Down & Out in [Downtown] New York City — An XL Update of Demoralizing #spotchecks

That swath of street from Blubba, through the Banks, onto Water Street and into Battery Park is something like the Vegas strip for New York skate spots. If you’ve taken advantage of these recent warm days and hit downtown, you have noticed there is substantially less to skate at the strip’s southern end in 2024.

Let us start from the bottom and head up.

The Battery Park slanted ledges are done. Obviously those silver rail things nearby have been under construction for a while now, but that construction now extended into the most oft-skated section. Anything that was skateable in this portion of the park except the short out ledges is fenced off and being demolished.

More »

Summer of Love

Wavey via Francesco

The good news is we finally switched over to a circa 2018 design that’s mobile compatible, etc. Hopefully it’s not a Crailtap-getting-rid-of-the-iframes shock to the system, because let’s be honest: it basically looks the same, just moderne. We purged a couple spots that have been gone long enough for people to forget about, cleaned up some shit around the pages, etc. If anything seems to not be working properly, feel free to drop us a line.

The bad news is we are still amidst the same general skate internet content slump we have been experiencing all month. Nearly nothing happened last week…

R.I.P. Delancey Curbs.

On the off chance that you didn’t catch it, Jawn Gardner continues his streak of being one of the most contagiously good vibed skaters to watch in 2018, via his DC Streetsweeper raw files. That A/C contraption he made is nuts…

Gunes’ new FTC part is up there with John’s raw files as what got ran back the most at the office last week. Shout out to everyone who looks like they’re having fun while being really good at skateboarding.

Don’t know much about this one, but “Long Shots & Low Odds” is a ~moody~ seven-minute New York video from Canon Hastings featuring all your New York 2018 dietary staples (wallies, .T.F., a pit stop at the Grand Street courts) + a stubborn commitment to skating those red double cellar doors next to Motorino.

There’s a New York section at the ~8:45 mark of this Chicago video entitled Postcard.

Supreme took over the front page of the Post today.

Idk why it felt like Brandon Westgate “left,” but he’s “back.”

Thrasher also uploaded the Streetsweeper raw files from snow ramp architect, John Shanahan. The Battery Park Subway roof arrest bit is still left without context, but maybe everyone be careful if you’re going to climb up on top of that thing?

TWS posted the article from the Theories guys’ trip down to Mexico.

There’s a Bust Crew video coming soon.

“I feel good because I can make money, because I can help my family, but I don’t give a fuck about the Olympics. I don’t care and I don’t want to be there.” Grey has an interview with Olympian and European life enthusiast, Tiago Lemos.

“The big underground music in America is like house and dance stuff, based on what I see in the shop, and that’s what skaters are buying. When I was getting into deep underground hip-hop growing up, the only other kids listening to it were skaters. Like, you guys know Hieroglyphics? Why? ‘Oh, it was on the blah blah blah VHS.'” This link actually has nothing to do with skating, but is an insightful conversation on how people consume music (particularly rap) in 2018, and a reminder that it’s ok to not have an opinion on some stuff!

Quote of the Week: “If you’re having fun, chances are, you’re breaking at least one law.” — Conor

It’s eerie how well this clip has aged. If you sent this to us sans titles as a “hey my friends went to Paris and here’s our clip!” in 2018, it’d probably get a pass…

Wifi Lit

Photo via Max Hull

What in tarnation

With it being high season for trips out to Rockaway (back up to 92 degrees tomorrow…) that include a pitstop at the charmingly bad beach 90th skatepark, it is worth pointing out that the park just got a bunch of new ramps. Unclear as to whether it is better now or before. Hopefully, before the world ends, both the bowl and mini ramp there will get replaced with cement versions of the exact same thing.

Last week, Louis Vuitton became the second company in 2018 to reveal that it um, was “inspired by” the Osiris D3. The people need a documentary about Osiris.

Gangcorp threw a BBQ and best trick contest at L.E.S. Park on July 4th. Here’s the recap video.

“Best of all, skateboarding’s independent streak means it fosters a healthily rebellious worldview — no small accomplishment as our society drifts toward bland authoritarianism. To be sure, there is money to be made in ignoring this drift, in remaining beholden to libertarian corporatism.” Hanson O’Haver’s “A Crime and a Pastime” piece looks at the underbelly of the skateboard business and its eerie house-of-cards-isms.

…anndd Boil the Ocean has some red pill / blue pill thing about Steely Dan songs, alternate realities, Scott Johnston’s Let the Horns Blow part, and idk man.

New London clip from the POP boys. That nosegrind revert / 3x flat tricks / switch nosegrind revert line reminds me of something that would’ve been in an old 411.

Another volume of Elkin raw tapes, this time with Dre and Josh cameos ♥

Frankie Spears is the first person to get a clip on that new-ish Battery Park double-set.

Some Canadians offer up one of the first entries to what will no doubt be an eventful “Summer Trip to New York” clip season. What % of people appearing in S.T.T.N.Y. clips do you think end up moving here? Thirty five? Eighty?

The rail is back in front of the ledge over the six at FedEx.

Quote of the Week: “Party footage only counts in nightvision.” — Pryce Holmes

Would embed something from Beast Mode 2, but this about covered it.