By Brian Hoop
Welcome to Rebel Skates, a new skateboarding community gathering spot in Linnton. Owner Keary Watson envisions creating a community space that’s just about skating – an indoor skate scene away from the rain. Rebel Skates is a place where you can get small group or private skateboarding lessons, check out their gear, or just hang out with other like minded skaters.
The new Linnton outpost, located at 10025 NW 107th, is only the latest incarnation of the storied Rebel Skates in Portland. Rebel Skates dates back to the early 1980’s, set up as a business at NW 21st and Marshall. From its beginnings, it was always more than a store. Rebel Skates created a welcoming skateboarding community – “by the skater, for the skater.” Some of the key folks who created the famous Burnside Skate Park hailed from the shop.
Rebel Skates is, “the only one of our kind,” said Watson. It was the first skateboard brand out of Portland and sponsored the first pro skater out of Portland – Danny Sargent. The shop moved to NE Sandy Blvd. in the 1990’s expanding to offering its own “Rebel Skates” brand of merchandise.
Watson, a Lincoln High graduate, found skating to be an alternative to sports, something different, and got serious between the ages of 14-17. He began working at the NW shop in 1985. As a young Black man, he was attracted to the inclusive community of artists, weirdos and punks that were part of the scene.
He became a Rebel Skates sponsored skater, which gave him a sense of value – “I can do this,” said Watson. “Skateboarding is like martial arts, challenging your body, creating new neural pathways, challenging you to try new things.”
The Rebel Skates brand is known throughout the West. As a sponsored skater he traveled all over the West Coast doing demonstrations piloting research for the Nike SB brand.
Watson’s life led to a side trip to Los Angeles for 10 years where he worked in media and TV production. Eventually he found it wasn’t for him and moved back to Portland completing a graphic design degree at PSU.
Now the father of 3 daughters – 4-year-old twins and a 12-year-old – Watson wants to pass on the love and skills of skateboarding to them. “Skateboarding community is about giving back to the younger generations,” says Watson. He’s creating an inter-generational, multi-racial community with both youth and friends from his past coming out to the Linnton site. He’s talking with LCC about hosting summer camp field trips to skateparks.
Watson says he’s felt welcomed by the Linnton community with people coming from Scappoose, North Portland and Forest Park neighborhoods. He offers private and small group lessons on the basics of skating including foot placement, how to knee slide, push, and drop in. “It’s about getting a feeling for what it feels like to fall safely.”
Rebel Skates has open skating on weekends from 10 am to 10 pm at $10 for two hours. 10 am to 12 noon is reserved for 4–7-year-olds. The rest of the day is all ages. Bring your own gear or he has rental helmets and boards.
Learn more at: https://www.rebelskates.co/