.a shopping centre might not seem like the most
obvious place for an indoor extreme sports experience
but in the ocean terminal shopping centre in leith, edinburgh
a bmx and skate park has been developed which has been
touted as the highest in the country. It officially opens on
nineteenth january 2008, but anthony robson went along
for a sneak peek at what has been happening, and discovers
there's much more to this park than just being on the top floor

It all seems slightly incongruous walking through a shopping centre, people still sitting outside coffee shops, and others taking advantage of the late night opening hours. I'm on the top floor of 'Ocean Terminal' in the Leith area of Edinburgh. Here the Royal Yacht Britannia is moored for the regular tourist trde to wander about and wonder if the Queen would have stepped on this same bit of carpet, but looking down on that staid piece of regalia I'm standing in the middle of a building site.

The unassuming white door, with warning that only authorised personnel are allowed in, and a stack of membership forms waithing to be filled in, hide a 9,000 sq ft space that would otherwise be sitting vacant and dusty. Instead a quite remarkble transformation is taking place, and one which will be complete very shortly.

With electric saws rumbling in the background, ramps and curves are taking shape. Half the room is already formed, with a street run in place. The rest, I was reliably informed, they hoped to have ready in a few days, all ready for a planned official opening in late January.

To understand the impact that this indoor park may have on Edinburgh's skating and BMX community you really need a little bit of the history, and fortunately that history ties in somewhat with the two men behind this ambitious scheme.

The city has been in dire need of such a park for some time now, with council procrastination and public outcry slowing down matters to a crawl. A number of outdoor sites have been mooted in the past, and just when things look like they're moving forward that stereotype nugget of numerous 'yoofs' running riot and mking all sorts of noise and anti-social behaviour is raised.