Text by David Read, photography by Bearnard Bridges. First published in Manual #49, March 2013. Back in 2000 Premium Skate Park Designs crafted what could be the world’s smallest three-leaf clover bowl at Hooten Reserve. Fast-forward to 2012 and a makeover has just been completed. A… More ›
Text and photography by Jake Mein. First published in Manual #49, March 2013. I bet the small Canterbury Plains town of Leeston never popped up when discussing possible spots to hit. Well, it might now. Thanks to Jason Parkes of Premium Skate Designs, this sleepy little… More ›
Text by Gavin Wharekawa, photography by Bear Bridges First published in Manual #48, December 2012. Located on the edge of Auckland’s Manukau Harbour is the newly revamped Mangere Bridge Skate Park. The park has been transformed from a humble bank and pyramid to a fully-fledged… More ›
Plantation Reserve Skate Park, Rongotai, Welllington Photography by David Read First published in Manual #47, September 2012. The Central Eastern suburbs of Wellington have finally got themselves a little slice of skate-turf to covet. The small but super fun Plantation Reserve spot features a Euro-inspired… More ›
Text and photography by David Read First published in Manual #35, September 2009. A few issues back we ran an article, a little rant in fact, that touched on the state of central Auckland’s skate parks, and lack thereof. Since then, and after a few… More ›
Text by Nicholas Bennett, photography by Jake Darwen First published in Manual #44, December 2011. I always enjoy going back to Auckland. I get to eat Wendy’s and Dunkin’ Donuts—two of the things I miss most now I’m living in Wellington—and I also get to check out… More ›
Photography by Jake Mein First published in Manual #46, June 2012. Warning: If you ride a scooter, this park sucks! It is your worst nightmare and you are a skateboarder’s number one enemy. The newly formed ‘Bond Street Hooligans’ will destroy you. Yes, that is… More ›
Text and photography by David Read First published in Manual #42, June 2011. You could say this Park Ranger on Mangawhai Skate Park is a little premature, but due to the scale of this project we could easily create three or four installments, so I… More ›
Text by David Read, photography by Jake Darwen First published in Manual #40, December 2010. Barry Curtis Skate Park was a long time in the making. Locals Owen Williams, Mark Findlay and Tim Guy (amongst others) have been rallying support, meeting with the council and… More ›
Photography by Jake Mein First published in Manual #39, September 2010. Just like its namesake volcano, Rangitoto Reserve (AKA Upland Road) bowl has lain dormant for many years. The old bowl had been battered by the weather and although its slopes were rugged as an… More ›
Photography by Jake Mein First published in Manual #39, September 2010. When one becomes old and nearing death, memories and daydreams of former feats are sometimes not enough. The temptation to ride can be overwhelming. You arrive at the park with the illusion that you… More ›
Text by Campbell Johnson, photography by Jake Mein First published in Manual #36, December 2009. There is a lot of history and nostalgia attached to Thomson Park and I’m not even going to pretend to know anything about it. I’m just saying, you know, for… More ›
Text and photography by David Read First published in Manual #34, June 2009. Sometimes the setting of a park can be as important as how it functions. Pukerua Bay’s new skate park, which has replaced the old ’70s park that was arguably New Zealand’s (if not… More ›
Text and photography by David Read First published in Manual #33, March 2009. Hawera is one of those sizable yet sleepy towns that you pass through while en route to somewhere else. The memories of places like this often amount to not much more than… More ›
Remediation work started on the Victoria Park Skate Park on February 15th with the moveable benches being taken away to have metal edges retrofitted to them. The on-site coping work commenced on the 20th of Febuary and will be carried out in four areas, one… More ›
For many years Raglan has been firmly on the radar, famous for serving cups of tea to the surf culture in Manu Bay’s green room. Now the masses that migrate west for the summer have something new to write home about. Postcards are going to… More ›