Spotlight on..

August 7, 2012, 1:52 pm

≫ Next: Henry!

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Shredder's Lair is a skateboard, apparel, and hardware goods company coming out of Lancaster, California. I caught up with CEO and co-founder Steve Hansen recently to get the low down on the company and what they're all about. Check it out..

How did Shredder's Lair come about?

From the love of pure shredding of anything you can possibly skate on and wanting to create a product to represent our love for the ART OF SHREDDING. We were unsatisfied with the lack of a pure 100% raw for skateboarders by skateboarders company with all American made products for the highest quality at shredder friendly prices.

How did you come up with the name?

Shredder's Lair found us. We had the spot where shredder's came together before and after sessions escaping the societies "norm". Here we are able to focus and dedicate ourselves to the art and life style of shredding!

Who's on the team?

Shredder's Lair has a very diverse and unique team. The "SL ARMY" consists of Jesse Hotchkiss, Anthony Perkins, Joe Warr, Kevin Scott, and Mike "Chomp" Eckmann. Each one of the Shredders Army riders bring a different flavor of smooth, fast, and technical skateboarding for a diverse and extremely radical group!

You guys are working on a full length video, right?

We are currently in the works for THE ART OF SHREDDING shredders lair first full length DVD.



One more question, what does Shredder's Lair offer that's different from what other companies are doing?

Shredder's Lair uses American made products. Our boards are pressed in Ontario, CA using the highest quality Canadian Hard Rock Maple veneers. Along with our high quality product we have a great team and staff that all bleed skateboarding and want to deliver the best product possible to ensure the shredding never stops!

For more info. check out www.shredderslair.com.

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Henry!

August 13, 2012, 7:46 pm

≫ Next: Freestyle is dead..

≪ Previous: Spotlight on..

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Freestyle is dead..

August 19, 2012, 10:27 pm

≫ Next: Karma and AP

≪ Previous: Henry!

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Still not sure how a whole genre of a sport can just disappear, but there you go. Always seemed pretty amazing to me but had a certain air of eliteness that made it seem somewhat unnaproachable. And those boards, sheesh. I don't know how anyone was able to do anything on them. Have you ever tried riding one?

Rodney Mullen's transformation to street is nothing short of amazing. I heard him refer to it in an interview once saying that he had to get used to rolling when doing his tricks..

(by the way, in case you didn't know, the guy in the inset above is who you're referencing when you say you landed "Primo")

Can't forget about this dude....



Correction: the kind folks over at Vert is Dead pointed out that in the 'Toonage post I did recently I wrongly attributed the "Everything Sucks" ad to Lance Mountain, when it was actually Sean Cliver who did the artwork. Sorry about that.

Karma and AP

August 28, 2012, 10:34 pm

≫ Next: Something in the water?

≪ Previous: Freestyle is dead..

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This one's been staring me in the face for some time now. Couple atv's and the impetus for Consolidated Skateboards, Karma Tsocheff and Alan Petersen.

I might have had some beers tonight so I'll skip the rhetoric.

And not to take a trip to negative town, but F this dude,

and F these dudes.

Even in 2012, with skateparks everywhere, we're still getting harassed.

Something in the water?

September 12, 2012, 2:08 pm

≫ Next: R.I.P. Tom Sims

≪ Previous: Karma and AP

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Recently I have found myself staring at a few pics in skate mags and thinking "how is that even possible?". After trying to find explanations through the use of fish eye lenses or new board technology, I am at a loss. Maybe skaters are just capable of more than we had previously thought?


This was one of the first ones that caught my eye... couldn't believe it when I learned it was a kickflip. Austyn Gillette

Then this guy added to the madness. Chris Pfanner

Even the old dudes are getting in on the action. Dill

Hard to find just one Brandon Westgate flick to focus on but this sequence caught my attention for not only the ollie up but the lengthy gap at the end. Every time I look at it I can't help but think "who would try to skate this?".

This is just disturbing. Aldrin Garcia

These guys just might be aliens.. Gilbert Crockett, Donovan Piscopo. 

Although this is a great photos, the video of Anthony Schultz's fence ollie really captures how gnarly this is. 

I think I've stared at this flick one more than the others...maybe too many times. You can kind of see a bump but in the background but it doesn't appear to be too big. I wonder if it's something you have to see in person. Collin Provost. 

I saw that Boil the Ocean had a similar post recently where they referred to "Power Skating" so I know I'm not the only one who noticed.  

It will be interesting to see where this goes.

More soon...

R.I.P. Tom Sims

September 28, 2012, 12:17 pm

≫ Next: Top 5 "Comeback" tricks

≪ Previous: Something in the water?

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Small blip on the ever-growing skateboard radar but we lost a soldier/pioneer in the world of skateboarding recently-Tom Sims.

Anyone who was around when skateboarding was huge back in the 80's and even prior most likely remembers Sims skateboards. 

His contributions to skateboarding and snowboarding are huge, so as a way to commemorate his passing here is a quick look back at some of the skaters on the team and ads that stood out to me. 

Consider it a minor gesture to a major figure..

Geez...look at that lineup!

Buck Smith had a ton of coverage and probably deserves his own post.. 

As an aside, Ride Channel had a great two part feature on Kona Skatepark with an appearance of the above mentioned. If you have a second, check it out on YouTube. Even if you're not familiar with Kona or Buck Smith, it's a great way to learn about some skate history and the oldest still functioning skatepark in the U.S. 

As another aside...new life goal; go to Kona Skate Park, meet and skate with Buck Smith. 

Currently of Birdhouse fame, Kevin Staab and Eric Nash with dual indy's. 

Actually knew someone who had this deck. Definitely gimmicky...

Never really paid much attention to this ad until now. Pretty original. Henry Gutierrez. 

It would be a cardinal sin to leave out Jeff Phillips from this post...I honestly don't feel qualified to even talk about his contributions to skateboarding, so I'll refer you to CBI for an overview..  

Finally, might have heard of a few companies that this guy started, oh you know, etnies, és, emerica to name a few.. but before then he was a freestyle skater and pro for Sims. Pierre André Senizergues 

Not really sure what happened to their skateboard branch, but I definitely remember these everslicks in the early 90's. Saw Frank Hirata riding one at the Powell warehouse back in the day...

That's about all I got for now. 

Next post; More Toonage? 

Top 5 "Comeback" tricks

October 17, 2012, 9:37 pm

≫ Next: Article 17

≪ Previous: R.I.P. Tom Sims

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1. no comply (43)..Kalis' call to put it to rest partway through a line is a solid indicator of how commonplace it is nowadays. Gotta love the no comply/tailslide to switch crooks combo. Never did get why it was also known as a 43 though..

2. boneless..They were big in the 80's then died out with the street explosion, and now that it's ok to skate tranny again they're everywhere. Some people never stopped doing them. Shout out to Peter Hewitt.. and Brian Anderson for the handrail innovation.

3. five o to fakie..this one's older than dirt. Why it suddenly made a reappearance is anyone's guess. Stalled out or with a long grind, always looks good..

4. late shove it. Ronnie's 360 late shove it over the trashcan in his Berrics' Battle Commander part is mind blowing, and Pfanner (again popping up on here) has a mean backside one.. and with that hair I sometimes think I'm having a Sheffey flashback.

5. impossible. Hard to explain how huge this was when street guys started doing them in the early 90's. Borrowed from freestyle, but adapted well to rails (Mariano), with Ed Templeton leading the way. No wonder it's popping back up. As you all know, Dylan Reider's taken it one step beyond...but I feel I need to mention that Armando Barajas never got the credit he deserved for his nollie back foot ones (at around 7:15)...or his nollie lazer flip wizardry..hell for anything!  

honorable mention; five o to switch crooks..

I pray to whatever skate gods there may or may not be that we don't see the resurrection of the pressure flip.. 

Article 17

October 28, 2012, 12:14 pm

≫ Next: #Prettysweet Predictions....

≪ Previous: Top 5 "Comeback" tricks

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This post started off with an idea to put up the 101 ad with Gabriel...then realized that it's hard to mention him without also mentioning Guy, Rudy, and Paulo.

Love these videos by Jacob43, aka Jake Rosenberg. Especially considering that they were filmed in my old stomping grounds in Santa Barbara. Frankie Hill cameo..

This one's a little old but nevertheless an amazing display of raw talent by Rudy Johnson..



..more Wrench Pilot 'toons coming next. Promise!

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#Prettysweet Predictions....

November 10, 2012, 11:21 am

≫ Next: More "Toonage"

≪ Previous: Article 17

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In the eager anticipation of the Pretty Sweet video that comes out next week I've been racking my brain trying to imagine who will have a part and what tricks are going to go down. After weeks of torturous brain racking I went the other direction and came up with a few highly unlikely (but hopefully amusing) hypothetical situations that may come from the most anticipated skate video of 2012...

Guy Mariano's part is so good that in early screenings viewers' faces were literally melting off...the video is recalled and he is asked to tone it down a notch.

Devine Calloway's picture perfect smile is noticed by higher up corporate execs at Colgate and he becomes the first pro skater to get a toothpaste sponsor.

Garvey steals the show in Chris Roberts' part and ends up getting on the team, Chris gets the boot.

After exhausting every scarf/hair color combo imaginable, Mike Carroll reverts (pun intended) back to the 80's flop over haircut and hot pink combo which catches on like wildfire... old dudes root through their closet and in an effort to jump on the bandwagon and secretly breathe a sigh of relief..

Due to being constantly hunched over while holding a camera, Ty Evans becomes crippled during the filming of Pretty Sweet..children who see him on the streets are terrified of his terrible posture and crooked, arthritic hand..


Anthony Pappalardo's reclusive habits become so entrenched in his skating that his entire part is filmed at night...in the dark..

Daniel Castillo's no comply and manual attack is so vicious that Matt Hensley is forced to hang up the accordion and come out of retirement.

Marc Johnson writes a book of such philosophical and psychological magnitude that he wins a Nobel Prize ...unfortunately he's the only one who completely understands it. As a result he goes broke and resorts to dancing on street corners for money..

Brandon Biebel is recruited to play for the NBA but fails the random drug tests... he goes on to be Weezy's "hype man".

Cory Kennedy cuts his hair and is shocked to learn what tricks he's actually been doing. The pressure of having to one up himself becomes too much to handle and after several months of unsuccessful therapy he resorts to being a full time beach bum..

Kenny Anderson's part is filmed entirely with organic parchment paper film. Unfortunately it's so brittle that it falls apart during editing.. Kenny resorts to filming one long nose manual for his part instead.

They're all jokes people...albeit not very good ones. Feel free to add yours to the comments below.

Seriously though, I have no idea what to expect from this video but I'm sure it's going to blow minds.

Can't wait.

More "Toonage"

December 2, 2012, 6:23 pm

≫ Next: Pier 7 revisited..

≪ Previous: #Prettysweet Predictions....

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Better late then never.. had this one partially done then some technical difficulties put a spanner in the works....

..hopefullly the inclusion of some Robert Williams art and covers should make up for it.

This guy is bonkers.



 The blog got 15,000 hits as of today. Thanks to everyone who has clicked on here and/or commented. This is just something I do for myself but it's good to know that other people are looking at it and hopefully enjoying it as well.

-O.D.G.

Pier 7 revisited..

December 15, 2012, 10:39 am

≫ Next: Article 13

≪ Previous: More "Toonage"

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While perusing the FTC site recently, I came across some great Pier 7 videos added by Brad Johnson on Vimeo.  Although there seems to be a Tsunami of great stuff going down in skateboarding right now, these videos are too good not to mention. Lots of legends in here...Lavar McBride, John Igei, Enrique Lorenzo, Josh Kalis, Drake Jones, Brandon Biebel, among many less well known but equally talented dudes. Check it out.. (may have a short load time, give it a second).









RIP..

Article 13

December 23, 2012, 10:42 pm

≫ Next: Anthony Pappalardo Interview (from 48 blocks)

≪ Previous: Pier 7 revisited..

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Fast and loose style with a nice frontside 360...Danny Sargent.

Oh how I miss the New Deal bright yellow ads..what a great company.

Hope you have a great Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, or whatever holiday you may celebrate. Glad the world didn't end..

See you in the new year..

Anthony Pappalardo Interview (from 48 blocks)

December 28, 2012, 10:30 am

≫ Next: Article 11

≪ Previous: Article 13

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Too good not to re-post. A look into the darker side of the skate industry;

http://site.48blocks.com/anthony-pappalardo

Thank you to 48 blocks for getting the answers out to many peoples' questions. If I could support Pops through a skate product purchase I would be on it like white on rice. However from the sound of the interview I'm pretty adamant that I'll boycott Converse for life. Sorry Kenny..

Article 11

January 10, 2013, 7:37 pm

≫ Next: Article 10

≪ Previous: Anthony Pappalardo Interview (from 48 blocks)

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Just a little Brian Lotti before the weekend..

I have to admit that I never really "got" Planet Earth back in the day, but was always a fan of Lotti. The transition to Blind seemed a little odd but that rabbit board was ultimate.

Like many others, I had high hopes for Telegraph, but glad to see he found a home over on Stacks

Have a good one..

Article 10

January 21, 2013, 7:28 pm

≫ Next: Free Videos

≪ Previous: Article 11

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Got to admit, I know next to nothing about this cat except that he was affiliated with the Bones Brigade back in the day. Regardless this ad is pretty bad ass.

..and I knew that this Hawk board looked familiar..


Good interview by Christian Hosoi here...

On a side note, after skating for more than 20 years, this is the first Flip Skateboard I've ever ridden. So far, so good..this P2 thing might have something to it..

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Free Videos

February 17, 2013, 6:45 pm

≫ Next: Big Time..

≪ Previous: Article 10

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I've been working on a new post for the last week (think: big) but am missing one magazine that will make it complete...so until I find it here are some free vids. Pretty weak, I know but maybe you'll see a trick or two that you missed before. And sorry, no Bake and Destroy..
















Also, I guess I have to moderate comments now? Some anonymous hater was blowing up the Pops' interview post. Kind of crappy because I value everyone's feedback and keeping the discussion on skating going, but when every other word is the f bomb it gets old pretty quick..

Big Time..

February 25, 2013, 7:07 pm

≫ Next: O.G. Blind Squad..

≪ Previous: Free Videos

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Some older and more recent Mega Ramp flicks. I still have a hard time getting my head around this thing. 

And trying anything switch?? 

Bomb drop from hell..it just occurred to me, I wonder if this was somehow influenced by big wave surfing?

Gotta' respect the street dudes like Heath and Lizard for having a go at it...kind of curious to see if Pat Duffy does a round 2 in the new Plan B video.

Peace..

O.G. Blind Squad..

March 7, 2013, 12:06 pm

≫ Next: Century Club..

≪ Previous: Big Time..

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First time I'd ever heard of the term "stigmata". You can learn a lot from skateboarding.. 

Blind-era Jason Lee kickflip with a TG cameo..

Gotta' love the 90's.. no name of the skater, company or what the trick is.

Seems like skateboarding has been just trying to catch up to Guy forever.. handrail nosegrind in..'91?

 I have no idea if this is a Blind ad or not but it was too funny to leave out..

Classic Rudy Johnson..Love the Marc Johnson tribute board too..   

Random Jordan Richter shot..check out those bolts!! 

Century Club..

April 1, 2013, 3:16 pm

≫ Next: H Street Goodies..

≪ Previous: O.G. Blind Squad..

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Post number #100.. glad I've made it this far. Rather than scanning and uploading a bunch of old stuff, I had to make a trip to the skate shop and figured I'd just post some photos that I took along the way. I'll do another post with more new/old stuff soon.  Enjoy and thanks for visiting.. 

Found this spot along the way.. it's doable, right? 

First stop. almost copped these based on principle alone. 

Ummm...no.. Really, Gullwing? 

Yess.....

Sorry but I just can't behind the whole slipper/prom shoe look that's popular right now. These Globe Shoes sort of remind me of the D3's.. not quite as clunky but still plenty of heft to 'em. 

Kinda short, kinda random. I'll have some better stuff coming up soon. But, hey thanks for taking the time to check the site out. Feel free to explore some of the older posts if you haven't done so already (you got 99 other ones to choose from) . (Thoughtful) comments, suggestions, and feedback are appreciated! -O.D.G. 

H Street Goodies..

April 17, 2013, 10:13 pm

≫ Next: Skate Shoe Evolution #1..Etnies

≪ Previous: Century Club..

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One of my favorite skate photos/ads ever.. Damian Carbajal shot by Daniel Harold Sturt. Anyone know where he disappeared to? Had some great footage in not the new H Street video, and then...?

Team photo 1991. R.I.P. Mike Ternasky

Mike Carroll's first pro board..  

Koston wasn't pictured in the team photo but came across this one while looking for other H Street pics. Speaking of Koston...how about that Game of Skate? 

Ron Allen front board rockin' those Limpies.. So hyped this guy still skates. 50 years old and going strong. 

These last two are not really the best representation of H Street's legacy, but what the hell.. 

I'll be starting the first of 10 posts on the evolution of the skate shoe next week. It won't be exactly chronological but will start from oldest to newest. I was going to say "Cheers", but then I thought of the tv show, which was set in Boston... damn.. 

See you next week.