San Francisco police almost managed to defuse the Dolores Park Hill Bomb—until a few dozen rogue skaters pulled off a scaled-back version by careening down a slope just a block away.
One hill-bomber who defied police by participating in the illegal event Saturday narrowly avoided a car turning right onto the Church Street side of the park as the crowd cheered his high-speed descent.
Another fell just as he made it to the bottom of the hill but quickly snapped upright and motioned to the crowd that he was OK, prompting thunderous applause from onlookers.
Skateboarder Mark Urbieta, who identified himself as “Shark,” rushed down Church in an N-95 mask.
“That shit felt great,” he exclaimed as he trudged back uphill.
Though SFPD pulled out all the stops to prevent the event, hosting a press conference a day prior and stationing officers around the park hours beforehand, they proved markedly more restrained than last year.
When skaters finally dared to bomb away Saturday evening in front of a couple-hundred onlookers, scores of cops simply looked on. Some snapped pictures.
Compared to the chaos of the hill bomb in 2023—when cops kettled riotous crowds and arrested people en masse—it started out as a kinder, gentler hill bomb.
For some of the skaters, the show of restraint softened their view of authorities.
“It was, ‘Fuck the city,’” Urbieta told The Standard. “We’re loving the city now—but I don’t know how long it will last.”
A few minutes later, he fell at the bottom of the hill, writhing in pain on the ground as bystanders and volunteer medics rushed to help.
“I’m good, I’m good I’m good I promise,” he said. “It happens. It’s a part of this life.”
When a medic advised Urbieta not to skate the hill again, he responded, “Do you not know how skaters operate?”
Moments later he was speeding down the hill again.
Not everyone was so lucky.
As the sun began to set, a skateboarder fell into a curb at the bottom of the hill, rolling multiple times and hitting his head. A hushed silence fell over the crowd.
Then, as paramedics carried him away on a stretcher, the skater threw his arms, prompting raucous cheers.
‘Event Canceled’
A day ahead of the event, police held a press conference to warn skaters that they would be arrested if they tried to defy them.
An Instagram user who originally advertised the event, retracted their original post with an image that said the event was a no-go.
“Event CANCELED!!! Police will be waiting at Dolores!!! Keep my name out of it!!! Stay away!!!” the updated post read.
Officers began posting up on Dolores Street between 19th and 20th streets a couple hours before the expected start time.
A couple of young skaters who said they were arrested at the unsanctioned event last year and declined to share their names told The Standard that they still planned to “bomb” the hill even with the barricades.
For hours, it didn’t seem like they’d have a chance to pull it off—until they did.
While officers milled about with no crowds to control, residents in the area complained about the police presence.
Maria Pugliese, a dog walker in the neighborhood, said she was disgusted that the city allocated so many cops to the event while other crimes remain an issue.
“They’re doing it at their own risk,” she said. “I don’t know what to tell you.”
“Why would they stop this but not the motorcycle gangs?” she went on to say, referring to groups of dirt-bike riders who often caravan through the Mission. “They could kill somebody, they’re running red lights every freakin’ weekend.”
Chloe, who lives near the park and declined to share her last name, said she doesn’t understand why the city doesn’t just sanction the event.
“I want a hill bomb that has medical support on hand,” she said. “They’re spending so much money to make it not happen, but it costs the same amount to make it happen.”
Skateboarder Chris Long said he thought the city made the event less safe by installing bumps on the street to deter the would-be hill bombers.
“I’d be interested in participating if it was safe,” he said. “I’m disappointed to see this is how the city is handling things. … They had plenty of time to prepare.”
Aaron Breetwor, a Mission resident who also advocates for a sanctioned hill bomb, said he presented the city with a plan to host the event with just such safety precautions—but it was ignored.
He showed up to the park Saturday with about 20 helmets for people to use in case anyone skated. He was also advising skaters about how to talk to police if they get detained.
Meanwhile, several drivers expressed frustration over the road closures.
“How am I supposed to get to my house?” one man yelled from his Lexus SUV.
As the afternoon wore on with no sign of a hill bomb, officers debated whether to reconvene at another spot.
“Boss man said barricade down to 18th Street,” one cop told a group of colleagues at 20th and Dolores streets.
“Is there another hill we should barricade?” another asked with a smile.
For a couple hours, a group of skaters took to skating the walkway in the middle of the park, which was partially blocked off by rangers and metal gates.
This, to the dismay of some skaters, at first seemed to be the extent of Saturday’s event.
At around 6:40 p.m., rangers completely blocked the skaters’ pathway, which prompted boos from onlookers and skaters alike.
“Somebody’s going to have to smack into that thing,” one skater yelled.
A few masked people tried to steal some of the barricades but only made it about 20 meters before they encountered park rangers and ran away.
Other skaters made a game of skating on their backs underneath the rangers’ truck.
But as the afternoon gave way to evening, the group worked up the nerve to risk arrest and injury by carrying on the hill-bomb tradition.
Breetwor said the fact that the show went on after all is a testament to the indomitable skater spirit.
“This is a city of hills—you can’t barricade every hill,” he told The Standard. “I’m proud of the community for coming together.”
Matt Flores, who said he’s lived in the neighborhood since the 1990s, walked a few blocks from his house to enjoy the show.
“I think it’s relatively harmless,” he said. “I think people were overreacting to it in the first place.”
Nico Cruz, a Noe Valley resident who was drinking at nearby bar Woods, cheered on skaters with a pint of pilsner in his hand.
“This is great,” he said. “This is so San Francisco.”