Skateboarding and church: it's an unusual combination but one that Skatechurch at Warehouse 180 has successfully used to its advantage for about six years, according to Shawn Gruenhagen, a leader with Skatechurch.

Warehouse 180 is a youth building and indoor skate park run by Foothills Community Church, located at 8270 W. 80th Ave. in Arvada. The skate park is roughly 13,000 square feet with about 15 ramps and 10 rails. There also is a concession stand and a worship area. Gruenhagen said the skating aspect grew out of the church's youth group.

"The parents built a ramp and rail," he said. "And then five kids would show up, then 10 and now it has grown beyond belief."

Gruenhagen, 26, has been with Skatechurch for the past three years. He said the program consists of two weekly sessions: Thursday nights are for high school students and Monday nights are for junior high students. Both sessions run from 6 to about 8:30 p.m.

The big draw for kids going to Warehouse 180 is being able to skate during bad weather, said Gruenhagen. "When it's raining or snowing, we get busy," he said. He mentioned one night when the skate park had about 190 people. "And that's just high school," he added.

Another unique aspect about Warehouse 180 is that it's free to get in and skaters aren't required to wear pads or helmets, but they do have to sign a waiver stating they understand skateboarding is dangerous and to not hold the skate park liable, Gruenhagen said.

And what about kids getting hurt? "We understand that's skateboarding," Gruenhagen said. "We're lucky we haven't had real major injuries."

And the biggest feature that differentiates Warehouse 180 from other indoor and outdoor skate parks is a formal time for ministry. Gruenhagen said that between 6 and 7 p.m., kids are given time to skate and play and around 7:30 they are led into the sanctuary for a 15-minute message. Following the sermon, the kids are allowed to skate again.

Although kids aren't being forced to worship, Gruenhagen said the "real rule is that if you want to skate for the second session, you need to stay for the message."

He added that while about 75 percent of the skaters attending the weekly Skatechurch are regulars, "almost none of them are members (of Foothills Community Church)."

"This is their only church, their only exposure to church," Gruenhagen said.

He said there are many kids who just skate for that hour and then leave. "We try not to be about rules," he added. "This is a place for fun because skateboarding is fun."

Keeping skateboarding fun and not enforcing religion is what made Evan Kuzava, 19, stay with Skatechurch for the past five years. He said he went to Skatechurch every week - "as much as I could" - and stayed for the ministry. He is now a volunteer leader with Warehouse 180.

"This place is free, weather-proof and pretty accessible," Kuzava said. "And it's a place just for skaters; it's pretty cool they singled us out."

"Skateboarders have a one-track mind," he continued, adding that many of the kids stay because it's a requirement to be able to skate the second hour. "Skate culture is anti-religion, anti-rules. But they're not preaching here, and that's when they (skateboarders) get really interested."

"We're not in-their-face religious," Gruenhagen said. "We're laid-back; you can't force somebody to believe in God. The best way to reach those kids is to let them do their own thing."

And letting kids be is why skateboarding has fitted in well with Skatechurch's mission. "Skateboarding is massive," Gruenhagen said. "Part of the appeal is that it's your own thing, you and your skateboard. You don't have to have a whole team to play."

Being a very open-minded place does have some of its drawbacks. Gruenhagen said that there are kids who smoke, drink or swear, but that's "part of the deal."

"Once you understand the type of kid you're dealing with, you know stuff is going to happen," he said. "We're fortunate in the way we deal with that. We care for them."

He added that the leaders at Skatechurch don't really take any disciplinary action, but if a skaters get into fights, they'll just ask them to take a break, such as a week off from going to Warehouse 180.

"We ask them to leave but we tell them we want them to come back," Gruenhagen said.

And skaters do come back week after week. Warehouse 180's popularity has come from word of mouth and not any formal advertising, according to Gruenhagen.

"We don't advertise," he said. "Kids find out and they come from all over: Fort Collins, Steamboat, Evergreen, Littleton, Parker - just for two hours of skating."

Nonetheless, Gruenhagen said the purpose of Skatechurch is to not be a tourist attraction. "We're not trying to pack the house," he said. "Skatechurch is one of the biggest youth ministries in the area. It blows my mind we don't have six of these in Denver."