“There also might be a slight difference in the value of technicality. I think a nollie crook means more to us out here than it may out west to you.” Heckride has a #longform interview with the man behind the lens of many of your favorite clips, Paul Young.
“Then I counted Tyshawn’s part and he only has 32 tricks in Blessed which was his S.O.T.Y. part. It made me realize that it’s not necessarily the quantity of tricks that makes a part good.” Korahn Gayle chats about some of his biggest influences for Slam City Skates’ “Visuals” series.
“Drew x Everson” is a 14-minute video filmed exclusively at the Everson Museum of Art (the centerpiece of the scene in Syracuse, New York), and put together as a tribute to Drew Grabowski, who passed earlier this year. Drew’s family and friends created the nonprofit Skate 4 Drew to help build the Syracuse skate scene in Drew’s memory, which you can donate to here.
Thrasher has been posting some gems before clocking out for the weekend as of late. “Down Bad” is a Philly video by Harry Bergenfield. Includes the second Kris Brown opener part in two weeks, a lot of Jahmir Brown footy, and a wild ender section from Brian O’Dwyer. Front feeble Zuccotti is nuts.
“It makes me wonder how I’d have turned out if I’d only skated with people my own age? I don’t know if I’d have the same discipline.” Farran did a #longform interview with Justin Henry for the Slam City Skates blog.
→ Please sign the petition to show your support for keeping the asphalt at the Tompkins Square Park courts. This space is as sacred to skateboarding and the East Village as the Rucker or the West 4th Street courts are to basketball. It would be a massive loss to the youth and cultural fabric of the neighborhood if they were covered with synthetic turf. We are a few hundred shy of 25,000 (!!!) signatures, so please please please share the petition with your friends, and on your respective social channels.
After many years of captivity, the Zipper Ledge is finally free and dressed with a fresh, yellow paintjob, as first reported by @mini_spots. (Don’t ask for pin! That’s like asking where the Empire State Building is!) If only the park starts opening the gate at Yellow Rail, then the entire Morningside little kid skate scene circa 2003 will be in full revival.
One of the hardest things about interviewing skateboarders is not asking the same ten things that the last few interviews they did asked. It’s special and rare when you get someone for their first one. Caleb Barnett did his first ever interview with the Slam City Skates blog.
“For longtime devotees of the Art Dump, SHT Sound and goldfish-toting retirement home scammers, it’s difficult to separate dudes’ seeming lack of enthusiasm for skating their own boards with the company’s at times painful evolution.” Boil the Oceans looks toward the future of Girl Skateboards on the announcement of their upcoming am-focused video, Doll.
Element did a Keith Harring collaboration and the only reason we’re telling you about it is because the accompanying video for it contains about a minute of new Brandon Westgate footage from the Banks.
Big week for Chief Keef video parts, and a bad week for that antiquated tradition of keeping an unenthused stone face after you land your ender. Here’s another section from the Buffalo-based Jeb video. We have been claiming we’d drive to Albany to skate Empire State Plaza since before the summer, and now’s it’s probably too cold, huh?
“Bryan saw this pool while landscaping at the house next door and somehow charmed the owner into letting us skate for two weekends. How he did this, I have no clue. Must have been just the right mix of 7-11 egg salad, and ’90s skate photos that gave him the confidence.”
Some of you will be triggered by the aesthetics, but the skateboarding in Romain Batard’s “Giddy” series is always unique, albeit in a fried way. Episode #9 is live.
Ignoring the fact that its objectively horrid to look at (not even talking as a skateboarder here…but what the hell is wrong with them renovating these parks in a way that makes it look like their budget was a $200 Home Depot gift card?), there are these weird slappymetal things at the park on Spring and Sixth Avenue now A.K.A. the old marble chessboard park.
Bad news: McNally Jackson is closing. Good news: They’re insisting that they will remain in the neighborhood. So excited for that corner to become a Chase bank :(
QS Spots Desk Play of the Week: The Trae Young game winner seems like it was the most unavoidable highlight of the preseason. Regular season starts Wednesday!
Quote of the Week: “They don’t play Drizzy in pubs man.” — Tiko re: whether he heard the Spanish Drake song in London
