By Brynna Williamson
Tucked behind a nondescript white building on a quiet street in Golden, Texas, you will find a big surprise: The 1980s. That is, as close as you can find nearly 40 years later. (That number just struck you, didn’t it? Our sincerest apologies.)
What you’ll really find inside that building is the Let’s Roll Skating Rink. Though built in 2003 by owner Sandra Hester and her husband, the rink feels like it’s been stoically sitting in that spot since the 1980s. After all, as the uber-popular hangout of choice during those “golden” years of the 80s, the roller skating rink should be the same as it was.
Luckily, this local treasure has managed to keep its original charm.
How It All Got Rolling
Let’s Roll Skating Rink is a family-owned project of Hester’s. When the land that the rink now sits on came up for sale in 2003, she says she told her husband, “Let’s buy that land!”
“I knew what was on my mind, so we bought it, and he said, ‘Okay! Now what are you gonna do with it?’ And I said, ‘I want a skating rink.’ And he said, ‘In Golden?’ And I said, ‘Yep!’”
Without hearing the conversation or knowing Ms. Hester, it is nearly impossible to convey the sheer confidence put into that one word: Yep.
Her confidence was apparently enough for the two of them, because, as she says, “The next day, my husband brought the bulldozer and starting moving dirt.” Soon after, they had a completed roller skating rink—something Hester wanted to put up because “that’s all I ever did when I was young. I just thought it would be good for the kids.”
It Keeps Skating Right Along
Today, the rink is still 100% family owned and operated. Hester enjoys providing the teenagers and youth of the area with something she enjoyed as a kid; however, one of the things she most enjoys is being able to play her “upbeat” Christian music, in addition to playing nostalgic oldies.
“I get to play Christian music and put that in those kids’ heads instead of what they usually listen to,” she says. “If they gripe, I just say, ‘Well, build your own skating rink, and then you can play whatever you want to!’”
Ashlyn Rogers, Hester’s granddaughter, started skating at Let’s Roll when she was just four years old (she is now 24). She loves kids, so she helps out at the skating rink as needed, sharing smiles and laughs with all the children who come there to skate. Rogers’ “real” job is as a personal trainer at Christus Health System.
The rink at Let’s Roll is around 9,000 square feet, says Hester. It is outfitted with your typical smooth floor in the middle and handrail around the outer edge for safety reasons, should it have been more than 30 years since you last hit the rink!
There’s No Inflation Here
In case you’re hungry or thirsty, the food prices at Let’s Roll have stayed near 1980s levels, too—at least much closer than many other places where you buy food nowadays. For example, at the skating rink, chicken quesadillas are only $3.50. And a cheeseburger is only $5.00. Want a drink with that? How about $1.00?
These and many, many other snacks and soul foods—including ice cream, pickles, nachos, loaded fries, cotton candy, and more—are all under $6.50!
Something for Everyone
Let’s Roll Skating Rink in Golden is not only the preserved 1980s skating rink that you didn’t know you had, but it’s also a video arcade and—you guessed it—a popular hangout for young teens to get away and have fun with one another. The arcade, which is in a separate side room, features a few high-nostalgia games like billiards, air hockey, Super Mario, and a racing game.
The rink is open on Fridays and Saturdays from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., and entry is only $7.00 per person. That $7.00, of course, covers not only entry but also the cost of renting roller skates. According to its Facebook page, the Golden, Texas rink accepts both cash and credit cards. And should you want to participate in the rink’s popular “scooter riding”—which is held after the roller skating ends at 9:30 p.m.—it’s just $2.00 more.
Part of the charm of Let’s Roll Skating Rink is how true it remains to the character of the place. You might drive up to the building on a Friday night in 2024, but when you walk in those doors, you’ll be in a Saturday night in 1984. Little kids chatter and laugh, teens lick ice cream, roller skate wheels hit the rink, and oldies are playing on the speakers.
On top of everything else the skating rink offers, you can also host your party there! Just contact Hester at Let’s Roll for all the details.
One last important detail: The name “Let’s Roll” was chosen for the rink as a tribute to the infamous last words of Todd Beamer, a passenger on United Airlines Flight 93, before Beamer and several other passengers valiantly banded together to attempt to retake the airplane from hijackers during the September 11, 2001 attacks.
So take the short drive out to Golden and lace up—you will have a blast!