It All Started With a Manual — The Skateable History of Columbus Park

Skate spots are living, breathing things. They shift with the socioeconomic climate of the time, and position themselves to best adapt with people’s needs. Skateboarding has always been reflective of greater society, so it should come as no surprise that our lives were pushed into Columbus Park as we began to get pushed out of the pricier, glossier haunts that we once frequented in lower Manhattan.

Columbus Park sits on ominous ground. It was built on top of what was once America’s first slum: a hotbed of vice, disease, murder and clashes for control that have been documented in many books and films. Though it would take decades for the neighborhood to rid itself of the notoriety it earned throughout the 19th century, the city built Columbus Park in 1897. A hundred years passed, and then a guy from Clifton, New Jersey came along. The park began its second life as one of the few downtown spots you can skate in 2017 without getting kicked out.

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Nor’easter Links

huf reese

Late start today innit. All remaining QS hats in the webstore are $15 btw ♥

When I don’t skate I get stoked when I skate.” Same.

The Parks Department sessions Central Park for All City Showdown. Comedy aside, there’s something admirable about filming an entire montage in a place well known for having next to nothing to skate. There are those three sets of three on a hill at the south entrance of the reservoir that would actually look great on film though…

Muckmouth’s rant on ETN — essentially Pay-Per-View for skating — is one of the funnier pieces of skateboard writing in recent memory, but the most quotable lines are a bit too risqué for the #SFW environment of a Monday QS post :)

The Tennyson Corp just keeps reelin’ in the hits. The latest is a mix of J.B. and Caesar Singh’s 411 footage. Is the fact that J.B. is European the only reason why he’s often forgotten on First Team Prodigious Nineties Street Skaters lists? Yes? Though so.

Kalis is one of the rare pros whose interviews always feel different and new, even though he’s covered the same tried and true subjects before. He’s got two out this week, both on the occasion of his first trip to London…one with Kingpin about a vindictive $117,000 tax bill from the city of Philadelphia, and another with Slam City Skates with some good bits about the homogenization of 360 flips.

Chima was a bit more unhinged than a lot of guests on the season finale of The Bunt. Requests for next season: Kalis (duh), Zered, Forrest, Jake, Smolik, Muska.

Politic put Danny Renaud’s part from Division, their most recent video, up online. You can find Caddo’s part here, in case you missed it ;)

Russian Bob uploaded nine minutes of raw Gavin Nolan footage.

Might be a tough sell to some of our curmudgeonous colleugues, but Ripped Laces is contending that Reebok is skateboarding’s favorite “unofficial” skate shoe.

Even if it’s basically a lookbook, Leo footage is Leo footage.

l train coming from city

QS Sports Desk Play of the Week: Kristaps’ block in a game that resulted in the first Nets home win in sixteen games. Yeah, I just had this one on in the background last night. No, I didn’t watch it for more than 15 seconds at a time.

Quote of the Week: “Toughen up dude, have a piña colada.” — David Dowd

That Parks Department clip reminded me of the time Ja$onwear noseslid the entire 10-flat-10-flat-10 “hubba” at the 6th Avenue entrance of Central Park, so here’s the 2003 masterpiece as a digitally remastered 2017 Criterion Collection GIF.

jason-noseslide

25 Nights

bridge

Photo via The Local Weather

Labor and Supreme (tees only) both have spring QS gear in stock. Other U.S. shops (Black Sheep, Commissary, Exit, Homebase, NJ, Orchard, Seasons, Supreme L.A. & Uprise) will be receiving it this week. Internationally next week. Webstore opens at midnight E.S.T. on April 6th. (Next Monday, but technically Sunday night.)

Max Palmer shout out bro. Jack Greer got bars.

We have a new frontrunner for 2015’s Noseslider of the Year.

Ja$onwear Pace University double-set attempts, circa 2004. Has nobody still ollied this thing? Feel like this is a prime “So-and-so did it in some midwest video that nobody has seen”-scenario. Expecting a Vimeo link in the comments :)

Fat Kid Spot is getting turned into a skate plaza.

“Through it all the shoe has come to be regarded as the most immediate extension of the seven-ply-trucks-and-urethane configuration, but the past decade’s footwear fetishization mainly serves to obscure a decades-long struggle with pants.” Boil the Ocean uses Nakel’s floral TWS cover as a springboard to examine the current condition skateboarders’ favorite topic: pants.

Two months late on this, but someone re-edited a bunch of Alex Olson B-roll from Johnny Wilson’s clips to a song that Alex Olson would probably maybe might skate to. Someone at L.E.S. is trying to body varial out of a grind as you read this.

Mike Anderson has to be one of the most underrated dudes out there. Part is a year old, but Krooked uploaded his “Yellow Van” ender as a standalone thing.

SMLTalk has an abbreviated history of the salad grind, including an interesting theory that Chris Dobstaff was the principal reason behind its fall from popularity.

New obstacle at 12th & A!

The city of Philadelphia will review a plan for the remodeling of Love Park at the end of April. Construction is slated to begin at the end of next winter. You think someone nollie back heels or fakie flips the gap before it gets torn down in a year?

Gino has been doing quite a few interviews as of late.

Slicky Boy got new sounds to bump on the T.F. bench this spring.

Here’s the original trailer for the first Static video.

Remember when Reynolds started a shoe company in the mid-2000s? Me either.

QS Sports Desk: OMG @ Timofey Mozgov’s local Cleveland TV commercial.

Quote of the Week:

dinertee

Cherish your favorite QS tees, because sometimes, they won’t get reprinted ;)

Gotta love Rihanna. Who else is recording bangers that relate to the struggles of freelancers in New York still waiting on checks from 2014? Love you girl ♥