JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Reviving a piece of Jacksonville’s history.
That’s the goal of two young skaters, with the help of their mom of course.
Kona Skatepark in Arlington has been a staple in Jacksonville since the 1970s attracting big names like pro skater Tony Hawk to skate what’s known as the “Vert Ramp” as far back as the ‘80s.
GoFundMe: Donate to Kona Skatepark Vert Revival Fundraiser
The goal is to raise $60,000 to restore the Vert Ramp, similar to a half-pipe, that is now riddled with holes and surrounded by unsafe structures.
Skating is a passion that is only growing for the two young rippers behind the effort.
Greyson and Jackson Lane are just 7 and 9 years old, respectively.
“They drop in the extension, the roll in, which is terrifying,” mother Diana Lane said.
Greyson took on the vert ramp at just 5 years old.
If you’re wondering what a Vert Ramp is, it’s like a half pipe with vertical walls, making it ideal for aerial tricks. The one at Kona is 78 feet wide with 14 feet of flat bottom and standing 13 feet tall.
Now, it’s seen better days.
“There weren’t holes. It was definitely rideable when they were younger, there weren’t pieces coming apart. But there’s so much rain and the sun beats down on it. It only has so much of a shelf life,” Lane said.
Kona is known as the “World’s Oldest Skatepark” and the ramp was even featured in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater video game.
The first Vert Ramp was built in 1980. The one standing now was constructed in 2001, so, it’s about time for an update.
“It’s one of their favorite places to skate because there’s so many options. There’s this iconic snake run that they absolutely love and fly down. There are a few mini-ramp options. And then there used to be this beautiful vert ramp that we are trying to raise money to fix right now,” Lane said.
A few months ago, Diana made a plan to help restore the Vert Ramp and had a contractor come out to get an estimate on how much money it would take to rebuild.
“So we’re looking at least $60,000 for the contractor and for materials. If we can’t raise enough, we might have the skate community come out and do a lot of the hard work ourselves,” she said.
Right now, Diana’s fundraiser is about a quarter of the way to its goal.
The donations have tiers so the more you donate, the more you get. A big enough donation will get you a lifetime membership at Kona and your name or business’s name on the vert ramp.
“I would like to see vert back in Jacksonville. Like I said, it’s a very exclusive sport, division of skateboarding right now. We have street skateboarding.” Lane said. “The only skateboarding we don’t have to offer is vert right now in Jacksonville. So I really want to see that comeback. And, honestly, they love to fly and you can’t fly anywhere else like you can at a vert ramp.”