Lots of ting.
At the end of the path is the back of the wallride…
New shuttering!
Blair and Woody stopped by while I was onsite today, so we all went round to check it out.
Woody smells VERT.
Blair in Wallos Jr. for scale.
Coping capers
Looking a bit bigger with people in it?
lasttime you’ll ever see this particular volume of the universe empty ofconcrete. 200mm high manual pad to 750mm high drop. see plans.
Thoughts like trees.
I couldn’t get up to the site before the guys left today (saturday)so the photos aren’t the juiciest. All taken from outside the fence.
Still… progress to be seen:
Thefrost has been hitting hard these past few days, but it’s good to seesome of the undersurface / rebar continuing to be slappedon.
Iam assuming that what is under that sheeting is more under-surface.That covering will undoubtedly be to keep the frost and rain off it.
Hey,there’s the flat block/ledge/pad whatever you want to call it.Shuttered up and ready to pour. I don’t think the rebar is in, but Ihave put it on the progress map as such. Close enuff.
Here’s another view of it. Can’t see any rebar in there yet. Here’s the plans for those blocks:
There will be about 2m in between them… lack of room/money etc. 🙁
There’s the scaff for building the next layer of the wallride up.
Letshope some vandal falls off it and gets skewered. Maybe it’ll keep theothers away. They pushed the big yellow compressor off theplatform into this bit a couple weeks ago; chipped the concrete,damaged the undersurface and spilt diesel and oil everywhere (on ournew concrete!)
Sorry; blurry photo. You can just see in the murk, that they have poured the first layer of the curved portion of the wallride
Another equally bad shot.
Thewallride, just to remind you, is going to be another 600mm higher thanthe top of that rebar is showing right now. About level with the top ofthose scaffold poles.
Dunno why I put this in. Doesn’t really say anything.
Minor additions to map.
Here you go Traer! ( and everyone else 🙂 )
The wallride shuttering apparently survived the weekend’s intruders.
You won’t see this view again many times.
It’snot meshed yet, but I put it on the progress map as ’ready to pour.’It’ll get done in the next day or two. It’s not a very weatherinfluenced job.
You can see the transition guide in use, in the back there.
Fleshing out for sure.
Standing at what will be the the back of the platform for the bowl. Looks tighter than it is.
Getting there slowly but surely.
Weather really starting to get cold… end of this week forecast to be a lot worse. Not good for pouring concrete.
******************************************************
We’re gonna be lacking benches and stuff, for that topslab o’crete.
So if anyone wants to start up a collection or do fundraising-band-nights etc… we can buy some REALLY nice, proper concrete benches, to have all toourselves. :0
No Skatestoppers, Complaining Shoppers, or Irate Coppers.
Yes yesy’all. “Sorry, these benches are only for skating on.” 🙂
1 pre-rounded perfect edged, shiny smooth, 2m long,marble-like bench.
Yep, I’m afraid thats really what they cost. Every bench cost alot. Even the cheapy-looking metal ones that say “designed for wheeledsports.”
I will post photos of a variety of good’uns to choose from, eventually. I’ve got official catalogues for them. Nae messing about.
Instant plaza; justadd money.
******************************************************
Lots of images today.
I apologise to those with slower ?tinterweb connections.
Photo-stitching makes this look a bit warpified. Bentificated.
“Helloooo precious!” An ittybitty bit o’new concrete, nestling coyishly, in the Autumn leaves.
(I really should get out of the house more)
These ladder-leaf things are the templates for the gravel sub-base.
rubbish efffort stitch-wise, but still worth looking at.
Some of the shuttering up… I am trying not to think about the vandals.
This makes me shake my head in fear of the Turd-Army. Any fancy a bet as to whether it lasts the weekend’s vandals or not?
More work on Monday for the joiner if it gets trashed. Another day lost for all of us. Let’s cross our fingers eh?
On the left, you can see that they are starting to build up the bank-hip, with subsoil they are scooping out of the northern side of the park.
The shoulders.
Our wee homage to ’Wallos’. As yet skeletal.
There is a lot more ’sweetening,’ at this hip. In fact it’s almost a full blown transition. Except it ain’t.
This illustrates that they are concentrating on raising the level of this area, to build the final platform for the rectangular bowl . Otherwise, a very boring photo of a compressor in a hole.
Aloha,
Stoked! I can update the Progress Map again today.
I knew it would be worth going up to see it!
Under that plastic is the new concrete, poured yesterday. Hard enough to walk on evidently.
There’s the other new bit.
Prepping the other side of Wallos for undersurfacing.
The wallride bowled corner getting sorted.
Even when all that mesh is covered with concrete, there is still another bit to go on top…
How cool would it be to make the curve out of toughened glass…? 🙂
peas
Lots of photos today. I wish I could make them bigger! I have kept them crunched down a bit to save downloading time.
The first of the verticals!
WhenI walked up to the fence and saw these, I cheesily admit that the firstthing that came into my head was that song by Blur(?) that ’they’ useall the time on those bad ’alternative sport / adventure’ shows on TV:wot goes: “Whoo-hoo! A-GA-FEE-LA-A-BOBO! Whoo-Hoo!” (repeat untilbored)
🙂 I know those aren’t the real lyrics but thats what it sounds like.
Anyway,I got stoked… in spite of that.
Closer.
So, almost finished, notice the channels cut out of wall. When the transition goes in, it’ll be done.
Theidea is: you carve up the transition and then catch your front wheelsin that ledge. Then you fly sideways and land your whole body onthose spikes sticking up in the ’bowled’ corner.
Pretty COOL huh!
Just kidding. I think you might have guessed that.
The channels are to ensure enough concrete thickness where thetransition goes vertical against the wall. No thin pinging/flaking’crete.
I must say; this bit of the park looks like the imprint of someone who sat in moist sand. A sort buttock-cast.
Not to worry.
Noticethe guys working on the rebar, behind the curve of the wall. That’s thejoiner, watching, who will be putting together that curved shuttersoon.
Mmm, there’s that song again in my head.
Can you hear it when you look at this photo?
“Whoo-Hoo! Wagga-Baga-Na-Lu-Lu!” etc.
I love the latest bit’omesh. All curvy and stuff.
This means the only bit of flat-work left to mesh and shutter is the platform around theSquare Bowl! Then it’s all ’downhill’ as they say.
Slightly better detail, despite the JPG crunch.
Stop looking at his bum. Look at the park.
I have run out of witty comments.
Whooo-hooo!
This ’Keyhole’ is going to be a bit gnarlier that I had imagined.
It’ll be interesting anyway. Remember; this is basically a curvedbank, not a transition. Variably 20 – 40 degrees, with a 500mmsweetener at the bottom. It hope it will be good for practicingflip-tricks; because it’s a flat face. Then you can take them to theminiramp where the transition makes them trickier to land.
Insert lame joke about spiderman here.
They (Clachan)reckon if the weather holds they will be increasing the speed ofconstruction. In the last month, we’ve had 16 days of rain.
*Euan’s question: ’Will this site be maintained once the park is up and running?’
Answer:’Dunno.’ Probably to a certain extent. Depends what people want from thesite after it is finished being a construction update thang.
***A big DundeeConcrete shout out to ’The Mighty Goosh.’ Currentlyrecovering from knee surgery. Get better soon. But not too soon,because the park won’t be ready, dude. ***
“AGGA-BAGA-NA-NU-NU! WHOOHOO!”
I don’t have that single or album, but I have the feelling I will never want to, now.
Rick here with a few shots. It was very wet day today but I quickly grabbed a few shots in between the pouring rain (again!) on my way to work. The pictures are a wee bit ropey as they were taken with my phone and it was pouring down so I was taking them as fast as possible to avoid drowning my phone!
Overview from the park.
A closer view of the undersurface, there’s mesh on top of that now too.
View of the corner, more structure up now so I guess they must be going to pour concrete in there, if it ever stops raining. ;(
~Rick
Stoked… there’s the first bit’o undersurface.
Beforeanyone (attention: bikers*) thinks they can go and sneakilysession the place… that surface is thin, and rough as hell. There arespikes of rebar sticking out every foot, and it does NOT meet the flatbottom. So you will end up damaging yourself, as well as the park.
__________________________________________
Rubbish photo below, sorry. It was geting dark, hence the blur. You can just aboutsee the rebar sticking up. It’s what the plastic is snagged onto.
closer:
Those things ain’t twigs.
The first of the shutters going up to make the wallride.
Re: toilet provision and lights.
There is a RUMOUR, thatthe council are thinking of re-jigging another bit in Dudhope Park intoa ’multi-use sports area,’ whatever that means. I would guess thatwould also mean some funding going into things like toilets etc. As fortiming with the skatepark; I doubt it will happen in the next year ortwo. Lights… who knows.
Honestly, If we had more money there would definitely be moreconcrete and most probably lights. I am frankly embarrased by the lackof STUFF round the edge of the park; blocks, rails, banks etc.
That ’bite’ taken out of the southern portion still keeps me awakeat night. Another 10-20k and we could have had an amazing mini-plazawhere there is now going to be just grass. sigh….
*In response to a recent comment: I say ’bikers’ because they werethe last people as reported to me having been into the site and ridingaround (judging by the tracks left.) Also the tempting possibility ofriding what LOOKS fine for large wheels, but in fact is still unsafe.
No offense.
To be honest, I don’t think any semi-respectable bmxer would want towreck their bike, or themselves on such gnarly terrain. I’m actuallyworried about the wee brats who will inevitably break in and give it ago. But then they probably won’t be reading this, wouldn’t listen anyway,and thus, this is apointless rant by yours truly. 🙂
If you DO see any idiots impaledon the rebar, please call an ambulance, as per normal. And possiblyClachan;to tell them to bring some disinfectant.
Let us roll on.
PS: Check the article on Scotland in the new Thrasher!!!
’They’ wanted to talk about the construction of the wallride/wave thang, so I went up totalk build-talk. It’s a difficult thing to build in certain,constrictive ways, but I think we have it sorted as good as.
I couldn’t pretend to actually be a builder, but I do know what we need to happen…at one point the guy started repeatedly banging his head against the desk…is that a bad sign?
Just kidding. btw
Hmmm, When taking this photo, I was standing down there,camera at eye level. I’m only about 5’8″, so thats gonna be a prettychunky hip, if I’m not mistaken.
I can’t wait to see Stu Graham hauling his gorilla booty over that thing.
This, of course, is from the other way. In the previous photo I was sort of under the van.
Not literally. I’ll be XXXXXXXXXX’d if I’m gonna get my new £5 fleece dirty for a fool thing like that.
It was over by that drain up to the right. no not thatone, the other one, up. Yeah I know It’s just a wee dot. sorry, webresolution, it’s a drain.
Bored yet?
MMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH.
Or ’rebar,’ if you like.
And proof that the guys were getting on with the job, in the sunshine.
More proof.
Me on lip of bowl, not at correct/width height yet.
Patience.
Speaking of which, there is now way this puppy is getting built by the end of November. Is there?
No pessimism here, just realism at the way the weather clamps down on crete pouring. But, better done well than rushed, eh?
Other end of new mesh, the top of wallos.
What do you all say to the idea of Tshirts?
Dundeeconcrete could get them printed up and and sell them for Lights-Money….?
Any takers?
We are also thinking of setting up a paypal account, for donations. Who knows.
Ifanyone out there wants to make something happen ( a gig night etc.)then go for it. Perhaps giving the money to SWAV is the best option inthe short term.
Let us know and we will help advertise ting.
Stay tuned.
More pour.
Been so wet recently, didn’t know if it would happen.
Wheee! The newest flat-bottom.
(Or wee! it’s raining)
More mesh too. Dunno what to call this area.
Here’s the same angle in model-speak:
A handy progress map :
Crude but effective.
Uh-huh…
hmmm…..
well…. there’s SOME movement at the site, a little, sho nuff.
Mesh and shuttering laid for the flat-bottom of the top section.
I’m sure glad he’s watching!
… in case anything sneaks up on the guys doing the work.
TUNE IN NEXT WEEK!!!!!!!!
WHEN THAT GUY SAYS:
………..(please insert the suspense music here)
Ooooooooooooooooooohhhhhh GOLLY!
I can’t WAIT!
I’m gonna make my OWN POPCORN to eat while I watch the NEXT episode! hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!?
The other side of our ’Wallos’ version, has been raised and compacted. levels looking good.
Sawthese mysterious hieroglyphs on one of the shutters near the fence. Ilike the digger, and the people in the trees, but I have the feelingthat the worried guy with glasses,on the left, is meant to be me!
Am quite calm about it all actually.
Rubbish photo, but here’s the newly re-poured wallride foundation.
Thetop bowl (for lack of better term) has had it’s flat-area compacted andleveled, you can see the drain hole there. Notice the new level in themiddle of photo.
slowly but surely.
OK y’all, I’m back.
Went up to the site today, and was told that because of all the rain,the ground is too sodden to pour concrete on, nevermind actuallypouring it IN the rain.
Also: the mesh has been removed becausethe curved bit of the wall -ride foundation moved as it was setting,causing it to be a bit out of line. So they are redoing it. Nae bother.
ATTENTION: please spread the word that going into the site andskating / biking on it is VERY UNCOOL. The shuttering for theconcrete (discussed in previous pages) is being damaged by people usingthem as ramps. THEY ARE THIN AND NOT BUILT FOR THAT.
WAIT UNTIL THE PARK IS DONE!!
THEMORE DAMAGE AND DISRUPTION CAUSED THE SITE, THE LONGER IT WILL TAKE TOCOMPLETE. THE LONGER IT TAKES TO COMPLETE, THE MORE CHANCE WE WILLSUFFER FROST DAMAGE AND HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL NEXT SPRING TO FINISH IT =IF THE COLD WEATHER SETS IN BEFORE THE POURING ISFINISHED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If it’s YOU: DON’T BE AN ARSE. YOU ARE MESSING IT UP FOR YOURSELF AND EVERYONE ELSE.
If you know that your pals are sneaking in, tell them NOT TO, and WHY.
As soon as the first transition goes in, there will be a night guard to keep watch.
Thanks, from everyone who actually wants this thing to get built.
Daryl is away for a few days so he asked me to take a few pictures in his absence, so here’s a few pictures of what’s been happening. The only thing I really noticed different today is that they seem to have removed some of the metal mesh from the corner for some reason so I’m not sure what’s been going on there.
View of the park coming from the West.
View of the park from up above.
View from the East corner.
Closeup of the corner, you can see that some of the mesh has been removed so there must have been some kind of problem there.
That’s it for today, Daryl is back today so I’m sure he’ll find out what’s been going on.
All is well, the Mystery Objects, were, as I suspected (yes, thankyou Nick) concrete shuttering for the wall ride. And the radius size ofthem IS in fact 1600mm. It’s kinda hard to tell stuck outside the fenceas the light fades.
Anotherbad photo, I was in a rush, sorry. But the sizes are fine and that bitof ’crete you see holding up the mesh is done beautifully, and it’sonly the interior gubbins… so all bodes well.
Yetanother blurry photo of the street drop and a bit of the latestpour. Er. It’s looking a bit tight in places innit? Ohwell, that’s a lack of funding for you. It’ll be interesting…
Avery sketchy sketch of the up-coming pyramid hip.The angles are allwrong, but hey, I’ve gotta get to work in 20 mins. Maybe I’ll fix itlater.
It’ll be 1m high, at 25 degrees steep. not a 90 degree hip, butmore relaxed at 120 degrees. I don’t think we will have the roomto hit it properly, what with the squiggle the park has to take. Butperhaps in the future another few square meters of concrete orpaving can be laid down to make the ’angle of attack’ a bit better.
Stay tuned.
Bad light again…BUT HEY WHO CARES! THERE’S ANOTHER BIT OF PLATFORM IN THE PHOTO!
WHA-HEY!
TheMystery Objects again…. I MUST ask them tomorrow what these thingsare for. Cuz if the wall ride is too tight in the corner, it won’t bepleasant at all…. I’m sure they WOULDN’T recycle bits ofshuttering from other skateparks just because they are VAGUELY the samesize … would they?….
I also hope these things last thevandals. They are only made of thin ply. I keepseeing big holes in the fence where the little blighters riptheir way through.
Got up to site late… Bad Light X Wee Digi Camera / large space = poopoo.
sorry.
New shuttering and mesh in today.
Closer, but just as a bad shot.
TheMystery Objects, I guess they were delivered today. I assuming they arefor the wallride shuttering, but they don’t look big enough to me. I know thecorner is a 1600 mm radius, and they look more like a 500 or 600mm radius…hmmmm curious….
Not too much more to see here, but I’ve streched it as far as I could 🙂
Here’s the mini street drop… the bank will be mainly 20degrees at about 550mm high. In case you are wondering; that crowbar isNOT at the correct angle, it’s just there.
Iconfirmed the fact that the mesh for the wallride was still to beextended upwards. Apparently those panels are 2.4 meters wide, so thereis another 600mm still to go on top. As roughly indicated by thislovely blue line. The outer corner will be rounded though.
They will do the pour in two stages, to get the right height. Sez ’The Dude Onsite.’
Lookingover the street slab/wallos platform. You can see the amount that theKeyhole has got to be scooped back to; Those guys are standing eitherside of the edge of the platform that they are pouring next.
That edge again…
Think of the reef hip-bump at Perth, then make it bigger and moreblast-over-able. same big roll-over lip for ease of landing. See modelon ’Plans’ page.
er…
Added 3 more shots of the model to the plans page.
Only slightly photoshopped.
Here’s today’s ’stitched’ photo. The flats were looking nice and smoothtoday in the sun. Rick and I were talking about the top flat that youcan see here, and how it looks like it slopes away to the left, butwhen you go stand next to it, it seems fine. A bit of a NopticalDelusion metink. Even is it DOES slope, it won’t be big deal. It mayactually help the flow when coming back up the way.
As you can see, the reinforcement for the wallride has gone in. But itstill looks a bit short. It should be 3m high from the inside, and itlooks more like 2.5m now. A shot from the other side, below.
From the East.
Ashot of ’Wallos.’ You can see that the next bit of flat they aresetting up the shuttering for, is curving away, and the ’Keyhole’ has alot of shaping still to do. That back bit, the bit closest to town,will be 20 degrees, so still a lot to scrape away…
Ok, it’s pretty much the same shot, but you can see the shuttering a bit better.
Here’s a comparison shot of the model:
Tiny shiny people, styling on bits of plasticine…