You enter the Tacoma Armory wearing your Guess denim jacket circa ’89 and Girbuad jeans with your roller skates dangling over your shoulder. It’s been years since you had any wheel-spinning action. Thanks to Tacoma Arts Live, Skate the Armory: Pride Edition offers a razzle-dazzle evening of roller skating from 5-10 p.m. Whether you’re a seasoned skater or just starting out, all levels are welcome. DJ Eli will guide the evening with lights, music, and rainbow-rific visual projections. You grab your best friend because you’re not going down alone. You have to re-learn how to stiff-arm quick. Thankfully, you acknowledged the 12-year-old within and enjoyed yourself immensely. You even use your still-painfully-obvious ineptitude at skating to flirt. You screamed, you giggled, You bit the bullet and had fun and left there feeling triumphant. You head to Peaks & Pints in Tacoma’s Proctor to enjoy their special beer flight, Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: Skate the Armory Pride Edition, and recap the evening.
Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: Skate the Armory Pride Edition
Matchless Hop Tricks
6.4% ABV
Performing the Bunny Hop on roller skates is fairly easy — with two feet on the ground, all eight wheels, arms out, knees bent, and you’re going to spring up off of both feet and land on both feet. Make sure that you land on all eight wheels solidly, and not lift your toes or land on your toe stops. Drinking Matchless Brewing’s Hop Tricks is just as easy. Brewed with fruity hops Centennial, El Dorado, Mosaic and Topaz, the hazy, fruity IPA is a mellow sipper.
Future Primitive Thunderpussy IPA
6.9% ABV
Based in Seattle, all leather and licks with plenty of ‘tude kickass quartet Thunderpussy collaborated on Future Primitive Brewing’s Thunderpussy IPA. This IPA earned a spot on this flight for Thunderpussy’s song, “Welcome to the Disco,” and the song’s video that can only be described as “Octopussy meets Boogie Nights.” Please take a moment to appreciate those thigh-high socks, spray on pants, and booty shorts and consider wearing the outfits tonight as you skate around the Tacoma Armory. Thunderpussy IPA is brewed with Motueka, Hallertau Blanc, and Citra hops for citrus and dank notes.
Stoup Be Dazzled IPA
6.9% ABV
Architect Ambrose James Russell, also known for other Tacoma landmarks such as the William Ross Rust mansion and the Temple Theater, designed a two-level Tacoma Armory training facility and arms storage for the Washington State National Guard. The lower level was designated for cavalry and the upper level for infantry. Completed in 1908, The Armory kicked off 1909 with a dazzling New Years Gala. Fast forward to today, the Armory floor will be dazzling again when Skate the Armory Pride Edition hits the wooden floor. Prepare to be dazzled by drinking Stoup Brewing’s Be Dazzled IPA with its moderate bitterness, soft mouthfeel, and aromas of citrus, pine, and passionfruit, which will likely make you want to do a little dance, sing as you skate, and shine like Stoup.
Old Schoolhouse No Cause for Alarm
7.5% ABV
They’ll be no cause for alarm at the Tacoma Arts Live Skate the Armory: Pride Edition tonight. The scene will be more like a cross between a roller-rink birthday party and a dance club. Skaters will zoom around the perimeter, with knees, hips and shoulders moving to the thumping bass line. Groups will link hands, moving as a single train — maintaining straight lines even when the first skater in line drops into a tuck, or lifts a leg out in front and kicks it in and out to the beat. There will also be No Cause For Alarm in the Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: Skate the Armory Pride Edition. Imagine Nation Brewing Co. in Missoula collaborated on Old Schoolhouse Brewery’s hazy, juicy double IPA brewed with Simcoe, Chinook, Citra cryo, New Zealand Southern Cross, and Mosaic cryo for mango, orange, peach and ripe papaya flavors.
Single Hill Thunder Juice
7.7% ABV
Founded in 1977, OJ Wheels stood out from their inception with a bright orange urethane and shape designed specifically for skateparks. OJ Wheels’ Thunderjuice wheels are an XL version of their popular Hot Juice series. Big, soft, and fast — the 78a formula makes for fast transportation. They’re designed for longboards, but the soft and grippy wheels could be found on skates tonight. Offering a galaxy-scale of hop explosion, Single Hill Brewing’s Thunder Juice DDH Hazy IPA bursts with notes of pineapple and stone fruit with a smooth finish that will have you travelling in circles.
LINK: Peaks & Pints beer and cider cooler inventory
