Caretakers compare riding on the Memorial to riding on a gravestone
August 19, 2006 – The Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Penn’s Landing honors more than 600 Philadelphians who were killed in the Vietnam War. It is understandably distressing then, that skate boarders have damaged parts of the memorial.
Vietnam Veteran Terry Williamson and Jim Moran surveyed the chipped granite and other damage at the Philadelphia Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial
“You can see the oil of the skateboarders.”
They blame skateboarders and bike riders. They say riding on the Memorial is like riding on a gravestone. Jim Moran’s brother Bernard died in the Vietnam War. For him, this is sacred ground.
Jim Moran\Vietnam Veterans Memorial: “I can’t understand why they’d want to come here and ruin the memorial. When they see the flags, the flowers, and the wreaths, and the names.”
Terry Williamson\Vietnam Veterans Memorial: “They come down because the granite’s good to ride on without thinking about the consequences for people who really care about this memorial.”
Terry Williamson is the President of the Memorial’s fund.
Williamson: “We’ve estimated that replacing the granite from skateboarders is probably $50,000 or so.”
Ryan Sherman and Dave Sullivan say the memorial should be off limits to bike riders like themselves and skateboarders, but blame the problem on a lack of skate and bike parks in the City.
Williamson says Police do the best they can to patrol the memorial, but can’t watch it 24/7. A fundraising drive is underway to repair the site, and put in controls so skateboards and bikers won’t ride on it.
This was on ABC news last night…. Philadelphia is getting pretty fucking sick of us…..
how about they eat my ass
How about they provide some decent street skating for us first? Then we’ll talk.
i can say i never skated that spot ever. one, those ledges are the worst in the philadelphia area. two, it is brick ground with the most eneven surface. three, if i wanted to, cecil has a better ledge with just as shitty ground as this. four, it is a memorial. five, i wish that these people see that bikes cause more damage then a skateboard hands down.. open your eyes. we can’t even ride on that ground, you need 70mm wheels, and everyone is to tech to ride those. pegs, and rubber tires is more like it….
Ki, stop commenting on you’re own posts, JUST WRITYE WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY IN THE POST!
dont let false patriotism stop you from shredding….Vietnam should have never happened in the first place. Just look at the situation now, AMERICA is fucked. I dont feel sorry for dead military. They arent fighting for our freedom, like they want you to believe. They are fighting to colonize the world in the name of the USA. So i say, lets fucking skate that shit….PEOPLE get too fucking offensive! BOO HOO…blame the government for the dead, not the skaters for skating marble and granite. its all just a chickenbone crapshoot…..
won’t touch that post…
i just realized the harshness of that comment…..i need to chill!
First off.. Haveboard is officially ban from commenting on any of my posts… Second….. that spot sucks… No…scratch that.. IT REALLY SUCKS! Third… Philadelphia is running out of spots… We new a new bridge spot… pronto! (sent from my phone again…. i know Haveboard loves it when i tell people that)
Ki, shut up or I’ll kick you out of my little club here! I skated downtown on friday night and we hit up a BUNCH OF SPOTS! Not this place, though. Ki’s phone is a piece of crap. I’m gonna block it’s IP from commenting if you keep it up!
my phone is off the charts son!!! haveboard, you know i love you…… i’ll send you a text message later from it and tell you so.
Went to court for skateing out front of this place.Case was thrown out because I’ve taken some college classes.Whats up with the riverpark?Are the builders afraid of the CHUDpedophile population?Haven’t the shoe companies reaped enough from us to kick in for it?
I think, as a person becomes more invested in their community, that they will eventually begin the path to respect by taking the first steps toward it. As opposed, naturally, to insisting upon soiling one’s own pants until one is treated as a peer along with those who have been toilet trained.
it’s the city’s own fault for rennovating rat curbs. they shoulda just left it as it was. kids are just trying to skate dammit.
I learned my first lipslide pop out on rat curbs…..I felt like a million buckets of chicken.