Upstate Update: Albany & Syracuse

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Photo by Zach Malfa-Kowalski

Every summer in New York has a “get me out of here”-moment. It usually happens in August — when you realize all your free time has been spent sitting at Tompkins, maybe leaving to watch your friend try a trick somewhere, and then ending up at T.F. West or maybe probably definitely the bar. The past month feels a week long.

The easiest way to slow down time is to spend it in an unfamiliar environment. Having already gone way over budget on the seminal European tour video, 56 Tricks, we had to resort to more modest options. Thanks to a paper bag full of crumpled bills from Nike SB, we were able to load up two vans with #core #skateboarders — guys without agents who would never dare suggest that we “warm up” at a “skatepark” — and got on the road for a five-city #core #tour of Upstate New York.

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Photo by Zach Malfa-Kowalski

To get the pressing question out of the way, no, we could not make the Dime Glory Challenge. As we pulled into New York’s capital, we looked northward at the 200 miles to French Canada and wished the boys good luck, but travel towards Dime HQ ended there. In consolation, Albany contains one of the most perfect spots known to man: T.F-esque flatground separated by three levels of mellow banks. There have been rumors of it getting turned into a skatepark, but thankfully that hasn’t happened yet. It’s perfect as is.

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Bobby Worrest For Quartersnacks

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With two solid parts already under his belt this year (including the frontrunner for the best part of the year altogether), we linked up with Bobby Worrest for a third on the occasion of his recent move to New York. This dude’s productivity level after over a decade in the game is really something to behold. Still one of the greatest classically-trained plaza skaters working today.

Guest tricks from Lurker Lou, Antonio Durao, Connor Champion, Daniel Kim, and Bob Reynolds. Filmed by Richard Quintero, John Valenti, Aaron Chilen, R.B. Umali and Steve Marino. Thanks to everyone who helped out. It was a fun one to work on.

The Quartersnacks Nike Dunk Low is in skate shops today. We will be having a pop-up store at 40 Ludlow Street (between Hester and Grand) today from 11 A.M. to 6 P.M. The Dunks will be for sale, in addition to new tees, hats, sweatshirts, jackets, and cruisers. Support your local skate site. Flyer here.

Alternate YouTube Link. Have a good weekend. Thanks to everyone who came out to the party last night ;)

Quartersnacks For Nike SB

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Every Nike SB collaboration has a bit of a “story” to it. We could sit here and peddle some narrative where everyone wears all black to hide the dirt from skating the city all day, and how all the reflective details make you stand out between the cabs while night skating, but that’d be nonsense.

If you read this site enough, you should have known that we’d go fashion over concept from the very beginning. For example, the Chromeball Dunk had an awesome story behind it, but we live in New York — we get shunned for wearing earthtones out here. Between all the luxury brand inspired colorways and New York Post headline-inducing mini riots, the greatest SB Dunk to date (at least for purely skateboarding purposes) was the simplest one of all. It was the Weiger shoe: black pig suede with a white check. Every person affiliated with this website had at least two pairs of it.

A black skate shoe never falls out of fashion or function. That was our template.

From then on, it was only a matter of how many fancy details we could get away with. QS has always been about appreciating the subtler side of skateboarding, and it made sense to not go overboard with loud branding. Thanks to Alex Dymond, Andre Page, Mike Cherman and everyone at Nike SB who made this possible, but more importantly, thanks to all you guys who visit the site and have made it respected enough to give this collaboration any motion to begin with.

The Quartersnacks Dunk Low will be available at skate shops on Saturday, 8/23.

Clip below features Andre Page, Antonio Durao, Connor Champion, Matthew Perez, Josh Velez and Black Dave. Alternate YouTube Link.

New Bobby Worrest part live on Saturday. Quartersnacks pop-up with new merch at 40 Ludlow Street live on Saturday. End of Summer clip live Labor Day Weekend.

Snack Basel

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Congratulations to Ishod Wair on being the first Thrasher Skater of the Year from New Jersey. (Side Note: Is Fred Gall just going to eventually get a “Lifetime Achievement Award” to make up for past wrongs a la Kubrick, Hitchcock, etc. never winning a Best Director Oscar?) There are always politics behind S.O.T.Y. (“You think you’re so clever for figuring that one out?”), but Ishod is a prime choice to strike a balance between what the kids like, and what the old nerds have left to still be hyped on in pro skateboarding. In other words, his appeal spans multiple generations. Going to go ahead and say his Sabotage 3 remix part is still his best part, and probably the best part of 2013, mostly because he looks best when he’s doing lines. We’re also partial to rap parts.

If you missed the web premiere of SB Chronicles 2, there is a 7 P.M. screening at Village East Cinema tomorrow (12th Street and 2nd Avenue.) Doors open at 6:45. The theater is small, so it is on a first come, first served basis. Flyer here. P.S. They’re going to play the QS “Best of 2013” clip before the video ;)

The new eight-minute Politic Skateboards promo, People’s Temple, is now online. Dave Caddo is the king of doing lines across an entire skate spot. A three-trick line at Con Ed Banks is nuts, given the ground there.

“The only way a group of guys are getting past a door is if they all have skateboards. (Note: L*ngb**rds or plastic boards are not applicable here.)” #NPBS

Our friend Mike Gigliotti put together a Vimeo bro cam clip of dudes having fun ‘n stuff. It includes a Miles Marquez part edited to Taylor Swift.

Detroit may have filed for the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history this year, but at least skateboarding there looks pretty fun.

Yet another video blog segment from the Beef Patty squad.

This Casey Foley guy no complys over and down the three block on 135th Street.

The new Lurk NYC video, Loony Bin, premieres at 289 Kent on Thursday, December 12th. Doors at 8 P.M. Video at 9 P.M. New parts from Cyrus Bennett, Jason Byoun, and others. Flyer here. Preview here.

A Brooklyn spot that nobody really skated is a wrap.

QS Sports Desk Play of the Week: Shumpert’s dunk was cool, Monta Ellis’ game winner was cool, but can we please get Nick Young on a team with J.R. Smith to form an irrational confidence super team? Watching the decisions they make would be more fun than watching any Knicks game from this season.

Quote of the Week: “Who would’ve thought there’d be a black American president before a black guy on Anti-Hero Skater of the Year?” — Guy Riza

This Mandela poster retrospective the Times posted is awesome, by the way.

New Daniel Lebron Flocka James Part!

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Photo by Marcel Veldman

Daniel Lebron Flocka James is still winning hearts and minds in 2013, while his namesake has spent the year trampling on them with frat boys.

You might remember that the only hesitation in chiseling a bonus fifth face into the Mount Rushmore of European Skateboarding was Lebron’s not-as-expansive videography when alongside a Jesus, Javier or J.B. Well, Nike SB released a three-minute Dani Lebron part today. It furthers the case for Europeans in their mid-to-late thirties’ ability to stay #relevant in a Hella Clip-ified society longer than many of their American counterparts. Also, let’s give a round of applause to real ledges and sunlight. Boxes in warehouses are cool n’ stuff (sort of), but if one is to go down the route of trying to successfully pull off a good-looking (!) back smith varial flip out, a stone ledge and some fresh air won’t hurt.

Not to end on a negative note — lord knows we get plenty of shit around here for music supervision decisions from people unaware the nineties ended (currently editing something to Drake btw #nothingwasthesame) — but what the hell is up with this song? Even the dudes who are still checking for new U-God CDs would probably rather cue up Migos over this.

Related: Lebron has some largely flat-oriented skating in this artsy clip.