Back when disco dominated the charts, mobs of twirling, permed, besequinned skaters packed into roller rinks across the country. Over time, roller-skating’s popularity fizzled too, and in 2019, what remains of Maine’s diehard skating community lost a hallowed haunt, Happy Wheels Skate Center. Opened in 1973, it was the last of a chain that once had locations throughout New England, and it was the Portland area’s last rink.
“That was devastating,” says Jimmy Mulkern, who’d been skating at Happy Wheels since the ’70s and working there since the ’80s. Now, at age 60, Mulkern is lacing up his skates again, thanks largely to Derek Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald grew up skating at the rink in the ’80s and ’90s, introduced to the pastime by his mom. By the time he was 7, he knew all the Happy Wheels employees by name. By 16, he was an employee himself, serving as a rink monitor and DJ before eventually becoming a manager. These days, the 41-year-old works in IT, and he still loves skating.
When Happy Wheels shuttered in 2019, Maine was left with just four roller rinks, in Auburn, Smithfield, Houlton, and Caribou. Of those, only Auburn’s Rollodrome was running year-round.
But the story doesn't end there. Fitzgerald imitated the layout of the old Happy Wheels, and he salvaged almost everything he could, from the kickboards to the tables to the candy machines. The color palette on the walls is the same too. And even after a three-year layoff, more than half a dozen employees returned.
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“I was trying to keep it old-school,” Fitzgerald says. “This is Happy Wheels."
Since reopening, Happy Wheels has been welcoming 350 or so skaters on busy nights. Some have four or five decades of experience out on the rink - “they grew up with skating,” Fitzgerald says. “They’re good at it." Maxwell and his family spend every weekend skating at Happy Wheels. “It’s a blessing to share a part of my childhood with my family,” Maxwell said. “Happy Wheels is my home."
Nationally, participation in roller skating rebounded somewhat during the pandemic. It’s an activity as well suited to a paved bike path or sidewalk as to a rink, and retailers saw skate sales boom. Now that people have been returning to indoor activities, it seems some of those new skaters are finding their way onto the floor.
Still, skating remains a much more niche passion than it once was - Fitzgerald recalls about 20 skate centers that operated in Maine back in the day. When he meets people outside the rink and he tells them what he does, he can usually anticipate their first question. “Yes,” he’ll tell them.
Happy Wheels is open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for all-ages skates. On Tuesday evenings, the rink holds adults-only skates. It’s also available for birthday parties and other events. 3 Chabot St., Westbrook. 207-797-8207.
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Styles of roller skating vary regionally, and in Maine, a unique type of shuffle skating is the predominant form. It’s easily replicable and recognizable, and it makes for eye-catching videos on social media. It’s characterized by stepping into the beat and double kicking the right leg on the third and fourth beat, Edwards said. People also wear skates made of suede, which in other skate communities - like those in California - would only be worn outside.
After a decade away from the sport, Edwards, 34, laced up his skates at Happy Wheels, the rink that reopened in Westbrook in 2022, three years after it closed in Portland. “The reason I’m doing this is because I want people to know that there is skating north of New Jersey, which a lot of people don’t,” Edwards said.
The roots of Edwards’ skating passion run deep. But it wasn’t until he began traveling to rinks around the country that he realized just how distinct each region’s skate culture could be.
Soon after Edwards started Roller Skate New England, he became overwhelmed with the amount of content he was creating. So, he decided to make the page collaborative.
“For us to start having people film in here - and then people see the blue floor and the colors on the wall - they say, ‘Wait a minute, I remember that place,’” Edwards said. “Everybody remembers this place. What we didn’t have before was the upfront, in-your-face relevance of a rink that exists on social media. ❤️?
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Cara Parent, 21, center, chats with friends at Happy Wheels in Westbrook on June 24. Parent said she took up skating about a year and a half ago. “I bought a pair of skates a few days after seeing those videos,” Carson said. Tuesday night skate is an institution at Happy Wheels.
Edwards was integral in Happy Wheels hosting the Boston Swerve Takeover, a Thursday night event that brought in skaters from across New England and the country. The May 3 takeover introduced a new scene to Happy Wheels, bringing in other skating styles, such as rhythm skating.
The rink is also trying to bring in younger skaters by participating in Kids Skate Free, a national program that gives kids two free passes a week for a $5 annual membership. They also have a Read and Roll program, where students receive a bookmark that they can write down the books they read on it.
Skating is part of Frye’s DNA. His parents met at Happy Wheels in Scarborough in 1995. Frye learned to skate by watching older skaters like his parents and Fitzgerald. Frye spends five to six days a week at the rink. “When you’re out there, nothing else matters,” he said.
He posted a video, filmed by Fernando Moreno, of him shuffle skating in a group at Happy Wheels. “Hope this trend catches on again! Old school fun,” wrote one commenter. With more than 3 million views, his most popular video shows him and another skater grooving to “Here Comes the Hotstepper” by Ini Kamoze.
While Happy Wheels offers a classic indoor experience, The Thompson’s Point Rink provides an outdoor alternative. The rink offers daily public skating sessions and private rink rentals on a professionally maintained ice surface supported by a brand new chilling system and Zamboni! Public skating occurs in timed and ticketed sessions. Tickets are only valid for the designated session and expire at the end of the session. Ice skate rentals, training aids, and skate sharpening services are also available.