Skate:Or:Not .:. Since Two-Thousand Four

I’ve been spending a lot more time customizing the site off late. The new “header” will rotate time to time with actual photos that I took. The one featured now was of Alex Olson at the Seattle Beauty and the Beast pit stop. Olson’s level of intesity while skating was beyond that of anyone else involved in the demo. He’d look around from time to time, but for the most part he skated REAL fast, concentrating only on what was ahead of him. In the above rare shot, he was looking off to the side, maybe admiring the Northwest at that moment, or thinking of the night before on Orcas Island at what had transpired. Nevertheless, Alex Olson was a lot of fun to take photos of that day.

So, BAM loves the band HIM. We get it. But why go so far as to do a commercial with them and the Finnish bottled water company called Plup? To answer this, you need to know a little about Plup:

“Plup Oy Ab Ltd is an independent Finnish company which donates a vast amount of its profit for environmental issues. In Finland PLUP Ltd donates 10 euro cents from each PLUP bottle sold, directly to the Baltic Sea Action Group. These donated funds are used in full for cleaning up the Baltic Sea.”

Ok, so he’s an environmentally conscious individual. But, it’s a bit strange to me that they’ve made him out to be this angelic figure in the commercial with a skateboard slung over his back. Good vs. Evil metaphor, but is BAM so “good?” =)

Creature’s Stu Graham is Scottish.

Three BIG Skate Footwear brands are following the trendy bandwagon of boycotting ASR and hosting offisite “Open Houses” and other events to pull buyers away from one central location, thus making it harder for them to do their job efficiently. “We have a more intensified focus on reaching out and getting retailers to come to us,” said Sole Technology’s Senior VP of Marketing Don Brown (see page 4 of the July Transworld Business Magazine).

From the Gravis rep, “Arto Saari brings this weird portable finish sauna thing with him to skate spots. He stretches out in it and warms up before he skates.” Dylan Rieder, who’s gone from NikeSB to Vans to now Gravis, apparently skates in these shoes:

Note: It’s really hard to find Dylan Rieder on the new Gravis skate site. Why is this?

I think I’m going to see if Patrick O’Dell wants to do an interview.

I’m fascinated with Re-Issued decks. Why not? They’re readily available for you to buy without fighting it out with several people (sometimes several hundred people) on Ebay and Craigslist. You’re probably older now, and you have some part of your house that you can hang some old boards on. Am I right? Why hang a board on your wall that has no personal sentimental value to you that you purchased on Ebay? Sure it’s an original, but it’s been skated by someone other than you! Just buy it NEW and start that collection fresh. It will still have sentimental value if you skated in the era that you bought the board from, right?

Below are some Re-Issued Powell decks that are no doubt classics. From the Ray Barbee to the Caballero to the Bones Ripper. Get ‘em while they’re hot.

Maybe you’re a filmer? Maybe you’re a T-Dog who likes bowls? Better yet, maybe you just like soft wheels and make no apologies about it? If you’re any of these, then the Almost Modern Softie is for you. These wheels are street legal at 54mm, so they’re not super big and cumbersome. They also come in a 78a durometer so they’re truly soft. I got hooked up with a pair of these from Dwindle Distribution and I’m thoroughly stoked on them. The Northwest is notoriously known for super rough, gnarly streets and sidewalks so to have a second board with soft wheels like these is a must. You can get a pair by clicking on the image below.

The past few seasons, Fallen Footwear has put out a shoe so similar to the Chukka Low that you’d be crazy not to see the similarities. Big toe box, vulcanized sole, no logo splat on the side all contribute to the Forte’s almost blatant copy of Vans Chukka Low. The one subtle difference? Vans has five eyelets and Fallen’s Jamie Thomas Forte only has four.

I have to say though that I like the simplicity of Fallen’s Forte. Of their whole Spring 2009 offering, I believe the Forte is the model that sets the brand apart from it’s past. Below is a picture I snapped of the yellow Forte from Fallen’s Spring 2009 line at a recent private viewing. Do I like it - YES. Is it a Vans - NO. Who cares. It’s a great looking shoe at an awesome price. Retails just for a few dollars under $54 (The Chukka Low Price).

I recently looked at Podium Distribution’s Spring 2009 line. For those who know, Podium represents Matix Clothing, DVS Shoes and Apparel, and Lakai Shoes and Apparel. After looking at the line, which I was super stoked on as always, I was given a stack of DVS’ new promo DVD for their Original Intent shoe line. Original Intent is their “higher end” shoe line if you will, made exclusively for non-mall shops. Anyway…

Not sure why there hasn’t been much discussion about this video - but - I do know that Torey Pudwill is my new favorite skateboarder. I mean, are you kidding me? This kid’s been the poster child for Matix Clothing and DVS for a minute now and we’ve seen him in few flicks like Skate More and Shorty’s How to Go Pro. However, baby boy Pudwill is all grown up now and dare I say, his skateboarding closely resembles that of Mike Mo. Click on the image below to be taken to his part in Dudes Dudes Dudes.