass should make you feel safer.

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Step 8   Troubleshooting

Chickenfoot

Spinning

Low Ollies

Losing Your Board in Midair