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LakaiWelcome aboard Daniel!

After a short stint on Adio, young Daniel Espinoza's skills caught the attention of the good folks at Podium and he's found his way into a comfy pair of Lakai shoes with a solid spot on their am team. Will the phenomenon from Fontana be announced as the next edition to Chocolate skateboards soon as well? Time will tell. Either way, Espinoza's future is looking bright.

Courtesy of Zoo York

Zered's pictures from Cuba are pretty eye opening.

Chris Nieratko

The father to be crushing the minramp.

You might remember last year when I gave Krooked am, Mike Anderson some faulty advice on how NOT to get a girl pregnant and then two weeks later his girlfriend Daisy was prego. Well, 13-months sure does fly by when you're hving fun and Anderson and Daisy's daughter Lyla is less than a month away from being born. Last week they held a baby shower and miniramp jam at Anderson's parent's house in Ventura. éS footwear was kind enough to bring me out, seeing as how the whole beautiful mess is my fault. Also in attendance were Danny Garcia, Torey Pudwill, Scuba Steve, Bobby Worrest and more.

Courtesy of Fat Old Guy skateboards

Skateboarding's no lnoger for just the young or the svelt.

With so much of America concerned with weight loss and health I like that a brand has stepped up to let us fat guys know that we are beautiful just the way we are. And who better to helm this aged ship of lard than one of skateboarding's favorite fat old guys: Dave Carnie. Aside from being the former editor for the now defunct Big Brother magazine Dave is also a world renowned artist, foosballer, dancer and singer. It appears 2010 is the year of the Carn Carn with the release of Fat Old Guy, Dave's upcoming book as well as his reality show where he tries to find a chill neighbor. Yup, Carnie's back, hide your beer.

Courtesy of Ipath

Mat Rodriguez is one of skateboarding's unsung godfathers of style.

As one of Stereo's original members and a partial brainchild behind IPath, Matt Rodriguez has always brought originality and style to everything he does. Out of San Jose, he made a name for himself in San Francisco, but made a home in Sacramento, all while staying homies with Cardiel and approaching everything with a Do-It-Yourself attitude. Get some Rodriguez history, heated by the habaneros tucked into his knitted hat. Enjoy. Full Interview »

A couple of cool events are going down in the greater NYC area this week that you won't want to miss if you live in the tri-state area. First, the good folks from KCDC skateshop are hosting a benefit for the people of Haiti on Thursday night. If you're in Brooklyn and you're over 21, come by the shop between 9-12. Bring some canned goods, clothing or cold hard cash to get in the door. Once you're in, there's a ramp to session, OG Rookie rider Sean Kelling killing it on the ones and twos, free beverages provided by Brooklyn Brewery and a performance by Natur.

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A compact ball of skate energy like Taylor Bingaman must have footage falling out of his pockets when he walks. With an impressive release in Creature’s latest horror-skate flick Hesh Law and an upcoming barnburner of a part in our forthcoming video Hallelujah, he’s sure to come from relative obscurity to people’s favorite list. Now, it seems someone was picking up the bits Bingaman left behind for a mini-part over at StrangeNotes. Start becoming a fan, now.


If you haven’t experienced the return of Appleyard’s smooth skating in Extremely Sorry (highly anticipated not only by skaters at large, but by Appleyard himself), you’re blowing it. But, luckily, you can get a shortened version of the apple picker’s part (music and all) over at the Flip Skateboard site.
The once little Ontarian has come a long way from Beasley Bowl to where he’s at, stopping at Habitat along the way. See a piece of his latest apology on Flip’s website and then track down his Extremely Sorry part for good measure. Plus, Flip’s Feast Tour coverage coming soon. One Love.

This Saturday, January 23rd, Geoff Rowley, Lance Mountain and other Flip riders are doing a signing at SoCal Skateshop in Mission Viejo, CA. Make sure and get there early because there’s going to be a BBQ and raffle! BBQ starts at 12PM and signing and raffle at 1PM.
SoCal Skateshop
24002 Via Fabricante Suite 205,
Mission Viejo, CA 92691

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Paul Rodriguez Signature Collection Fall 09 Skate Pack
Introducing the Fall 09 Skate Pack, the newest addition to the Paul Rodriguez Signature Collection, designed and constructed with the essentials in mind. The Skate Pack helps you take what you need where you need it by merging skateboard-specific design with the best in notebook protection and functional storage.
Constructed of durable, weather resistant nylon, the Skate Pack features a padded back panel and shoulder straps with breathable mesh and integrated airflow channels for ergonomic support and comfort. The exterior skateboard attachment allows for easy deck-loading, with Velcro straps and compression bumpers to secure your skateboard.
On the inside, the Skate Pack is lined in a custom screen-printed allover P-Rod multi-dot design and includes a reinforced notebook compartment and an extensive array of pockets allow for maximum organization.
And we can’t forget the collection’s namesake in all this. Paul has been busy this summer traveling, competing and winning.
Incase had the chance to document Paul on the road, traveling to the Boston stop of the Dew Tour. Check out the video to get an inside look at a day in the life of P-Rod.





Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk's first iPhone app -- Trick Tips -- reached No. 1 in the sports apps category last week. Hawk is a marketing genius in interacting with his fans as he has reached 2 million followers on Twitter. "It's an instant, unfiltered way to connect to fans," he said. The $0.99 Trick Tips include text, video and photos of Hawk giving step-by-step instruction for 50 of the top skateboarding tricks from basic to advance. So Page 2 chased him down to talk about his new venture.
1. Tony, you've always been cutting edge. How did this come about?
"I've been wanting to do an iPhone app for the last couple years, but didn't want to do something quick and easy. I have had success in skating instructional videos in the past, and I knew it could translate well to the iPhone platform. We updated every trick and shot everything in HD in order to use frame grabs. If you don't have an iPhone, an iPod Touch works, too. Or you can watch our previous Trick Tips videos at shredordie.com. We're working on getting the app on other smart phones."
2. You made skateboarding popular, but you didn't stop there. What else are you working on?
"Raising my first girl [Kadence Clover Hawk, who is 18 months old], a sequel to [video game] Tony Hawk: Ride, and supporting public skateparks in low-income areas through my foundation."

3. Tell us some of your favorite tricks and maybe some of your favorite ramps in the United States.
"My favorite moves are 540s [any spin/grab], backside ollies, 360 flips and alley-oop lip tricks. The best ramp in the U.S. is the one we use for my Boom Boom Huckjam Tour. I skate it almost every day, and I am completely spoiled by it. Other than that, Woodward Skate Camp in Pennsylvania has a bit of everything. There are many amazing skateparks across the country, but I hope to provide more to needy youth."
4. Do you consider skateboarding still a youth sport or has it gone totally mainstream?
"It is a sport, an art-form, a hobby or a lifestyle depending on your approach. Many adults [who skated in their youth] have a renewed interest because their kids are into it, and it is more accessible than ever."

5. What makes you happy?
"My family … and landing new tricks."
A couple of cool events are going down in the greater NYC area this week that you won't want to miss if you live in the tri-state area. First, the good folks from KCDC skateshop are hosting a benefit for the people of Haiti on Thursday night. If you're in Brooklyn and you're over 21, come by the shop between 9-12. Bring some canned goods, clothing or cold hard cash to get in the door. Once you're in, there's a ramp to session, OG Rookie rider Sean Kelling killing it on the ones and twos, free beverages provided by Brooklyn Brewery and a performance by Natur.
This Saturday, January 23rd, just outside Manhattan in New York's sixth borough, New Jersey, Zoo York's own Zered Bassett

Courtesy of KCDC

Come party for a good cause!

will be hosting a shindig of his own exhibiting photos from his trip to Cuba last year. You can read more about that trip here. If you want to come to the event, it's being held at Mountain Creek 200 Rte. 94, Vernon, New Jersey from 7-10 pm. Our guy, Chris Nieratko will also be screening video he shot from that same Cuba trip.

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An initial look from the kids of Malawi, before turning these skate mags into unexpected jewelry.

Strange as it sounds, there are still places left on earth that have gone relatively untouched by the western world. Sure the occasional Coca-Cola bottle will fall out of the sky, but for the most part these regions remain free of Starbucks, McDonalds, cell phones, the Internet and most other creature comforts that we in the developed world accept as a part of normal life. As human progress continues its march, though, these spots will unquestionably become more rare with every passing year. But, until the world gets completely paved and Grande-sized, there's still some anthropology experiments to be had, which is exactly what went down when we gave a stack of American skate mags to a group of African kids who had never seen skateboarding before.

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Mike Valley has always been a man of strong opinions and also a man of action. Never one to sit on the sidelines, Vallely will tell you how he feels on just about any subject and he'll be heartfelt about his answer. With some notorious scuffles under his belt through the years, plenty of people have pigeon holed Vallely as a bruiser and some have written him off for this behavior. What some of you may not know is that Vallely is also genuine and open person. He takes the time to acknowledge every one of his fans and, year after year, he puts his body through the ringer to give skaters great demo appearances.
Recently, Vallely got some notorious notoriety for a scuffle he was involved in at an Anaheim Ducks hockey game. Vallely, a big hockey fan and longtime supporter of the Ducks was attending the game with his daughter and pro Hockey player, Scott Niedermayer attempted to hand a souvenir stick to Vallely's daughter. When another fan tried to grab the stick as it was handed over the glass, a fight ensued. Because of the fight, Vallely's relationship with the Ducks (he'd been a blogger for their website and made celebrity appearances at games) was terminated. Now Vallely has come forth on his site with a statement about the incident and his feelings regarding the fight. You can watch the fight, with Vallely's version of things here and form your own opinion.


Riding hills has been a part of skateboarding since the beginning. What started with surfers crawling out of the ocean and riding hills to simulate waves when the ocean was flat, has evolved into a whole other monster. If the Dogtowners that used to carve down Bicknell Hill in the 1970s could see (or have seen) the tricks getting flung down hills today, geriatric jaws would certainly drop. Take a look at the way today's best skaters are approaching skating's oldest terrain. (Photos: Tadashi, Zaslavsky and Karpinski)

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To celebrate the launch of Malto’s first pro model, etnies Films created the Sean Malto: A Professional Journey video and another video with Sean giving all the details on his first pro model shoe.  Click here to watch ‘em.

JAPAN LATEST UPCOMING SK8 COMPANY.

JAPAN LATEST UPCOMING SK8 COMPANY.

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Over our week in the Cayman Islands, it wasn’t all cut-throat competition at the Black Pearl (it actually never was), there was also relaxing in the pool, afternoon snorkeling, trying our luck on the wave pool, and even a scuba diving expedition one day. The bartenders were friendly, the Red Stripes were plentiful, and the seafood was delicious. We’ll be back there this summer for more skate camps and we recommend you do the same. Here’s a bunch of photos that Chris Ray and Blair Alley shot of what went down during the heated sessions and relaxing down time that island life provides.

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Though no one seems to have mentioned it yet, Greg Lutzka's name is notably absent from the Almost skateboards team list. Riding for Almost since its beginnings, Lutzka's absence is significant though not completely unexpected. Lutzka's immense talents on board and his consistent presence and dominance in the contest circuit (a Gold Medal at X Games Mexico in '08 and the winner of the '06, '08 and '09 Tampa Pro) is sure to attract new board sponsors quickly. Where will the fedora-clad ripper end up next? Be sure to keep checking back and we'll bring you the latest.

Lutzka twists in to a frontside 270 lip during the 2009 Dew Tour.


There's some great stuff floating around the Internets today. Aftera sneak peak at their pro boards in the Spring Line, Habitat has announced that Guru Khalsa and Daryl Angel have joined the pro ranks. Look for a full interview with Guru right here on ESPN Skateboarding in the near distant future.

If you haven't checked out part one of Nike's "Don't Fear The Sweeper" tour video, you're blowing it. Since when do double-set switch heel late shoves get used in a tour video?! Since Cory Kennedy got on the team, I suppose.

Courtesy of Habitat

In new product news, Deluxe has released part one of their online 2010 catalogue with the Thunder trucks section. Check out all the new trucks and colorways as well as a little vid from Erik Ellington showing you how to do nollie backside heels. Brad Staba hit me up to let everyone know that new Skate Mental product is up on the Internets. And Converse has some new shoes with classic style for your viewing pleasure as well.

This one needs some background. A while back we did an interview with Britain's own Olly Todd. At the time, he rode for Stereo skateboards where he'd been for a few years. Only a few weeks after that interview however, Todd shocked a lot of people when he left Stereo to ride for the newly minted Palace Skateboards. Whiel their website could stand some improvement, Palace comes correct out of London with deep ties to Slam City Skates and serves as an off-shoot from the tight-knit crew of Londoners, the Palace Waywards.

SKBSG

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Some might have seen this one coming but to others it was mystery. North Carolina's Dan Murphy has joined the Foundation team. Following a parting of ways for Murphy and long-time board sponsor Mystery, Murphy quickly found a new home and some new decks to ride with the Foundation crew. With our guy and good friend of Dan's, Mike Sinclair being the Team Manager over at Foundation, it seems to have been the obvious choice for Dan.

Murphy continues to ride for Nike SB, Kr3w and Krux. His addition to the F-troop adds some smooth tech to compliment riders like Sierra Fellers and David Reyes while bringing balance to a team that includes the more gnarly vibes of Corey Duffel, Angel Ramirez and Gareth Stehr. Congrats Dan! And keep an eye out for new Murphy footage in the North Cacka independent video, "Yougottagetthat," coming to your skateshop any day now. Check out a quick interview with Dan and a little welcome to the team video here.

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Santori

Satori Wheels is taking a green initiative. Send your old wheels to them and they will recycle them into brand new ones. This means less waste in landfills. Check out all the info about the new recyled urethane wheels at http://satoriwheels.org/relife.html. Do your part and recycle your old wheels.


Welcome to New York, one of the greatest places for street skating on earth. Down on the street level, between all of those skyscrapers is a world of possibility. Ledges, banks, gaps, rails, manuals, bumps, walls stretch on for miles. You could skate a new spot every day for a year in New York without repeating once. Have a look at some of NYC's finest. (Ying/Cronan/Mehring/Mikendo)