Aaron Spohn

Founder / President

Aaron is the embodiment of the entrepreneurial spirit. When he used a carpentry background to start Spohn Ranch in the early ‘90’s, he had no back-up plan – he put everything he had behind his passion for wheel sports. That passion culminated in a backyard half-pipe that not only gave birth to a community, but eventually an award-winning skatepark design-build firm.

After Aaron helped launch skateparks into the mainstream when he partnered with ESPN to develop the X-Games, Spohn Ranch’s backyard roots spread globally in the form of hundreds of cutting-edge creations.

Hailed by insiders as a pioneer of the modern municipal skatepark, Aaron has also spent considerable effort promoting the industry as a whole and sharing his extensive knowledge.

These days, when Aaron travels, he will still drive 200 miles out of his way to visit a new skatepark. Even after thirty years of work in the skatepark industry, he will always be an avid student of the latest in wheel sports, architecture and construction.

Awards & Recognition:

• Featured expert on Spike TV’s “Playbook 360” dedicated to skatepark design/construction (2014)
• Consultant for Atlanta Olympics tribute to wheel sports (1996)
• Educational speaker at Global Skateboarding Summit in Istanbul, Turkey (2015)
• Educational speaker at ASLA, NRPA, CPRS and other state park/rec conferences (2000-present)
• Editorial contributor to Parks & Recreation, Landscape Architecture and other industry publications  (2000-present)
• Founding member of ASTM sub-committee that established skatepark safety guidelines (2002-2006)