SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

GATORADE FREE FLOW TOUR ANNOUNCES PACKED 2009 SCHEDULE

Stellar Park Lineup Highlights Amateur Skateboard Series, Registration Now Open at GatoradeFreeFlowTour.com.

Seeking to find the best amateur skaters across the country this summer, the Gatorade Free Flow Tour announced today the complete schedule for the 2009 season. The skate portion of the Tour officially kicks off May 16 in Burlington, Vt. at Talent Skatepark, and registration for all events is now open at gatoradefreeflowtour.com.

The 2009 Gatorade Free Flow Tour will include a total of 33 skateboarding competitions (five skate vert and 28 skate park) at 28 parks across the United States. The winners in each of the 33 skate competitions will be flown to the Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals, taking place at the Dew Tour’s Toyota Challenge, September 17-20. Encompassing the “Flow to Pro” theme that is the cornerstone of the Gatorade Free Flow Tour, the two overall skate park and vert champions earn a spot to compete against the pros at the final stop of the Dew Tour, the PlayStation Pro in Orlando, Fla., October 15-18.

Highlighting the 2009 skate schedule are the additions of top skateparks M.I.A. in Miami, Fla., Warp in Chicago, Ill. and Epic in Rocklin, Calif. The Gatorade Free Flow Tour will also be returning to Ecke YMCA in Encinitas, Calif. and San Diego, Calif.’s Mission Valley YMCA. Committed to holding competitions in the best skateparks across the country, the 2009 schedule also returns to other standout parks including the Autumn Ramp Park (Joplin, Mo.), Charm City (Baltimore, Md.), Alliance (Grand Prairie, Texas) and the Skatelab (Simi Valley, Calif.).

The 2009 Gatorade Free Flow Tour skate schedule* includes the following dates and locations:

16-May Burlington, Vt. Talent Skatepark
23-May Royal Oaks, Mich. Modern Skatepark
23-May Baltimore, Md. Charm City
30-May Newnan, Ga. Factory
31-May Encinitas, Calif. Ecke YMCA
6-Jun Fontana, Calif. Fontana Skatepark
Jun 6-7 Burnsville, Minn. 3rd Lair
7-Jun Simi Valley, Calif. Skatelab
7-Jun Houston, Texas Southside Skatepark
13-Jun Florence, Ky. Ollies Skatepark
20-Jun N. Chicago, Ill. Warp Skatepark
21-Jun Milwaukee, Wis. 4 Seasons
27-Jun Grand Prairie, Texas Alliance
11-Jul Nashville, Tenn. 6th Ave. Skatepark

11-Jul Rye, N.H. Rye Airfield

12-Jul Taunton, Mass. Skaters Edge

18-Jul Clairemont, Calif. Mission Valley

19-Jul Woodbridge, Conn. Academy

25-Jul Albuquerque, N.M. Los Altos Skatepark

25-Jul Des Moines, Iowa Saylor Skatepark

1-Aug Rocklin, Calif. Epic Skatepark

8-Aug Mt. Hood, Ore. Windell’s Camp

16-Aug Columbus, Ohio Flow Skatepark

16-Aug Miami, Fla. M.I.A. Skatepark

22-Aug Moorestown, N.J. Black Diamond

22-Aug Longwood, Fla. Mesh

29-Aug Salt Lake City, Utah Ogio Training Facility

5-Sep Joplin, Mo. Autumn Ramp Park

Sep 17-20 Salt Lake City, Utah**
* Schedule subject to change.
** Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals at the Toyota Challenge


RED BULL MANNY MANIA BRINGS IT BACK TO THE BRIDGE WITH ALL-STAR LINEUP
THE 3RD ANNUAL MANUAL PRO CONTEST RETURNS TO MANHATTAN JUNE 7TH
New Yorkers should prepare for a two-wheel rumble, as Red Bull Manny Mania returns with a heavy-hitting line up of pro skaters ready to fight for the crown at the capstone event of Skateboard Weekend in Manhattan.
Last year, skateboarding pro Joey Brezinski battled it out with Brandon Biebel for top honors, after taking second place in 2007 to Ronnie Creager. Competition will be in the air as this year marks the return of Creager as well as Biebel and a number of newcomers. Last year’s reigning champ will sure feel the pressure with returning guests like pro Stevie Williams, who admits he’s been training for months, revving up the competition.
In its third year, Red Bull Manny Mania will showcase more pros and bigger names involved as the Skateboard Weekend progresses to a four day affair. Skate scene legends Jeff Pang and Dave Ortiz return to MC the event and three generations of East Coast talent will serve as judges: Stereo’s Chris Pastras, Zoo York’s Donny Barley and Queens native Rodney Torres. Also on the 1s and 2s is no other than NYC music luminary, Bobbito Garcia.
Red Bull Manny Mania caps off a weekend full of festivities, starting on Thursday with the premiere of Zoo York’s “State of Mind,” the 5boro 13 Year Anniversary Party on Friday, and Saturday’s 5Boro’s Back To The Banks Jam.
Come Sunday, June 7th, the Manhattan Bridge will be rocking with all the skate talent gathered in one spot. They might want to reinforce the pillars.
Red Bull Manny Mania
Free to the public
June 7, 2009 at 3pm
Coleman Park, underneath the Manhattan Bridge at intersection of Pike St & Monroe St.
Confirmed skaters*
Adelmo Jr, Anthony Correa, Brandon Biebel, Chico Brenes, Chris Roberts, Danny Falla, Eli Reed, Forrest Kirby, Gary Smith, Guillaume Dulout, Jack Curtin, Jahmal Williams, Javier Nunez, Jereme Rogers, Joey Brezinski, Joey Pepper, Josh Kalis, Karl Watson, Kelly Hart, Kenny Anderson, Kyle Leeper, Lenny Rivas, Malcolm Watson, Philip Schuster, Rob Gonzales, Rodrigo Peterson, Rodrigo Tx, Ronnie Creager, Shuriken Shannon, Stevie Williams, Tim O’Connor, Vincent Bressol, Zered Bassett


ROB DYRDEK TO HIT U.S. FOR THE DC FANTASIES RUN DEEP TOUR PRESENTED BY STREET DREAMS

This May, Pro Skateboarder and MTV star Rob Dyrdek will cross the U.S. for his DC Fantasies Run Deep Tour presented by Street Dreams.

Over 23 days, the DC Fantasies Run Deep Tour will make 10 stops across the U.S. beginning June 16th in Huntington Beach, Calif. Dyrdek will visit retail stops across the country for meet and greets, autograph signings and screenings. The tour will wrap up at DC’s Soho Store in New York City on June 7th, the day before the Hollywood premiere of his new movie, Street Dreams.

As his latest endeavor in the world of entertainment Dyrdek wrote, produced and financed Street Dreams, his first full-length feature film about an up-and-coming skateboarder and his dreams. With a cast of professional skateboarders that includes Dyrdek, Paul Rodriquez, Ryan Sheckler, Terry Kennedy and Ryan Dunn, Street Dreams is truly the first story to accurately depict the realities of life as a street skateboarder to a mainstream audience. In advance of the film’s theatrical release on June 12th, Dyrdek will screen the film to limited audiences during the DC Fantasies Run Deep Tour.

A full schedule and locations of the DC Fantasies Run Deep Tour can be found at dcshoes.com. Along with photos, videos and the Street Dreams trailer, fans can register at dcshoes.com for Dyrdek’s Facebook, Myspace and Twitter where they can receive info on the tour and exclusive promos. Visitors can also shop all of DC and Dyrdek’s current product and sign up for updates on his upcoming Dyrdek Collection that launches October 2009.

SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

Skate Mental Hot Sh-t Press Release

After one year and three months of deliberation, mega brand Skate Mental and iconic skateboarder Daryl Angel have made the decision to part ways. “Its been a long arduous road,” says long time professional skateboarder Reese Forbes.”He will be missed,” notes the re-emerging Matt Beach. We hope the grass is greener for Daryl and wish him and his next sponsor the best of luck.


RVCA has a new promo DVD hitting shops soon. Featuring Leo, Spanky, Harmony, Cairo, and the whole crew.


Blueprint let us know that its new video, Make Friends With The Colour Blue is due out late this year. We here at TransWorld are huge fans of Lost & Found, so that news alone is quite exciting. Longtime pro Paul Shier and OG brand manager Dan Magee are at the helm of all things, and Blueprint will now be distributed all over the world. Keep an eye on blueprintskateboards.com as the release date draws near, and for new product.


Last Friday Volcom premiered all 14 video clips from the Skate Night Film Battles on a massive screen at the Volcom skatepark. Here’s a trailer with some footy from the different stores.
All 14 video clips are online now and Volcom wants you to vote for your favorite clip.

SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

IPATH Supports Midwest Shops and Scenes On the Routes Tour

The crew at IPATH knows that skateboarding has no boundaries. To help support some of the local scenes across the Midwest, IPATH is loading up the van and going on the Routes Tour.

Beginning on May 9, Fred Gall, Adam Alfaro, Nilton Neves, Jack Sabback, Jaws and Ben Raybourn will be cruising the Midwest with long-time IPATH rep Pete Harvieux, on a five-day demo of destruction. The tour is taking place to support some of the many Midwest shops and scenes that have shown love for the IPATH family in the past.

Tour dates and stops are as follows:

May 9 - Chicago: 4 PM Uprise demo at Wilson Skatepark

May 10 - Milwaukee: 2 PM in-store signing at Phase 2
3 PM Demo at Cream City supported by Sky High
and Phase 2

May 11 - Madison: 4 PM in-store at Alumni
5 PM demo at Quarry Skatepark

May 12 - Twin Cities: 5 PM demo at Familia Skatepark

May 13 - Bismark: 5 PM signing and demo at Savvy


“Skateboarding is alive and well outside of SoCal and it’s important we stay in touch with scenes across the country,” commented IPATH’s Dave Smith. “I’m excited to hit the road with the team to check out some spots and connect with people that support what IPATH has going on.”

In addition to the team, IPATH is bringing along Thad and Matt Price to document everything that goes down through video and pictures. Anyone looking to catch up with the guys at unscheduled stops while on tour or suggest a spot, should hit IPATH on their Twitter feed @IPATHFootwear. Video clips from the tour start trickling into the IPATH YouTube site later this month.

As summer approaches, IPATH wants to encourage all skaters to embark on their own Routes tour and post those photos to the IPATH Roots Crew page on Loop’d. Regardless of if you’re traveling cross-country or hitting a new spot on the other side of town, embrace the journey that comes with skateboarding.

SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

Lists of legendary backyard bowls are like chronic hippers—every pool-cruster has one. Nostalgia runs deep and opinions differ. But when you boil it down, a handful of all-time pits always rise above the scum line.—Keith Hamm

1. Buena Vista—Watsonville, California
Bill’s Wheels shop owner Bill Ackerman and his buddies dug it out in 1976, fearing the Psycho Woodcutter, a squatter who’d run them off with an axe. Unearthed again in ’87, Buena hosted summer contests, carloads of San Jose’s best, and Andy Roy boosting frontside corner bonelesses to disaster.
STEVE CAB IN BAN THIS:


2. Vagabond—Fresno, California
For years, this kidney was the only reason to stop in Fresno while driving through the fertile San Joaquin Valley. Then a crew of bowl dogs moved there, reaping a bounty of backyard fruit. Fresno went from pit stop to destination, even more so when locals sculpted concrete hits surrounding the pool.
LOCALS:


3. Bastrop—Bastrop, Texas
The Camp Swift military base just east of Austin was decommissioned shortly after WWII. Decades later, skaters infiltrated the property’s five outsize pools. The Country Club pool, featuring 45-degree walls, “was like skating a huge bank,” remembers John Gibson. “And it had this tile lip you could really grind the crap out of.” These days, Bastrop’s Grinder Ledge keeps the war alive with D.I.Y. concrete additions.
NIKE SB TEAM:


4. Pink Motel—San Fernando, California
She ain’t got the sweetest shallow but this pink fish has seen so much action that you can’t deny her a place among the hallowed holes. First skated in the late 70s, it reached skate-flick fame in Animal Chin and still hosts blowouts, birthday parties, and numerous photo shoots.
FOURSTAR TEAM:


5. Dog Bowl—Santa Monica, California
When a kid with cancer drained the family pool for the Dogtown crew, skateboarding would never be the same. With bust-potential at zero, Jay Adams, Tony Alva, and the rest honed their collective progression—including Alva’s invention of the frontside air—in front of cameramen Craig Stecyk and Glen Friedman.
OG DOGTOWN CREW:


6. Band-X—Jacksonville, Florida
When the Christensons drained their roomy oval for maintenance in the early 80s, Kona locals hopped the fence when nobody was home. Drained again in the late 80s, the scene blew up. “My parents were really laid back and didn’t care,” says Brian Christenson, who marketed a waterproof watchband, Band-X, with a face-wall logo. Eldest son Kevin now holds the keys. “It’s in pristine shape with water in it,” says Brian. “But there might be a skate reunion someday.”
BAND X FOOTAGE IS NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND, SO HERE’S SOME CLASSIC NEARBY KONA FOOTAGE INSTEAD:


7. Fruit Bowl—Garden Grove, California
Named after the nearby insane asylum, this pool “had the most influence, by far” on the progression of pool skating, says Lance Mountain. Situated near the round-wall epicenters of Dogtown, the Valley, Down South, and the Badlands, this is where all the badasses got together to put their moves where their mouths were.
NO YOUTUBE LINK, BUT HERE’S A LINK TO FOOTAGE:

8. San Juan—San Juan Capistrano, California
“I sucked the hose to drain it,” remembers Dave Duncan, who got tipped off in 1987 about an abandoned mansion. For days, the dropping waterline slowly revealed the wide-open keyhole. Once dry, he says, “it was backyard annihilation,” as heads convened to grind the polished pebble coping.

DAVE DUNCAN AT THE SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO POOL, 1988. Photo from galleri.skateboard.dk.

9. C Bowl—Cambridge, Massachusetts
According to Kevin Day, the earliest sessions at this fully operational public swimming pool went down in 1975. Shaped like a giant letter C, the deep end features nine-foot trannies to a kink to three feet of vert. Add cracks, seeps, and an eroding surface, and you’ve got a pit where the ride is about survival. Status: still going, except between the Fourth of July and Labor Day, when it’s full of water. How many spots can you think of that have been skated for 34 years?
SOME YOUNG KIDS GETTING THEIRS:


10. Nude Bowl—Desert Hot Springs, California
In the mid 80s, Jeremiah Risk’s parents hinted at a pool where nudists basked poolside in the 70s. It took Risk a week to locate the desert virgin, and he rode it for a year before breaking the silence. Despite biting winds and scorching heat, the scene ruled: dirt-road approach, bathhouse ruins, blazing guns, all-night acid drops, Lucky Lager, and generator-powered mullet metal. Then one fateful night, teenage ragers squared off against monster-truck jocks, some kid got shanked in the heart, and the cops buried the place.
NUDE BOWL RUMORS AND PARTIES:

SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

New York, NY – On May 1 Altamont Apparel Ltd. presented the opening reception for famed street photographer and Altamont brand contributor, Boogie’s latest exhibition entitled, “The Best of Times.” A diverse crowd of over 400 artists, art aficionados, skaters, models, drug dealers, musicians, hang-arounds and a veritable who’s who of the OG downtown New York hardcore scene came out to view a mix of over 700 of the Serbian-born, Brooklyn-dwelling photographer’s new and older work presented in a ‘zine style format throughout the Altamont showroom basement gallery. A live performance by the legendary L.E.S. hardcore band, Murphy’s Law hurled the typical SoHo art show theme out the window and whipped the eclectic crowd into a smiling, moshing frenzy as over 1200 cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon were crushed in what event attendee, Dante Ross called, “the best shit to hit New York in a while.” The Best of Times, indeed!


The Scottish version of England’s War of the Roses contest wrapped up last weekend—two parks over a weekend in Dumbarton and Aberdeen. Plenty of Benson, Mike Wright, Nicky Howells, Chris Jones, Tom Harrison, etc, and some absolute carnage from Stu Graham. Stu, you big c-nt, come back to San Diego.

SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

Last weekend 6 Twenty One Skateshop in Livermore California held an amazing event they called ‘Best of the Bay Skate Tour’ They put on a bus to take kids to some of the best skateparks in the Bay Area (Santa Cruz, Potrero in San Francisco, Granite and Epic in Sacramento). They also invited a bunch of local pros and ams to come hang with the kids. Big thanks to Dave at 6 Twenty One for hosting such an awesome event!

KIA X Games Asia 2009

Skateboard Street

The day's competition finished off with some of the world's top professional skateboarders hitting the street course in the Skate Street final. American Austen Seaholm took home the gold after a flawless first run that set the pace for the entire field. Scoring a solid 88.00 in his first run, Seaholm put the pressure on Brazil's Fabrizio Santos and Carlos de Andrade who each also scored well on their first run.

While Santos and deAndrade had next to perfect second runs, they still could not top the first run score of Seaholm. Santos just edged out deAndrade after landing a more technical trick over the gap, a Caballerial 360. Santos won the silver with a best run score of 83.67 and de Andrade earned the bronze with a score of 82.67.

"I never try to plan out my full run and I knew it was going to be good after I landed my first four tricks clean," said Seaholm. "This is my first time in Shanghai and I could not be more excited to win an X Games gold medal here."

SKBSG SK8 NEWS UPDATES

If you're neck deep in the message boards , it might not be a surprise to you. But, if you check the Plan B website , you'll notice the absence of one of Plan B's first recruits, Brian Wenning. He's had a lot of presence on the Internet describing changes at DC and explaining what he's got in his basement , but it appears that the Internet's saying he has split with Plan B is official. According to Jason Maxwell, Plan B's TM, "Plan B has parted ways with Brian Wenning. We wish him the best of luck in the future. I can't really talk about it. They left on good terms; they just decided to part ways." Hopefully things will work out for him in the future and he'll come back with a part that's anything like his Habitat part in Photosynthesis. That part was crushing.

Amazing Sk8 products.