Thomas Harbin
When Jessica Cervantes wanted to roller-skate with her husband and young son at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, she couldn’t find a single pair of quad skates online or in stores. She switched gears and ordered inline skates instead. Even those took four months to arrive, but when they did, she was finally able to join her family in what’s been one of the hottest pandemic activities.
Cervantes isn’t alone in struggling to find wheels. This year, TikTok has been chock-full of skating videos, with creators securing huge audiences and brand deals. But roller-skating’s surging popularity created worldwide shortages, with the trendiest skates on back-order for months. Nashville’s own skate shop Asphalt Beach is struggling to meet demand. It’s plain to see why: With the world on hold and people cooped up inside, roller-skating was the perfect activity to get families like the Cervanteses outdoors and active.
Enter Skate Nashville, a fast-growing group that brings pro skaters and TikTok-influenced newbies together every week. Jessica and her husband Saul, along with their 6-year-old son Kai, have become regulars at the weekly meetups. Jessica says Kai especially benefits from the social activity since school has gone online, and both parents have loved watching their shy son make new friends and welcome new members to the group.
“Kai will approach any of the kids and say: ‘Hey, welcome to Skate Nashville! Watch me do this!’ ” Jessica says. “It’s been exciting watching him grow and gain confidence.”
Kai rides a scooter, his parents skate, and his friend rides a bike. That’s part of the group’s appeal — “All wheels welcome” is founder Thomas Harbin’s motto.
Harbin, 30, has lived in Nashville for nearly six years and was originally a skateboarder. On a trip to Asphalt Beach, he saw flyers for an inline-skate group and craved community and like-minded friends. He purchased his own pair and started Skate Nashville as a Facebook group in May. Initially, Harbin says almost no one came when he posted — but after Asphalt owner Steve Larios recommended a consistent weekly schedule, the group exploded.
The Facebook group now has more than 700 members, and Skate Nashville’s Thursday night meetings often have upwards of 60 people ranging from age 6 to 50-something. They meet at 7 p.m. in the back parking lot of Nissan Stadium under the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge. Harbin says inclusion of all levels of skill, all ages and all types of wheels was always part of the plan.
“From the outside looking in, [skate culture] can be a bit intimidating if you don’t feel comfortable or don’t feel like you have a place to fit in,” Harbin says. “Skate Nashville [is] a big umbrella under which to connect all the skaters.”
That positivity attracted newbies like Nissi Lee, a 33-year-old Nashville native and makeup artist. She got lucky — she checked out Asphalt Beach on a day they received a shipment of skates. She purchased a pair of Moxi skates and showed up to her first meetup that night. Nissi was influenced by online videos, mostly on Instagram, but has found skating to be a valuable, safe way to socialize during the pandemic. During skate night, skaters are spaced apart outdoors, which is safer than indoor events according to the CDC. Many also wear masks in closer quarters, and some wear masks at all times. Nissi says the weekly events have also allowed her to be more active, and support a healthier lifestyle than pre-COVID drinking and bar hopping did.
“It just made me really think [about] what else would I really enjoy learning and doing,” Nissi says, adding that learning to skate gave her the confidence to pick up other hobbies like sewing and cooking bone broth. “I don’t feel super worried about getting sick out here. It’s good for my health.”
With new skaters like Nissi joining every week, Skate Nashville’s need for space has become an issue. Harbin has asked members to advocate for a new skate park, and many petitioned District 6 Councilmember Brett Withers to develop the space they currently meet in each week under the bridge.The lot, technically part of Cumberland Park according to Withers, isn’t a great spot, because it’s a staging area for emergency vehicles. He does, however, support the effort to create new spaces for local skaters in another location.
“We want them to have a place to skate that is safe,” Withers says, noting that Metro’s Board of Parks and Recreation is “willing to look at other locations.”
Recently the group raised $520 to purchase a large Bluetooth speaker for skate night and other events, and Harbin says he’s confident Skate Nashville could easily fundraise for park development. For now, Harbin says, there are other options. Many travel to skate parks in Louisville, Bowling Green and Hopkinsville. Members also meet at Two Rivers Skate Park, although according to the Cervantes family, it’s best to hit Two Rivers in the early morning when it isn’t so crowded.
As for the pandemic trend? Larios, who has been skating since the ’80s, says crazes come and go. In the ’90s it was inline skating, then aggressive skating, then derby. Asphalt Beach was incredibly popular with roller-derby athletes before the pandemic; skaters from Europe and New Zealand came to get fitted, he says. Now Larios says business is different, and he hopes the newly minted outdoor roller skaters continue after COVID-19 is under control.
“When everyone goes back to work, and offices, and there’s concerts and nightlife,” says Larios, “I hope all those people keep skating. That’s my fervent wish.”
