One of the premier destinations for “Summer Trip to New York” montage enders, and the most oft-back smithed obstacle in skateboarding’s multi-century history is no more. Well, technically, it’s still there, but someone with quick reflexes will have to hippie jump over a park bench half-a-millisecond after landing.
At a time when wall rail skating was stagnating at 5050 grinds, the Battery Park City rail was there to spur progression by being a mere two inches more away from the wall than your average wall rail. Even though larger humans like Brian Anderson were forced to modify their skateboard decks to fit their larger feets on the rail, the spot was a burgeoning epicenter of crooked grinds, flip-in tricks, and switch tricks while everyone else was stuck skating other wall rails with two trucks. It was just beginning a shockingly ahead-of-its-time nollie phase with Justin Henry’s “OPM” part, until its life was cut short with a skate deterrent more effective than the chalk on the ground reading “No Skateboarding” that was previously employed by those living within earshot of the heavily trafficked spot. Thanks to Vintage Sponsor for the tip.
While this might not be the brightest news for the city’s youth as we approach a 70-degree weekend, you could rest assured that Sremmlife 2 is on the way to wash away all your woes. Grab a cup, catch a vibe.
