The Best Skate Videos & Parts of 2023 — QS Readers Poll Results

🎨 Illustration by Cosme Studio
📊 Ballot Count by 4Ply Magazine

The results are in: a time-capsule of 2023 skateboarding, as voted by QS readers. Some old favorites have returned to the rankings, and some new ones have emerged.

And yes, it should be stated, perhaps louder than in other years, that year-end rankings are an imperfect artform. Miles Silvas’ “City To City” part that would eventually land him Thrasher‘s S.O.T.Y. trophy premiered a few hours before voting for the QS Readers Poll closed (that didn’t stop him from getting some votes in those final moments though.) Yuto dropped his April part three days after voting closed. But we are committed to the belief that nobody wants to talk about 2023 after Christmas. And for a year when it felt like Skateboard Oscars Season™ began in August, we had to make the call. All those parts that missed the cutoff will be eligible for next year’s voting, same as years past.

If you are just joining us, this ranking was voted on by QS readers from December 4th to December 8th. If you’re interested in the methodology, 4PLY broke down how we tally the votes

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Holiday Book Review (& Excerpt!) — ‘Right, Down + Circle: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater’ by Cole Nowicki

🗒 Intro by Adam Abada
📖 Excerpt by Cole Nowicki

Like many of us – myself included – Cole Nowicki wouldn’t be here without Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. He has a personal connection to the game, coupled with the acumen of a professional writer/researcher (and weekly newsletter-er.) Right, Down + Circle: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, his new book about the game, amounts to a really tight, compelling read.

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The Best Skate Videos & Parts of 2022 — QS Readers Poll Results

Illustration by Cosme Studio
Ballot Count by 4Ply Magazine

It seems that the impossible has happened: we’ve tallied a QS Readers Poll, and there’s no Tom Knox in sight 😲😲😲

All jokes aside, beyond light output from Mr. Knox in 2022, this is perhaps the year that the multiple part approach wielded by S.O.T.Y. hopefuls began to adapt itself to people’s recollections of the past twelve months. Whereas in past years, when multiple releases tended to split the vote in clear favor of one over another, 50% of this year’s Top 20 parts are from the same five people.

Also worth noting that the point spread between slot #14 and slot #10 for single parts was four points. Maybe we introduce a runoff feature next year ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The #1 video was a landslide.

If you are just joining us, this ranking was voted on by QS readers from December 5th to December 9th

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