When you’re a skateboarder in Central Oregon, winter is the most dreaded of seasons (unless you also snowboard).

For those who don’t embrace the fluffy stuff, winter can prove particularly tough. That’s plain to see. Just rolling down a street is harder when it’s either icy or layered in wheel-stopping cinders. (Pro tip: Bones’ Dragon wheels really do spit pebbles out from under your wheels.)

As a grizzled veteran of skating in Bend, I have long felt your pain. That pain was exacerbated with the closure of the indoor Truckstop Skatepark nearly a decade ago, its former location now home to Bend Hoops. Though smaller, Bearings Skateboard Academy filled an indoor need with some access to local skaters for several years until the pandemic forced its closure. Owner-operator Gabe Triplette tells The Bulletin he’s working to reopen it and is still available for private skate lessons in the meantime.

Here are some actionable things to consider buying and doing if you want to get in some winter skating:

TripCheck helps you plan

Say hello to your new best friend if you have a car: ODOT’s TripCheck cameras. Check out the ones closest to parks in Sisters, Prineville, Redmond and Warm Springs for your best bet in figuring out conditions. When wet, smooth concrete is slicker than a watermelon seed, and it is anathema to skateboarding. It’s a shame cities and park districts don’t invest in skatepark cameras so people can see the condition of the skatepark online. Till they do, TripCheck is your best bet when snowed in or rained out in Bend. In winter, Redmond and Prineville skateparks are generally a safer bet than Sisters, which is located closer to the Cascades. Still: Consult TripCheck.

Get your tools together

Keep on hand brooms, squeegees, old towels, leaf blowers and other utensils that might dry concrete quickly. A few years ago at Sisters Skatepark, friends and I were so eager (read: desperate) to get a shaded, stubbornly frozen pocket of one of the bowls dry via reflected sunlight from a mirror. With the mirror and elbow grease from towels, we got it dry.

Build your own skate spot

Ramp plans and discussions are easy to come by online. Clean out your overstuffed garage and build something small to skate indoors. You won’t regret it, though your walls might get damaged by errant boards. Related: Some people have indoor spots at their disposal. If you score an invite, be polite. Don’t make a mess. Don’t over ask. Don’t show up with 12 of your best friends.

Skate your house

Here’s a low-effort incentive to keep your garage clean, should you have one. A two-car garage provides just enough room to roll and practice flat-ground and freestyle tricks. In winter, I back our two cars out of our garage and voila, an instant skate spot. (Don’t forget to sweep tracked-in cinders out first.)

Get creative

When the snow won’t stop and you’ve nary an indoor spot, catch up on your skate videos and podcasts to keep the stoke alive. Make a skate zine. Bust out your fingerboards. Play Tony Hawk Pro Skater or other skate video games.

Practice your balance

Buy or, better yet, make your own balance board by repurposing an empty 2-liter soda bottle, filling it with as much water as it will hold. Tighten the cap very well, wrap that sucker in a little duct tape for some traction, lay it on its side, break out an old skate deck and there you have it, a DIY balance board. Using it atop a rug or carpet is advisable.

Street skate

When the sun shines during those lulls between squalls, head to your favorite spot outside of skateparks. If you’re a park dweller, you might be surprised how swiftly asphalt, curbs and broom-finish concrete regain traction, especially with a little towel or squeegee assist.

Make your voice heard

Speaking of skateparks, there are two things absent from Central Oregon skateparks, glaringly so in winter: an indoor and heated skatepark that’s open year-round. We also need a few lighted skateparks. Madras Bike + Skate Park has lights that come on at dusk and stay on until 10 p.m., but otherwise, it’s the only park with lights in the immediate area. The pickleball set would never stand for such treatment, but they make their collective voice heard. Let the agency that oversees your town’s skatepark know what you believe skaters need.

Take a drive to skate

Didn’t you say earlier that you had a car? I feel like you did. So hop in and take a road trip. Stronger Skatepark in Milwaukie is fun. Seek Skate Camp hosts an open skate the second Saturday of every month (reserve a spot to guarantee access). World-famous Burnside is still located under a Portland bridge. Likewise, Washington Jefferson Park in Eugene is mostly covered by the highway above, but bring grippy wheels in any event. It’s just grimy and sooty there. And don’t forget, the dry, sunny climate of California is due south.

Keep hope

Remember, winter won’t last forever. The sun will come out again. Probably not tomorrow. Or the next day. But maybe the day after that.