Spars' and Marras' Videos

Tim Ward made this slick video of a session we had at Warehouse #2. This video inspired me to buy a DSLR - nice one Timmers!

UK Ramp Hire secret miniramp session from Tim Ward on Vimeo.



MIKE O'SHEA the art-brain behind Highbrow, has made this video featuring the skills of JASON LEWER, who's recently and very-deservedly got hooked up on Fabric Skateboards.



...and finally BOB has been busy with his new digital HD thingy, with a few new edits. Firstly, a session of a few of us at the (then) new bit at The Deaner:


...an entertaining vid of Bob, Joxa, Whip etc on a amazing trip to Germany - TEAM VON RAVEN:


...plus a video with loads of Bristol locals and visitors at the new CAMPUS SKATEPARK, the new indoor park and probable saviour of the coming winter!


Check out more on Campus:
http://www.campus-skatepark.co.uk/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Campus-Skatepark/269880269695687

Steve Ortega - the Original Zinger

This is one of my favourite skate photos from an era of massive change in skateboarding.

The other thing I like about it is the word "zinging" - we adopted this term for 360 flips, now commonly known as the tre, but still a Zinger to me. A long time before Zip Zingers etc.

It's Steve Ortega (watch the old H-Street videos if you don't know) "zinging an amazing 360 varial ollie kickflip" - Micki Vuckovich pic - classic Transworld steez. Surprisingly they've called it a varial, which I'm sure technically (and pedantically) is incorrect as we all know a Varial uses hands. Don't we? Remember the Varibots?

It actually looks a bit mob now, but at the time it was the new, unbelievable trick. I've got a feeling this could be the first ever published (street) photo of a tre / Zinger? It was invented / popularized / taken to the streets by Jason Lee and/or Ed Templeton, but I expect Rodney did it first!



Photo credit: Micki Vuckovich, via the Kicktokill.blogspot.com via the Chromeball.

Bucky Lasek Impossible Tailgrab Nose-slapper, Bath 1991

I've uploaded one trick from the 1991 Powell Peralta demo in Bath.

Hopefully at some point I'll have time to upload some more!

The demo featured Bucky Lasek, Tony Hawk, Curtis McCann, Mike Manzoori and Nicky Guerrero skating both a temporary vert ramp* and the classic Bath mini/midi.

Maybe one day I'll find the footage of Jeff Phillips, Reese Simpson and Monty Nolder skating Bath from around the same era. (Oz-cabs, have you got that tape?) Plus another Powell demo from a year or 2 before with Hawk and Lance.

*This was before the permanent vert ramp, which went up in about 1994 or 1995?

Mikey O'Shea Solo Illustration Show!

Super-talented scrawler Mike O'Shea is having a solo show of his illustrations and art - he's a great artist, marvellous skateboarder and all-round funny guy and "good egg"!

It will definitely be worth checking this show - his pictures are equally well drafted and entertaining - there's always a touch of humour and usually a naughty element! Cheeky!

Hmmm... That poster looks very familiar! That cap and beard collabo, with a pair of "lucky Lakais"!?!?




A VERY HIGHBROW EXHIBITION!

4th - 30th September,
Donuts, 8 Perrry Road, Bristol BS1 5BQ

Click here for more info!

(What's happened to the Highbrow video Mike?)

Witchcraft & Lovenskate Tour

This should be gnarly fun! I'd love to go on a tour like this - reminds me of the old HELL TOURS to Cornwall - touring round from skatepark to skatepark!

The Witchcraft team: Jamie "Aaargh", Sam Roberts and Jake Snelling plus the Lovenskate team: Lucy Adams, Alex Barton, Ewen Bower, Craig "Questions" Scott and Liam Sproat. I'm sure that French, Lovenskate Stu etc will also be shredding, or possibly schralping.

More info here.  (actually... less info there!)

Death, gore, dismemberment whole type of go-for-it type of thing...

...After all that is what skateboarding is all about.




Stoked I won the Xsite Design A Sticker Comp In Association With Witchcraft Skateboards on the Sidewalk forum.

Luckily, I had the opportunity to sort out the dodgy eyes on the original pic - here's the updated one...

You can check all the original entries here. I really liked Blinky's gnarly tree and Voodoo's red skulls and cuppers design, which surprisingly didn't make it through to the voting stage.

Big thanks to Xsite Skatepark and any of the N26 massive who may have voted for me!

In semi-related Witchcraft news, Alan Glass has uploaded another slice of metallic skateboarding on Vimeo - click here! Watch out for the snot! In nomine Sathanas indeed.

Summer Evenings

Mellow evening session at Cheddar last week...

Doug 5050 into the hip.

Dixcel frontside over the hip.

Jam FS grind.

DLH Fun Day 2010, Saturday 31st July

All the details are on the poster. No, the picture is not of Charles Manson, Gary Heidnik or Aleister Crowley.

Nothing meaner than The Deaner...

Cardiff Skatepark 2001-2003

Cardiff's indoor skatepark - footage from 2001 to 2003.

Featuring Sharpy, Cashman, Nicky Cornell and various other Welsh locals, plus visiting Bristol locals, Jason Lunn, Chrissy Will, Jam, Matthew Bailey, Carl Vance, Dixcel, Justin Haggerty, "Barton Hill Bob" (Chris Leng), Wes from Rock Solid, Guff from UK Ramp Hire and myself.


Edited the old footage and uploaded this a week or 2 ago and forgot to stick it on the blog.


The music is by Anhrefn - who I saw support Fugazi YEARS ago. They were bloody good!

Boba Fett? Boba Fett?! Where?!

...On my new key ring.

Dirty, Gnarly, Rough Old Concrete

Took a trip a couple of weeks ago to check out the 2nd phase of Hereford skatepark with Jam, Wes, Owen Hopkins and Jason Lewer. The young 'uns were both ripping - too much youthful talent!

We were supposed to do a 5 minute stop-off to check out the gnarly old concrete ramp in Oldbury-on-Severn, but everyone seemed to enjoy it so much we probably spent more time there than Hereford.

Jase didn't seem to be put-off by the cracks and total lack of platform on the crusty ramp, BigHoppa was flinging some mad flingers down Hereford's double-set (YO!) and I was super-stoked to add frontside to complete the "Friends of the Shallow End" list.

The video's also on MPORA - click yer!

Warehouse Edit

As usual - late for the blog, a little edit of Jam, Wes, Chrissy Will and me skating the "dry spot" in Bristol.

The first version had Ice Cold Ice by Hüsker Dü on it, but YouTube said FREEZE and I got numb. So, here's the director's cut with a fully different sound - Buju Banton...

Mike Carroll at Lloyds

Nicked this from amazing The Chromeball Incident.

Mike Carroll - fruh-bluh (or FSBS) at Lloyds from Transworld 2002.

I think Beauty and The Beast 2 is coming soon. Girl and Anti Hero - bring it on!

Dinosaur jr blogged by BAD BLOGGER

Sign of a bad blogger is by blogging something that happened OVER A MONTH AGO! Anyway - September 5th, Dinosaur jr played the Anson Rooms in Bristol. It was an amazing gig - only the second time I've seen them since they reformed and much better gig than the one I saw in London 2 or so years ago. I think that was due to the much better sound quality - less superfuzz, more bigmuff. I was lucky to even get to the gig as I didn't even know about it until randomly seeing Syd from 5050's Facebook update that morning! Was a bit gutted that most of my usual mob were up in London at Dave G's wedding, but then got a text from the mighty Bob saying he was going, so decided to head on down. Met Syd and Tidy Mike in there, then Bob and also met his lady wife. Tried texting Rob Hall about the gig but got no response, but as you'd expect if there's a Dinosaur gig in Bristol, Rob was inta da area complete with his incredible brother Rich. Highlight of the gig was Just like Heaven and Sludgefeast as an encore. What made it even more amazing was before they came back on stage Bob was hoping for Just like Heaven and I was pining for Sludgefeast! Psychic request result! Can't beat LIVE SLUDGE!

The Ancient Aztec Civilisation

Wobbly blobby. This dinky hubba actually looks do-able? Got kicked off of here years ago. 1994? That's yer lot - these are the only skateable remains of the entire Mayan, Inca and Aztec civilisations...

Remember when...

...Thursdays were guaranteed skate nights, no matter what the weather?

Darwinius Masillae - The Missing Link?

News and pictures have been released of a 47 million year old fossil of a lemur-like creature (Ida!) which appears to have opposable thumbs like humans and fingernails instead of claws. A bit suspicious how the news has been released, book & TV documentary all ready to go, but still... wow!

More here: Wikipedia

and BBC News

Frankie's Dream "from the shitters"

Got an e-mail from the grandiloquent Lord of Amsterdam, Oz (aka David Nick-Nack, aka Cecil Cyclone etc) with a special request. He's spotted an amazing looking skateable roof, but unfortunately it's in Rome. Here's what he said: "I thought of a nice idea for your blog, it's called Frankie's Dream." The idea was that this was a bit of risky business that would've appealed to the craziness of danger-loving, launch ramp-assisted Frankie Hill.

He continues... "It's the roof of a company in Rome I visit every couple of weeks. I'd been meaning to take a photo for a long time, it was actually taken from the shitters.

It's looks like a right laugh to skate."

So, if he'd just pointed the camera in the other direction this could've been a great blog for the TURN OUT CLUB INTERNAZIONALE.

Here's the pics...












"There's also an amazing drop-in I've seen in Amsterdam, it's the roof of a kind of small house by the canal. I'll take a picture some time. I can imagine Wes getting pissed up and doing it."

I can also imagine Wes getting pissed up. I can also imagine Witty and Woodcock getting pissed up too, along with all the rest of the Fresh Air Crew scumbags.

El Diablo...

...or "The Devil".

Bollard Jam?

Potential for a line here: Up above this is a nice little slope, which runs down past 2 little curb/manual pads towards this load of bollards...

Planet of the Apes - Steve Caballero

Stevie Caballero? Cornelius? Planet of The Apes? Could anything be better? Cornelials and half-corns? Too many questions?

New Camera

Got myself a new Fujifilm S5800 camera - seems pretty good. Took a load of pics at Ella's 5th birthday party today and they all came out really well, then tested it tonight for a few night skate shots. Seems good enough for an £85 camera! The shutter lag seems good enough for skate shots, even at night using the flash. Check out the pics on the skanked up IBM banks...

















Wes was getting the blunts in...



















...more than once.



















And the back-tails.













The new camera can whirl a bit. That's Jam and Wes' brain waves swirling around. It was bloody freezing - hat and gloves night.



















I shunted a couple of ollies to tail...



















...and wafted some BS ollies over a crusty gap.



















Then Wes noticed the bit round the back had been spruced up a bit just as we were about to leave.

Filton Skatepark

Had a quick test-run at the new Filton skatepark. Seems pretty good - smooth concrete despite it being covered in dust, grit and leaves. The steep whippy tranny could be fun - concrete edge grinds well already, and the bowl seems well laid out for keeping a run going. Let's hope it gets operational floodlights pretty quickly!

DLH Funday Sat Sep 27th

NOTHING MEANER THAN THA DEANER...

Bournemouth HELL TOUR Video

Here's the video of the recent skate trip...