I'm so confused... are you saying you're going to drain your pool in the winter?

I'm not sure that is a good idea...

I'm not either...

sk8convict, as I was scrolling down through your pictures the first thought that came to mind was that pool looks like the perfect pool for skateboarding. Then I saw the skateboard pictures and read your text. I haven't seen anyone skateboard in an empty pool since the 70's. That's so cool.

Yes, we will drain the pool in the winter...
...and ride our skateboards in it. I've been riding pools
for over 30 years. My son is a sponsored skateboarder and
has around 50 pools under his belt already...
That's why we built it the way we did...
The diamond brite is more like concrete, than plaster...
I did my research, trust me... There are several pools
around that are used for the same purpose, they have been
maintenance free for over 10 years... The main problem is
the coping getting torn up... We have alot of extra... Not
cheap either at 17.00 bucks a block... Plus Shipping
Anyway, it sure is purdy, huh??

Thanks Kitchenshock....
This is really a dream come true, the hard part is going to be leaving the water in it all summer, haha...
We know we will be repairing here & there, that's just the way it is. I'm just getting too old to be jumping fences of empty houses and old hotels to drain pools now-a-days... I'll send some pics of us skating this fall..

...a better look at the transitions.

It's just not something we could do here where I am, so it comes as a shock. Our pool would pop out of the ground if it sat empty.

I didn't know people skateboarded in pools! You learn something every day! And yes, it's is pretty. :-)

Great looking pool Sk8convict! We couldn't drain ours either, but then my teens are fish... lol!
That's ok, shepards are great dogs also! Yours is gorgeous by the way!

Looks awesome! Great idea on using it as "dual purpose", very cool! If you're in a place with a low water table, then why not? My only experience skateboarding in a pool was back in the 70's, and the pool was gunited but no plaster (at a nearby school). Man, we could barely build up enough speed to climb the walls a few feet! For years I couldn't figure out why people would even want to skate in pools, I didn't know the difference between plaster and raw gunite, LOL!

I guess kids are tougher these days. We used to wear elbow pads in the bowls. The boards themselves look pretty much the same as back then.

This is what the backyard looked like last year... I built a Wooden Pool, complete with tile, pool coping & a light too..haha We even made our own Pool coping blocks..
Everytime I replaced a piece of plywood or screwed in a screw
I would tell my son, "Next time, we're diggin a hole"

That is a very well built ramp. I hope you were able to sell it or give it to someone else to use.

In parts of Miami they use to empty and re-fill the pools every time they use them. People use to skate board in pools all the time. There is one pool in Coral Gables that they use to empty all 800,000 gallons every night and fill it in the morning. I am sure people skate boarded in it from time to time.

I just came across this post and like the water color but can't see where it is identified other than to say it is diamondbrite. Does anyone know what this is? thanks so much for any help.

Nice pool and I love the fence. How many square feet is this pool?

This is the funniest thread I have yet to read in Gardenweb. Just remember Gardenwebers....skateboarding is NOT a crime! Rock on sk8convict.

this pool is awesome. My son would love it if we had a pool for him to skateboard in. Love it love it...

"There is one pool in Coral Gables that they use to empty all 800,000 gallons every night and fill it in the morning."

Somehow, I doubt that. Even 80,000 gallons would be a bit much to fill every morning.

Well we had a great Summer swimming in the pool. We drained it Aug 23rd & have been skating it pretty hard everyday. Besides some small spider cracks which were already there
before draining, it's solid as a rock! The grout joints in between the coping blocks are getting a little chewed up &
the white coping aint so white anymore from grinds & boardslides, but we expected this. I told y'all I would post some pics of us skating so here ya go. As you can see there's way more to do in a pool than just float around & swim;) So next time someone asks you to clean & skate your pool, maybe... just maybe, you'll consider it...

Someone asked about the color? It's Diamond Brite & is a custom color... Black Onyx, A dark blue & a light blue...

kitchenshock wrote: "There is one pool in Coral Gables that they use to empty all 800,000 gallons every night and fill it in the morning."

lindsey_ca replied: "Somehow, I doubt that. Even 80,000 gallons would be a bit much to fill every morning."

I had the same reaction as lindsey_ca that it is hard to imagine that filling and draining an 800,000 gallon pool on a daily basis is feasible. I do know, though, that some (not all) cruise ships "drain" their pools every night and they are refilled by daylight. I imagine that the water is simply drained into a holding tank and pumped very quickly back into the pool through some built-in mechanism, as this is certainly not done with a hose ;-). I wouldn't say that the cruise ship pools are 800,000 gallons, though.

It is a true story about the coral gables pool--it was posted on here a while ago. I will try to find info on it.
Sk8convict--those are nice action shots-how about posting an action video!

found the link

Here is a link that might be useful: 800,000 gal pool

Wow! Thanks for the link, Arbisi. Interesting. This is a different kind of pool, but "Wow!" none the less.

I must also say that this is the first I've heard of a family draining their own pool to use it as a skate park. Those are some nice action shots, Sk8convict.

only on the Gardenweb site would I expect to find all this in one post. A skateboard pool and an 800k gal pool. My son skated in our gunite shell 15 years ago,, awesome. He wants to know if he and his snowboard friends can recreate this ? Please tell me NO, its too warm here in the winter and I wont risk the surface, but its hard to argue with engineer students. Its already the talk of his friends. Darn I shouldn't have shown him your kid, good luck to him, enjoy, Barb

The first night of skating.. My Son & his friend Damon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUIDOkI3ol4

Here is a link that might be useful: Pool

Wow-they make it look so easy! Thanks for sharing!