Experience Guide | Tourism Medicine Hat

Beat the Heat

Since 2007, the Medicine Hat Skateboard Association (MHSA) has hosted what’s now become Canada’s Largest Amateur Skate Competition, Beat the Heat. Every year on July 1, generations of skateboarders from across Canada gather at the Inland Skateboard Park and Kinsmen Skate Plaza to compete at the Canada Skateboard sanctioned event. From the early morning hours to the late evening minutes, skateboarders showcase their skills, tricks, and speed. The MHSA society creates thrilling and unexpected categories and stunts, like lining up kegs to see who can jump over the most, or having skaters race down a steep road that’s alongside a coulee. “We’ve heard it’s the skateboarder's favourite competition to go to every year, because there are tons of people cheering for them. The

atmosphere is unreal,” says Davie James, who’s been a part of MHSA since he was 13, and currently sits on the society for the non-profit. MHSA has a partnership with Tampa Am, the largest amateur skateboard event in the world, and the grand prize for first place at Beat the Heat is entry into the exclusive event, with flights and accommodations paid for. “We get some of the best skateboarders in the country coming to Medicine Hat on July 1 to do what they love to do. To see our team from Medicine Hat making an impact on the national skateboard stage is huge,” says Terence Kowalchuk, who joined alongside the MHSA leadership in 2005. Surrounding the Inland Skate Park and Kinsmen Skate Plaza will be live performances that celebrate the many cultures in Medicine Hat, food trucks, beer gardens, bouncy castles, a local market, and a huge product toss in between categories. To accommodate audience members, shaded bleachers are built for a clear, up-close view of the competitors.

“The whole festival is truly to give back to our community. The last couple of years we’ve done a family festival with Beat the Heat, and we’ve been encouraged to see that grow and expand. This year’s festival will be bigger and better, and an exciting event for our community,” says Kowalchuk

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