"Full Deck: A Short History of Skate Art" - Cool Art Exhibit

BEDFORD GALLERY'S new exhibit "Full Deck: A Short History of Skate Art," featuring more than 400 skateboards and other pieces about skateboard culture.


Exhibit

What: "Full Deck: A Short History
of Skate Art"

When: July 5-Sept. 13

Where: Bedford Gallery, Lesher Center for the Arts, Civic Drive at
Locust Street, Walnut Creek

Hours: Noon-5 p.m. Tuesday-
Sunday; 6-8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday

Cost: $5 general, $3 ages 13-17, free for ages 12 and younger; free admission every first Tuesday

Doodah’s limited-edition Supermodel Skateboard Project presents super hot skates with naked models!

Doodah’s limited-edition Supermodel Skateboard Project presents super hot skates with naked models!

The outcome is a series of four skateboard decks

Lara Stone, Toni Garrn, Isabeli Fontana, and Edita Vilkeviciute pose for sexy pics which cover the boards. The models are wearing mostly just astonishing heels.

These shoots were made by Claudia Knoepfel and Stefan Indlekofer.

Erin Wasson in Balmain board will be ready in mid-August and teh number of pieces will be limited to 150 only.

Fans of Isabeli can buy a board with her splendid body now, it has been on sale.

So, Toni, Lara, and Edita boards are left.

The boards go for 99 Swiss Francs, which is about $92

Sheckler, Lasek take skateboarding titles Saturday at the Dew Tour's Skate Open

Three-time Dew Cup champion Ryan Sheckler won the skate park finals and Bucky Lasek won the skate vert finals on Saturday at the Dew Tour's Skate Open.

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Sheckler and Lasek were also crowned the first ISF Skateboarding World Champions of their respective disciplines.

Sheckler, of San Clemente, Calif., put up a score of 91.03 and beat out first-time Dew Tour competitor Ryan Decenzo (89.5).

Sheckler's first-place finish included back-to-back frontside lips, boardslides and 5-0's.

"It's crazy that I'm the World Champion," Sheckler said. "These guys out here are absolutely amazing and it could have been anyone's day. Today was my day, and I'm excited to see what happens on the rest of the Dew Tour stops."

Decenzo, of Canada, went through four rounds of international qualifiers in his professional debut and came out with a second-place finish, pulling tricks like a nollie heel to flat and a switch 180 to Smith down the rail. Philadelphia-native Chris Cole wowed the crowd with a front blunt to fakie down the rail and a 360 lip down the rail to round out the podium with a score of 87.93.

"What a great way to start the Dew Tour here in Boston," Cole said. "Being from Philly, it's always great to skate on the East Coast."

Lasek, of Baltimore, Md., took home the world title at the skateboard vert finals, with a run that included a heelflip stalefish and a nollie heel stale, earning him a score of 92.50.

Lasek's last first-place podium finish on the Dew Tour was at the first stop of the 2008 season.

"The first Dew Tour stop this season kind of crept up on me but I had a lot of fun out there," Lasek said. "I usually ride on a bowl so I wasn't used to wall-to-wall, but it was great and feels good to be the world champion."

Canada's Pierre-Luc Gagnon pulled out a 720 and a fakie 540 to earn his second-place finish with a score of 90.75. A hometown crowd cheered on Boston-native Andy Macdonald's runs, which included a backside 540 and a gay twist to earn him the third-place spot.

Afghan kids find skateboards the wheel deal

Oliver Percovich, a lanky Australian in a black T-shirt, emerged from the van with a load of banged-up skateboards. The children grabbed the boards and raced off to skate in the cracked bowl of the dried-up fountain.

Skateboarding was unknown to Afghans until Percovich, who followed his social scientist girlfriend to Kabul, starting teaching local children to skate in early 2007. Two years later, their relationship is over and his girlfriend is back in Australia. But Percovich's "Skateistan" nonprofit club has become a magnet for children in Kabul, the capital.

Los Angeles Times article here

Clearwater beach skateboard ban unfair to responsible skaters

If there is one thing that is incompatible with pedestrian use of sidewalks, it is concurrent use of those sidewalks by inconsiderate or overly aggressive skateboarders who don't care about the dangers they present to walkers. After 11 merchants on Clearwater Beach's Mandalay Avenue complained that skateboarders were creating hazards for pedestrians, the city had a rather measured response: It put up signs banning skateboard use on limited sections of sidewalks where skateboarding had become a problem. The question is, was an outright ban the city's only alternative?

While casting the net to catch unsafe skateboarders, the city has caught two groups that created no problem: responsible skateboarders who are careful about their behavior around pedestrians, and a subset of skateboarders called "longboarders" who use their special boards designed for long-distance transport to travel from beach parking lots to their jobs in beach hotels and restaurants. Mandalay Avenue has no bike lanes, so the sidewalks are the only place for longboarders to travel safely.

After the city quietly posted the signs a week ago, angry longboarders and regular skateboarders started signing petitions against the ban.

Skateboarding is not the first athletic pursuit to get the attention of city enforcers. In recent months, city officials have disagreed over the appropriateness of a city ordinance that bans the tossing of balls or Frisbees in city parks and on Clearwater Beach. City Council member George Cretekos was so offended by the ordinance after finding it in the city code book that he hounded his council colleagues until they agreed recently to consider changing it.

Cretekos argued that the city, out of concern that some careless folks might be too aggressive and hurt someone by tossing a ball or throwing a Frisbee, had banned activities that were normal and usually harmless. He said what should be banned was dangerous behavior.

The same could hold true for skateboarding. Rather than banning all skateboarding on Mandalay sidewalks, the city could ban behavior that is dangerous to pedestrians.

In fact, the city already has such an ordinance banning dangerous skateboarding. City ordinance 28.11 (2) reads, "It is unlawful for operators or riders of skateboards, roller skates or in-line skates to fail to yield the right-of-way to any other pedestrians or to otherwise endanger or interfere with pedestrian traffic on any street or sidewalk within the city."

That ordinance seems to provide sufficient direction for a police officer to make a judgment about whether a skateboarder is endangering pedestrians. However, the city instead chose to use a different section of the same ordinance, 28.11 (1), which provides for a ban and states that it is illegal to ride a skateboard "on any public or private property where prohibited by conspicuously located signs having lettering at least two inches high and containing as a minimum the words 'No Skating,' 'No Skateboarding,' or a substantially similar message." Hence, City Manager Bill Horne had the signs erected along Mandalay.

The city also has banned skateboarding on the Beach Walk promenade, a $30 million city amenity that was designed to provide for a variety of pedestrian uses such as walking, jogging, bicycling and in-line skating. There, the reason for the ban is that skateboarders are damaging the Beach Walk sundial plaza and low bench walls by performing stunts on their boards. Skateboarders also have done substantial damage to sand walls at Pier 60 Park. That damage to public property runs up the cost of maintaining the facilities — something the city government can little afford these days.

Athletic skateboarders who want to practice their sport without the limitations of dealing with pedestrians and city rules have an alternative. The city's Ross Norton Recreation Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue south of downtown has an expansive skateboard park overlooking Lake Belleview. There, skateboarders can jump and grind all they want, and they won't risk getting an $88 ticket for a city ordinance violation.

San Fran Skate-a-Thon

March 29, Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California. 8a.m. to 11a.m. for a good cause.

Torrance, CA Skatepark - Closed

The Torrance Skateboard Park, which was closed last weekend, will remain shut down indefinitely.

City officials made the decision regarding the Wilson Park facility Tuesday, said senior recreation supervisor Carl Kaemerle.

"It's made out of wood and with the recent rains that we had, it took a beating," he said.

The decision isn't particularly surprising.

The 21,000-square-foot facility, built eight years ago by a now-defunct nonprofit group, has been deteriorating for years despite continuous efforts to repair and maintain it.

It's made out of wood and Skatelite, a wood and plastic composite more yielding than concrete, but designed for indoor rather than outdoor use.

Last year the skate park's large wooden bowl was closed because the wooden frame was rotting.

In 2008, there were 11,650 visitors to the skateboard park, which was open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Kaemerle said he's interested in hearing from users and residents, with the idea of forming a committee to discuss what should be

done.

He can be reached by calling 310-781-7590 or e-mailing ckaemerle@torrnet.com.

Anti-Hero Catalog

If you haven’t already spent some serious monitor time clicking through it, head over to DLX and check out the newly posted Anti-Hero catalog. Great stuff with killer content. And watch for new catalogs from Real, Krooked, Thunder and Spitfire to roll out this week.

Gatorade Builds Team, SIgns Chaz Ortiz

Looks like Gatorade is going to give Red Bull, Monster and Mountain Dew a run for their money. Gatorade announced today the addition of Chaz Ortiz to their action sports team. Rumor has it that Chaz has signed a multi year contract with a six figure salary, not bad for a 14 year old kid. Looks like Chaz won’t need to hit up his parents for allowance anymore.

With plans to sponsor skate events in 09 and add more riders to their team, it looks like we’ll be seeing a lot more from Gatorade in the future.

1,546 Kickflips in a Row?

If you think you have kickflips on lock, think again! Fourteen year old Zach Krai recently set a new kickflip world record. I wonder if Zach took a lunch break in between kickflips.

Quicksilver Puts Forbes High Ollie Event on Pause

Since Quiksilver pulled out of ASR they were not allowed to host their previously touted Reese Forbes High Ollie event to be run by the SPoT crew. Bummer. Click here for the details

Fight For a Good Cause

What a better way to fight for a charitable cause that to host a big celebrity fight, right?

Apparently, the Sheckler Foundation supports violence on the UFC level with its upcoming Down For Life event in Anahiem, CA next month. Who’s ready for blood, delirium, and swollen eyes without the satisfaction of actually skateboarding? We aren’t.

New Roster in 09 - Sheckler, Beasley and Allen

In news that has surprised by many including himself, Ryan Sheckler has been released from his commitments to represent Volcom. After several months on the flowgram, Theotis Beasley has been officially welcomed to the fully sponsored Nike SB roster. Andrew Allen has stepped up to the pro ranks on Anti- Hero, but not without a series of good old fashioned pep talks with his elder teammate Frank Gerwer.

Listen and look at the situation via the team’s new 2009 spring online catalog right here, right now.

Epic Indoor Skatepark Scheduled to Open 2-09

The small Sierra foothills town of Rocklin is soon to become the epicenter for Northern California’s premiere plaza style indoor skate park, which is set to open in late February. The Epic Indoor Skatepark, currently under construction by Team Pain measures in at over 36,000 square feet under one roof.

The press release that dropped on our desktops cites that the park will include features for all abilities with an above ground pool, a 65 foot long mini-ramp and a plaza type street area with handrails, concrete ledges, grass gaps, and skateable concrete art. This skate venue could be good for those wet winter days, but when the sun is shining will the die-hards roll up and pay to play? Only time will tell.

Louis Vuitton Skateboard

If you thought $3,000 dollars was way too much for a bag or purse, guess how much Louis Vuitton is asking for their limited edition skateboard? How about 8 G’s! We think it’s time for Louis Vuitton to concentrate on handbags and leave skateboarding alone.

Emerica's Braydon Szafranski Talks Shoes

Visit the Emerica site to watch a video with Braydon Szafranski talking about his new shoe. And not to spoil things but “they are like thick enough to jump down stairs…but at the same time they ain’t D3s”. Instant kick flips and holding down for the LV as well. View it all, including some skate footage, here.

Flip Team - Big Plans for 2009

The Flip team rocked 2008 with a summer jam packed with filming and traveling with the Zumiez Couch Tour, and closed up the calendar year with its Feast Southwest Tour. The crew’s highly anticipated video Extremely Sorry, is still in the works so sit tight it will be out sooner than you think. While you’re waiting for its release be sure to check out this TWSkateboarding exclusive clip featuring the skills of Flip’s young guns Luan De Oliveira, Curren Caples, David Gonzalez, and Louie Lopez.

Bob Kronbauer’s Mumble Mag - Mumble Blog

Bob Kronbauer’s Mumble Mag has evolved into Club Mumble, an online blog full of art, skateboarding, and street culture from the best in the business. Natas Kaupas, Thomas Campbell, Mike O’Meally, Sean Cliver and SkateDaily’s own Bryce Kanights are just a few out of the 100 contributors. If you’re into the art/skate scene you need to bookmark this site immediately.

Battle at The Berrics - Ladd and Bledsoe Face Off

The battles continue over at The Berrics with this week’s installment between PJ Ladd and Tyler Bledsoe. It was a heated game of skate that lasted over half an hour! Don’t miss this one, roll on over and check it out.