For almost three months, Beechmont Rollarena sat eerily quiet – no popcorn popping, no music pumping, no wheels rolling. Like everywhere else during the COVID-19 shutdown, all the life was sucked out of it. Sure, an empty restaurant is sad, but an empty skating rink is just depressing.
So it was an honor to witness Beechmont Rollarena’s first day back from the shutdown. I met with Erica Powell, the rink’s manager and we talked that night as local youth returned in force to whirl round and round amidst a show of music and light.
How it all started
Erica’s grandmother, Lois, went roller skating as a teenager back in the 1940’s at the Hamilton Roller Rink in Hamilton, Ohio. Fate, as it were, threw Lois off balance causing her to fall to the ground. A young man named Darrell Harper would help her back to her feet, then sweep her off of them entirely. A few years later and they would be married. A few years after that and they would open their first skating rink together.
It was called the Ritz and it was on the third floor of a building that no longer exists in downtown Cincinnati. Eventually, the Harpers would own seven different rinks. Today, three still remain in operation.
Before Beechmont Rollarena opened on Commercial Boulevard in 1985, Anderson residents skated where U-Haul on Beechmont stands today near 8 Mile. It originally opened in 1971, and moved to Commercial Boulevard to expand and take advantage of the proximity to 275.
Although Erica is a manager there today, she trained to be a DJ when she was only five years old. Her half sister Octavia, who also works at the rink started skating at 15 months old. I’m told she was one of the youngest skaters on record.
Community in mind
Beechmont Rollarena is mostly family operated. Although Darrell Harper died in 2016, Lois, who is 86 now, still works around the rink, and so does Erica’s mom.
That is not to say that the rink doesn’t provide plenty of job opportunities to locals, especially local students. One of the rink’s main DJ’s, Curtis, started when he was only 14 years old, and he is approaching his sixth year working at the rink.
It was clear to me how important the community is to Erica and her family’s business.
Last year Beechmont Rollarena gave back over $10,000 to local schools. They also participated in the Kids Skate Free program where parents can sign their children (12 and under) up via email and get two free admissions per week for a year. Erica said the program saved local families up to $19,000 last year alone.
Kings of the world
After Erica gave me the history lesson of the rink, she introduced me to its present. Mark Newcomb and his family have been skating at Erica’s family’s rinks for years. He thinks it is good for the kids in the community, especially after the shutdown.
“These kids had nothing to do. They’ve been locked up for so long. Once they get out there on that floor, they can just let it all go,” Mark said. “Nothing else matters – Covid, all the political stuff, their mom and dad arguing – it’s all gone as soon as they roll on that floor. For that couple hours, they’re king of the world.”
Will Morton has been skating at Beechmont Rollarena since 2014. Although he lives in Milford, he makes the trip to skate pretty much every weekend.
“Governor Mike Dewine was wrong to consider skating entertainment,” Will said. “Skating kept me fit and healthy, out of trouble and off the streets. It’s important for kids to be involved in a healthy lifestyle.”
Will is a veteran of the rink. “If you need something call Will,” Erica told me. “He always has my back.” On the rare occasion a dispute emerges on the floor, Will will step up to mediate and keep the peace.
“How do you feel now that the rink is open again after the shutdown?” I asked.
“It feels amazing!” Will said. “It’s heartwarming to see how many people came out to support the rink.”
The culture
If you ask Will, he believes skating culture is making a come back. “These are my Uptown 120’s,” Will said as he rolled his ankle to show me his skates. “These are more for rhythm and shuffling.” Shuffling is basically dancing on skates, either alone or in groups.
I hope Will is right about skating becoming more popular. I’ve never seen so many teenagers in one place who didn’t have their faces buried into their phones. Watching dozens of young people skating together, laughing and talking without a phone in their hand really gave me a little hope for the future.
@beechmontsk8 we rollin tonight!!!
♬ original sound – beechmontsk8
Perhaps skating is exactly what some kids need in such a dysfunctional world. Like Mark said, their problems all go away “as soon as they roll on that floor.” Now that I think of it, perhaps we could all benefit from taking a few laps ourselves.
Did you miss “New Clips on the Block?” If so, you can read it right here.
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