Skateland

Although it’s run down, it was still entertaining and fun. Great exercise, decent music, fun place to people watch… and less than $ 7.00 for an evening.

Skateland has two entries on Unilocal for some reason, so I will give it two reviews… but still only one star!
Aside from a few cosmetic improvements, most of Skateland is today just the same as it always has been. Shabby. I hate to be mean about it, but if there were any competition in town, and I mean ANY, this place would be out of business.
Most of the rental skates are the same ones that have been there for many years, and they are in the worst condition of any rental skates I have seen at any rink in my life. I am 40. I have literally seen someone skate by in rental skates with her little toe hanging out a gaping hole in the side of the skate. I’m serious. I had a pair one time that pulled strongly in opposite directions!
They apparently invested in some new kid-​sized skated but those are of low quality — in fact, it is not even possible to tighten down the rear wheels of those skates as most rinks can do for kids who are just learning to skate. And if you happen to have a pair of their older model kids’ skates, they are all stripped out so those can’t be tightened down either.
The floor is a classic wooden floor, which is nice, but it is very well worn. Compare it to the finish of the wooden floor at the Rollerdrome in Centralia. Well, there is no comparison.
Some of the dangerous things have been fixed, such as the wooden paneling that was literally falling off the walls. But the carpet has never changed, nor have most of the other features from years past.
On the plus side, it is cheap. If you have your own skates and just want to skate with no concerns about the appearance or smells of the building, then this is your place. But if you are concerned with the overall experience of your outing, I think your time and money would be better spent traveling North or South on I-​5 to another rink. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

How can this place get a positive review? Does it bring you back to your childhood? Well it should. It has not been updated for the past 25 years or cleaned. I won’t drop a dime into this place, or use the bathroom there. I don’t even think homeless people would squat there. Here is an idea, tear it down and burn everything and rebuild.

The only reason why this place gets stars of any kind is because it hosts the Oly Rollers and the Underground derby league. The building itself is unchanged from the 70’s, with no locks on the bathroom stalls, holes in the ceiling, mystery stains on the ceiling tiles, and an overall smell of pee. I don’t expect much from a roller rink, but a little remodeling would be nice. Go Oly Rollers!

Going to Skateland is like a trip back in time, with the same 70’s style lights and cieling tiles and carpet still in place. The music played while skating is bounced into the past as well, they even play ‘Pac Man Fever’ as if kids today even know what that is, but they play some newer stuff. I think it falls into the Kitschy place
But the staff is really great, Wednesday dollar skate night ($ 1 to get in, $ 1 for rentals) is fun. Some of the skate rentals hurt my feet, but the staff always swapped them out.
They have a snack bar, the dogs and soda are perfectly good.
If you can get past the looks, you will have a great time and enjoy the place. They also host Roller Derby periodically which is great fun.

Gone are the days of my youth spending every Friday night at the skating rink, but my son has now reached the age where it is his turn. With the advent of much cooler forms of entertainment, it seems that skating rinks have definitely seen better days when you actually enter one today. Yet at the same time I don’t think that children pay attention to such things. Their heart is just content with the camaraderie and friendship that is engaged in here. So do not come here expecting to see a modern, state of the art establishment. I believe it still looks the same as when those who are my age were frequenting it.
I do have to say that the staff is very good at monitoring the antics of those children whose parents have utilized their establishment as a babysitter, dropping them off for a couple hours rather than participating with them in a family activity. They are kindly reminded of the rules and consequences if they choose to cross the line again (booted out).
And while many other attractions have raised rates to fit the inflated economy, this is still a very affordable option for the whole family to enjoy.