There is no better time than right now to open an indoor roller skating rink in Boulder County, for the benefit of our bodies, minds and community.
Allow me to make my case. Skating is a great source of exercise for the whole body, whether on quad skates (my personal preference) or inline roller blades. Even a few laps around a rink help to practice balance, core strength, dexterity and endurance. As many of us work jobs that have us hunching over computers or standing for hours at the cash register, it’s more critical now than ever that we move our bodies in novel and joyful ways when we’re off the clock.
When I’m on eight wheels, I feel like a child — not just because I am a beginner, but because it reminds me that I’m allowed to learn new things, I’m allowed to be imperfect and clumsy. When I fall, I simply take a breath and get back up again.
We need this sort of space for unabashed play and serious artistry. We need somewhere to greet old friends and meet new ones, with help from a mutual activity that serves the same purpose as Pearl Street’s bars or religious congregations.
I’ve relished in rocking out while skating at the monthly Roll Denver pop-up, but nightclubs are not everyone’s cup of tea. I crave a local, consistent space, perhaps without the burdens that alcohol-induced socialization can bring.
There are skating rinks in the Denver metro area, but the time and mileage it takes to get there is significantly prohibitive, especially in questionable winter weather.
Longmont’s most recent indoor rink closed in the 2000s. Boulder hasn’t had an indoor rink since the 1980s.
If you, a Boulder County resident, wanted to go roller skating indoors today, you’d have to drive about 25-30 minutes to Westminster or Arvada, or more to Fort Collins. None of these rinks are reasonably accessible by way of mass transit either, adding both the environmental and economic burdens of needing a car to do a car-less activity.
You might be saying, “There’s already a new roller skate opening in Denver, and it’s called Rainbow Dome!” You are correct; Rainbow Dome is worth celebrating. What started as a pop-up bonanza for art, queerness and community on skates has officially announced plans for a permanent home.
The only downside of Rainbow Dome: they’ll be located in downtown Denver, even further away than the current closest rinks in Arvada and Westminster.
Fear not, dear Boulder County reader, for this is not a landscape of roller rink scarcity, but rather one of abundance! We can support Rainbow Dome and ask for our own rink in the same breath.
Luckily for us, there are a handful of skate-oriented organizations already at work in the county to make the dream of an indoor rink a reality. Check out Freewheel, a Longmont-based business led by Mandy Martin and Melissa Blumenshine, two sisters eager to bring skating back to their hometown.
“I always remember that joy, how much freedom you feel when you’re roller skating around the rink next to your best friend, and your favorite song comes on,” Melissa waxed nostalgic to me when we spoke over the phone. “It’s just that magical moment in time that I feel so many kids are missing these days.”
I would argue that all ages of our community could benefit from more of that magic, especially in light of the turmoil of the past few years, and Mandy and Melissa are taking steps to make it happen. Thanks to the Longmont version of the EforAll accelerator, the sisters connected with the Colorado Enterprise Fund, which in turn supported Freewheel in successfully obtaining a loan to purchase skate flooring and rental skates.
Since early 2023, Freewheel has hosted about a dozen pop-up events, including at the Boulder County Fairgrounds (check out the next one Jan. 5-6) and for Longmont’s Rhythm at Roosevelt summer fair. Their first event at the Fairgrounds back in March brought in a whopping 700-plus attendees, attracting lifelong skaters as well as people who had never put on skating boots in their life.
“It was such a hit,” Mandy told me. “We knew at that moment that this is what we’re meant to do.”
Freewheel is currently working to establish two years of successful business in order to prove to lenders that they are viable and worth the investment. But the rocky road to stability is only beginning: Settling down into a permanent location means either paying out the wazoo for rent — they estimated $42,000 a month for a currently open space, which equates to about half a million dollars a year — or ponying up to miraculously purchase property outright.
Meanwhile, Mandy and Melissa both work full-time jobs. Please, Boulder County: Show up to their events, request them for your church retreats and corporate gatherings, and if you’re a landlord, consider giving them a discounted rate. (I’m joking with that last part, but also, not really.)
Invoking our abundance mindset from earlier, if we’re feeling adventurous, we could also pursue our own version of Rainbow Dome. Adrienne Ambraziunas runs SK8D8, an inclusive roller skating business that offers classes for all sorts of skating styles and skill levels.
The group’s weekly gathering at the Avalon Ballroom (Tuesdays, 7-9 p.m.) is, as far as Adrienne can tell right now, the most consistent indoor roller skating location in the county. Adrienne told me she’s researched the potential for a permanent space, and countless conversations fueled by shared passion have stagnated at the same funding roadblock as Mandy and Melissa at Freewheel have found.
As the saying goes, the rent is too damn high, at least right now. “There’s so much empty commercial space if you look, but it’s so expensive,” Adrienne lamented.
Consider the former Lowe’s in Louisville; the old Safeway in Longmont; the leftover Alfalfa’s in Boulder; or any number of empty office buildings across the county. I’m not saying that any of these locations could be flipped into a skate rink overnight, but there’s certainly no dearth of possibilities waiting to happen.
Adrienne is not deterred. In her wildest dreams, she envisions a multi-use space with less fitness focus like a recreation center and more emphasis on community-curated events, especially but not limited to roller skating. After all, many people who skate end up being aficionados of other similarly creative endeavors. This can and should exist in tandem with a traditional rink like the one Freewheel is pursuing, and would ideally involve a group-led effort, as Adrienne is but one woman and opening this space on her own would be nigh impossible.
“We just have to have the infrastructure to support skating,” Adrienne told me, “and from there we can do a lot of cool things.”
I’ll throw in a few cool things that I would love to see from a Boulder County skating rink. Punch passes: I’ll be the first one to sign up. Discounts for college students and our neighbors who use food stamps, because everyone deserves to let loose at least once in a while. Maybe this means a roller rink is managed by a recreation district, since they oversee most of the outdoor skating parks in the county already. If it’s a private business, sliding-scale entry costs could be subsidized by community donations and grant programs.
While I’m painting my ideal picture, let’s have this roller rink open at a variety of times: Friday through Sunday nights, of course, but also midday on the weekends, maybe an evening mid-week too, and perhaps even a morning sometime Monday through Friday. Offer classes for both beginners and experts, perhaps through partnerships with the many skilled skaters around the county such as SK8D8 or Colorado Skate Fitness. Offer an adult night once a week or more, out of respect for the history of roller skating in this country (for a brief primer, check out the documentary United Skates).
If, after all of this, you’re still not convinced that Boulder County needs an indoor roller rink or two, I ask you to evoke that feeling of your most joyous earthly experience. Maybe it’s doing laps in the swimming pool or running along a trail with a stunning panoramic view or painting the mathematical perfection of a flower. Maybe it’s singing in communal harmony with a choir or cooking up a deliciously aromatic meal to share with loved ones or dancing to live music until your feet could fall off.
Boulder County is rich with spaces for these and a diverse array of nourishing activities. Let’s welcome a roller rink here and make it easier to add roller skating to that list. You might even find that you enjoy it.
Lucy Haggard is a writer, geographer and nascent roller skater. They’ve lived in Boulder County since 2016 and currently make their home in Louisville.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that SK8D8 is a registered LLC.
