New York has quite literally never felt like it does right now in this quarantined liminal space that we are in. The level of quiet in Manhattan at 8 P.M. is incomparable to even the deadest, coldest Sunday night in a residential zone. Obviously, there’s a reason for this, in that we all must do our part to minimize human contact so that COVID-19 can be contained, hospitals can maintain a semblance of functionality, and we can begin to burrow out of this chapter. Mobbing to skate midtown and being a responsible member of society are clearly at odds right now.
However, the current state of the city did bring up memories of a different disruptive event: Hurricane Sandy.
Threw the remaining bits of our fall 2019 release on sale in the webstore. Truthfully, it’s mostly beanies and smalls, but there are a few loose other sizes left in there. Figured now was a good time to clear this out as everyone adjusts to the slower pace of life while we wait for this shit to calm down — yes, skate shops are affected. We’ll be good though, just gotta ride it out and be smart. It’s not like we have another choice, yaknow? ♥ Everyone be clean, be safe, be nice and be patient. QS content resumes as usual, because you already know that fashion never sleeps :)
All the Streets Are Silent: The Convergence of Hip-Hop and Skateboarding (1987-1997)is coming soon. Think about that Slam interview with Eli Gesner from last week, but wider in scope, and in documentary form. (Timely name, too!)
Chrystie NYC’s first full-length video, Chapter One in now live on Thrasher. Features an ender part from Aaron Herrington, a bunch of footage of that dude Kuae Cosa who’s been popping up in Cons edits, the up-close angle of the other way ollie at the Crosby Street Vespa Bump… and that ride-on grind at LaGuardia High School is insane.
“The guys in the video don’t give a fuck about the American industry anymore. We were also all listening to a lot of Tupac at the time and getting kicked out of spots in Cali, then jumping into the van and blasting that Tupac song kind of cemented it.” Ok then. Free has a full retrospective on one of the seminal skate video imports of the 2000s, Lordz’ They Don’t Give A Fuck About Us (and answers the question we were asking a lot back in 2013: what happened to William Phan?
Steve Mastorelli made a rad Silvester Eduardo remix. Actually missed a bunch of this footage before. Syracuse nollie flip was sick.
These Bunt episodes are getting pretty long. Kerry Getz is the latest guest. Love a level-headed, smart former pro. Shame that the angry, “everyone screwed me over” curmudgeon types tend to get all the attention though.
Copenhagen and Malmö still got Paris beat on the whole “skateable obstacles integrated in public spaces but not exactly skateparks”-thing, but yeah! What they said! But for New York! Would trade like 3-4 New York skateparks for just that little red plaza on the side street in Berlin.
Quote of the Week Charles Rivard: “He skates like he’s on coke, and parties like he’s on weed.” Rob Harris: “More like he skates like he wishes he had friends.”
Five out of five Tompkins skaters agree that this is the best box ever made. Sadly, it’s on the other side of the planet. We got to talking about replicating it — anybody know any welders? (Real question.)
Holy big flip, here is an illicit link to Brandon Westgate’s part in the new Element video, Peace. (Read: Will probably get deleted.) Really sick to see him still gunning for it as hard as he was in the Stay Gold days, and on a lot of new/seldom-seen New England spots at that. Would comment on the THPS music, but Brandon Westgate never struck me as a skater who is too invested in music.
Not much other info on it, but “Background 1” is a fun lo-def video with a ton of faces you’ll recognize from Gang Corp edits, Tompkins, and L.E.S. Park. All street clips.
Listen to Bobby Puleo fan out on the Gonz for five minutes. He’s really good at finding the right words to describe why certain small things make a trick or photo extra special.
I’ve found myself using the word “super” too much lately, too :( Gino Iannucci is the latest guest in an hour-long interview on Lee Smith’s podcast.
Always down to plug something that resurrects the lost art of the video review. Livegets all Boil the Ocean on us and uses a bunch of vocabulary stuff and long sentences to do a joint review of Doll and It’s Time, two videos that occupy space on opposite ends of the spectrum (and country.)
The general harshness of the world feels extra apocalyptic in an election year, but if you’re an optimist (or willing to turn your sights that way), I read this article (from April 2018) about the [good] ways in which American life is currently being reinvented on a micro level and felt fuzzy inside, at least for a bit ♥ Love you guys, and please go vote next Tuesday!
QS Sports Desk Play of the Week:This four-second video encapsulates the entire history of the Brooklyn Nets. (And yes, if it was by a Knicks player, it’d encapsulate their past 17 years too obvs.)
Quote of the Week: “A Bennett grind is like another drunk tank trick.” — Dana Ericson re: someone else (forgetting who) originally coining a smith kickflip as being a “drunk tank trick.” (Hypothetical: Has there ever been a Bennett grind that’s been better than even the most generic switch back smith? Actually, nvm.)
Listen up, fuckers: Voter registration periods in most states end this week. In New York, the voter registration deadline is Friday, and lucky for you, New York offers online registration. (New Jersey’s deadline is October 16, but you’ll need to mail in your registration.) Just under 50% of eligible 18-29 year-olds voted in 2016, whereas nearly 75% of 65+ year-olds did. Literal senior citizens are steering the course of your future. And that whole “my vote doesn’t matter!” / “it’s all corrupt!” / “both candidates suck!” shit is exactly the sort of cowardly laziness that anybody working against your self interests is dependent on. So, if you are eligible A)take the time out of the day you’d otherwise waste filming shitty skate tricks and register if you are not already, and B) if you do not vote on November 6, I hope to every possible higher power there is that you roll the fuck out of your ankle first thing in the morning on November 7 — like I hope it’s an excruciating cantaloupe size roll that takes five hellish months to heal where you don’t get laid once, and I hope that on your first day back skating after those frustrating five months, you roll the life out of the other ankle and it takes even longer to heal.
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Psssst…shops have began getting fall QSmerch in. Arriving in Europe & Japan this week. Check our stockists page to see which shops will have it in both in the States and globally. Our webstore will relaunch on Monday, October 15 at midnight E.S.T. (basically still Sunday night) with all of the new items.
The Canal video, Mode, is now online in full. Really fun video pretty much entirely filmed in New York, with the highest volume of midtown clips of any local vid in recent memory (always nostalgic for that.) It’s always heartwarming to see crews who grew up together keep skating and making full-lengths into adulthood ♥
Tied with midtown footage, our favorite sub-genre of New York skateboarding is watching Tyshawn skate over trashcans. Plenty of that and more in Thrasher’s recap video from the Hardies Can Jam at Blue Park last week.
Pat Hoblin has a rad new part over on TWS. The curvy boardslide over at the old Red Benches + the ender at Seward Park are both wild.
“Anything that combats the idea that skateboarding should be relegated to the skatepark is cool, and to me a worthwhile cause.” Alexis Sablone, who has a masters degree in architecture, created a sick-looking skateable sculpture park in downtown New York (just kidding, you know that shit is obviously in Malmö), and told Medium mag the story.
Russia’s Absurd Skateboards leads the skate world in companies whose trip destinations I most frequently have to search on Google Maps. Their latest one was to the Sea of Azov.
QS Sports Desk Play of the Week: Basketball is back! Honestly started laughing upon remembering Lance Stephenson and Lebron are on the same team now. Lance Stephenson Finals MVP book it!!!
Quote of the Week: “Damn, Frank Gerwer looks like me in ’06.” — Emilio Cuilan
