Underground no more

Cape Girardeau's skaters, led by the Skate Park Association, seek respect, and a better place to skate.

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"It's an identity," says skateboarder Josh Dannenmueller. In the past three years, Dannenmueller and his friends in the Cape Girardeau Skate Park Association have tried to bring a real, legitimate skateboard community to Cape Girardeau. It hasn't been easy.

Born out of local skateboarders who were tired of harassment and prejudice, the grassroots organization has already helped fund and build Cape Girardeau's only skate park, on North Fountain Street next to the old Lorimier cemetery. Their new goal is to raise funds for a better skate park, one to rival those in nearby and smaller cities. Along with the group's Vice President Nathan Themm and Treasurer Adam Kerr, Dannenmueller sat down with OFF! to talk about the group's history, their plan for a new skate park and their upcoming fundraiser, a skate competition on June 10 open to skaters of all ages.

Skateboarder Josh Dannenmueller. (Kit Doyle)

"We want a skate park that's bigger and better than a small town. One that will bring in money and help the community. With the money we get from a larger skate park, we could adopt streets, help build monuments, or any number of things," says Dannenmueller.

"We've been trying to get the city to build a decent park for 10 years," he says. "We've done all this" -- meaning the organization, the current park, and the fundraising campaign for a new and better park -- "ourselves."

The Skate Park Association feels the current park is not up to quality.

"Paducah, Farmington, Columbia, even New Madrid has a better park than we do," says Dannenmueller. "We need to get one now while we still can. We've been getting donations, but it's just not enough. That's why we're having this big event."

Kyle Madden, 18, loses his board mid-jump at the Cape Girardeau Skate Park on Thursday, April 19, 2007. The Cape Girardeau native has been riding for about 4 years. (Kit Doyle)

The Skate Park Association is currently finding sponsors and selling tickets for the event, in which skaters will compete against each other in a variety of categories and at a variety of skill levels.

The event is another step in years of hard work for the skaters.

"I was so anti-establishment when I was younger," says Adam Kerr. "I loved street skating; it's the blood that flows through my veins."

"All of us at one time were skaters," he says. "We were all left wanting. Our community did not provide a progressive and safe atmosphere to skate. We were treated like criminals."

But instead of complaining, the skateboarders organized. And when the city found funds to build a small park, they went straight to the skateboarders.

"Parks and Recreation got the grant to build a park on North Lorimier, but they needed input to see what people wanted," says Nathan Themm. "So they asked a few local skaters, and we were the ones who showed up. We were there because we cared."

Now the Skate Park Association's goal is, through a bigger and better skate park, to diversify and expand the skate community and make Cape Girardeau a better place.

"There's a section of the community that's not being represented," says Themm. "It's all about community values, and right now Cape Girardeau doesn't value diversity and exercise. We want to help change that."

The competition will be at the skate park on June 10. Entry is $10 (members of the Skate Park Association receive a $3 discount), and skaters under 18 must have a parent present.