That Place Known as Los Angeles

100 Euros on Dumplings & Champagne

Daily News July 28th, 2014 · 8:55 am · 14

ipod white

“Once upon a time I used to grind all night, with that residue that was iPod white.” Happy belated Thug Motivation 101 Day to everyone. Let’s get it.

Congratulations to everyone who was involved with this: Skateboarding at the Santa Monica Courthouse is now legal. A colossal step forward with how skateboarding is treated in America altogether. Small Banks restoration next? :)

Despite having literally no interest in the Life Extension video whatsoever, the running commentary at SMLTalk piqued the Quartersnacks Office’s interest. (Susan Sarandon is still sorta hot for 60+ btw.) And good thing it did. Pat Pasquale AKA Sinner’s part is INCREDIBLE. We’re talking Josh Kasper in The Storm meets Guy in Mouse meets 2001: A Space Odyssey meets Total Recall. It’s amazing.

Well that was quick: new Supreme mini video with all the “cherry” kids on the way. Sean Pablo also discusses it briefly in his new Vice interview.

The Skate Jawn four-year anniversary clip is a good time.

Speaking of good times, we have a frontrunner for 2014’s “feel good” part of the year. Cult favorite of apparently Kenny Anderson and anyone who grew up on Baker videos, Scott Kane stepped away from handrails and filmed a really fun comeback part.

Four-minute slideshow of the Palace crew in L.A. over on the TWS site.

Bill Strobeck posted up some Jake Johnson alternate angles / regular motion versions of tricks from the Mind Field days on his Instagram.

Now that the Beef Patty dudes are attending venues with bottle service, Video Blogs have occasionally morphed into HD “Instagram Direct” videos. Here’s the latest.

Boil the Ocean sorta talks about remaining pockets of shock value in skating.

Frontside 5050 back 180 out the ledge over ten at Grant’s Tomb and other good stuff in this dude John Shanahan’s part. That cellar door bank between the Citibike racks by EJ’s house is also way sketchier than footage could ever do it justice.

New clip from the Juicy Elbows crew. (#Trendwatch: “Sexual Healing” covers.)

“Grinding curbs is not that extreme compared to rails.”

Quote of the Week: “If you fuck up on building a skatepark, you suck for life. I don’t care if you win a Golden Globe afterwards.” — Francesco, C.E.O. of Quartersnacks’ Scandinavian Branch

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From the trunk of the rental to the Greyhound bus…

Respect the Sand Gaps

Time Capsule November 13th, 2013 · 2:49 pm · 8

sand gaps

Following up their Santa Monica Courthouse stage compilation — a superhuman skate spot if there ever was one — Muckmouth put together a historic rundown of Santa Monica’s other iconic spot, one that’s skateable by normal humans. We’ve waxed about the respect we have for the Sand Gaps before, namely because it might have been the biggest departure from typical eastern conceptions of a southern California skate spot (perfect asphalt ground, low ledges coated in wax and picnic tables.) Sand Gaps was two holes in the ground. It could’ve been anywhere, but it was in a place that we perceived as having the best spots on earth.

Given the existence of this video, is a hole in the ground in Santa Monica the most mundane object we, as skate nerds, have a qualified list of tricks done over? Like, knowing what has gone down the nearby triple set, or a Carlsbad or Love Gap is perfectly reasonable, but being able to name the things done over a square cut out of the ground is something you shouldn’t readily admit to non-skater friends.

And also, whereas Huf and many others skated the two gaps consecutively, always thought Chris Franzen’s line where he circumvents the gaps entirely, opting for the two consecutive pillars instead, was the one of the pinnacles of Sand Gaps’ history.

Forgotten Skate Videos: L.A. County (2000)

Time Capsule September 27th, 2012 · 9:50 am · 14

During last month’s trip to Los Angeles, the few moments not spent arguing with cab drivers were used to debate topics relevant to any 60% beer / 40% skateboarding getaway. A discussion of forgotten L.A. skate videos came up (hence the LaLa Land inclusion in our Out of Office reply), causing us to remember Listen, Land Pirates, A New Horizon and L.A. County, the best of the bunch.

L.A. County was released during a transition from the classic white tee and chino schoolyard videos (see: World, Girl) to Phase One of the “everyone is good” era that began in issues of Logic, and peaked with In Bloom and Street Cinema. This shift would have been a lot smoother if The Storm never came out, and dudes didn’t spend three years thinking they had to nollie heelflip out of everything.

To the distant observer, the L.A. in this video had an actual *street* skating scene. USC was still around, they skated random shit on sidewalks (something that has been regaining popularity in recent history), and got enough time at the D.W.P. benches to make it look like a plaza spot — not a “let’s hope we get more than two minutes to skate here” Hail Mary mission. With blockbuster skate videos still around the corner, southern California-based projects had yet to resemble six-month highlight reels from the same five handrail spots.

Da Drought Is Over

Daily News May 7th, 2012 · 9:10 am · 4

Does anyone who works for Patrón happen to go on this site? Would you guys be interested in purchasing an ad? We have some great product placement opportunities as well. The Wavy Baby with a switch back Patrón slide. Photo by Pryce Holmes.

The New York Knicks won a playoff game. It only took eleven years.

Chris Nieratko did a great interview with Erik Ellington for Sneeze Mag about [no longer doing] drugs, alcohol, health food, living in Alaska, cooking with olive oil, stretching, etc. “I talk to people that are younger than me that don’t skate and they’re really old. They’re physically worn out, they’re mentally worn out and I think the people that we surround ourselves with in skateboarding allows us to stay young.”

“The Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday to seek a speed limit for skateboarders and penalize them for failing to follow a range of traffic rules…” The photos indicate that this is mostly due to l*ngb**rders, but L.A. suucckks.

If you’re having a fit while your girlfriend films you try a 360 flip off the Mambo Bar ledge 50 times, keep in mind that it might wind up on YouTube.

Jonathan Mehring with some photos of a Sunday session at New York’s most famous metal curb on the Skateboarder site.

Black Dave “Life in the City — Part 1.” The bucket hat on Obama is a good look.

Back when there were actually skate spots in Hoboken, we used to wonder if someone would ever drop-in on the Pier A gazebo. A guy did it on a bike, so a Natural Koncept rider doing it isn’t far away. Weezy has five racks on it. (The real question: How did he get a bike up there?)

2 Chainz with some motivational words about fulfilling your goals. #ThugMotivation.

Quote of the Week: “I’ll kick your ass…first try.” — Drunk Skateboarder Getting Into a Fight

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Thanks to everyone who linked and re-posted the new Lurkers video.

A Sad Day For Southern California

Daily News February 2nd, 2012 · 1:22 pm · 5

The Santa Monica Sand Gaps were one of the few Los Angeles area institutions shitty enough to be embraced by the east coast. Despite the beachside setting (and perfect ground), the Sand Gaps garnered worldwide recognition based off a few holes in the floor, a not-so-great rounded-off ledge and zillions of small specks that would eat their way into your bearings. The Sand Gaps made those jealous of Los Angeles’ 70-degree winters and schoolyard pavement respect its existence. It is Los Angeles’ version of a famous skate spot that should have never been a famous skate spot, i.e. Astor, Tompkins, etc. It was also the subject of many jokes said at Gigliotti’s expense (the only Los Angeles native to ever be on QS payroll) throughout his time living in New York (“Where are you guys going skating today?” “Just meet us at Sand Gaps.”) Let us not forget it was a favorite among visiting New Yorkers.

The gaps are now filled in with trees. Though the ledge remains, the spot is still called “Sand Gaps.” So, much like the big banks remaining after the city ruined the small ones and took out the ledge section, the soul of the spot is unfortunately no more. We send our sympathies to Joey Brezinski, Robbie McKinley, Chris Roberts, and Giglotti.

Sand Gaps, if you were from New York, we would have loved you so much more than we already did. Give a good home to those trees.