Soaring 170 metres above Portsmouth Harbour and the Solent, the Spinnaker Tower is taller than the London Eye, Blackpool Tower and Big Ben and has already established itself as a national icon for Britain. Get yourself down to Gunwharf Quays and check out the panoramic views over the city and the Solent. Don’t forget your camera. Oh, and if you’re a Portsmouth resident you get cheap entry if you provide proof.
Articles about Southsea Skatepark can be hard to come by, and articles from 1988 even more so. I found these on the ‘when we was rad’ website a while back. I remember having the picture of Tommy Guerrero pulling that slob torn out and on my wall for years. Sick.
Southsea Skatepark was established back in 1978 and after all the years it’s been shredded she looks a little worn around the edges, literally. The Southsea Skatepark Users Group and bored have teamed up with Spitfire Skateboard Wheels to help out. Check the flyer in the article for all the info and head over to bored on Albert Road and do your bit.
The second annual Love Albert Road Day was by all accounts a huge success. With an estimated 40,000 people coming and going, our beloved street has never seen so much action. Organiser Ian Parmiter helped put on the no holds barred street event and did a damn fine job. A great day that does not just promote the street, but encourages a sense of community.
Check the Skate Library for the first of a growing list of old Southsea photos including this one of Lance Mountain grinding the Law Courts back in 1988 (photo by Tim Leighton-Boyce).
As you may know each year we run a home brew competition in February where the winning brew has the opportunity to be brewed by Irving & Co Brewing Co. and sold around the city in the summer. Last year’s brew, the Strong Island Hopper Ale, was hugely successful being one of Inving’s best selling ales and selling out so quickly it went through a second brew run. This year’s winning ale is Dry Dock No. 1, originally brewed by Lee Immins, went on sale in some of Portsmouth and Southsea’s pubs over the weekend.
We spoke to The Hole in The Wall in Southsea who said the new ale went down a storm with it being their best seller on Sunday and with almost two barrels empty by the end of the Bank Holiday weekend. Those guys at the Hole in The Wall and their regular ale drinkers know their stuff so for us this was amazing early news with the ale.
To officially launch Dry Dock No. 1 we are having a launch party with the lovely souls at The Belle Isle on Thursday evening. The ale will be on full flow, come down and try a pint or two. As well as being on sale all around the city the ale will also be available in Chichester’s Belle Isle too, so you can drink it away from home for the first time too.
Just over a year ago, a group of Strong Islanders were sat on the Isle of Wight ferry on our way to the yearly Randonnee cycling event; 60 miles around the island spread across 5 checkpoints. Whilst on the crossing we couldn’t help but admire various enthusiasts and their custom team jerseys. Fast forward a year and it is my great pleasure to unveil the Strong Island cycling jersey. Made as a one off for the event, the jersey is our way of representing this city and all the values that come with it. Thanks to the combined designing efforts of Chris Ballingall and Tristan Savage, we were able to produce this clean, retro looking jersey that 11 of Southsea’s finest could wear to conquer the island’s endless hills. Well done chaps.
Follow Us