The Snake Run, also known as the Albany Snake Run, Albany Skate Track and Hare Street Skate Park, is a skatepark in Albany, Western Australia.[1] The park is the oldest community funded skatepark in Australia and the second oldest in the world.[2][3]
| Snake Run | |
|---|---|
 A drone shot taken in 2023 with the start of the Snake Run in the bottom left | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Skatepark |
| Location | Albany, Western Australia |
| Coordinates | 35°01′10.2″S 117°53′52.3″E / 35.019500°S 117.897861°E |
| Type | State Registered Place |
| Designated | 17 May 2016 |
| Reference no. | 1972 |
The impetus for a dedicated skatepark came following the death of a skateboarder in Albany's main street in the mid-1970s.[4] In 1975 a group of students from Albany Senior High School formed a committee with the idea of building a skatepark. The group started fundraising and soon accumulated A$3,000. The Albany Town Council donated 3 acres (1 ha) of land that was once a gravel quarry and donated A$10,000 to the project.[5]
The track was opened in February 1976 by the American skateboarder Russ Howell.[5][6]
The run is made from concrete and is 140 metres (459 ft) in length running downhill.[4] The track is curved downward and lipped with a wall on first turn with lower rises on the next two turns and finishing with a drained bowl at the end.
The park was heritage listed in 2016, making it one of the only three skateparks in the world that have heritage status.[3][4]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Albany Skate Track". Retrieved 14 February 2016.
- ^ "The Snake Run Project". Perth International Arts Festival. Archived from the original on 8 April 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
- ^ a b Kendall O'Connor (12 February 2016). "Snake Run skate park in Albany WA gets heritage listing". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
- ^ a b c Ken Acott (12 February 2016). "Skate park makes heritage history". The West Australian. Yahoo7. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
- ^ a b "The Snake Run, Hare Street". Albany Gateway. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
- ^ Tim Edmunds (4 December 2015). "Skating legend back at Snake Run". Albany Advertiser. Yahoo7. Retrieved 14 February 2016.