ESPN, pro biker eye Springfield

"Skate or die" is alive and well in Springfield. Well, alive enough to attract the attention of a professional BMX stunt biker, plus nearly 600 Springfield skateboarders, in-line skaters and bikers per week.

The Springfield Skate Park, co-sponsored by the Springfield-Greene County Park Board, opened Jan. 11 at 945 W. Meadowmere, behind Parkview High School's JFK Stadium.

The 17,500-square-foot, $700,000 facility, which was funded and constructed through area donations, may even be a stop on an ESPN-aired tour this year.

Pro biker and five-time X-Game medalist Dennis McCoy, who already has made three appearances at the Skate Park, will be featured on ESPN and is pushing for a stop in Springfield.

"I heard about (the Springfield Skate Park) through some friends ... checked out some photos of it on the Web site and decided to make a trip down to see it," said McCoy, a 16-year pro. "I didn't really expect to be thrilled to death with the place like it turned out. It's a really cool setup."

"This most likely is going to be one of the demo stops," he said, on the tour that will be featured on ESPN. McCoy said a date has not yet been selected and the details are still being worked out.

Since opening, the park and its association have accumulated 650 members.

According to Annette Weatherman, president of the nonprofit Springfield Skate Park Association and creator of the park, a large portion of those members occupy the facility regularly.

"We are absolutely packed on Saturdays with riders," Weatherman said. "We have between 225 and 250 through here on Saturdays."

The numbers and success have far exceeded what she expected when the idea for the park formed in 1997 in response to her son's desire to skateboard.

"My son and I would be traveling to other cities that had parks," she said. "We'd get on the plane for California, pack his skateboard, and drive up and down the coast going to parks."

Four and a half years later, extreme-sports enthusiasts are flocking to the Springfield Skate Park.

But Weatherman is quick to point out that it wasn't easy.

"We've been fund raising for four and a half years," Weatherman said.

The first plan of action back in 1997, she said, was the distribution of fliers and letters. Then they began holding meetings with members who showed strong interest in building the park.

"We put on demos and held various community events," she added, all to raise consciousness about the park.

But it was the support from the Springfield-Greene County Park Board that really got the ball rolling.

"Dan Kinney of the park board immediately recognized the need," Weatherman said. "He was in favor of the project right from the beginning."

Kinney, executive director of the park board, said he and the board wanted to be a part of the park because Springfield didn't have a facility to offer the kids.

"Extreme sports, I think, play just as vital a role (as other sports) in filling out the big picture of recreation in our community," Kinney said. "We believe in what they're doing, and it's been a total community accomplishment."

This support led to a positive park board vote to become co-sponsor of the park, which meant providing the land for the building.

Then came the toughest part of the project: funding the construction costs.

Weatherman said the money for construction of the park, which was built by Wirt Construction Co. Inc., was raised through door-to-door campaigns, letter drives and skating demos.

"A big portion of (the $700,000) was in-kind donations," she said, which amounted to about half the cost. The largest single donation, she said, was $190,000 from an anonymous source.

Other donors included the Community Foundation of the Ozarks, $25,000; the Musgrave Foundation, $20,000; the Sertoma Club of the Ozarks, $5,000; the Harry Cooper Foundation, $5,000; the Jane and Ken Meyer Foundation, $5,000; and the Visiting Nurses Association, $4,300.

Also, Wal-Mart held a fund-raising drive that raised $3,500, an amount that Wal-Mart matched. Coca-Cola and Sobe, both sponsors of the park, provided grants that paid for the ramps.

"It worked out well, but it was never easy," Weatherman said, in retrospect. "Skateboarding was never a popular cause here in town among the businessmen. It was difficult to get them to recognize the need."

The park regularly has seven different sessions a week, ranging from four hours to seven hours and each accommodating up to 70 people. There is a beginners-only session every Saturday morning and two sessions, Sunday and Wednesday nights, are strictly for bike riding.