The Events That Defined New York City Skateboarding in 2010: 15-11

December 20th, 2010 | 3:53 pm | Features & Interviews | 12 Comments

Took a week off from the countdown, sorry. There will probably be two of these posts this week. Moving on with the retrospective…#25-21, #20-16.

15. The Dipset Reunion

It is no secret that video part song choices are crucial to developing musical preferences of all those who have grown up on skate videos. From the punk rock of the 1980s, to the indie shit that accompanies any emotional “skating is an art, bro” video of today, skateboarding has a much closer tie-in with music than traditional sports, whose typical soundtrack ranges from “Kernkraft 400” to “I Like To Move It Move It.” If you came of age in the early 2000s, the impact of Dipset, and its days of making era-defining opuses of ignorance, cannot be understated. The reunion was a beacon of hope for all of those who miss the magic that defined early-to-mid-2000s skateboarding — when the internet, skate plazas, reality shows, and awful rap dynasties like Young Money were not a part of the cultural landscape. The reunion was also a chance for New York rap to get another shot at the previous-decade-dominating rap comeback, as Wu-Tang’s return in the 2000s was hardly worth the attention it was given.

A New Era of Skateboard Media Has Begun

September 2nd, 2010 | 6:20 pm | Daily News | 4 Comments

“‘Cause you know I’m doing 300,000 every week! Unless they take the shit down, then I gotta throw it back up. Start me back at the beginning, but I’m still killin’ ‘em.“

Skateboarding is finally getting its head on straight and taking some welcome cues from the rap music media world. As we enter an age where everyone is good, and essentially spending their adolescence tailoring their skills in well-built skate plazas, personality-building supplementary materials may be needed to help distinguish Cory Kennedy from a kid that skates like Cory Kennedy. And this means more than just a Crailtap “Fives” where Mike Carroll’s status as the world’s greatest skateboarder is reaffirmed. Anyone can rap about coke, fat asses, and Louis Vuitton, much like anyone (well, anyone who’s good) can nollie flip a fourteen-stair nowadays or switch crook a gnarly rail, but it will be the behind the scenes videos that help us decide where our allegiances with various athletes stand. Just as long as no one gets shot.

Yums, a shoe brand spearheaded by Soulja Boy, one of the greatest internet marketers in the history of the medium (I say this with utmost sincerity — you don’t have to like him, but if you disagree, then you’re wrong, simply put), took a saavy WorldStar-esque spin on the world of skate gossip in relation to the Manny Mania fight that seems to have eclipsed every other New York related skate event this past summer. We can only hope that this is the beginning of an endlessly entertaining path of Kat Stacks videos victimizing Alex Olson, or maybe a skateboard equivalent of the “oh you mad ’cause I’m stylin’ on you” classic.

(Stating this for no reason: The black suede Stevie Reebok is one of the most underrated skate shoes ever, if you have some pairs buried under your house because they were selling at stores for $30 at one point, e-mail me.)

Spotted via 48 Blocks. The fakie heel nosegrind at the end of the Pulaski line is pretty sick.

Only Built 4 Monday Linx

August 23rd, 2010 | 2:16 pm | Daily News | 4 Comments

Do you read the comments? You should. They reveal a lot of pertinent details: “This site has really turned into a west coast site that attempts to take place on the east coast.” A west coast site taking place on the east coast that constantly references southern rap music. Where does the midwest figure in?

Youness Amrani (it’s not ARMANI, for all you dyslexic guidos) deservedly won the AM Manny Mania competition this past Saturday after killing it on the streets for a week-and-a-half. There are some clips of him online, but only from skateparks. He claims there are barely any street spots in Belgium, so maybe that has something to do with it.

The Chrome Ball Incident posted Gino’s Big Brother interview from 1996.

Just felt we should let everyone know that Lenox Ledges has a Facebook page. Now you can stay up to date with all the latest news about skater fights, crackhead ramblings, and misinformed Parks Department employees claiming that you cannot skateboard there.

Remember those Brooklyn Banks interviews we ran back in July? They all had stories about thugged out skaters and brawls at contests throughout the nineties. By the looks of it, the nineties made a resurgence this past weekend at a certain contest sponsored by an energy drink.

Elephant Direct, a Montreal-based video from the crew that brought you the pretty great Lo-Def video, is premiering in New York on Thursday, August 26th, at 9:30 P.M. at (eww) Gallery Bar. Features footage of QS-favorite, Torey Goodall, a title holder for one of this website’s favorite video parts of all time. Flyer here. Stay Gold premieres today in New York. Pre-2k releases this weekend. (I saw a portion of the video that was not on the original, premiere version that screened at Maloof, and it is pretty insane in terms of nineties degeneracy and antics, the premiere sections were straightforward and tame.)

A good, quick read from New York O.G., Rodney Smith.

If you ever skate North Jersey, there’s a sick new spot along the waterfront. The part depicted is alongside a fountain, so it might be a better winter spot, but there are other things over there. It’s super-smooth polished concrete that’s pretty rare for skate spots in this part of the county. Not going to post the location, but the Palisades in the background should be a pretty dead giveaway if you know your Jersey geography. Just watch out that the rich Koreans don’t call the cops on you.

They call it stormy Monday, but Tuesday’s just as bad…

Quote of the Week: “[I've been] training. Getting ready. For zombie apocalypse. Or the Russians. Whichever comes first.” – Michael Gigliotti

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Manny Mania Qualifiers in Hoboken on Saturday

June 24th, 2010 | 7:18 pm | Daily News | No Comments

Red Bull Manny Mania qualifiers are being held at the Hoboken Skatepark on this Saturday (June 26.) No qualifiers are being held in New York, so it’s really the only option if you’re coming from the city. You will need to register beforehand by calling the Hoboken NJ Skateshop location at (201) 792-2397.

The skatepark is located on the waterfront, running alongside Frank Sinatra Drive. Take the B, D, F, V, N, R, Q or W to 34th Street (or the A, C, E to World Trade Center) and then transfer onto a Path train heading to Hoboken. Walk out of the station, skate towards the water, and follow the promenade heading northwards for about ten blocks. Driving in is pretty much the dumbest idea ever, that is, if you know anything about finding parking in Hoboken on a weekend (or any day, for that matter.) Don’t even bother unless you’re showing up at like five in the morning.

Additional information on the event here

Highlights from last year’s finals embedded after the jump.