Jamestown Skate Products hosted its annual New Year’s Eve Party and Chili Cook off recently at the skate shop, located on 209 Pine St.

Skateboarders, family members and “X-Games” aficionados, headed to the all-indoor skatepark ready to ring in and skate in the New Year in style.

Pete Scheira, JSP owner and proprietor, said, “there’s not a lot for kids 18 and under to do, especially around New Year’s Eve in town, so I started this event years ago.”

Events like the New Year’s Eve Skate and Chili Cook Off tend to be a highlight for local area youth at JSP and tend to draw heaps of praises from the city’s more youthful inhabitants.

“I love it here. I love everything. Pete is a good guy, he’s helped me with a lot of stuff,” said Daymian Press, a homeschooled, 12 year old resident. “I skate at the new outdoor park here (Jamestown.)”

Echoing Press’s statement, married couple Erik and Michelle Anderson, and a skateboarding duo, said that skateboarding is a relaxing, healthy activity and JSP New Year’s party has been rocking in the new year for close to eight years so far.

“Skating is a positive outlet, and helps people learn to think creatively and other skills such as math and engineering. It seems like a lot of my friends who are in the trades got into the trades because they wanted to build ramps and skating stuff. Plus, we travel a lot, and no matter where we’re on the road, it feels like we have a skateboarding ‘family’ nearby,” said Erik.

Michelle said, “I love skating, it’s how I unwind.”

Skateboarder Owen Kearney, 20, of Jamestown said, “skateboarding has taught me to get back up after falling down.”

In addition to owning JSP and hosting the New Year’s Eve Chili Cook Off and Skateboarding Night, Scheira also hosts the annual King of the Ramp Tournament which draws on average of 300 or more skaters who compete in four different categories, with aspirations of earning the title, “King of the Ramp.” The event is held at the end of October each year, according to a 2024 Post-Journal story. Furthermore, Scheira was a key advocate for the construction of Jamestown’s outdoor skate park.

“We wouldn’t have our outdoor skate park without Pete Scheira’s help,” said Crystal Surdyk, city director of development in a Jan. 4, 2024, Post-Journal story. “He’s such an advocate for our local youth and community; he’s knowledgeable and dedicated to providing our area youth with a safe and friendly environment. Also, he’s well-respected by area leaders and businesses for his work with our youth.”

According to skatepark.org officals, the Tony Hawk Foundation has identified about 2,800 public skateparks open today in the United States (and estimate there are about 700 more that officals don’t have information about). These are free, come-and-go-as-you-please, open-air facilities for anyone to enjoy. Additional facts and figures include the following:

Of the 3,007 counties in the United States, 1,900 of them have no skateparks at all. Over 59-million Americans lack access to a skatepark at a county level.

There are about 325-million people in the United States that need at least 6,500 skateparks. Officals estimate that there are currently about 3,500 skateparks, and the nation needs 3,000 more. Nationally, officials said our skatepark needs are about 54% met, and the need-gap is 3,000 facilities.

Regionally, officials report seeing the greatest skatepark need-gap in the southeastern states: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee. There are similarities between national skatepark service coverage and obesity maps, and this region has struggled to meet its general recreational needs for a long time, so the lack of skateparks is no surprise.

For more information visit jamestownskateproducts.com.