ASHWAUBENON, Wis. — Professional skateboarder Dakota White sure can please a young crowd. White, who grew up near Hayward, recently awed a group of young onlookers with a few tricks at the Green Bay Action Sports Organization (GBASO) indoor skate park.
And he did it with his new signature skateboard.
"My pro board that came out in the last couple of months. We just started getting them in stock here, which is pretty rad," said White,
The 20,000 square-foot indoor skate park in Ashwaubenon, is the home of GBASO a nonprofit organization. Their stated mission is to 'develop our youth’s social, physical, and leadership skills by partnering with the community to provide access to action sports and educational opportunities.'
“I think skateboarding is one of the best things for our youth. It’s a great outlet. It’s a creative outlet, and it teaches you to handle your fear responses and to work through them," explained White. "It’s awesome. I can’t imagine my life without it.”
GBASO runs an onboard program to help expose youth in the area to the sport. On Wednesdays, a school bus pulls up and drops off kids who are interested in learning about skating.
GBASO staff helps onboard members build their own skateboards from scratch.
"Every kid comes in and gets a complete skateboard setup. They get a helmet, and they get instruction. It doesn’t matter if they tried skateboarding before, or if they’re brand new to it. Everyone gets to start on the same playing field," said White.
Amongst the massive ramps and rails, the park also includes an area for beginners. Nine-year-old Aden Osborn-Ford is new to the sport and felt a sense of accomplishment when White taught him how to drop into a ramp.
"It felt really good. The skatepark motivated me to do more stuff. I love this skatepark,” said Osborn-Ford.
GBASO's Director of Youth Development, Eric Peters, believes in the power of skating regardless of age. He picked up the sport seven years ago when his son expressed interest.
“My son dealt with anxiety, and six months into him being on a skateboard, that almost completely diminished," said Peters. "A lot of the borders that get put up in society are just kind of taken down here."
In 2022, GBASO faced an uncertain future. Their former landlord sold the building they rented. The new owner had other plans for the space and the group needed to vacate. It took a year and a half to open their new facility.
"It was a blessing in disguise," said Peters.
The larger space allowed the group to expand the opportunities for skaters.
"The ramp and the bowl, those are two main pieces we built the park around. We wanted to have something that would flow together," said Peters.
Peters said they don't plan on moving again anytime soon. GBASO locked themselves into a 15-year lease at their current location, which should help provide stability for their skaters.
“A lot of kids that come here don’t necessarily have friend groups that they fit into at school. We see a lot of relationships that are built and grow here," said Peters.
GBASO understands that not all kids fit into traditional sports or activities.
"We have so many kids that come from really rough backgrounds," said White. "This is the one thing that they have that they can kind of work through some of that, maybe aggression or anger or even fear a lot of times.”
Another program, No One Left Out, gives kids from all economic backgrounds a chance to learn and grow.
We have a form that we have families fill out. It’s a no-questions-asked form," explained Peters. "They just pay us what they can per month, and they’re able to come, unlimited.”
The young skaters learn a few life lessons like getting up after a fall and overcoming their fears.
“Taking a kid that looks at a ramp and goes, 'No way am I going down that. That ain’t happening,' and by the end of the day to see them going down that ramp grinning from ear to ear, completely stoked on it, and doing it safely," said White. "If you can take that small life lesson and bring it to other places, it’s a complete game changer.”
From novice to pro, the park offers challenges and camaraderie for those willing to try.