Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Friday, January 13, 2017
NOS Ray Underhill Mini Model
So, why did so many of these decks suddenly become dead stock in 1991? Other companies seemingly had no problem selling their minimally marked boards, but these Powell decks are still out there in the original shrink wrap just waiting to be ridden. The explanation, in my opinion, was the rise of Rocco and World Industries. Many of the young riders from Powell followed Mike Vallely and left the fold of George and Stacey and headed toward Rocco and Rodney (who also rode for Powell most of his early career). Guy Mariano, Rudy Johnson, and Gabriel Rodriquez all followed suit. The mighty had fallen. Vision, Santa Cruz, Sims, and Powell were all fighting for relevancy in a post vert skateboarding based economy. And a lot of boards being produced by the big companies at this time would be passed over for boards coming from World Industries and other smaller and lesser known companies which multiplied like rabbits. 26 years later and here we are which leads to the question of why?
Why did you order one of these decks? Nostalgia? Price? Shape? Size? The answer is all of the above but special emphasis on size. After riding 32-34" boards for so long I have had a yearning to ride a wider (9.5") and shorter (30-31.5") board again. Why? Fun. No other answer I can think of. I love skateboarding. Probably way too much.
Sunday, November 27, 2016
eBay Find
Jeff's Best of 2016
Not to rush things or anything, but parts of this year have sucked really bad. But there has been skateboarding, and that is always good. This year we switched from wax to Salba sauce, had some nice father and son slappy sessions, and recently enjoyed some Thanksgiving skating at the Matt Hughes Skatepark. And, as always, I am keeping a watchful eye on products of interest to our readers. Most recently it is this Assault Skateboards X SCRAM Nolan Johnson collab deck that has me salivating. A rare scallop cut 1980s inspired shape 10 x 30 deck to shred, complete with an incredible looking halo fade. Ned has outdone it with this one. Produced by Watson Laminates, made in USA.
In the meantime, we are shredding curbs, marveling at how short the days are on the East Coast once we "Fall back" to daylight savings time, and looking forward to those 40 degree days in the coming winter months when the weather is just warm enough to let us get out and skate again. Positive forward vibes for a better 2017 folks. Until then, stay shred. - Jeff and the family at Jeff's Skateboard Page
Thursday, August 25, 2016
30 Year Retrospective: That First Board
My first attempts to approach and hang with the pioneers of skateboarding in my hometown were less than successful. These guys were all one to two years older than me and hung in a tight clique. I cornered one of them in front of Fas-Chek one day. "Hey man, I'm gettin' a Gator," I announced in my hickish Appalachian drawl. He was less than impressed. He was the one dude in town who already rode a Gator, and here I was chomping at his heels. By the time we became friends a few months later, he was riding a Caballero.
Another time, I approached all of them in the lunch room at school, yipping away about something I am sure I knew nothing about in an attempt to join the ranks of the radical elite. Chuck was sitting facing away from me, and according to the other guys, was trying to fart on me. Not sure if this was an attempt to run me off or some kind of hazing ritual, but I was going to be a skater.
It was late in the Summer of 1986 when I met the leader of the local tribe. He had been laid up due to a compound fracture and was still in a cast when we first started hanging out, but that didn't stop him from pushing his Powell Skull and Sword from his house to mine four blocks away. Now, here was this guy, military pants cut off into shorts, a highly yet demonically decorated cast on one leg, a Vans hi-top at the end of the other, and griptape cut out into letters that read "EAT ONE." After that cast came off, the jump ramp and wallride era was wide open, and dude was there man, just killing it. Then came senior year, they all joined the football team, geared up for college, re-pledged their allegiance to beer and women, and kind of left skateboarding behind.
But to this day, all of these dudes are skaters still, full circle is the path of life. Being a few years behind them in school gave me the advantage of staying on board a few more years before college ultimately lead me astray in the mid 1990s. By then skateboarding had changed a lot. My favorite era will always be 1988-1991, a time of just radical change, but I love it all. It's in my blood.
Saturday, August 13, 2016
30 Year Retrospective
Summer, 1986. My parents reluctantly allowed me to order a skateboard from California Cheap Skates. I procured a popular board for the time, the hot selling Vision Mark "Gator" Rogowski model. The board was a pristine white dip with the signature geometric Gator graphic in a brilliant pink to purple fade. To complete this trainwreck, I chose pink Gullwing trucks, pink Vision Shredder wheels, and all pink plastics, yes, rails, nose guard, and tail plate. I. Just. Didn't. Know. Of all of the boards I would pore over in the magazine ads, the Zorlac decks, the Santa Cruz boards, and just about every Powell-Peralta deck, all emblazoned with horned demons, slashing skating monsters, and skulls, skulls on everything, I chose a hot pink geometric pattern, oddly, one of skateboarding's most popular graphics at the time.
The day my new board arrived I hit the streets with a friend who had a board with another snoozer of a graphic, the Sure-Grip International Eric Grisham pro model. We threw some duct tape on the sides of our shoes, not because they had holes in them, but because we saw that all of the other skaters in town had duct tape on their shoes (because their shoes had holes in them from actually skateboarding), and headed to the plaza where all of the local heavies could be found most days. It would be our first of many, many skates to the plaza to session over the next few years. We had arrived, desperate to be cool.
But how cool? Even in skateboarding, which at the time was a non-elitist anti-sport if you will, there was a weird jock like pecking order composed of the older, more experienced (i.e. "better") riders at the top and the new jack posers (us, at the time) on the bottom. But it wasn't long before we were accepted into the fold. Despite our soft bellies, twangy dialect, and very new unscathed skateboards (very not cool), we became part of the crew and were soon sweeping drainage ditches and building jump ramps with the other guys.
But how cool? Even in skateboarding, which at the time was a non-elitist anti-sport if you will, there was a weird jock like pecking order composed of the older, more experienced (i.e. "better") riders at the top and the new jack posers (us, at the time) on the bottom. But it wasn't long before we were accepted into the fold. Despite our soft bellies, twangy dialect, and very new unscathed skateboards (very not cool), we became part of the crew and were soon sweeping drainage ditches and building jump ramps with the other guys.
With our new found street cred, we were desperate for female attention. We needed some skate Betties in our lives so we could be cool like the no bullshit Godoy brothers. Look at them up there. Sleeveless tees, leopard print, posing with a skateboard but not even wearing skate sneakers. These guys were punk rock, unconventional. And they probably had girls, Betties, I bet they had all of the Betties! So we did what we had to do to get the phone numbers of some girls, ones that of course didn't go to our school and lived ten minutes from town, which back then might as well have been China because we didn't drive. Our chances were slim to none when it came to actually meeting these girls, with the above factors combining with the fact that we were nobodies (at least we thought we were nobodies) we had no game. So we did what any other low-on-the-totum-pole fourteen year old kids would do. We told them we were Jeff Grosso and John Lucero. And it worked. For about a week.
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
The Return of Simple Shoes
They're BACK! Well, they've been back since October of 2014 but I can be a little slow on the draw. Simple appeared on the scene in early 1992, and their casual and stylish skate sneakers were an instant classic with skaters and non-skaters alike.
The gummy red rubber playground ball soles, sturdy construction, low profile silhouettes, unparalleled comfort, and even the occasional toe-caps (think Salman Agah) were MADE for skateboarding, but the stylish sneakers and 4 eye chukka boots (the Barney, their first shoe) were wildly popular with kids in the grilled cheese line as well as those looking to embrace the "I love the outdoors" denim and flannel look of the Pacific Northwest in the early 1990s. I personally remember rocking the navy blue OS Sneakers both on board and to shows back in the day!
Started by Eric Meyer in 1991, the brand held strong in skateboarding through the early and mid to late 1990s. The roster of professional skateboarders appearing in their sneakers and in the advertisements included Mark Gonzales, Frank Hirata, Mike Crabtree, Julian Stranger, and more. The return of the brand features a full line of sneakers as well as casual and dress inspired shoes.
We have a pair of the 4 eye chukka boots (the Barney) on the way and are excited skate in Simple Shoes again! Stay tuned.
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