By Jackie Dent BBC News Online

Skaters in Britain say they are prone to being robbed

William Kraemer, 19, used to get a little nervous skating down at South Bank, one of London's legendary skateboard parks. Quite often, gangs would come by and rob the skaters of their money.

"Skaters are seen as a pushover and I think we are in general," said the 19-year old university student. "Sometimes groups of riotous young gents would turn up and steal our money. I've seen it happen lots of times."

After five years at South Bank, Mr Kraemer gradually drifted towards skating at Stockwell Skate Park in Brixton.

"It's a lot more intimate," he said. "There are a lot more adults, like people in their twenties and thirties, so I always feel safe there, and so do the guys that are 13."

The townies are always trying to take my board James Heart, 15 Skateboarder

Mr Kraemer theorises that skaters get picked on because they tend to come from middle class backgrounds and may not be particularly street smart.

James Heart, 15, a skateboarder from Stockton, on Teesside, has also experienced problems, with his "hoodie" - hooded top - being stolen in recent weeks. "The townies are always trying to take my board," he said.

James is sponsored to skate by Carl Brennan, 30, who co-owns Popcorn, a specialist company which sells a range of skateboarding products online and in a North Yorkshire store.

Jealousy

Mr Brennan said most skaters are "mild mannered" people and trouble tends to come from outsiders.

"The problems tend to come to fruition outside of skateparks or around skateparks, but not necessarily at skateparks because the community is there looking after each other," he said.

He said skateboarders were considered "nerds" but in recent years skating had become "trendy".

"The popularity of skating has gone through the roof and with the increased number of skateboarders that are about, there is an increase in jealousy, I would say.

"Some people don't have that interest, they don't have anywhere to put their enthusiasm."

Poor parks

The influx of skaters to the hobby has also highlighted the often poor design of British skateparks, which Mr Brennan said councils sometimes build without properly consulting the skating fraternity.

"The amount of parks that have become urban monuments is just shocking," he said.

To make sure a decent skatepark was built in North Yorkshire, Mr Brennan and skaters formed a committee and worked directly with Hambleton District Council on its design.

"We've had a committee with a group of youngsters, the council and the contractors all meeting together on a regular basis to make sure that the park was laid correctly, that the ramps were a correct specification."

The new park is expected to be opened next weekend.