Politics & Government
UPDATED: Etnies Speaks Out Against BMX Equipment Ban at Lake Forest Skate Park
Online petition racks up hundreds of signatures, but city officials say BMX axle pegs damage the park's concrete.
Updated 12:49 p.m. Monday with information about the second reading of the law banning the pegs.
An online petition to repeal Lake Forest's ban on certain types of BMX bike equipment at the city skate park was launched Friday by shoe and apparel giant Etnies.
The petition targets a to outlaw BMX pegs—tubes of metal, plastic or other material attached to front or back bike axles so riders can slide along hard edges. City officials said the pegs can damage the park's concrete surfaces.
Find out what's happening in Lake Forestwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
A vote on final adoption of the ordinance banning the pegs is slated for Tuesday's council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at .
Ashton Maxfield, Etnies senior PR manager, said the company launched the petition drive after learning about the ban from stories in the Orange County Register.
Find out what's happening in Lake Forestwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“We were really surprised about it because BMX pegs are really essential to park riding,” Maxfield said. “That ban really affects the BMX community at large.”
Etnies has been a big supporter of the BMX community and released a specific shoe line for BMX riders in 1995.
“The good news is that the peg decision isn’t final,” Maxfield said, referring to the fact that the council will vote again on the issue Tuesday.
The city of Lake Forest, which owns and operates Etnies Skatepark, enacted the ban last month, shortly after commencing a .
When the park initially opened, it was designed for skateboards only, Skate Park Coordinator Nick Gate . "The bike sessions were an afterthought," he said, adding that BMX pegs have "caused enough damage to the point where with the new stuff being built, we don't want to risk it anymore."
The 3-0 City Council vote, with Mayor Peter Herzog and Mayor Pro Tem Mark Tettemer absent, would also enable city officials to limit the number of people in the park at any one time.
Councilwoman Marcia Rudolph said today she hadn't heard about Etnies' petition drive. "I would assume that if people want a change, they'd let us know," she said. "I'm always open to talking about stuff. If they've got a complaint or they feel [the ban] should be changed, then they need to come up with some evidence that refutes what's in the city staff report."
By late Sunday afternoon, Etnies' petition claimed nearly 500 online signatures, although their validity couldn't be confirmed.
