ARCHAEOLOGISTS are set to dig up a popular Glasgow park in a bid to find a forgotten kids attraction.
A team from the University of Glasgow will work with volunteers and students in a bid to uncover what remains of the Kelvin Wheelies skatepark.
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Kelvin Wheelies opened back in 1978 and was popular with all agesCredit: Iain Urquhart/North Skateboard Magazine
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Parts of the old skatepark are still visible in Kelvingrove today
Situated in Kelvingrove Park, it opened back in 1978 and was operated by the local authority.
The skatepark, which was considered state-of-the-art at the time, featured bowls, a slalom run and a half-pipe.
Sessions cost £1.80 for three hours, with the site even hosting the 1978 Scottish Skateboard Championships.
However, due to concern over maintenance costs and safety led to the closure and burial in 1983.
Jamie Blair, owner of Glasgow-based skateboarding shop Clan Skates, former member of the Kelvingrove skateboard team and former Scottish skateboard champion, said: “When Kelvin Wheelies opened in 1978, skaters from all over the UK flocked to this radical new facility.
“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 University of Glasgow team will work with volunteers and students to undertake excavation and survey work.
They are also asking the public to share memories, videos and photos of Kelvin Wheelies to help create an online archive.
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Dr Kenny Brophy of the university said the project is a chance to make sure the skatepark did not become forgotten or lost to history.
Parts of the old site are still visible near the modern skatepark.
But there is no information to explain the significance of the site to Kelvingrove visitors or users of the modern skatepark.
The work is set to take place from Monday, August 25 until Friday, August 29.
The project is being supported by the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland with a £1,102 grant.
Dr Kenny Brophy FSAScot, Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Glasgow and project leader, said: “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.
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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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The old skatepark was situated in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove ParkCredit: Alamy