Homestead Speedway Morphs Into a 24-Hour Skate-A-Thon

This week, a different type of four-wheeled object will zoom around Homestead-Miami Speedway. For a 12th year, Miami Ultraskate is a go, attracting some of the best long-distance skateboarders in the world.

Upwards of 200 skateboarders will embark on a 24-hour journey of nonstop skating around the racetrack's 1.5-mile loop starting at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, February 15.

"This event was created to have a venue for world records to be broken," Scott Ziegler, head of public relations for Miami Ultraskate, tells New Times. "Our first couple of years, we had 50 or so people participate and then we started adding new categories, like team components, in-line skaters, and quad skaters; things really took off. We have the whole track to ourselves, and it makes for quite a party."

The event is free and open to the public, though there will be limited onsite concessions, activations, and activities for spectators. Ziegler says the event is geared toward participants, with a basecamp, catering, and prizes for those who enter. Registration runs $200 per person and will jump to $250 after 5 p.m. on February 14. (New Times readers can save $75 off registration using the code NTLOCAL75.)

Colorado resident Joe Mazzone holds the world record for the furthest distance traveled by skateboard. He set the record of 313.9 miles in 24 hours at Miami Ultraskate in 2021. According to Ziegler, to date, just 11 people have crossed the 300-mile-in-24-hour threshold. At the event, patches and keepsakes are given to those achieving 100-mile, 150-mile, and other benchmarks.

In addition to Mazzone, long-distance skateboarding heavyweights slated to attend include the event's founders and Miami locals Andy Andras and Joner Strauss. According to Ziegler, additional participants are scheduled to fly in from Singapore, Lithuania, Canada, Germany, Chile, Brazil, France, Switzerland, and Argentina.

Approximately 15 of the 200 total participants are going for world records. Otherwise, it's a non-grueling and chill affair.

"We have entire families that show up to participate, and it really is a familial vibe," Ziegler adds. "There really is no pressure at this event. It's about seeing how far you can go and, as for the broader sport, staying in shape, traveling, hanging out, and having some fun. I'd invite anyone to come out and give it a try."

Beyond the Miami Ultraskate event, organizers will host a group skate in Miami Beach and an afterparty at SkateBird Miami on Saturday, February 17.

Miami Ultraskate. 7:30 a.m. Thursday, February 15, through Friday, February 16, at Homestead-Miami Speedway, One Ralph Sanchez Speedway Blvd., Homestead; 24hourultraskate.com. Admission is free; registration to skate costs $250.