It was a rainy day in May of 2011. The reigning Skater of the Year was Mike McGill or Leo Romero or someone like that. Blue Park didn’t exist. Kader Sylla had not yet been born. Derrick Rose was about to become the youngest MVP in NBA history, as Future and YC’s “Racks on Racks (on Racks)” rung throughout car systems and night clubs in post-Great Recession America.
On E. 6th Street, we were helping Mike Gigliotti pack up his apartment as we scoured through bags of gear, leftover from fashions of yesteryear, and otherwise bound for Goodwill. He was due to set sail home for Los Angeles that next morning.
“I’ll be back!” he told us, ignoring in our tear-strewn faces.
“Jake Phelps surely embodied worlds in decline: Old San Francisco, famously non-PC, MJ1s on his feet until whatever deadstock tap ran dry, proofing a decades-old print publication with a snarling discontent any seasoned editor would recognize and respect. An artifact arguing and cussing every day for a place in a world moving some other way.” Unfortunate to link their way two weeks in a row for obituary purposes, but Boil Ocean has a way with them words.
“Though I would sometimes cross the street to avoid him, I can remember so much of what he said to me.” Patrick O’Dell also wrote a thing about Phelps over on Vice.
And here is a re-link to Willy Staley’s California Sunday profile of Phelps that originally ran in 2016, A.K.A. what BTO labeled as “secular-press skate piece top five.” Would be *so* open to a conversation about what the other four are ;)
Munchies has a mini doc on the institution that has sustained New York skateboarding like none other throughout the 2010s — of course, we’re talking about 2 Bros. They also bring up a terrifying reality re: the ten-year leases that got signed at the start of the decade ending (e.g. when everyone was still reeling from the recession), and the dollar slice soon becoming a thing of the past.
“I think the mainstream American skateboarding culture is kidding itself. They’re really dismissive of emotions in a way that is hurting itself. It’s becoming more and more inline with traditional athleticism, but also what is acceptable as a skateboarder is so narrow – you have to be cool, not talk about your feelings.” If you’re one of those idiots like me who put off watching Minding the Gap for months, here’s another motivator: Skateism put their interview with director Bing Liu online. Yeah, you need to enter your card details, but a Hulu trial to watch it is free, and you can cancel the second you finish the movie — provided you’re not destroyed for the rest of the day.
“So, you’re smoking weed on the plane at…13-years-old.” This Steven Cales “Nine Club” interview is full of gems from late-80s and early-90s New York. If you want some footage accompaniments to the people/companies/places/era he talks about a lot, check these 88-92 Skate N.Y.C. videos that surfaced on YouTube back in 2011.
Theories of Atlantis is at the helm of a new wheel company called Dial Tone MFG. They have a new edit up featuring teamriders Jahmal Williams, Alexis Sablone, others.
With every New Yorker’s favorite L.A. spot reaching an unfortunate demise, Andrew Allen provides us with the story behind the day when he backside flipped into the main bank at L.A. High.
QS Sports Desk Play of the Week: By the looks of it, this might be the final installment of the Sports Desk until the fall, but gotta give it to J.R. Smith running to the liquor store in the final two seconds of an NBA Finals game.
Quote of the Week: “So, Die Antwoord is these white people who rap.” — E.J.
Fresh off realizing that he never ever has to skate London street spots for the rest of his life now that Palasonic is behind him, Palace team-manager-that’s-also-one-of-the-best-people-on-the-team, Danny Brady, hit the sunny slopes of Los Angeles to film a short and sweet part for our dear friend Mike Gigliotti’s skate shop.
Though the part continues Brady’s career-long allegiance to skating anything that’s an embankment and difficult, it may perhaps be his first-ever outing that doesn’t feature a single flip trick — and lord knows that guy likes to flip his board out of a bluntslide ;) Though the black cat he dodges may have other plans, we wish him the absolute best in this simplified arc of an already illustrious British skateboard career.
Filmed by Daniel Weatley and our ex-office mate, Logan Lara.
You’re in for an onslaught of recap content throughout the internet, but the Dime Glory Challenge wasabsolutelybrilliant. Forever grateful to be skateboarding on the earth at the same time in history as these brilliant Canadian minds.
“What was harder to do: switch big flip Chinatown Double-Set or switch backside flip D7?” NY Skateboarding has a solid interview with Tyshawn Jones, reigning “Did you hear what _____ did?!” king of New York City.
People began skating the new Harlem skatepark on 114th Street and First Avenue (conveniently located between Haiji’s and Patsy’s) this past week. Looks kinda like Cooper Park tbh. Troy posted a clip from it, but there are a few more floating around.
People are still pissed about you skating the plaza on 110th and 8th, and hopes for a new Byrdgang video are high in the QS office. Here’s a teaser for Byrdgang 3.
