In Insider Guides (formerly known as Voices of Zafigo) we ask local women to give us their top recommendations on a particular subject or area of interest in their city. If you’d like to be featured in this section, drop an email to editor@zafigo.com with the subject line ‘I want to be an Insider Guide for my city’.
Kuala Lumpur-born Sarah Lim Shu Yi received her first pair of K2 skates, a gift from her grandfather, when she was 10. None of her friends were into the sport at the time and she had no Internet access to watch videos and learn from, so when the skates got damaged, she simply stopped skating. She only picked it up again three years ago, after meeting her partner who is a frequent inline skater and mountain biker. “We figured it wasn’t too late for me (or anyone) to start skating again,” says Sarah. “Besides, it meant spending less on date nights and more time on healthy outdoor exercises!”
Inline skating is more than just an active pursuit, as Sarah has since learned. “It teaches you to push beyond your fears of failure and achieve things you never thought you physically could. The sport itself requires physical effort, balance and momentum… it also trains you to find that sweet spot between having calculated focus and determination, while learning to let go and cruise along. All of which are applicable to life in general!” Malaysia’s inline skating scene is still quite niche and there are few adult females who are active in the sport, but “I see parents bringing their little girls to the skate parks so that could change.”
Sarah recommends these four skate parks in the Klang Valley:
1. Shah Alam Extreme Park
“This fully open-air skate park certainly has character! Its unique concrete landscape of stair steps, banks and bowls of different shapes and sizes are covered in amazing graffiti art. Besides families from the neighborhood, quite a few advanced inline skaters and skateboarders hang out here as well. You can sometimes catch a good sunset here too. Other sporting facilities available here are paintball grounds, biking, climbing and bouldering areas – which aren’t maintained too well, unfortunately, but hopefully that will change soon.”
Where: Jalan Lompat Pagar 13/37, Seksyen 13, Shah Alam, Selangor | Opens: 9AM – 9PM, Monday -Friday; 9AM – 8PM, Saturday – Sunday | Entrance: Free Parking Free
2. Putrajaya Precinct 3
“Putrajaya is a skater’s paradise because of its wide and smoothly-tiled roadsides. There is also less traffic here compared to the streets of Kuala Lumpur, so you feel safer taking to your wheels, and it is also well-lit at night. The entire stretch along the Palace of Justice in Precinct 3 is the perfect spot for inline skating, cycling, and skateboarding in the evenings. I recommend inline skating here after you’ve gotten used to your skates and would like to practise commuting long distance.”
Where: Palace of Justice, Precint 13, Putrajaya | Entrance: Free
3. Putrajaya Skate Park
“This semi-sheltered skate park is one of the best in Asia and is actually part of the bigger Putrajaya Challenge Park, which has a mountain bike trail, an indoor climbing wall, and other extreme sports facilities. The skate park is divided into two areas: A wide level-floored area and a 2,600sqm concrete playground of curved bowls with different depths. There’s a nice and friendly family vibe here as skateboarders and inline skaters of all ages (very young kids and also adults) share the space, making it a nice introduction for beginners. It can get pretty packed on weekend evenings though. There are clean toilets, shower facilities, a bike shop and a small café on the premises.”
Where: Jalan P5, Precint 5, Putrajaya | Opens: 10AM – 7PM, Monday -Thursday; 10AM – 11PM, Friday -Sunday | Entrance: Free
4. Mont Kiara Skate Park
“This is the only sheltered skate park in Kuala Lumpur, ideal during harsher weather conditions and great for practicing the basics of inline skating. It’s also a popular spot among skateboarders as the park features ledges, rails and a large floor space – that has been graced by the wheels of skateboarding legend Tony Hawk.”
Where: Kompleks Rakan Muda Bukit Kiara, Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur (next to the Rakan Muda Sports Complex, on the left along the SPRINT Highway from Petaling Jaya heading towards Mont Kiara) | Opens: Till 11PM
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