While much of Sedona is slowly reopening as it comes out of the extended shutdown, one place that has continued to remain open is the Jack Malmgren Memorial Skate Park at Posse Grounds Park.
Many skateboarders and scooter riders were relieved to find out that the park would remain open, as long as people who used it continued to take safety precautions such as bringing and using hand sanitizer, not touching their face and maintaining at least a six-foot distance from each other.
With summer vacation now officially upon us and so much else remaining closed, people who already spent a lot of time at the park in a pre-COVID world are there even more now.
“I just love the sport of riding and I’ve got nothing else to do during this,” said Finn Pollock, a 12-year-old scooter rider from Sedona, who noted that he’s at the park practicing new tricks pretty much all day, every day. “[Having it open] is good. Like I said, I’ve got nothing else to do. It’s my hobby. I love scootering.”
Patrick Neuman, a 17-year-old who recently moved from Sedona to Cottonwood, also said that he prefers to ride his scooter at the park in Sedona to the recently reopened one in Cottonwood.
“It just opened a few days ago but it’s not the best skate park — this is a lot better,” Neuman said. “It’s made better. The ramps are more smooth. It’s just a different feel.”
Both locals and tourists alike rave about the park’s attributes.
Skateboarder Noah Gonzalez, 15, paid a visit to the park while visiting Sedona from Los Angeles over Memorial Day weekend.
He wanted to skate at the park after seeing it on YouTube. After skating there, Gonzalez said that he enjoyed the experience of skating while being surrounded by the red rocks.
“It’s nice,” Gonzalez said. “Kind of perfect with all the obstacles. And the view is probably the best part of the park.”
Aside from working on their craft and enjoying the view, people enjoy the skate park for another reason — the chance to socialize in a safe way.
Due to the nature of the activities, rarely would skateboarders or scooter riders be within six feet of each other even before coronavirus restrictions.
And given the nature of the current situation, the number of ways that friends can interact with each other are limited compared to normal summer vacations. The skate park gives them a chance to stay in touch with each other in a fun, and safe way.
“It’s great,” Neuman said. Because a lot of my friends’ parents aren’t letting anybody over. This is a place that we can all hang out. When I first found out that you guys weren’t going to close it, I was really grateful.”
