Hawk swoops down on Groton skate park

Groton - Despite the sheer implausibility of the rumor - that skateboarding legend Tony Hawk was coming to Sutton Park - Grasso Tech senior Nate LaPointe and a few friends walked from the school to the skate park to find out for themselves.

"I heard about this and said, 'You've got to be kidding me. He's coming to Groton? No one even knows where this is,'" LaPointe said. "I didn't even believe it, but when I came down, everyone was already here. And I said, 'Wow, that's awesome.'"

Despite little or no advance notice, hundreds flocked to Sutton Park on Tuesday to see Hawk, who made a surprise appearance in Groton to promote his new video game, "Tony Hawk: Ride."

"This is a nice change," said Hawk, 41. "A lot of the things we've done in the past have been organized on a big scale. I like doing this when it's a lot more renegade and a lot more intimate."

Hawk and about 20 members of his crew arrived at about 3 p.m. and started skating almost immediately. As time passed, more and more local skaters joined in.

"This is completely awesome," said 20-year-old Lauren Lange, a Groton resident. "The only reason I got into skateboarding is because of Tony Hawk, dude. And now he's here. Oh man, I'm so excited right now that I could cry."

Donny Barley and Jeff Paprocki, two of the skateboarders who fought for creation of the park, which was built in 1999, were there Wednesday for what they said was probably the venue's biggest event.

"It's unbelievable, man," said Barley, 36. "We had been fighting for this skate park as kids for maybe 10 years. Everybody has put a lot of time and effort into this place, and now to see Tony here ... we're on the map now."

Paprocki helped build the park's concrete elements, which Hawk said made the park a good place to skate.

"I like how expansive it is," Hawk said. "There's a lot of humps and corners where you can get some speed."

The moment Hawk stopped skating and took his helmet off, he was surrounded by a mob of autograph-seekers. Everyone, it seemed, wanted some kind of physical proof they had met Hawk.

"I'm going show everyone at school this shirt tomorrow and tell them that I saw Tony Hawk," said Billy Ray Goff, 11, of Groton.

A cast may have sidelined Anthony Medrano, a Montville High sophomore who broke his leg during football practice, from skating, but he was still able to land a coveted signature from Hawk.

"It's amazing," Medrano said. "He's the first, best celebrity I've ever met. I'm amazed right now that he would show up in a little town like this."

Jerry Lokken, the recreation services manager for the town Parks and Recreation Department, said Hawk's team asked if the town would like to host an unannounced visit by the skating icon.

"It was a no-brainer," Lokken said. "Obviously, the kids are going to be excited to see him."

Skating events will take place at the park this weekend with a skateboarding competition for skaters aged 6 or older. For more information, call 860-441-6791 or visit www.grotonrec.com. Entry is $25, but Groton residents who register in advance save $10.

m.collette@theday.com