SKATE NEWS

Thrasher really does do the best job of choosing the best representative as Skater of the Year. It's easy to throw out a list of guys who have the right look, do the longest rails or have flashy side projects that tap into our urge to be entertained. But, when someone like Silas Baxter-Neal comes along—a guy who's most flashy attribute is that he can skate anything and everything, from the tech guy curb to the bowl-trowled-out cement skatepark—it's refreshing to see that skateboarding still can do all of the talking if it needs to.

Little expense was spared at this year's SOTY party, with a ripping photo booth, an open bar for a portion of the night, skate celebs, a sick EA Skate 2 promo with all the heads in the game and a bumpin' Too Short show (or Too Tall as the bum called him outside). Thanks Thrasher. It was an amazing event. Silas definitely deserved it.

Three Up Three Down

SF's Most Lubricated Spot

Noseblunt…first try…powering through the bum sitting on the stairs
SF is known for having some of the most historic spots—what's left of Embarcadero, Third and Army, Pier 7, China Banks…it goes on and on. The City is filled with weird bumps and some of the most boots rails or gaps that go down hills into oblivion. The rail that Frank Gerwer front boarded in Cash Money Vagrant, for example, is quite possibly one of the scariest things I have ever seen in my life.

The three up three down spot at the Armory is much less frightening, but when you see it in person, you start to realize just how impressive some of the tricks done on it are. Recently purchased by the pornography company, Kink, the future of the spot was in question, but it still remains, with the door open now and a little more life coming in and out of the building. The spot was known for lurking bums and human turd land mines. Ironically, it took a porn company to clean the place up a little bit.

My friend Mahar and I checked it out while we were in SF and imagined our dream tricks on the historic spot. He landed the noseblunt first try for Poser of the Month.

After the noseblunt, Mahar put on his SF guy coat and glasses and I played that one Postal Service song that goes,"blip bloop blip bloop, blip boop blip blip, blip bloop blop blop."

The gate's open, but not much has changed. Still got the bum sitting on the stairs. I didn't see any myself, but I heard it wasn't too hard to run into human caca in the past, either. I think this place might need a fluffer or a Swiffer or whatever.

C1rca Footwear Goes Live With A New Site

So it looks as if C1rca Footwear has updated the sh*t out of their website with a handful of eye-pleasing components. Head over to C1rca.Com for the latest Men's & Women's Footwear and Apparel, Rider Profiles and blog madness. There's a nice little blog up in there and a few must-see videos of Peter Romandetta, Windsor James, David Reyes and a bunch of unknown others (accept Magnus Hanson) who I'm assuming are on the C1rca flow program.

Not sure if you all noticed, but in Ryan Gallant's recent Plan B TV BS 180 Switch Front Crook "Trick Tip," he's wearing a C1rca shirt and even possibly chasing photo incentive with a big-ass C1rca sticker on his board. Though the ex-DC member isn't officially listed on the roster, it might just be safe to assume that he'll soon be on there. Another rumor that has no physical evidence at all, is that Ryan's ex-DC teammate and current Plan B teammate, Brian Wenning is also on the C1rca squad. Only time will tell for sure.

Erik Ellington sent us this fantastic news over the weekend. Congrats to you and Luci!

Mya was born at 1:51pm at 9lbs and 5oz!!!
Luci NAILED it and is recovering fantastically and Mya is as healthy
as she can be, yeahhhhhhh!

This week’s Sk8mafia Saturday is going down at San Diego’s Memorial Skatepark in conjunction with the Doogood Conservatory. Skate for free if you bring canned food or make a holiday card for the homeless.

NEW PRODUCTS

These days, it doesn’t matter if you don’t make the varsity football team because there’s doper varsity jackets from your favorite clothing labels dropping weekly - just peep the Play Cloths Letterman Jacket. Well, Vans takes the varsity jacket craze straight to their popular Half Cab Pro model by applying chenille (fluffy varsity jacket material) on the upper along with “Half Cab” printed on the back heel for a university-theme. Plus, the good ol’ American boy color-up adds a scholarly touch. If the varsity jacket doesn’t do it, a pair of these will have a cheerleader hanging on each arm.

Wow. It’s finally here. Alien Workshop’s long-awaited skate DVD Mind Field will drop February 6, 2009. Expect parts from Josh Kalis, Arto Saari, Anthony Van Engelen, Heath Kirchart, Steve Berra, Rob Dyrdek, Mike Taylor, Omar Salazar, Dylan Reider, and Jason Dill along with ams Tyler Bledsoe, Grant Taylor, and newbie Jake Johnson. The DVD will come with a 60-page photo booklet featuring images from the making of Mind Field. Check out images of the DVD case and booklet below. Yup, we’ll be standing in line.

The Bionic Man aka Danny Way

The Bionic Man aka Danny Way just doesn’t stop. We recently showed you his vertebrae breakin’ fall in Brazil, but 38 year old pro skater is up again and still pushing strong, strong enough to land an interview at the Wall Street Journal - yeah, skateboarding’s come a long way.where Danny discusses his influence in the skate world, the evolution of The Mega-Ramp and the future of skateboarding.

Reese Forbes High Ollie Challenge is officially back.

After a long decade, the Reese Forbes High Ollie Challenge is officially back.
It’ll take place at ASR on January 23-24th in San Diego. Who’s got that pop to break the record of 43 inches? Listen to what Reese says about the current record:
“…Were here in 2009 and its time to bring it back! I care for the interest in this competition and for the sport and commodory of skateboarding. It’s what has always interested me. Surrounding yourself with people you respect and pushing each other beyond you’re expectations. This year my hope and guarantee is that the record WILL be broken!!! There will be an elimination day and a pre-qualifier for the main event.”

NEW PRODUCTS

SKATE NEWS

(Huntington Beach, CA), December 11, 2008— In the loudest and most outrageous fashion, Quiksilver skateboarder Tony Hawk along with 20 of the most iconic vert skateboarders of all-time rolled into Quiksilver Headquarters Saturday, December 6, for a single-day skate challenge presented by Quiksilver and ShredOrDie.com. The "All '80s All Day Vert Challenge" was Tony's first competition in more than eight years.

ShredOrDie.com filmed the entire event and, starting today, will be issuing new daily clips over the next week. All video can all be embedded into blogs, social networking pages and other online sites.

"Quiksilver has been sponsoring skaters, throwing cool parties and putting on contests since I was a kid. Our skate team today spans from legends like Tony, Christian and Omar as well as growing young talent like Alex Olsen and Danny Garcia," said Reese Forbes, Quiksilver Skate Program Manager. "The All '80s All Day event blended the old and the new and brought it back to what we are all about, remembering a cool era, hanging with friends and going after the prize."



Dressed head-to-toe in neon brights and rockin' '80s skate setups, the 21 skate legends threw down on a monstrous '80s-inspired Vert Ramp built by bowlmaster and competitor Eddie Reatequi. Skaters competed in three challenges including the Vert Challenge, Big Air Contest and the Signature Trick Jam Session.

Cash prizes were awarded to first through 11th place in the Vert Challenge; first place receiving $1980 cash and a custom Gibson Epiphone guitar. Gibson threw in two other exclusive Epiphones for the Big Air winner and the Overall Best '80s winner.

As a muse for all skaters in attendance, the competitors stepped out in pure '80s inspired style, sporting '80s tees, flip hats, wigs and boards. With fresh highlights and a wave-like hairdo, Tony Hawk rocked the original shirt he wore back in the classic skate film "The Search for Animal Chin." Christian Hosoi donned a pair of his infamous spandex shorts and a signature cut-off tee along with jet black long-hair extensions while Andy Macdonald went for the cool comb-over, sporting a hot pink shirt and dropped down suspenders. The crew clearly showed how they led the way for the industry fashion that followed.

On the equipment front, all skaters were required to ride on original equipment. Tony showed up with a pink noseless board that he rode in the '80s. Many of the other skaters came with their own signature boards that have since become collectible museum pieces.

"We gotta ride the real deal here," he said. Skating the real deal landed Tony first place prize of $1980 and the Gibson guitar (Tony forfeited his cash prize and gave $200 each to the other skaters who did not place).

Quiksilver and ShredorDie.com would like to thank event sponsors, Gibson, for the rad '80s Epiphone guitar trophies, Antics powered by Toyota Matrix for the on-site entertainment, Wahoos and Jones Soda for the food and drinks.

RESULTS
Vert Challenge
1st Tony Hawk
2nd Andy Macdonald
3rd Bucky Lasek
4th Kevin Staab
5th Jeff Grosso
6th Christian Hosoi
7th Steve Caballero
8th Eric Nash
9th Eddie Reategui
10th Henry Gutierrez

Overall Best '80s - Christian Hosoi
Big Air Contest - Bucky Lasek
Gnarliest Skater - Jeff Grosso
Dagger Award - Eddie Reategui
Dead Last Award - Adrian Demain

Signature Trick Jam Session
Hawk Award (biggest/best 540) -Henry Gutierrez Hosoi Award (biggest/best Christ Air) - Bucky Lasek Micke Alba Award (best judo air) - Adrian Demain Lester Kasai Award (best Beni-hana) - Tony Hawk Ray Underhill Award (best Pop Tart) - Cara Beth Burnside Mike Smith Award (best Smith Grind) - Christian Hosoi Craig Johnson Award (scariest skater) - Ben Schroeder

SKATE NEWS

Carlsbad, CA — (December 10, 2008) — Bob Burnquist secures the title of WCS #1 Vert Skater after an amazing performance and three wins at the Oi! Megarampa competition in Brazil. The event was held at Sao Paulo's Sambadrome of Abhembi on November 23rd and over one million viewers tuned-in to TV Global's to watch event coverage.

Over 10,000 loyal fans waited over three hours in a downpour for the semi-finals to commence. Oi! Megarampa set a record in Brazil's skateboarding history by offering the largest contest cash prize of $85,500. Burnquist, co-creator of the event and native of Brazil, placed 1st in the quarter pipe and jump best trick contests after landing a switch backside 360 stalefish and indie 540 over the gap. He also took home the overall win with a three point lead. This is Burnquist's third mega ramp win in a row. His past mega ramp wins include X Games 13 and reigning X Games Big Air champion, proving why WCS ranks him #1.

"It was a lot of work to get this event off the ground and even harder to skate the mega ramp in front of all the cheering Brazilian fans. I want to thank Mega Ramp Events, all the skaters that flew down to Brazil to be a part of the event, and a special thanks to Danny Way for taking yet another slam for the cause. The pressure was almost unbearable with all the craziness going on, but with the support of the riders and the fans, we put on yet another mega show," said Burnquist. As World Cup Skateboarding's point leader, with a margin of 200 points after dominating the competition in Brazil and competing in all four WCS vert contests, Burnquist starts 2009 as a force to be reckoned with.

Bob Burnquist would like to thank the following sponsors: Flip Skateboards, Hurley, Toyota, Oakley, Ipath Shoes, Nixon, Pro-Tec Helmets, Ogio and Sambazan Amazon Energy.

Anybody ever heard of this War Co. business? It looks like War Co. is a new board brand featuring the headlining talents of ex-Element pro, Tosh Townend and Steve Godoy offspring and ex-Baker wise ass, Knox Godoy. Also on the team are Paul Flores and The Sinner. Not much else is known about War Co. Skateboards. However, according to their Myspace page, their Body Type is "5' 9 with some Extra Baggage," they're "Capricorn's," "Proud Parents," "Single," and make "$250,000 and higher." Do we really need to know anymore? I'll keep you posted.

Protect Ya Neck

Skateboarder Sues Baltimore Cop For Throwing Craze

WBAL TV

Eric Bush & His Momma, Ms. Bush.
A while back, the video of a young kid being taken down by a police officer made its way across the web. Apparently the kids name is Eric Bush and the officer in question is Salvatore Rivieri. It appears now, that a judge has given Bush, age 14, the right to sue the officer. Officer Salvatore Rivieri was removed from street duty shortly after the incident made headlines and hasn't yet to return. Hopefully this kid wins, makes an example of this d*ckbag and opens some eyes to the po po's reoccurring abuse of power. Then I hope Eric cuts me a check for a few of his winnings. Not much, just a few G's.

Lutzka's Bangin'

We're Both From Wisconsin…Get Me on Monster Already

Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuutzka! Yeah! I don't care what anyone says (and some people say a lot), but Lutzka is epic. I hate to sound like I'm begging, but I think he should help me out and get me on Monster…maybe even get me one of those hats. Maybe a house, too?

I just wish that people cared about writing as much as they did about skateboarding, but that's just too much to ask. I totally understand. Reading's for idiots…Wait, no, that's not right.

I guess I just need to get people interested, maybe get a gimmick. Maybe I could be like Kerouac and become a beatnik. I'll write all my books one time. Then, I'll re-write them just from memory, so that it flows…You know what, maybe that's why I can't get sponsored. Nothing about writing a book and then re-writing a book is flashy like Lutzkas Bangin' over at the Berrics. I think the most I'll ever get out of this dream to be the first sponsored writer on Monster is one of those hats.

Power To The Planet

Element Helps Raise Social Awareness

Element

A Preview of Element's Spring '09 footwear
So as you might already know, Element has a program going on called, Power To The Planet. No stranger to assisting in positive social causes, Element's Power To The Planet initiative features a full line of sustainable and organic products which hope to aid in the preservation of the environment. In order to spread the word of the program, 60 Element "family members" got together to explain individually, what Power To The Planet means to them. There's a diverse group of heads in the mix like Mike V., Brian Gaberman and even Rodney Smith of Shutl. Go to the official Power To The Planet mini-site and have a yourself a looksy.

The Carroll Calamity Continues

Epicly Carrolled Part 3

Carroll can laugh it all off now.

He's still good and EMB blows up. This one's got some risque stuff so I'm not gonna embed it but you can watch the episode here. I'm up in SF, so I might swing by Embarcadero tomorrow, even though it's not the same. We'll see.

SKATE NEWS

Beatnik
Many of today's young skaters are approaching this style of dress, but none has quite gotten it right in the way that I can laugh out loud at it. Jack Kerouac's "On the Road," by default, is a book sold to the youth as something that is cool, so we're on the right track. Either your parents, brother or a friend has this book, has most likely not read it, but talks about it as though they have. Now, carry a copy around with you when you skate. Next, go to the thrift store and find black high water pants, a black turtle neck and (here's the most important part) a black beret. If you can grow a goatie, grow it. If not, just let your stray dirt 'stache hairs grow out as much as you can. Last but not least, get some bongos and backtail that ledge, sucker.

After all, skating in Minnesota and Wisconsin, the upper East Coast, the Southwest or down South is just as awesome (sometimes more awesome) than the heavy coverage of Cali. With pics coming out of ATL through Ryan Flynn's site and even more rippers flowing their way into the industry (Grant Taylor, David Clark, Brad Cromer, Dan Murphy, Justin Brock and a whole host of others), they're hard to ignore. Now, Post 22 is documenting much of the sessions coming out of North Cackalacka. It's not that the South wasn't there, it's just that now they're making sure we're looking at the bottom of the map again.

For Ray
Momentum Wheel's Release Limited Edition Ray Underhill Wheel

Momentum Wheel Co.
After battling a Chordoma brain tumor for the past couple of years with radiation and surgery, legendary pro skater, Ray Underhill passed away on August 1, 2008. I was lucky enough to see Ray skate in person years ago, when he, Tony Hawk, Steve Saiz and Eric Sanderson did a demo on the infamous Powell Peralta unfolding mini-ramp at a local shop. The guy straight up, ripped.

To celebrate the life and skate influence that Ray left behind, Momentum Wheels has released a limited edition Ray Underhill wheel featuring Ray's original Powell cross graphic. The 55mm wheel is currently shipping. with all sales proceeds going to the Underhill family. Pick up a pair, pay homage to a legend and help support a worthy cause.