Archaeologists to dig up Scotland's first ever skate park that is 'lost in time'

Daily Record

4 hours ago

Kelvin Wheelies was built back in the seventies
Scotland's first ever skatepark is set to be dug up in Glasgow as archaeologists prepare to uncover a long-buried piece of the city's skateboarding history.
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The University of Glasgow will begin excavations later this month at the site of Kelvin Wheelies, a pioneering skatepark built in Kelvingrove Park in May 1978. At the time, it was considered cutting-edge, featuring bowls, a slalom run and a half pipe, or 'hauf pipe' as it was affectionately called. The site even hosted Scotland's first national skateboarding competition, Glasgow Live reports.
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Although hugely popular in its early years, concerns over safety and maintenance costs quickly mounted. By 1983, the park had been closed and buried, leaving only traces of its original layout visible near the modern skatepark that sits in the park today.
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Between August 25 and 29, archaeologists will excavate the site to examine its condition and record what has been described as 'a central part of modern Glasgow's sporting heritage'.
Jamie Blair, owner of Glasgow's Clan Skates shop, former Scottish skateboard champion and a member of the original Kelvingrove skateboard team, recalled the impact the park once had. 'When Kelvin Wheelies opened in 1978, skaters from all over the UK flocked to this radical new facility,' he said.
'A park team was formed and for the next few years Glasgow was the dominant force in Scottish skateboarding. Sadly, a dip in skateboarding's popularity in the early 1980s and the construction of a rival skatepark in Livingston saw the decline of Kelvin Wheelies, with the main bowlriding area buried in time. I'm thrilled that through this project we have a chance to rediscover it.'
The project is also calling on the public to contribute. Memories, photographs and video footage of Kelvin Wheelies are being sought to create an online archive that will document its history and support further research. Contributions can be sent to [e-mail].
Visitors will also be encouraged to attend the dig, which will combine archaeological methods with oral history to bring the park's story back to life.
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Dr Kenny Brophy FSAScot, Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Glasgow and project leader, said the work is vital in ensuring Kelvin Wheelies is not forgotten.
'There is a very real danger that this skatepark, a place that was so special for hundreds of young people just decades ago, will become forgotten and lost,' he explained.
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'Contemporary archaeology allows us the opportunity to explore even fairly recent events and places to jog memories, combining traditional archaeological fieldwork techniques with interviews and documentary research.
"In the case of Kelvin Wheelies, this is a unique opportunity for a generation of skateboarders to relive the excitement of their youth and excavate their own memories of a place that was so special to them.'
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Kelvin Wheelies was built during the so-called 'second wave' of concrete skateparks that spread internationally in the 1970s. While some have since been recognised as heritage sites, such as Livingston's Livi Skatepark which was given Category B listing by Historic Environment Scotland in 2024, many were simply dismantled or buried.
According to the University of Glasgow, the excavation will form part of a wider project combining fieldwork, surveys, archival research and community engagement.
The university added: 'Currently, virtually no one even knows there was a skatepark in this part of the park. We are also going to document the creation and story of the skatepark through archive research, interviews and – hopefully – collect a digital archive of photos and film of the skatepark being used, and associated records and ephemera.
"This is a project that will very much be a collaboration with the skateboarding community in Glasgow, and we will be working with Jamie Blair, who has written a history of the skatepark.'