About Us
The Association of Skateboarders in Hawaii, [ASH] is an Oʻahu-based 501(c)(3) Non-Profit dedicated to giving skateboarders a voice.
Our Mission
Our mission is to create opportunities for Hawaii’s youth to put ideas into motion through safe, fun and enriching workshops, events and skatepark development.
Pushing Forward
ASH advocates for Hawai‘i’s skateboarding community by creating safe and inclusive spaces for youth expression, hands-on learning, community participation, and access to quality skateparks.
We are super charged up to push forward into the coming years with plans for skate parks and skate-able park features all across Oʻahu. Our current projects include state of the art Skate Plazas in Wahiawā and Kahuku as well as R&D for skate-able spaces in Waimānalo, Makiki and Kakaʻako.
These park projects are necessarily slow to develop and complete. This is why they require dedication and focus from the community to continue to push them forward. Please consider a donation.
Skatepark DevelopmentSkate ContestAfter an ambitious three island(Maui, Oahu & Hawaii Island) Contest Series in 2017, a brief hiatus became eight long years of no ASH contest due to the 2020 Pandemic Lockdowns. Thats why we are now so pumped to be bringing back our long-running Skate Contests with renewed focused on self-expression over points.
WorkshopsAlso we are excited to re-introduce and expand our ASH Workshops to help Hawaii’s young skaters to advance their skills as well as putting their creative ideas into motion.
Our History
ASH was founded in 1996 by Chuck Mitsui with a simple but powerful goal: to give Hawai‘i’s skateboarders a voice in decisions about public land use and recreational access. At a time when skateboarding had little formal support, ASH stepped forward to advocate for safe, designated places for youth to skate. What began as a grassroots effort has grown into a statewide movement with more than 800 members.
From 1997 to 2003, ASH served on Mayor Harris’s Vision Committee, working alongside communities to help shape the future of local parks. This collaboration led to the creation of O‘ahu’s first comprehensive Skatepark Construction Plan. Over six years, eight new public skateparks were built across the island: Kāne‘ohe, Keolu (Kailua), Makiki, Hawai‘i Kai, A‘ala, Pearl City, Kapolei, and Banzai on the North Shore. During this period, ASH also partnered with HMSA to launch a statewide safety campaign promoting helmet and pad use.
In 2018, ASH members in ‘Ewa Beach helped spark the revival of the long-neglected ‘Ewa Beach Skate Park. By mobilizing through neighborhood board meetings, gaining support from Ron Menor, and partnering on improvements, ASH helped fully resurface the park and add new features. ASH committed $37,000 to the effort, and the concrete repave was completed in July 2018.
At Kailua District Park, ASH has supported improvements to the skate area over many years, with major recent upgrades completed in summer 2021. These improvements included new concrete features and work with the Kailua Neighborhood Board to extend park lighting so the space remains active and safer into the evening.