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| After the shotcrete was sprayed onto the sheet
metal covering, crews burned in a "buttery"
finish with small fresnos. |
The system worked - no worker
was exposed to the stain. Ralston and Wormhoudt decided
not to seal the concrete because they did not want a
shiny, slippery surface. Not sealing also simplifies
graffiti repair. When graffiti had to be removed shortly
after the park's opening, they simply powerwashed it
immediately and reapplied stain to the affected area.
There was still one more step to finish off the skate
park. The outside of the wave was the perfect spot for
a piece of public art, and that idea was built into
the plans from the inception. Graphic designer (and
renowned skater) Judi Oyama won the bid with a drawing
by local artist Jimbo Phillips reminiscent of the ubiquitous
doodles made by Santa Cruz surfers. The other member
of the winning team was decorative concrete contractor
Dave Pettigrew of Diamond D Concrete, based in Capitola,
Calif. Once the proposal was accepted, Pettigrew faced
the daunting task of turning a drawing on an 8 1/2by-11
sheet into a 23-foot sandblasted stencil.
Pettigrew took the drawing to a sign maker who printed
out a full-size stencil on two-foot sheets of paper.
Meanwhile, he power-washed the wave and applied a custom-blended,
seamist-colored acid stain. After letting it cure for
a day, he applied another coat of stain and washed it.
The next day he applied a blast mask - 1/8-inch rubber
with an adhesive back. He attached the paper stencil
to the mask, cut out the relief areas and removed the
stencil, peeling off the cut areas of the mask as well.
The next step was to sandblast the exposed areas to
the depth below the stain. Finally, the mask was removed
and a shiny antigraffiti coating was applied to the
remaining blue areas. The sandblasted concrete was left
uncoated to create a textural contrast. Now it truly
looks like a crashing wave, permanently preserved in
concrete.
The skate park opened February 2007. There are various
measures of its success. "Skaters' demand for excellence
in design is extremely high," Vascom says. "They
are very honest on their Web sites about your work.
When hardcore skaters leave you phone messages at 2
a.m. saying 'You're the best - keep it up,' that's when
it's worth it."
Wormhoudt reports that the park's reputation is spreading,
and skaters from as far away as Europe are turning up
to try it out. "The place is just packed every
day," Pettigrew adds. "It's wonderful to work
on a piece of art that is so functional."
Tom Ralston Concrete is located at 241 Fern Street in Santa
Cruz. He can be reached at (831) 426-0342 or at www.tomraistonconcrete.com.
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