Bentway DJ skate

Skating trail under the Gardiner hosting weekly DJ parties

The Bentway Skate Trail is finally set to open in just over two weeks, and the more we learn about what organizers have planned for it, the more it looks like this could be one of Toronto's premier outdoor spaces.

As if the simple act of building a trail under the Gardiner Expressway weren't awesome enough, The Bentway has announced a series of free workshops and events running from January 6, when it opens to the public, until mid-March.

Today, we got our first look at "BEATS AND BENTS" – a series of Friday night skate parties featuring the city’s best DJs spinning tunes from 8-11 p.m. each week.


Beginning on January 12, you'll be able to skate along to two DJ sets on The Bentway Skate Trail every Friday night, beginning with a hip-hop and R&B-themed event featuring DJORK and didicious.

Every Friday night skate party will have its own theme. "The Future is Female" on January 19th will see DJs play "an eclectic, forward-thinking mix of hip hop, R&B, rap/trap, grime, UK garage pop, indie and dance.

On January 26, "The Bentway pays homage to the decade that gave the world Back to the Future, Ghostbusters, and The Breakfast Club, with Back to the 80s."

February will see the skate trail turned into a world-class night club, a Caribbean dancehall, a 90s throwback party, and "Ice Ice Baby" featuring DJ Phillippe –  famous for Canada’s only all-French dance music night Tapette.

The last scheduled Friday night skate party is on March 2, when DJs General Eclectic and La Rumba Buena will thread together "rare South American descarga grooves, classic ska, Fela Kuti Afrobeat, and James Brown jams for a truly Tropical Ice Skate."

So, see you there? Every Friday night until it gets warm again? Yup.

Lead photo by

Sean Galbraith


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