Jarod, Adam, Isaiah and Jimmy from Mangawhai Engineering and Marine helped install the world’s largest skateboard at Mangawhai skatepark recently.
Jarod, Adam, Isaiah and Jimmy from Mangawhai Engineering and Marine helped install the world’s largest skateboard at Mangawhai skatepark recently.
Paeroa is world famous in New Zealand for its giant L&P bottle, and Ohakune has its colossal carrot complete with carrot adventure park.
Now Mangawhai residents are hoping the world’s largest skateboard will become a major focal point of their small seaside town.
The skateboard - which weighs 800kgand measures 12m long by 3.1m wide - was installed at the entrance to the Mangawhai Activity Zone (MAZ) skatepark on October 16 much to the delight of curious passersby.
MAZ executive committee chairwoman Kate Arbuckle said “everybody” driving past the Molesworth Drive skatepark pulled up to have a look.
“Lots of people came and watched it being installed – it was a free-for-all.
“We compare it to the Ohakune carrot and the L&P bottle in Paeroa – it’s an iconic focal point within Mangawhai now.”
The board, called Eke Tahi or “Ride as One”, was designed and built by Silverdale-based company Unique Creative.
The project was commissioned by the New Zealand Olympic Committee to promote awareness of skateboarding being introduced as an Olympic sport at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Eke Tahi or "Ride as One" weighs 800kg and measures 12m long by 3.1m wide.
Before the games, which took place in 2021 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the wood and fibreglass board was taken on a road trip around New Zealand.
The Great Olympic Skate Roadshow stopped at 42 locations including Kaikohe West School, Kerikeri Primary, and Mangawhai before returning to Auckland to be displayed at the fan zone during the Olympic Games.
The Olympic committee gifted the board to MAZ at the end of 2022 and over the last 18 months, it has been through a thorough refurbishment process.
What began as a concept plan sketched on a napkin, has now become reality thanks to local engineering firms and community fundraising efforts, Arbuckle said.
Local businesses also designed and built the solid steel structure the board sits on which was lifted with a crane and bolted to posts at the entrance to the skatepark.
“We’ve done a lot of fundraising to refurbish the board and protect it against future weather conditions,” Arbuckle said.
“The board was full of water, volunteers spent months drilling holes, draining and dehumidifying it and patching it all up.”
The team from Mangawhai Engineering and Marine on the giant skateboard, now an iconic focal point of the small town.
Arbuckle said the committee were especially keen to keep the image at the bottom of the board as “that describes what the board is all about”.
The deck illustration, designed by Ben Bartels of Never You Mind creative studio, depicts a New Zealand athlete’s physical and emotional journey, “from humble beginnings to the Tokyo Olympics”.
Arbuckle thanked the crew of engineers who helped “make this insane project a reality”, including Mangawhai Engineering and Marine, Richard from Wiley Geotechnical, Engtech Engineering and Logan from RS Engineering.
Kaipara District Council and the Men’s Shed were also involved.
The board was blessed during a karakia on October 19 led by matua Ben Hita of Environs Te Uri o Hau.
This will be followed by a formal welcome, that the public is invited to, by Mayor Craig Jepson on Sunday at 10am.
Jenny Ling is a news reporter and features writer for the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering roading, lifestyle, business, and animal welfare issues.
