Laced up Wired skating rink nearly ready to roll in Pancake
In addition to open skate times, the rink will host private parties and has several pool tables and an air hockey table.
Clay and Julie Graham are nearing the opening date for Wired, a new skating rink. Wired will be in the location of the former Pancake Skate ‘n’ Whirl. The Grahams, with the help of family, overhauled the building and made a colorful, welcoming rink for the area.
Signs point toward happiness at Wired
Katie Roupe/Observer-Reporter Wired, the new skating rink in South Strabane, is scheduled to open on Saturday.
Ready to roll, skaters?
Julie and Clay Graham certainly are. After purchasing the former Pancake Skate ‘n’ Whirl, then renovating the ramshackle structure, they are ready to launch their own roller rink. The couple plans to open Wired on Saturday.
“We’re so close, but still far away,” she said, lamenting and laughing Thursday morning. There was still formidable work ahead, including installation of the skate floor. But after overseeing a whirlwind three-month facelift, the Grahams weren’t daunted by the prospect of a feverish finish.
What’s 10 more grueling days?
The Grahams are intent on opening Saturday at 10 McCoy Lane, in the Pancake section of South Strabane Township. As of late last week, the couple still had to put up signs, paint, install some machinery and lighting, and complete other refurbishings. The accent is on youth, with bright colors from the walls down to the large, snazzily designed carpet bearing the name “Wired” numerous times.
Julie and Clay also were agonizing over the skate floor until Friday morning, when it arrived. Installation was to be completed by day’s end. That is Wired’s showpiece, a blue, 6,000-square-foot surface occupying half of the building space – and the focal point for anyone lacing up skates.
A contracting issue caused a delay in delivery, and a delay in opening. The Grahams had hoped for a November unveiling.
“We had to reschedule some parties to January,” said Julie, owner/operator of the Re/Max real estate offices in Washington Crown Center.
Wired will soon join Valley Skate Center in Donora as the only operating rinks in Washington County. Greene County has one – Mon View Roller Rink in Greensboro.
When open, Wired’s amenities will include a snack bar, two party rooms, a gift shop, skate rental, three large-screen TVs and a lounge area with couches. Six colors – yellow, blue, green, red, purple, orange – have been incorporated throughout. All six are displayed in that carpeting.
Skaters will maneuver on a floor illuminated by colored lights and – reminiscent of the ’70s – two disco balls.
Patrons can bring their own skates, of course, but Wired has about 300 pairs available for rental. Julie said the skates were the only “usable” items left over from the Skate ‘n’ Whirl, which closed last summer, and that she and Clay did toss out some pairs.
They were awaiting two signs late last week that were to go up on the front and the side of the building that is visible from Route 40, down the hill. They have a yellow background with mostly blue lettering and a red smiling face, products of 84 Lumber Sign Shop.
Clay and Julie have hired contractors, but the overhaul of Wired has been largely a testament to family unity and handiwork. The Grahams have done a lot of the work, and have been amply assisted by their children, Brent, Bryce and Lexi; Julie’s parents, Gary and Sherry Hatfield; her brother, Gary, and his wife, Heather; and her sister and brother-in-law, Billie Jo and Barry Graham, who also is Clay’s brother.
For Julie, the opening is literally a dream come true. She was a 5-year-old from Claysville when she became a skating devotee at Carla’s Skateland, a previous incarnation of the Skate ‘n’ Whirl. At some point in her formative years, she decided she wanted to own the place, which became a rink in 1959.
In late August, Julie and Clay did, purchasing it for $175,000 from John and Pamela Startare. The Grahams renamed the facility Wired as a reflection of the young audience they expected to attract.
“I’ve worked with a lot of kids,” Julie said at that time. “I believe they are all wired differently. I want them to have a place where they can hang out and be themselves.”
Julie is a bona fide advocate for young people. In addition to being a mother of three, she is a longtime head of McGuffey youth cheerleading and has been PTO president at McGuffey’s Joe Walker Elementary. She and Clay, a recently retired South Strabane Township police officer, live in South Franklin Township. He is the office manager at their Re/Max location.
Now, they are on the verge of opening. The ribbon will be cut at 4 p.m. Saturday, with public officials attending. Then the good times, literally, will roll.
Wired will be open for public skating from 6 to 10 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. Adult skate, for 18 and older, will be Friday from 10 p.m. to midnight. Private parties will run Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; 1:30 to 3:30; and 4 to 6.
Admission will be $7, with regular skate rental $1 and in-line skate rental $3.
For more information, visit facebook.com/WiredSkatingandPizza/?_rdr=p.