Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook tweeted this picture of a brand new pair of Air Jordan III “True Blue” basketball shoes he had customized into roller skates. Westbrook joins the likes of Celtics point gurard Rajon Rondo and boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr who have also shown a love of roller skating. Westbrook and the Thunder are currently having a stellar year in the NBA with Oklahoma sitting at the top of the western conferance. Looks like Westbrook is benefiting from the added sense of balance and coordination roller skating provides. Russell is averaging nearly 19 ppg and 5 assists per game this season. Looks like he may take the title for top ballers who skate this year.
Angela and Vanessa Simmons hosted a roller skate party for charity last night at the Moonlight Rollerway in Glendale, California. The event which was titled “An Ncredible Skate Party” benefited Toys 4 Tots. There were performances by Colette Carr and Jessica Jarrell. Actor Nick Cannon was also in attendance
Celebrity rappers Ludacris and Big Boi held a charity roller skate to end hunger in Atlanta, Georgia on November 23, 2011. The 2011 Roll Over Hunger Charity and Skate Jam was also supported by singer Ciara and organized by DeVyne Stephens for his non-profit DeVyne Intervention charity. The event was hosted at Cascade Family Skate Center.
Also supporting the effort was Polow da Don, DJ Toomp, NBA player Josh Smith and actress Demetria McKinney. Proceeds from the event went to Hosea Feed the Hungry Foundation Holiday Dinner Program. Hosea provides meals to Atlanta’s homeless.
30 Years in the making, Roller Skating Reunion WHERE: Discovery Centre Outdoor Rink in Hamilton WHEN: Saturday, October 01, 2011 TIME: 12pm – 2am
30 Years in the making, Roller Skating Reunion. Saturday October 1, 2011. Roller Skating Reunion. All former and current roller skaters in the Hamilton area. Roller World, Roundabout, Thunderbird, Saints, Roller Gardens.
The venue for our Roller Skating Reunion is the outdoor rink at the Discovery center in Hamilton. On the Harbourfront by Williams Pub. 47 Discovery Drive Hamilton, Ontario.
Event will start at the Outdoor rink from 12:00noon until 2:00AM. We have a licensed bar in the Discovery center as an indoor venue with patio on the waterfront. We are going to have some old school funk playing by the outdoor rink and people can get together with old friend on a roll or on a chair rink side. Bring your family and plan your picnic on the waterfront. The restaurant at the Williams Pub will be open and there will also be a snack bar open rink side.
Alicia Keys threw her husband Swizz Beatz a surprise birthday party on roller skates at the High line Outdoor roller skating rink in NYC on Monday September 12th. Swizz turned 33. Party goers included Gayle King, Carmelo Anthony and Lala Vasquez. Swizz gave Alicia a shiny new Lotus sports car as a gift. Looks like they had a great time.
Well I’m back and my trip to Atlanta was even better than I expected it to be. It’s nice to roll in a city every now and again with so many rinks. Having skated in the Toronto area for so many years with only one “true” roller rink, it’s nice to have a variety every now and again. It brings back memories of the late 70′s when roller skating was in it’s hey day and there were rinks everywhere in Toronto.
I still love the drive down to Atlanta even though it takes me nearly 24 hours between driving and resting to get there. One day I’m going to have to bring another driver along but for now I’m enjoying every minute of the drive. I couldn’t stay for Sk8-A-thon this year but being there for an entire week before the actual event gave me a chance to get in to the spirit of things. I even got to meet Joi at the Golden Glide selling tickets for Sk8-A-Thon and I could tell that this year is going to be another great event. Thanks for the photo Joi.
Golden Glide on a Friday night didn’t disappoint and I managed to catch a Sunday session there as well. I like the Glide, I’ve been there maybe three of four times and it’s always had a good atmosphere. I feel like something about the place was just made for adults. No fuss, no muss, just put on your skates and enjoy. I like that. It’s rare now a days that I get a chance to catch a session in the states and Friday nights at the Glide are just the ticket to fill that void.
I also managed to catch a family skate at Cascade and my son had a great time at his first session at that rink. It seems like the little ones are taking to the skating at an even earlier age because I saw a few kids that couldn’t have been older than 3 or 4 but they were already very good skaters. For all of you living in Atlanta, don’t take your skating for granted some of us wish we had so many options.
I had a great week in Atlanta relaxing and enjoying the atmosphere and I even managed to make it around without a GPS (a must for Atlanta). The shopping in Atlanta is second to none. For all of you on your way to Sk8-A-Thon enjoy your trip. I know this will be one of the best years ever.
Roller Funk
Friday Night at the Golden Glide in Atlanta August 26, 2011
“Roller Dreams” is a documentary film about the Venice beach roller skating scene. The film which is nearing completion goes back to the late 70′s to document the people and culture who made roller skating at Venice beach so popular. If you’d like to make a donation to help complete this film follow the link here
Just Jared Jr reported that singer Jessica Jarrell who toured with Justin Bieber, celebrated her sweet 16th birthday with a roller skating party in California. The event was held at Moonlight Rollerway in Glendale, California this past January. Just Jared Jr reported:
The “Almost Love” singer celebrated with Cody Simpson, his sister Alli, Madison Pettis, Leon Thomas, Diggy Simmons, Aaron Fresh, Justin Martin and many more! Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez also came to the party!
