The Falcon - Huntington WV

"Falcon was the first skatepark in Huntington, West Virginia. In the beginning, it was a pre-fab skatepark. The guy who owned it didn’t listen to anything we, as skateboarders, had to say. We were just kids. His attitude was, “I know better. I just want it to be challenging for you guys.” So they poured a miniature halfpipe that went downhill at a 25-degree angle. They also created this quarter of an acre freestyle area with nothing skateable on it. You had to be a really good skater to even be able to ride the place. So, no one could ever learn how to skateboard at Falcon skatepark. We went there anytime we could, though, until we discovered something better, which was Apple Skatepark in Columbus, Ohio. At Apple, you could actually ride across something and not gain 30 mph, you know, unlike Falcon, where you careened downhill and tried to save your own life by the end. Falcon was a miserable place, but it was a happening spot. One of the coolest things about Falcon was that I made some of the best friends of my life there, and they’re still my best friends 35-40 years later. And even when I went home to visit, I always had to skate Falcon, even though it was shitty. "

The Falcon was buried in the 80s, but two sections remained skateable until 2004.