The Secret of the Venice Skate Park

Don't shit where you eat.

It's Only Natural

10" x 33" for 2012.

Still Going Blind

A friend posted this in a forum and I had to roll with it. Mark had some really good shapes in his days at Blind. The company was known for its logo ripoffs and parody graphics from the start and even the brand name Blind was a jab at Mark's former sponsor Vision. When this particular series came out with the mock up of the Powell graphics (which included parodies of VCJ's up until then time tested iconoclastic images that were somewhat sacred to many skaters), it was a real turd in the punch bowl moment. Nothing was safe anymore, war was declared, and humor was the weapon.


Today Blind is still sticking to the tried and true, cleverly reinventing graphics from the past and marketing them to the youth of today as something new, though we know that there is nothing new under the sun.


The Vision Hippie Stick, inspiration for litigation.

Post Script.
The true irony is that I received a gift copy of The Disposable Skateboard Bible by Sean Cliver in the mail this afternoon as I was typing the words you have read above. Thank you Adam. The Skates Gods have spoken.

Elephant Brand Skateboards: Board #1

Jeff's Best of 2011

1. Pocket Pistols.
Their decision to produce a 36" Duane Peters board with an 18" wheelbase was a wise one. "It's like a big skateboard." No shit.


2.The return of Assault Skateboards.
From Punk Points to popsicle sticks, with deck models from up and coming pros and functional unique shapes from well seasoned veteran pro skaters including Matt Hensley, Ricky Winsor, and Mark Heintzman. In 2011, Assault has gone from Ned shaping boards in the garage to a full production company with quality decks handcrafted in SoCal U.S.A. featuring hand screened graphics. The Assault store has expanded to carry hats, hoodies, hardware, and more. I'm looking forward to the shovel nose in 2012!


3. The PUSH to End Alzheimer's.
This charitable event raised over $2000 in 2011 as over 20 skaters and member's of local roller derby squads showed up to skate in the rain.



4. Collaborative Efforts.
Legion Skateboards teamed up with Red Curbs and produced "Red Curb Wax", while also introducing Frankie Hill's Bulldog Bolts and Bill Danforth signature mounting hardware as well.


5. The Milton Mile.
Organized by Marc's Board Shop, this one mile push race was held just before the fall parade, allowing skaters to show case their racing talents before a captive audience of gawking spectators. A fun event that will hopefully become a tradition.

Camper Van Beethoven - Take the Skinheads Bowling

Gou Miyagi

Big Mac Attack

Osaka Daggers in London city

Dustin Dollin's 7 Day Weekend (Lee Ralph)

Injury For Life

Parking block session this afternoon, first time back on board in 21 days since the hand sprain/fracture incident. Nothing like some backside board slides to remind you of how much fun skateboarding is. Eastbilt 8.75" x 32" "Knox" shape with custom stencil graphic by Tom Sloan, Independent 169 trucks with Grind King king pins, OJ Wheels 58mm 87a Key Frames, and Powell-Peralta Thin Ribs. Live to Skate, Skate to Live.

Cab Mechanical Dragon

Prize I received from Powell-Peralta and their "How I Found Animal Chin" essay contest.

Lance, Neil, and O - Ban This

Jeff Grosso's Loveletters to Skateboarding - Season 2 Episode 2 - Jeff Phillips

Tie dye socks, the skull and crossbones helmet, and a bag of tricks on vert and roundwall that could not be touch. R.I.P. Jeff Phillips, gone, never forgotten.

John Lucero - Label Kills

McRad - Words of Life

The Tubes - White Punks On Dope

Scary Perry Skateboards

1979 Single Kick Tapered Tail, 10" x 32", reminiscent of the original Vision Mark Gonzales shape!

Black Friday Deals at Assault Skateboards!

ASSAULT BLACK FRIDAY....STARTS TODAY AND ENDS 11/26/11
Sale items include, 1031, Lost Highway, and Assault Decks, Land Shark wheels, Independent and Ace trucks. SAVE 18% to 35% on select items.

Beat the crowds, avoid the insanity, shop at home, and support skater owned and operated skateboard companies while saving a pocket full of cash on these great deals!

Slappy Thanksgiving

One from the archives, Thanksgiving Day 2008.

Marc's Board Shop

Marc fights the power with a soulful bro turn.

Jeff imitates Marc as life imitates art.

I had to dig deep in the archives for these 2 pics from 2008.

Ride The Snake

Dan Drehobl Rides the Snake from dlxsf on Vimeo.

The Bro Bowl: 30 years of Tampa Concrete

Jeff Grosso's Loveletters to Skateboarding

How I Found Animal Chin

Powell-Peralta recently held a contest in which they gave away a Caballero Mechanical Dragon deck. For reasons unbeknown to me they chose my essay as the winner. I'm sure the other entrants were just as deserving as me as the spirit of Animal Chin dwells in the soul of all skaters. I am humbled to say the least.

I owe Emily and Chin my life. Emily is my wife, partner, best friend, and provider of support that keeps me on 4 wheels while the spirit of Chin keeps me rolling still to this day. Up until my 34th birthday I wasn't spending much time if any on board. I was using my body for a storage tank and loading it up daily with beer and junk food. Fatty Liver Disease had set in. I was moderately obese. Then in the spring of 2006 Emily bought me a Powell Skull and Sword reissue with Indy Trucks and 60mm 85a Rat Bones. I started skating again, desperate to find my driving spirit, Wonton Animal Chin. And I stopped drinking beer and I rediscovered the benefits of lifegiving water. It is a wonderful drink that flushes your vital organs. I started drinking it in quantity. I attempted to modify my diet (Good Luck with that one). That summer we made the trip to Oregon and I saw first hand just how alive skateboarding is. I met Cab and his daughter in the parking lot of Newberg skatepark on the 3rd day of the Oregon Trifecta. Steven Reeves was there too. I returned from the West with a renewed vigor to keep searching for Chin.

Now here we are 5 years later and my liver enzymes are normal which means the Fatty Liver Disease is a thing of the past. I'm also happy to say that I tip the scales with 40 less pounds on my body. Yes, 40 pounds. I'm not "sick" all the time.

I skate every chance I get these days despite working more than full time as a caregiver for my wife as she was stricken with a neuro-muscular disease at the age of 32. My wife and son will often accompany me on my excursions searching for Chin. I am grateful to have my son Elijah on board and skating by my side, keeping an eye out for the elusive style-master Chin. Some dads take their sons hunting, some throw a ball. We SKATEBOARD, therefore We LIVE.

In the last year I found Chin. He dwells in the skatepark I ride, in the curbs I slappy, and in the smooth and steep banks I wallride. More importantly he dwells in my soul, always driving me to keep pushing, to keep looking at the world around me through the eyes of a 14 year-old skater even if my body is close to 40, and he keeps me motivated to get out there and roll even under the most adverse of conditions.

This is my testimonial. Skateboarding saved my life. More importantly my wife saved my life with skateboarding. And Chin, I discovered, has been here with me all the while, my spirit guide on 4 wheels.

The Board Meeting

The Pit

A look back to the mid 1980s. Local punk show pics, that's me in the Bones shirt.

Getting picked up off of the floor, the good old days of the circle pit.

Pray For Me- Jason Jessee

Is There A Doctor In The House?

A Day at the Park with Tom and Jeff

Untitled from Thomas Sloan on Vimeo.

Skateboarding is about friends and fun. It's not about landing every trick "bolts" and looking like a bunch of clones. That's why we've been doing this for over 25 years now. Fun. The smile on Tom's face at the end is a testimony to that fact.

Capture

Back Smith or Monty Nolder? Screen capture of coping slap from the Lords of F.O.G. Town (Fat Old Guys).

Grayscale

Built To Grind

1977

New Duane Peters graphic on 9.5" by 36" with 18" wheelbase, available at Jokers Skate Shop.

PUSH To End Alzheimer's 2011

Marc and Melissa of Marc's Board Shop, one of the handful of sponsors of Tom Sloan's PUSH To End Alzheimer's 2011.

Group photo of Team PUSH participants.

We got held down, or back anyway, by the man.

A rare break-away moment.

Ben does the safety dance in his safety pants.

This year's PUSH To End Alzheimer's was a huge success in terms of fundraising and participation. Our group managed to raise nearly $2,000 this year and the turnout saw nearly 20 skaters and a handful of roller derby girls in attendance for the event on a rain soaked Saturday morning.
Our effort to PUSH at least 6 miles was quashed by the local authorities however, as they refused to let us skate the streets of Charleston unless we stayed directly behind a slow moving patrol car. Despite the best efforts of the law to impede our progress, we still skated and had fun for a good cause. In retrospect, last year's event was fairly wide open compared to the clampdown we witnessed this year. Hopefully Tom and the team will be able to work out the logistics with the city for next year's event.
Thanks to Anthony Donta, David Tolley (for helping me to meet my fund raising goal), Marc's Board Shop, and Dennis Blevins for the pictures you see posted here today. See you in the streets.

New Assault Decks Fall 2011

Bat boy 8.0" x 32.125" WB 14.125" NOSE 7" TAIL 6.75"
Frankendome 8.25" x 32.375" WB 14.5" NOSE 7" TAIL 6.625"
Shonn Oquendo 8.5" x 32.5" WB 15" TAIL 6.5"

Mark Gonzales In NYC

Beez

Seqential Slabs

Killing Joke - "Eighties"

Friday's A Grind

56mm 90a Powell Oval Dragon

Soft enough for the rough streets but perfect for the park too!
Available from Marc's Board Shop!

SkatePaige 8.88"

Paige Hearn's nod to John "Tex" Gibson, the "Side-G".

Grip side up.

Curbs, park, banks, street.

John Lucero

Goin' Off with Natas, Jesse, Julian, and Jason

Goin' Off with Jaya Bonderov

Useless Wooden Toys

Saturday On The Slab

Hackett Needs Help

Click HERE for more info.

Built To Assault

Assault Skateboards and Built to Shred's Jeff King may be teaming up for a November deck release via Ned "JEFF KING MODEL OUT NOVEMBER 8.0 x 32.125" so stay tuned for details.

Sunday Skate

Go Go Godzilla

Thanks Dennis Blevins for this "photo finish".

More Milton Mile - Other People's Pixels

The starting line of the Milton Mile as photographed by L. Pauley.

I started removing my gloves as I neared the finish line. JayTee passed me by like the breeze. I was done.

Tom Sloan skated so fast that it prompted David Tolley to remark "I never saw the front side of Tom until he was passing me on the way back." Tom finished second overall.

Ben Jah Mon nearing the finish line.

The man who makes it happen, Marc of Marc's Board Shop, sponsor of the Milton Mile. Marc is the embodiment of STOKE when he is on board, always smiling. I remember someone asking me "Is that Marc?" When I confirmed that it was indeed Marc, live and direct, they remarked "He looks younger every time I see him." Rad.

Photo credit Marc's Board Shop.

Killer KREEP Wax

"Special formula targeted at unpainted ledges, curbs, and sidewalks." The Assault Store is filling up, go check it out! All new products including Jason Adams Lost Highway decks, 1031 products, Assault Skateboards, LANDSHARK Wheels, Independent Trucks, and Ace Trucks!