chris farmer
#14 $3.95US $5.95CAN V4N2 june / july
www.believeinone.com V4N2
/ ONE rollerblading magazine
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contents
/ V4N2 June
MRXIV view
8. Letter: Editor
chrisJEVQIV F] NYWXMR IMWMRKIV TLSXSKVETL] F] NSLR LE]RIW
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/ July 2009
/ 32) VSPPIVFPEHMRK QEKE^MRI
WTSX light
10. Scene: montreal 12. take 5: sean kelso 14. alt: chris cheshire 16. gear: summer 2009 19. sound check: p.o.s. 20. blade dvd 22. tidbits 24. am hour: Mark Wojda 26. interviewed: Chris Farmer 40. spotlight: Ross Kuhn 46. contest: bitter cold showdown 2009 54. picks 64. 15 minutes: dave paine 68. folio: dan busta 74. wellness
rossOYLR F] FIR QEKE^MRIV TLSXSKVETL] F] FVERHSR WQMXL
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COVER: Chris Farmer • soul to soul to BACK COVER: P.O.S. {photo by driver}
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HEZI TEMRI / F] QMOI STEPIO
fakie {photo by haynes}
TMGOW /
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4YFPMWLIH MR (EMP] &VIEH ERH &S\ QEKE^MRI [LMPI WXMPP MR LMKL WGLSSP (ER QSZIH SYX XS 'EPMJSVRME XS KS XS TLSXS WGLSSP MR 8LIR GEQI 7ER (MIKS [LIVI (ER [SVOIH JYPP XMQI EX (EMP] &VIEH JSV QSVI XLER WIZIR ]IEVW 2IEVP] E HIGEHI SJ WOEXI TLSXSW TYX (ER MRXS XLI LMWXSV] FSSOW SJ PIKIRHEV] FPEHI TLSXSKVETLIVW 7EHP] EPP KSSH XLMRKW QYWX GSQI XS ER IRH ERH XLI HE]W SJ FIKKMRK WIGYVMX] KYEVHW JSV NYWX SRI QSVI XV] EVI SZIV FYX XLI PSZI RIZIV HMIW =SY GER ´RH (ER IZIV] ]IEV SR XLI ERRYEP 'SPSVEHS 6SEH 8VMT VMTTMRK XLI FS[PW [MXL XSTWSYPW ERH FEGOWMHIW JSV HE]W -R XLI QIERXMQI LMW IRIVKMIW LEZI FIIR XVERWJIVVIH MRXS E RI[ WX]PI SJ TLSXSKVETL] [LMGL MW WYVIP] KSMRK XS GSRWXERXP] TVSKVIWW ERH IZSPZI EW LMW WOEXI TLSXSW HMH ,MW XMQI MW RS[ WTIRX MR JEWLMSR IHMXSVMEP ERH E L]FVMH ´RI EVX EHZIVXMWMRK WX]PI SJ GSRGITXYEP MQEKIV]
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letter
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“That blast from the past got stuck up yo’ ass.” Man, I have had it up to here (signaling way overhead) with people, especially older dudes around my age, who constantly flap their lips about how good things used to be. How much cooler something was back in ’95-’96. How blading was more fun back then; how everything that came out or happened in skating rocked their worlds and renewed their interest and passion in the sport. Well no shit, dudes, we were all teenagers, there was hardly any Internet, and skating was HALF as old. Of course it seemed more exciting, not because it WAS any more exciting, but because we were younger and more enthusiastic. You couldn’t find blading online, so every issue of Daily Bread or Box or Fourinarow could show you something new. So to all of you spouting off how much better things were back in the day, I say you’ve been caught up in nostalgia. Nos•tal•gia. Noun. A sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically a period or place with happy personal association. “A period or place with happy personal association.” That’s my point right there. Of course I skated more frequently and for longer periods when I was 16 years old or even 20 years old… life didn’t have the overlapping web of responsibilities it creates as you grow into adulthood. When I’m sitting at my desk at work grinding over 300-plus-page graphic novels, with like four simultaneous deadlines looming plus ONE deadlines, well, it’s easy to look back on long afternoons of blading with the old-school homies, watching the sun set as we shredded the old-timey spots. Thinking about how good those times were; that I wish I were doing that right then. That is nostalgia. Through these rose-colored glasses of hindsight I can’t remember all the personal drama or stress that was undoubtedly brewing somewhere during that memory, but it’s gone now. Replaced with just a pleasant memory of good times had blading. That’s part of nostalgia too, forgetting the less than pleasant details. The imperfections or problems of those things we view with reverence. Because let’s be really honest, besides the money, what ISN’T better about today’s rollerblading? Skating is better, the diversity of styles is better, the overall image of our pros is better… so how can a misty flip or a three-foot-long wheelbarrow grind trump what our sport has become? It can’t, except in the mind of the glory day bladers, the type of guys Bruce Springsteen sung about in that classic rock radio staple “Glory Days” — “just sitting back trying to recapture a little of the glory of, well time slips away…” The funny thing is that by all accounts I too should be one of these top offenders. But I’m not. And it recently occurred to me why — because when you’ve been as entrenched in something as long as I’ve been dug
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into rollerblading, you become jaded. You see all the promises broken, the meaningless hype, the “next big things” come and go. And there have been so many. And if that turnover doesn’t drive you away like it has so many (think about where all those “back in the day” favorite skaters of yours are now), then you sort of suck it up, and maybe lose a little bit of that youthful enthusiasm. After long enough, you realize that those golden memories of past days are not as perfectly shiny as you might like to think they are. But this big mind-fuck is about more than trying to explain that the past wasn’t as purely amazing as some of us would like to remember. It’s really about thinking about how totally incredible everything going on in blading today is. First of all, rollerblading is 100 times rawer today than back in the day based solely on motivation. In the ’90s, being a great skater meant money and possible security; in 2009 it means traveling on a budget and living low key. With so much shit to put up with by rollerblading, anyone who decides to rollerblade has done more than simply buy a pair of skates and decide to roll. They’ve made a choice to do something different from everyone else. They’ve decided that dealing with confusion and a little bit of harassment from the public is worth it to do something they enjoy. These people are the present and the future (and really the glue holding our entire culture’s history together). So really I come to this. A statement: Don’t be the douche bag trying to tell other skaters about how much better you thought shit was back in the day. Not on the message boards. Not at the sessions. Not when you’re watching an old video. Because that’s nostalgia talking, and it ain’t the most accurate thing in the world. Instead, help skaters realize that what’s going on right now is the coolest and most original skating has ever been. That the companies now are 100 percent more dedicated than the brands you have on your old crusty T-shirts. That the future for blading is more wide open now than ever before… because it is. According to a ’95-’99 perspective, the future was ’00-’05, and we all saw how that worked out for skating. It didn’t. In the meantime, we’ve flown around the sun, been down to the bottom of the well, and had the good fortune to reclaim our own fertile grounds and work to build our own foundations. If you’re still blading now, skating is yours. Do something positive about it.
Justin Eisinger Editorial Director San Diego April 17, 2009
scene
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(Left to Right): Guillaume Latrompette, Jason Segelski and Thomas Camus / Photo by Guillaume Latrompette
montreal Beautiful, diverse and multicultural, Montreal has a great mix of different nationalities — you can meet someone completely different on every corner, while constantly experiencing part of another culture. Montreal is fully bilingual — it was first explored by the French in the early 1500s and then was colonized by the French in the subsequent centuries. Therefore you have that initial French aesthetic, architecture, language and religion. It also has really unique duplexes and triplexes with curly wrought-iron staircases leading to the front doors on the second levels. I think it's an architectural design unique to Montreal. It has a huge, cosmopolitan fashion/arts/cafe scene, with a seemingly eccentric population that is more Latin in spirit than the rest of Canada. This is a city that embraces the arts more than anywhere else I've been. It’s also a lot cheaper to live in Montreal than in the rest of the country, making it extremely appealing to artists and other creative individuals like videographers, Web designers, photographers and, of course, rollerbladers (almost as appealing as the amazing girls here!). The citizens enjoy a vibrant lifestyle and nightlife with their great festivals like the International Jazz Fest, Montreal in Lights, Fantasia, FrancoFolies and Just For Laughs, most of which take place during the summer.
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Montreal is far from a rookie on the world rollerblading scene. We have produced two X Games winners (Jon Bergeron and Nicky Adams), the infamous Olympic Stadium hosted an amazing IMYTA, and the city has been a part of the Roll Series. Montreal is already packed with perfect street spots, and it now boasts two of the biggest and best indoor parks in Canada. 2009 marks a new era for the Montreal blade scene: the rebirth of Taz, a brand-new indoor park, which will be open by the time this goes to print. It will be the biggest rollerblading park in Canada, with two floors of indoor as well as an outdoor park. With D-Structure Montreal no longer around, a new shop, Lylac, has taken its place. As well, after a year off, the MTL Classic competition is back; how much better can it get? Want to try something new and mind-blowing this summer? Come visit Les Québécois and experience the MTL lifestyle; you won’t want to go home! — Guillaume Latrompette
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take5
sean kelso Most-used comments in “The Voice” 1. Dom! 2. You’re tight 3. Dope keed 4. That was eel 5. Stick et Queen Feldmeen, swag es tight! Skate videos that have most impacted my life 1. “VG3” and “VG4” — the transition between each is what gave me my first taste of never-ending progression 2. “Coup de Tat” 3. “Brain Fear Gone” 4. “Fully Flared” 5. “Truth 2” Top five directors 1. Wes Anderson 2. Spike Jonze 3. Tim Burton 4. Alfred Hitchcock 5. Sam Mendez What’s new with “Truth 2” 1. Epic Jon Jon Bolino section 2. Billy O’Neill comeback 3. HD! 4. My brother skating more than just curbs 5. Two-year production Why switch to Deshi Carbons? 1. Control 2. Lightest skate ever 3. Closest feeling to natural movement on blades 4. Same size and comfort as my sneakers 5. For some weird reason, they provide amplified confidence
>
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photography by drew amato
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alt
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NAME: Chris Cheshire AGE: 22 LOCATION: Philadelphia, PA OCCUPATIONAL STATUS: Audio/visual artist, tastemaker YEARS BLADING: 12 or 13‌ too many INTEREST: Making work SITE: kmcplus.com, haw-lin.com, google image search, tinyvices.com FOR THE RECORD: I have been doing this for as long as I can remember. When you are young, ideas come to you extremely fast and it's difficult to focus and process. You see what you want and you want what you see. For me, making art has always been a way to try to record this, slow it down to something that I can more easily understand and bring to the surface. Working this way is about stripping things down to the bare minimum, carefully selecting, and then re-contextualizing for a broader audience. A lot of the time I don't like doing it, often I fail miserably and give up an entire project, but when it all fits into place there is not a better feeling in the world. >
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photography by katie mccurdy
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gear
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summer
TRUST.MFG
'09
Catalyst Liner
retail: $79
The aftermarket liner game just got pwned by new entry Trust MFG. Forgoing complicated neoprene inner socks for dense, form-fitting duo foam construction, a variety of lacing options and a no-slip rubber sole, the Catalyst aims to provide unparalleled heel lock. Designed to fit all skates with minimum adjustment.
KIZER
Element Jeph Howard Frame
retail: $89
Perfectly suited for diesel-sized bladers in need of extra stiffness, torsional rigidity and strength, the Element is like a little tank for your blades. Jeph Howard’s frame comes with a flippable H-block that switches from a flat to antirocker setup. Although it’s a little heavier than other frame options, the trade-off is durability.
STREET ARTIST
Don Bambrick Wheel 58mm/88a
or
56mm/90a
retail: $25
Fresh off a profile in the previous issue of ONE, longtime shredder Don Bambrick picks up his first pro wheel, which is actually two different wheels released simultaneously with different graphics and cores that are reportedly new and especially sweet. In the past it seemed as if Don’s pro item chances were cursed, but apparently that’s not the case for STAR.
PSYKO CLOTHING
Aces Wild T-shirt
retail: $22
Add some New York City grit-chic to your collection with the screen-print stylings from Psyko Clothing. Printed on American Apparel fitted T-shirts with an eye to minimalist tendencies, this emerging brand is further evidence of the resurgence and diversity of blading coming out of NYC.
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CHIMERA Carlos Pianowski Wheel 58mm/90a retail: $28
Benny Harmanus and the Conference keep Chimera alive, and they recently introduced Carlos Pianowski to the team with this 58mm roller in the company’s recurring blue color way. Just wrapping up a trip to the West Coast, Carlos is blading in top form, and he's ready to smash his way back into the blade spotlight.
AGGRESSIVE MALL
Stand Up Fitted Hat
retail: $29.95
AMall adds a new lid to its already bursting hat rack with the Stand Up. Featuring a simplified AMall 3-D “Stand Up” logo on the front, “Dedicated” stitching on the side, another 3-D logo on the back, wool blend construction and Melton wool underneath the bill. Available in aqua/white and fitted sizes 7 – 7 3/4.
THEM GOODS
Alex Broskow Pro Bearing
retail: $18
Your ONE Skater of the Year just earned himself another honor, the latest pro bearing from Them Goods. Or maybe really the first, since TG’s last pro offering was shared between Bailey and Haffey. Wow, does that mean that it takes two of the world’s best bladers to equal one Broski? Wrap your mind around that!
SCRIBE
Blake O’Brien Wheel 59mm/90a
retail: $28.99
Still based in Minnesota, Scribe is sort of a reminder that the state has had a strong scene forever. Once upon a time Scribe had a wicked little youngster blader on the roster named Blake O’Brien, who just so happened to grow up into a wicked grown man blader. This is his and the resurrected company’s first pro wheel.
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sounds just released /
classic
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Crystal Antlers
Doom
Tentacles
Born Like This
Living Thing
2009 Touch and Go Records
2009 Lex Records
2009 V2/Sony Music Entertainment
favorite track: “Time Erased”
favorite track: "Rap Ambush"
favorite track: “Nothing to Worry About”
It’s tough to be noisy these days. Modern music’s obsession with folk rock and electronic pop music has toned down the listeners’ ears and made it hard for audiences to stand more than 30 seconds of any album louder than the boldest Bright Eyes record. It’s pathetic, and I’m a victim/offender. That’s why it took me several listens to Crystal Antlers’ debut album, “Tentacles,” to digest how solid they are. Believe me, it was a battle: high-pitched screeching vocals, guitar riffs off in their own world, and pumped up organstyle keys reminiscent of The Doors — I hate The Doors. This band has everything that normally turns me off. One thing Crystal Antlers do have, though, is a constant blare of sound, and on “Tentacles,” mixing goes a long way. Audibly picture a blend of vocals drowned by guitars and drums, and keyboards that are rarely if never solo, all panned in a lo-fi garage feel, but still at a level begging for earplugs. What you have is a vicious wall of sound so aggressive it makes a live My Bloody Valentine show seem like a walk in the park. Coming straight off a fairly successful EP, Antlers also seem to grasp the concept of album structure, as “Tentacles” all the way through isn’t nearly as painfully arranged as it is loud. Although “Tentacles” is scheduled as independent label Touch and Go’s last official release, be sure this isn’t the last you hear of this Long Beach act. – Kostka
Anyone who traditionally follows MF Doom (now DOOM as he demands, or former partner-turned-foe MF Grimm has influenced) knows what they're getting into come release day: A relentless onslaught of bizarre verses over superbly vicious yet buried beats. It’s never really been a question of whether DOOM would deliver in the booth, but whether production and album composition would hold up. Madlib and DOOM’s collaboration “Madvillainy” was a success when Madlib held down the boards, while the predominantly self-produced “MM..Food” was a little harder to stick with. On “Born Like This,” DOOM handles quite a bit of the production while still utilizing the modern-day accomplished like Jake One, Madlib and the late J Dilla. The result is surprisingly cohesive. Just when it’d be assumed “Born Like This” would flow like a mainstream rap album full of singles, DOOM and guests’ grimy verses laid over 17 tracks play like a cohesive rap album should: With little break and welcomed unpredictability. The guest list is also pretty impressive. Although boasting only two star appearances by Raekwon and Ghostface Killah (quite an accomplishment for relatively small Lex Records), “Born Like This” borrows from Posdnous of De La Soul, Slug of Atmosphere and Charles Bukowski of derelict literature fame (only a sample poetry reading of the misery and irony of being “born like this,” but kind of awesome). Yes, “Born Like This” plays easier to new audiences than preceding DOOM albums, but it doesn’t compromise the style he’s known for. For this alone, fans should be on board. – Kostka
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The Jesus Lizard
ONE rollerblading magazine /
V4N2
As pop music has shown us over the years, when your audience is still annoyed with you and holding one song off your last prominent album (2008’s "Seaside Rock" was entirely instrumental) to blame, creating a successful new record is almost a guaranteed failure. So this is where we find bouncy Swedish act Peter Bjorn and John after a painfully repeated track, “Young Folks” from their 2007 full-length “Writer’s Block” — a track that made everyone hate their girlfriend’s car stereo, horrible public whistlers, and Kanye West for a tacky sampling choice. It was everywhere, and, indeed, it was annoying. Thankfully on “Living Things,” PB&J were smart enough to approach their fifth release as a mindful sophomore effort. “Living Things” finds PB&J avoiding the two stereotypical follow-up stumbles of reinventing sound or recreating the same record by, actually, doing both: The album is equally as poppy and fresh as “Writer’s Block,” but with an almost convincing darker and more powerful voice. After the minimalist lead-off track, “The Feeling,” PB&J confidently kick off with “It Don’t Move Me,” employing dark echo-filled keys and sharp hand claps while Peter Moren sings of progressing to a darker state and disassociating the past. The chipper “Lay It Down” hides happiness behind a chanting, expletive chorus. And, for those who don’t want to be convinced, “I Want You!” still screams of instability with old love. OK. Maybe Peter Bjorn and John haven’t changed much since “Writer’s Block.” But they’re trying, and, for the most part, it works – Kostka
Grandaddy
Goat
Philadelphia Freeway
The Sophtware Slump
1991 Touch and Go Records
2003 Roc-A-Fella Records
2000 V2 Records
favorite track: “Money Trick”
favorite track: “You Don’t Know (In the Ghetto)”
favorite track: “He’s Simple, He’s Dumb, He’s the Pilot”
The Jesus Lizard is an intimidating band to dig into. Just when you think you can handle the powerhouse drums and bass accompanied by a wandering screech of guitar, vocalist David Yow pops up and robs you of any innocence you may not even know you still have. At some points whaling along, and at others sounding like a disturbing spill of psychotic mess, Yow sounds as if he’s gleefully in pain, praying for a chance to display his demise to the culprit. Nothing is different on “Goat,” the album some consider the pinnacle of The Jesus Lizard’s career and the example-setter for a majority of post-punk acts to follow. “Goat” maliciously catches you off guard. The opening track “Then Comes Dudley” spends the first minute and a half creating an instrumental build you’d find on a friendly Primus record, only for Yow to come out and spill his sadistic rage strong enough to embarrass future noise rock artists who try to replicate. “Monkey Trick” sits relatively low with a bass-led grunge rhythm until Duane Denison’s guitar blares three fourths of the way through the track and pisses off Yow vocally. If you’re looking for cohesiveness, you’re in the wrong place. “Goat” is filled with recordings that could care less for structure. It’s the manic-depressive chaos that makes The Jesus Lizard so interesting and uncomfortable to listen to, and, here, it rings true right down to the conclusion of “Rodeo In Joliet,” ending with Yow’s final belt of unstable disgust and fury. – Kostka
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Freeway
Peter Bjorn and John
Like many of today’s most colossal names in rap (Just Blaze, Kanye West and the Neptunes to name a few), Philadelphia’s best kept and most ferocious secret, Freeway, made his first mainstream debut on Jay-Z’s 2000 release, “The Dynasty: Roc La Familia.” It wasn’t until three years later, however, that RocA-Fella released “Philadelphia Freeway,” giving the rapper the opportunity to completely tear the roof off the expectations of newly signed Roc-A-Fella artists. From front to back of “Philadelphia,” Freeway stomps almost every bar, leaving choruses and various guest appearances as his only chance to breathe. On opening track “Free,” the rapper breaks loose with proper introduction, pulling from street knowledge to justify his name (unfortunately, under a Just Blaze-produced beat the producer would perfect for Fabolous a year later). Freeway bounces nicely with Kanye on “Turn Out the Lights (Freewest)” over a semi-overruling cowbell, and the album’s single, “What We Do,” survives an all too bland and typical Roc-A-Fella sample thanks to Freeway and some mediocre verses from Jay-Z and Memphis Bleek. The rest of the album plays in the same manner: Freeway killing, production slacking. Lay the fault at the feet of Just Blaze if you will — nearly the entire album was left to his production — but collaborators probably couldn’t predict the delivery Freeway was capable of. Still, “Philadelphia Freeway” serves as proof of a ruthless animal inside the rapper, and fans may have to wait for this year’s release, “Freedom of Speech,” to see all skills aligned. – Kostka
If the Cohen brothers had directed “Office Space,” believe it would have been interweaved with excerpts of now-defunct Grandaddy’s second full-length, “The Sophtware Slump.” The 11-track album is a beautiful exhale of lackluster and disappointment with the boring outcome of the much-hyped “Y2K” terror promised in 1999. It’s passive-aggressive, melancholy and completely over the mess as much as any listener was with the era, while being comforting with such an oddly focused time. “He’s Simple, He’s Dumb, He’s the Pilot” welcomes the man behind the curtain back to reality with an unstable ballad that shifts to a darkening deplete with realization of a disappointing conclusion. The whaling distorted guitar on “Broken Household Appliance National Forest” softly screams anger with pre-millennium, useless day-to-day tools being submerged in natural environments. Buried behind digital tone waves, “The Crystal Lake” calls out the modern camper feeling free and independent in a time when nothing can be far from the digitally safe world. “The Sophtware Slump” is a stunning mess composed of traditional instrumentation laced with digital beats and noises only malfunctioning late-’80s computers make. Yes, it may be a timely concept record — the era was forgotten two months into the millennium when, in all actuality, nothing changed. However, it challenges our reliance on technology as a whole, and generally confronts faith in mankind. “The Sophtware Slump” isn’t necessarily about a change in technology. It’s about being let down, and, ultimately, how to rebuild after the undoing damage is done. – Kostka
SOUND CHECK > p.o.s. /
an interview with stefan alexander
by justin eisinger / photography by wes driver
Stef, hey man, thanks for taking the time to talk to us. How’s Los Angeles? So far so good… we got delayed getting in, but it happens.
Zealand and Australia. I dunno… the crowds are responsive. I bring something new. So I’d say as good if not even better than here in the States.
Traveling does have its ups and downs. On that note, I know you’re out touring in support of the album and stuff, how do you deal with the demands of traveling and constantly performing your material? Oh man, I don’t know if that’s necessarily a demand… that’s part of why I got into this in the first place.
So I read that you’re a politically minded dude — hear it in the lyrics — you think Obama’s gonna lace it on this G-20 trip he’s on? I don’t think there’s any turning around for the U.S., man. I’m not trying to be pessimistic — I’m officially an optimist in my heart — but, considering the state of the financial markets and what it’s based on, the whole thing needs to be torn down and rebuilt. But not knowing more of the ins and outs I can’t really speak on it. You know what I’m saying?
Well, right, but, like, the repetition. Is it hard to stay cerebrally connected to your music when you’re performing it every day, or every week, or whatever? No, not really. It’s like, there’s some old songs I cut out of the set — they got old and I didn’t want to do them anymore ’cause I didn’t feel it — but for the most part this record is brand new to me, you know what I’m saying? Still discovering all the rhythms, working it out live. Before you finished “Never Better,” were you already performing the material? Yeah, maybe a third of the record I tried out on crowds. What’s the best show you ever performed; what’s the best performance you ever gave? Maybe SXSW this year… that might have been my favorite show I’ve ever played. What made it so fun for you? Like, SXSW is usually a lot of pressure — I played the day before, and everything, all the sound, was off. But we got a big ol’ Texassize crowd in there and had a good time. Right on. Outside of performing yourself, what’s the best show you’ve ever gotten to see? What sticks out in your mind? I saw At The Drive-In on Halloween at (inaudible) in Minneapolis, on their (inaudible) tour, and I flipped out. So high-energy; really intense. Yeah man, I caught them before… actually got in an argument post-show with Cedric over some stupid shit. Funny, I’d forgot about that! … Hey Stef, you know anything about rollerblading? Um, no man. Except that wasn’t it invented in Minnesota?
I do know what you’re saying, and you got some nice little points in there too. Like the lyrics you drop about being green. How important is living green to you? I think the line says, “All my friends think green but can’t afford to live it,” because a lot of that stuff that’s as important as we all know it is, is out of the average rapper’s price range. I do what I can, and it’s important to do what you can, but I don’t do it as hard as I know I should, or as anybody should, because it’s harder. The way that everything’s set up — it’s more expensive. I’ve got a little boy I’m trying to raise into that way of life, but he wants a new guitar, so that means I can’t necessarily buy all organic all the time. The money just won’t go around. But it’s getting more common, easier, and pretty soon they’ll tax us if we don’t do it. ’Cause that’s how it goes, they talk about how things need to be until it’s too late, then the government steps in and says these things need to change and creates some tax to force you into it. Ha, you’re right again; there’s a premium placed on it. Let’s talk for a second about the underground, and how things that are “underground” become mainstream. Especially nowadays, with the fact that people aren’t buying records like they used to, the old-school models don’t work anymore. You don’t always need mainstream to drive record sales, because no one’s buying the albums. You can promote yourself. Not anyone can just jump in, it takes time, but that old model is over. It’s not over dead, but it’s on the way out. People just want to download; it’s easier. You gotta come with some real merit and quality in the music. Stef, so true. But hey, I’m about to run out of space on my recorder, so we can wrap it up. All good man, take it easy. Thanks for listening.
Ha, yeah man, it was! Well you know, that’s what ONE magazine is all about — rollerblading. There’s a lot of good dudes up in your town, too. You might have seen them around sometime. Nah, sorry man. I wish I could say, yes… Haha, don’t sweat it. You done much touring outside of the U.S.? How do international crowds get down with P.O.S.? I've done some of Scandinavia, New
“Never Better” Rhymesayers 2009
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blade dvd It’s About Time
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/ directed by gabe holm
There’s a lot of different things that can ruin local videos. Uneven editing, crappy music, tricks from people who really shouldn't be in the video — these factors or a combination of them often ruin highly anticipated “area” videos. Thankfully, “It’s About Time,” the Boston (and Northeast) video from Gabe Holm, doesn’t have these problems, and it stands apart as a measuring bar for other amateur filmers to take notes on. The video features sections from New England names like Jeff Dalnas, Andy Leitermann and Andrew Smolak, not to mention a guest section from the West Coast’s Winston Wardwell. The editing is what makes this video stand out — not jankey and unprofessional, but at the same time not pretentious and unnecessary. It presents the viewer with a refreshing middle ground that keeps their attention, but doesn’t leave them visually nauseated. The quality of the skating was consistent throughout the movie, and the pace never slowed or left me wanting more. The music wasn’t bad (the “Cheers” remix song was a bit much), and overall the only complaint I have is that it seemed kind of long... I know they wanted to get all the footage in there, but I think the average skate video viewer’s attention would start to wane halfway through. Otherwise, I would suggest picking this up and keeping an eye out for more New England joints in the future. —Matt Lewis
featuring Andew Smolak Winston Wardwell Gabe Holm Jeff Dalnas John Willians
Jack Be Nimble
/ directed by andrew kazlauskas and john adams
Like a good documentary should, "Jack Be Nimble" shows rather than just tells. It's the most engaging portrayal of rollerblading I've seen so far, and that's crucial because this flick is meant for the general public rather than rollerbladers. Chicago native Andrew Kazlauskas, creator of skate videos such as "Smell the Onion" (2003), takes us on a tour of Roll Series street skating competitions in a cramped and marginally operational RV. (The tour gets a week-late start because the RV won't run; the brakes go out in the mountainous West; and so on.) The tour itself, much like in T Bone Films' classic "Hoax 2," provides a powerful narrative vehicle for the "this is rollerblading" storyline. Even if viewers think these guys are silly for sliding down hand rails on skates, odds are they will stick with "Jack Be Nimble" because they want to see what happens next. And that's more than the fleeting attention we can expect from passers-by on the streets. Critics are taking notice. The film, codirected by Chicago's John Adams, was named best documentary feature at the 2008 Illinois International Film Festival. Thanks to this flick's discerning creators and the articulate anecdotes of Josh Whitfield and Paul John, the "I love to skate" passion shines through, but in a way that shows rollerbladers have grown up quite a bit and realized that they occupy a place in the world at large. "Jack Be Nimble" isn't a feel-good feature. It's gritty and real. I'm sure you can relate. —Adam Morris
featuring Josh Whitfield Paul John Kruise Sapstein
ONEvideo
/ directed by connor o'brien
The ONEvideo premiered at the 2009 Bitter Cold Showdown. As soon as I saw the first shot in the video, I realized that these guys were not messing around. I don’t know why I was so shocked. ONE magazine is the most on-point skate magazine right now. Why wouldn’t the video stand up to the quality standard of the magazine? Maybe I was just not ready for the ultra-crisp shots of back-to-back hammers, or the eclectic mix of music, or the smooth editing, but I was really blown away. I’ve got to give it to the ONEvideo staff; the less-is-more technique when it comes to editing and graphics really worked for me. The skating is left to speak for itself when you keep it simple. Production value aside, the level of skating in this video is ridiculous. Iain McLeod 360s into everything, Demetrios George has unbelievable hops, and Mark Wojda (who?) has my vote for trick of the year with fakie true spin cross-rocket fishbrain. These are the guys with profile sections. On top of that there is a full Nor-Cal section that is worth the cost of the disc alone. How do they blade so clean in the Bay? Throw in road trip sections and a few montages and you have a rock solid video. Justin Eisinger, this magazine's editor, was hesitant about including a review of the ONEvideo, but I pressured him into it. ONE magazine really came through to release one hell of a project, and it deserves some recognition. It would be straight chest to rate the ONEvideo in ONE magazine, so I will leave that blank. I just suggest that everyone gets a copy before they run out. —Drew Bachrach
featuring Mark Wojda Demetrios George Iain Mcleod NorCal Alaska
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tidbits
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press play / W. review by Justin Eisinger / Directed by Oliver Stone
street talk / Brim: (noun, verb) Refers to something stupid or ridiculous, usually used as a response. Can be used to define an unwelcome action. Also, a gang called the Brims was one of the first five sets of Bloods established in California. Examples: “Homie, cool it with the brimming.” “Buncha brimmers at this party.” “Brims was runnin’ the bloc.”
spot-ed / 3rd & Army
San Francisco, CA
Love him or hate him, George W. Bush managed to change the world. Not necessarily for the better, but he got his hot little hands on it, let his managers shape it to their will, and that was that. He got left holding the bag. He’s got the red hands. His was the face most prominently seen as the harbinger of ideological and “political” rhetoric contrary to the beliefs of much of moderate America (and the world!), but as Oliver Stone displays in “W.”, perhaps his most damning characteristic was becoming a conduit for the snake oil salesmen of big industry. In that regard he was essentially perfect. What I most take from “W.” is the notion that Bush was aware of the concessions to common sense and religious influence but cared not to prevent it lest he not get what he most wanted: to be president. To show his father and brother and even mother, Barbara, that he was capable when they said he was not. When his track record in business and personal conduct showed that he should not. But with a gift of grit and slow-burning determination hard-boiled down to the base elements of Texas cowboy sensibilities, W. was able to bend his perception of reality to keep his horizons elevating and the rest, well, unseen. A big part of W.’s public perception was formed by the people he was most regularly surrounded with: his cabinet members, and they are all here. Rice is a standout in that she is miscast as a measly whining waif with little substance. She seems a lot sharper than that to me. Best cast are Rove and Cheney, in which Richard Dreyfus as Cheney manages to embody the spirit of a man many consider to be despicable. In one particular scene during a cabinet meeting Cheney takes the lead to outline his plans for the Middle East: Grab Iran and choke out the region by the throat to control the world’s oil supply. Is it accurate? Who knows. Is it believable and disturbing as a performance and statement on Bush’s apparent foreign policy and Cheney’s influence on the Oval Office? Again, I don’t know if it’s true, but it’s powerful stuff; equally so with countless scenes of Josh Brolin as Bush. Although I don’t know if watching “W.” would constitute entertainment for the masses, it is an engaging and thought-provoking look at a man barely, if at all, removed from the public light. Here we relive some of his most grating press conference blunders and get a stilted look at how life within the long-running Bush homestead may have influenced his behavior. A running thread throughout the movie is “Pappy” Bush’s White House tenure, in particular his personal beef with Saddam, of which W. was all too ready to rekindle. “W.” paints a picture of a dangerous man with little thought about his actions beyond what they do for those he concerns himself with, leaving us to imagine that it’s quite possible we live in a world as we do right this instant all because one family, nay, one man, had a chip on his shoulder.
comic / Watchmen: The Complete Motion Comic Warner Premiere Reviewed by Josh Jabcuga $29.99 Erik Bailey Alleyoop fish Victor Galicia 270 backside royale drop down alleyoop topsoul Jeff Stockwell Royale to alleyoop topsoul
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Hailed as the holy grail of graphic novels, director Zack Snyder might have had an easier go filming the Bible in its entirety than the seminal “Watchmen.” Both books have their rabid, cult following, and writer Alan Moore is considered a god among geeks, but this didn’t prevent Hollywood from attempting to sell deities at the multiplex temple. By now the dust has settled, eliciting a love-it-or-hate-it response, from believers and the converted to those in agreement with Moore who call his work unfilmable. If you’re seeking an authentic, unique spin on the epic, you’ll want this. Clocking in at over five and a half hours, the panels are presented with limited yet effective motion, voice and sound. This neon bible is a cross between a shadow play and a digital comic, keeping 99 percent of the good book in tact. Besides reading the original, this is the best way to watch the “Watchmen.”
kicks / UBIQ Fatima
book / Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly
written by Anthony Bourdain
If Anthony Bourdain would have been just another coked-out junkie cook, I might have known him. He’d be just another guy in another restaurant playing with fire and knives while strung out on a rainbow of substances. In his spare time after working 14-hours a day seven days a week at restaurants in New York, the foul-mouthed, reflective and highly entertaining chef wrote a book. "Kitchen Confidential" became a bestseller and catapulted him into the hated realm of celebrity chef. Once proud of calluses adorning his hands, they’re now soft and clean as he travels around the world eating, drinking and filming for his show, “No Reservations,” on the Travel Channel.
You might have noticed a little bit of a trend in what people are wearing this year when it comes to sneakers. It may sound odd, but the metal and hair bands of the ’80s laid the groundwork for the Kanye Wests and Lil Waynes of our time with their footwear. Yes, the hi-top sneaker is back and everyone and their brother has been embracing it whole-heartedly. While Yeezy and Weezy have been rocking their own super-high hi-top models, (from Nike and Supra respectively) your average hi-top sneaker has morphed just like every other style has in the past few years. UBIQ has thrown its hat into the ring with its Fatima model, which has been popping up on style blogs, earning praise for its comfort and looks. The Fatima borrows heavily from the traditional Timberland 6-inch wheat boot that you see on construction workers, and it adds a touch of a Vans Chukka. Its high collar gives it a full wrap-around style support if you choose to lace it tight, while the roll-down flap allows for a little extra color. The wide last provides great traction and durability for all foot sizes as an extra-thick foam insole guarantees comfort on the inside for long days of walking. The real appeal of the Fatima is its effortless ability to wear many different looks. It’s available in a wide variety of colors and materials, from perforated purple leather to rich chocolate suede. “Professional-looking hi-top sneaker” may sound absurd, but that’s exactly what you’re getting here: a touch of calculated style with a nod to the crazy hi-tops of the past. You can find it online at places like ubiqlife.com and cmonwealth.com. – Mike Rios
I love the show. It’s more than just some fine-dining bullshit where some hoitytoity lazy ass samples food I could never afford. Don’t get me wrong, Bourdain does that, but he’s also hunting and killing some of the food he eats to identify with the culture of the country he’s visiting. He’s a hot dog whore, but still dines on foie gras and the uncooked business end of pigs. Even if you don’t know how to cook, even if you think McDonald’s is good food, you should read this book. More than just some look at who prepares your food, Bourdain tells his story of working for idiot bosses at dying jobs while battling addiction, psycho co-workers, and a myriad of gun runners, mafia bosses and egomaniacal maniac food vendors. I’m biased in reading the book, because I love his wit, his humor and the overall snarky nature of the show, but there was one part that I could undoubtedly identify with: “My love for chaos, conspiracy and the dark side of human nature colors the behavior of my charges, most of whom are already living near the fringes of acceptable conduct.” Dad? Is that you?
– Brian Krans
flick / Tyson directed by james toback
tech / Flip Video UltraHD msrp > $199.99
A few short years ago a device like the Flip UltraHD would have been impossible. This small (but too thick), 6 oz. design holds 8 GB of storage for 120 minutes of HD, 1280 x 720 filming at 30 fps. Sure, it’s a little pocket rocket with limited capabilities, but the included software helps sort and edit clips, aides with uploading directly to MySpace, YouTube and AOL (anyone use that anymore?) and the mini HDMI cable makes hooking up straight to your TV a snap. Control it all through the 2-inch anti-glare LCD screen. An HVX it ain’t, but this rig is a steal for $200 or less.
Tyson was a scared kid who had all this anger toward the world. He was just waiting to be told it was OK to unleash it, and when that time came, man did he ever. It’s clear to see that a part of his mind has never left those harsh streets of Brooklyn where kids grow up way too fast, becoming adults before they even turn 13. This is the story that people have wanted to hear and it’s definitely worth the admission cost to enter the mind of someone like Iron Mike. The film is ultimately only his point of view and that’s probably for the best, given his past. The director, James Toback, has known the ex-champ for many years, so one might expect some bias from the filmmaker. To be honest, I didn’t catch too much of it. However, it’s not really about taking sides, and Toback does a good job of staying fairly neutral (given it’s a one-sided account of history). It seems to me the purpose of this movie was to allow Tyson to share his story… to better understand this man who so many loved and then were quick to shun. If this understanding of the man is what you seek, I think you will find some empathy here. Sympathy might be asking too much. – Wes Driver
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portrait by dale travers
am hour mark wojda / by dustin black Mark Wojda aliases used over the years include but are not limited to the following: School Boy Huck Boy Wod-ja doin'? Mad Polish Woj-da da Soj-da Wa-jo-da Mad Money Mark Kentucky The Woj Mark Wodja If the Louisville rollerblading scene ever produced a bastard love child, his name would be Mark Wojda. That's Wojda, not Wodja, and it's pronounced Voida, given his Polish ancestry. He grew up here, learned about life here, and I doubt that the slugger mentality will ever escape his personality. He takes a militant stance on issues of importance to him and will defend his beliefs regardless of circumstance. Just ask the skateboarder who had his deck broken when Mark stomped on it wearing his Remedyz. Haters will say that he's a spoiled brat, arrogant and bites off more than he can chew. Close friends would say that he's shy and reserved, seeking only within himself to understand and overcome life's obstacles. Others, well, at least one girl would say that he should start selling Polish sausage to make some money on the side. Everyone, however, says that they love to watch him rollerblade.
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His skills have become undeniable over the past eight years. I've watched him develop into a consistent rollerblader who isn't concerned about others' opinions. He skates solid, stomping every trick. His fluid style is second only to the effort he puts into each action. Oh, and when it comes to the stunts... forget about it. The kid is on top of his game right now, with a full section in the ONEvideo that everyone will jock. Traveling and filming is not easy. Especially when you are hurt or, in Mark's case, dying. Last summer he incurred a near-fatal staph infection that almost killed him while in California. It's very painful to watch him flop around like a dead fish after falling off the side of a building. Overall, 2008 was a good year for Mark. He won virtually every contest he entered, introducing him to the part of the world that had previously been living under a rock. From what I understand he even had promiscuous relations with his dream girl, who shall remain nameless. Did I mention he is a full-time student? Mark attends Boston University, where he studies psychology, in addition to holding down a job to pay the bills. He travels to Philly regularly to support Denial Clothing and the efforts of one Adam Killgore, who has taken excellent care of him. He goes to Poland to visit family, and back to Kentucky every now and again when he's homesick. The point is this: Don't try to find Mark Wojda, he'll find you.
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chrisfarmer by justin eisinger photography by john haynes
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There’s
a lot more to
Chris Farmer
than the tricks, the clothes or
pressing him on how or why he does the things on skates that he does.
When ONE
Chris, we felt it person. His motivations,
decided to feature
more about him as a
was important to find out hang-ups, family life, and
just general perspective on the ride his life has taken since strapping up the boots and dedicating his formidable young-adult years to being a professional blader. ground than
I’ve
And
that’s exactly what we got.
ever known him to discuss in an
Covering more interview, read along
to glean some insight into the life and mind of one of the most creative innovators in rollerblading.
– JE
Chris, all right, this isn’t gonna be too structured — I left things kinda loose, so we’ll see how it goes. I’m gonna have to put my glasses on, I can’t stare at this screen…
usually. I don’t have a job, so it’s like my time’s completely free, it just depends if I can find someone to go blade with. Or weather, I guess. If the weather permits, I will blade.
I was gonna say they look good anyway, I mean, you need ’em. Hold on, I should probably get my power source. In case it dies…
You said music was your second priority and that you play the bass. Are you a bass player now? I’m filling in because my brother has people he plays with in Indiana, so he’s like, “Hey, you want to play bass?” And I’m not the best bass player out there, but sure, you know. But I was pretty much raised on music my whole life, like when I was 2-years-old my brother got me a little play drum set. Throughout the years I had drum sets when I was a kid, and I played cello and the stand-up bass, like orchestra shit, and then there were always guitars laying around because my brother plays, my older sister plays too, there’s always been music around. Though I pushed it off to the side once I got fully super into skating, when I was younger I just sorta gave up on music, and, like, I guess that goes into the first question about when skating became my number one priority. I put music to the back burner but now I got a guitar, I think, five years ago. I'd never owned my own guitar before; I’d always played other people’s all through the years. And I’m getting more back into playing, which is nice, because it was a passion of mine before. It’s cool, just another way to express shit.
Yup, that’s a very good idea. I’ll be right back too. (A few seconds pass.) Look at that, you got your beer, and I don’t got shit. Perfect. But let’s get started: Do you have any priorities? Priorities, uh, I mean, skating. (Chris’ phone starts making noise.) Uh oh, we got Haynes, should I pick up? Sure, we can cut it out, it’s fine. (To Haynes: Yo dude, I assume you’re probably busy. I was trying to do the interview with Justin but my computer started glitching again, but we’re gonna try it anyway. If it doesn’t work I might need to come over… Okay, see ya, bye.) He sounded like he was pretty busy… I could hear his girlfriend in the background. Oh, I’m sure you could. (Making lewd gesture into the camera.) But back to the question, priorities… And you said skating. Priorities, as of right now, skating has been, it’s kinda number one on the list for life, at the moment. I mean other than that, music, but that's kind of on the side. I guess I’m more pursuing it now. That’s why I went to get my brother… he has a few gigs in Minnesota and he wanted me to play bass, so I don’t know, it’s kind of like a priority, but yeah, I don’t know. What does that mean that skating is your priority? Does it mean literally just skating, or can you talk to me about how it’s more consuming of your life than that? Can you explain that, or how it takes so much concentration. How do you approach it? Well, I don’t know, it’s just like I wake up and “What am I gonna go do today? Well, I’m gonna go skate.” It’s like the first thing that pops into my head when I wake up. Like, “I should go blade.” I can’t say whether it always works out or not, but first thing it just pops in. Does “doesn’t always work out” mean sometimes you don’t actually get to… Like, you know, I’m obviously free every day to go skate
Wow, I didn’t know you had all that musical background. It’s definitely another way to express yourself. And it’s a hobby that more and more skaters are starting to talk about, or reference… I’m just glad to have the opportunity to play together with my brother, that’s pretty cool, and like, my sister hasn’t ever played with him on stage… we always have that musical bond, but we’ve never played on stage. I bet that’s cool. What kind of band is it? Well it’s all his music — he wrote everything — so it’s just rock and roll, blues, country… And it’s all original? Yeah. I didn’t know any of that. That’s cool. But listen, I was watching your section from “VG19” online the other day, and it reminded me about the young Chris Farmer that I’d forgot about. Can you walk me through the time before that, then that period, and now you’re back in Minneapolis… I’m back where I started.
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"I hate the concept of competing and somebody being called the 'best.' " Exactly. Can you walk us through that cycle? Well, like, obviously I was starting to get noticed or whatever, and I was all naïve and whatever, taking whatever’s thrown at me, but I was still just skating like 24 hours a day, just so super into it, just I didn’t know what was going on. They were like, “You want to fly here and do this? Sure!” And I don’t know, I didn’t really focus too much on that it was a responsibility to be representing a company. I wasn’t thinking about the actual responsibility. I was young, just kept skating, and now over the years when it came to filming for skate sections I kind of… everything became more thought out, like, I had to be like, “OK, I have to film this part.” The responsibilities started getting heavier. They’d always been there, but I just started recognizing them. Now, yeah, it is a job and I gotta do what I gotta do. Hey, real quick, do you know when you had that realization? Do you remember when that was? It was like right when I moved to Texas and I was living on my own. I think that’s when it finally hit me because I grew up in my parents’ house and I was skating and didn’t really have to think about real life, big boy stuff. Once I moved out of my parents’ house and lived on my own I was like, “OK, I’ve got rent and bills to pay.” I was like right at 19, I think. So about five or six years ago. How old are you right now? I’m 24. As of December 29. Oh wow, you got an end of the year birthday. Yeah dude, that’s why I was named Christopher. I was named after Jesus Christ. Shut up. (Laughing) Saint Christopher Farmer, that’s awesome. Named after Christ. Well, good for you. I mean it’s only fair since you got screwed on that Christmas, birthday, New Year’s timing. I was supposed to be born on Christmas day too, but I ended up being a couple days late. Christ, how are you late for your own birthday?! (Laughing) I don’t know man. On that note I’m going to bust your balls real quick. Of course in the microcosm of rollerblading you are infamous for the style transformation that you’ve undergone in the last five or six years, some people are concerned with that still — like I just read on Rollernews — which made me think about it. Do you have anything to say about that process of just growing up? Yeah, essentially that’s it, just doing my own thing. If anyone didn’t notice with that whole sweatpants this-and-that I was just kinda going along with
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what else was going on. I mean, I got the sweatpants thing from Josh Petty and Champion and just went with it. Everybody was doing that, listening to this, I was just young and sorta following what everyone else was doing. You were a product of rollerblading. Yeah, and now I got older and kinda wanted to do my own, whatever, just kinda doing my own thing. If people are still concerned about it, then that’s their own thing, but I’m just living life, change just… everything changes. In that same exact vein I was talking to Jenn the other day about this interview and stuff and she brought up a point: What’s your family like? What does your family think about the Chris Farmer look — Joey Ramone meets Johnny Thunders meets Chris Farmer? Have they ever looked at you like you’re fucking crazy? Absolutely not. OK, ’cause I’m the youngest of five kids, and I got older parents, and they have pretty much seen everything over the years, like, my brother kinda broke it in for all us younger ones — kinda put our parents through hell. It’s funny because there’s my oldest sister, my brother, then there’s a middle sister, then the sister above me, and then me. The four of us, the top two and bottom two are just kinda… we’re all artsy or creative or just “out there” as far as personality, or appearance, or what we’re into. Then there’s the middle sister who’s totally business savvy and makes like six figures a year, and she’s the black sheep of the family. The most straightforward, moneymaking, whatever. She’s the fucking black sheep. So if that explains things. It sounds like a fun family to get together. Oh yeah, there’s plenty of this involved. (Showing a glass of beer.) I’m gonna take us back to skating for a minute. Talk to me a little about contests and the idea of competitiveness in rollerblading. Like, let me preface this real quick, because I know what your skating is all about, it’s what it is, and I assume that there is definitely a competitiveness inside you as an athlete or artist to push yourself at the very least to do what you choose to do. Then at BCSD I see you and you’re trying a tech cess slide to grind trick and the impression I get, and I mean no disrespect, is that you’re “dicking around,” to use a phrase my dad would use. And that’s cool, and I understand it, but I also know that you have the ability to do something at any second that could, like, redefine rollerblading reality. Not necessarily a big stunt, just… anything. So what do you think about all that? Well, first off, I hate contests. I hate the concept of competing and somebody being the “best.” I don’t believe in that and I think it takes away the fun, personally, because I don’t have that competitive edge. I’m not out there to be the best, or number one, so that’s what’s weird. I like going
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to contests and hanging out and talking to the kids, just being in the atmosphere is cool, all the bladers and whatnot, but as to the actual contest or competing, I hate it. I absolutely hate it, so I guess when you saw me dicking around (laughing) I was trying to have fun and not trying to be serious. I just can’t get serious in those things. Sometimes I’ll do shit and somehow I get advanced or whatever, but I don’t go out to win, or whatever. I don’t have that drive. So where does the drive come from then when you’re shooting for the camera or video — or what you do for yourself. What flips the switch there, ’cause I’m going back to “BANG” or “Accidental Machines” and you’re doing the gap to 90 degree disaster soul, and you’re like eating shit repeatedly, and I have to believe that you’re in some zone there that comes from something competitive. So how is that really different from a contest? What’s the difference for you? I mean, essentially, maybe I have some sort of thing going on inside myself. It’s not necessarily that I’m competitive with anybody else. I guess there is a little of that (the inner competitiveness with myself ) that’s just internal, whatever. Some days I want to huck myself. I have determination, that’s for fucking sure, obviously, I don’t know, I guess I have an inner drive to just better myself, but I’m not trying to, like… I don’t mean anything negative by that. I’m just trying to figure out the difference. I guess I have a strong inner drive to accomplish what I want to. I don’t know if someone’s around or not… I wasn’t trying to put you on the spot, I was more or less getting a perspective for readers to understand what they see when they are out. But I want to move on. Can you talk about your relationship with Shane Coburn? Would you say that knowing him and having
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him as someone you’ve worked with through Mindgame and Xsjado has influenced your skating at all, or your role in skating, or anything like that? Well, he definitely… if it wasn’t for Shane I don’t think I’d be anywhere really with skating, I don’t think… he really kinda looked after me and made sure things went… or, well, my turning pro for Mindgame, he made sure he waited enough time, obviously. When I first got onto the scene with “VG19” I got put on Rollerblade, pro or whatever the fuck, and he wanted to wait and make sure it wasn’t too soon. So he essentially molded me into what I needed to be. I mean, I used to talk to him a lot when Mindgame was going on, and the beginning of Xsjado — we were on the phone or e-mailing a lot, talking about product, or this and that — but since Mindgame died and he’s kind of taken a… with Xsjado he’s not fully as much into it as he used to be. We talk maybe like once a month now, if that. Still a great friendship, the guy is awesome, I’m very thankful for what he’s done for me over the years. Hopefully that answered that. For sure. A sub-question I guess is what has the transition been like as a professional for Xsjado that has been the only purely street company in skating, ever, to change ownership… how has that transition been as a team skater? For the first year, when the transitioning was happening, there wasn’t, like, a budget. I wasn’t traveling as much ’cause everything was changing hands, so the first year was kinda slow. That was when I was filming for Radius. I flew myself out there to do that ’cause it was like there was no skate sponsor. But ever since then, like once 2008 rolled in, everything started picking up and everything. The molds got transferred finally from wherever Salomon had them to China, where Powerslide needed them. It’s picking up. Now it’s cool, we’re trying to keep the communication pretty steady; it’s working out good. It’s a little different from how Salomon used to do it, but
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"I know I'm not supposed to walk up to someone and, like, stab a knife in their stomach. I know that's wrong... " when Xsjado was Salomon I was mostly dealing with Shane, or Mike Wilson and Dustin (Latimer), ’cause they were, they had their thing based… and then Shane was distributing it as well, but now it’s mostly e-mails with people from Germany and whatnot, team e-mails, talk to each other. So there’s not a team manager anymore? Damien Wilson is the team manager. So if I need anything to get done I just call him up and he gets me a ticket or something. Let’s move on and cover some more ground. Are there any codes or moral stances that you use to live your life, that maybe guide you through decisions and help you decide how to live day-today? OK, I was raised Catholic but by no means do I follow it, but the one thing I’m glad… I was forced to go to church when I was young, but I do believe I got a few good morals out of that whole thing. And I don’t know, I just believe there’s a dark and a light. I don’t believe in the God and Hell shit. I don’t like labels. But I know there’s a dark and a light. As humans, I think, you know, we should be able to distinguish between what’s right and wrong, and I try to go with that. I know I’m not supposed to walk up to someone and, like, stab a knife in their stomach. I know that’s wrong, so I don’t do it; essentially just common sense things. I like the idea of no stabbing; that’s a good place to start. What’s the worst thing that ever happened to you? I got stranded in the Red Light District in Amsterdam by myself at like 5 in the morning, that was not cool. And of course I was obviously not in my mind at that point, and… yeah, I was kinda scared. In a foreign place, especially a place like that, walking around by myself, trying to find the hotel, not a good experience. Luckily I ran into a police officer and I was like, “I need to go to this hotel,” and kind of described it ’cause I didn’t know what the name was. He told me where I needed to go, and I walked about 10 minutes and made my way there. But it was a scary moment in my life. Well, your worst experience is something some people would call a best experience, but what’s the best thing that’s ever happened to Chris Farmer? Fuck… ummm… I don’t know. So nothing’s the best thing that ever happened to you. I guess being born and having life, that’s cool, right? Yeah, that’s very specific. All right, all right, are there any other athletes who you admire, respect or who inspire you… maybe from skating or from any other venues? ’Cause I’m kinda picking up that you’re an athlete in denial. (Laughing) I don’t really follow sports at all. I’ll only watch a basketball game if I’m around Adam Johnson
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or something like that. So there’s no snowboarding or skiing or anything like that. The only thing I really do is skate, when it comes to that type of shit. There’s people that I get inspiration from. When I was younger, definitely a grom, I was totally vibing on whoever else. My main inspiration when I was younger was Dustin Latimer. Just anyone with good style, I suppose, or people who just do their own shit. There’s lots of names, but… not anybody that I can think of specifically. I guess Dominic Sagona, that guy can fucking soul grind a curb and it’s amazing to watch. Did you see the new issue of ONE, with his 540 picture? Yeah, he’s great. Always has good style. Has always done whatever he wants. He’s the shit. So I’m talking about people like that, and I hope people know who I’m talking about. You’re leaving it open for interpretation. Chris, if you had to get a real job, what sort of career could you imagine having? Something that I enjoy, that’s for sure. I’m lucky to have rollerblading as my job right now; it’s something I enjoy and get to do. I’m my own boss, so I’d hope something along the lines of that, but you know, beggars can’t be choosers. I don’t really know. I could only just hope for something like that. Hopefully you never need to get a job. I’ll probably need one eventually; I’m not making the big bucks or anything. If that happens, whatever; if it doesn’t, it’s cool. I’m not expecting that. I’ve never actually had a job, ’cause everything started happening when I was 16-17, and I started getting paid around then too, so I’ve never had that experience. So I would like that, have that experience of having a real job. I don’t really consider skating the same thing. I’d like to have that experience. I’ll save you all the time and hassle and let you in on it: It’s not all that great. I mean paychecks are nice. I’m just kidding, I have a great job so I’m just kidding. But we are coming up here on 30 minutes, let’s talk about what’s coming up in the next six months for you. Next six months… Well, right now I’m filming for two videos. There’s a Minnesota video coming out that Blake Cohen and Brett Dasovic are making that’s called, well, I don’t know the name, but they just made a video called “Too Much Love.” They’re making another video together, and I told them since I was back that I’m on board, but there’s one thing. I told them I’d do a section if they’d help me film for my friend Brian Moore, in Texas, for the video he’s working on. ’Cause I signed up for that when I still lived there. In a way I’m killing two birds with one stone, filming that up here, but I’ll probably go visit down in Texas. I was gonna try to get there in May, but I don’t know if that’s gonna happen because I’ve got these gigs to do with my brother.
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"It's great to come home and be around my family, but to come back and find a healthy, strong skating community is really rad." I don’t know, apparently I’m gonna be going to Chaz Sands’ thing in England. My name is on the list but I haven’t gotten a ticket; no one from Powerslide told me I was going, so we’ll see if that actually happens. That would be nice. Hey, I just realized we hadn’t really talked about the changes that have taken place in Minneapolis while you were in Dallas. It seems like while you were away the scene got really strong again. What do you have to say about that? It fuckin’ rules. It’s badass! I can’t think of anything better than coming home to that. I mean, it’s great to come home and be around my family, but to come back and find a healthy, strong skating community is really rad. Like, it helped me out through the dark days of winter that I was dealing with. It’s cool, man. Everyone, like, every day someone is calling to go skate. Everyone is motivated to go blade. For the other readers out there thinking about how they can make their scenes stronger, you guys have any secrets? I don’t know, man. Minnesota’s always had, like, since way back when, Minnesota’s always had a strong skate scene, always. There’s always been something special about the group I grew up skating with. Everybody’s driven, so it’s kinda like nothing had changed once I came back. It kinda just feels like it did before, but everybody’s motivated to get shit done. Having fun… I’m glad John Haynes is there to shoot it all. And that’s fuckin’ really sweet! Having Haynes right there, ’cause I kinda disappeared for a while, being in Texas. There wasn’t anyone filming, and there obviously wasn’t anyone taking pictures, so it was just hard to get that type of stuff done. Now Haynes, well, “Haynes, you want me to come pick you up so we can get a photo?” Photographers and fixed-gear bikes don’t mix. (Laughing) Yeah, way too much equipment to carry around.
OK, then before we leave I got a couple quick questions about some of your photos. First of all, the rail down to ledge, was that left foot soul to left foot soul? Yeah, that thing was so fast. I landed on the sidewalk ’cause the rail was really fast but the angle-iron ledge slowed me down. I spun to the right to fakie. That was a really kinda odd trick. Well, I think that’s gonna be on the cover. That works. We’re looking at some others but we think this is the one. Wish the cops would have been in the background of the back royale shot. Oh man, that was such a bust. That lady parked right in my landing. When I did it, I knew if I landed I would hit her car… but she moved it at the last second. The fast plant to alleyoop top acid is one of my favorite pictures. What did you fast plant off of? The brick thing that’s in the bottom left corner. The wall it sits on? Yeah, yeah. I did left-foot fast plant and it was the same foot I did topside with. I wanted to get another non-grind photo, but it was weird shooting for this. Haynes went to Africa for a fucking month, I got hurt, it was winter… and I’m still pulling the old “I just moved here” card. People ask me where I want to skate and I just tell ’em, “I don’t fucking know.” I was kinda doing that. Ha ha, well then Chris “No Thank Yous” Farmer, let’s get out of here. We’ve been talking for a long time, and my hard drive is probably going to explode. Sounds good. If you need anything else, just let me know. Will do. Thanks for putting up with this. Good to talk and hang out, and hopefully we’ll get to see each other before too long. All right man, no problem. Talk to you soon.
Chris, we’re starting to run long here, so let’s think about wrapping this up. Anything you want to say, anyone you need to thank? I hate “Thank Yous,” so I don’t want to do that.
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spot light
rosskuhn by ben magaziner photography by brandon smith
I had just arrived in Portland, Oregon, after a long stint of traveling America. Ross decided to call me at 8:30 in the morning to introduce himself and ask me to join him for a session sometime. To many people, this daybreak introduction may have seemed like an inconvenience, however, I’ve always been a morning person, and meeting another of my kind is a welcome and rare occurrence. Ross and I became fast friends and took to skating the plethora of concrete parks we’re blessed with in the Pacific Northwest. Skating with Ross has represented a departure for me. I was no longer surrounded by the friends and scene I grew up with in Philadelphia, and I was simultaneously introduced to an array of concrete transitions, quite a juxtaposition with respect to the familiar and often overexposed East Coast street spots I was accustomed to. Being removed from the inherent competition of a large and devoted skate scene such as Philadelphia’s, I began to find myself enjoying skating for new and simple reasons, less comparing and assessing, and more engaging simply in the act of doing. I was confronted with the fact that my skating belonged to me. This may seem like a simple and obvious feeling, but after belonging to the most critical, and perhaps most dramatic, scene in rollerblading’s history, this felt like a breath of fresh air.
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"Ross' skating has proved two things to me: you can't fake ease, and a forced effort usually leads to pretention." Ross’ skating represented the physical manifestation of this departure. Watching him pump sketchy pools fakie, boost airs and sweatstance like no one else, often with no one else around, and in a remote location in the Oregon wilderness, left me no room to question why and how Ross does the things he does. Sure, the Feinberg, Rutledge, Saviers, B.J. Campbell influence is there, and perhaps even shades of a hessian pool-shredding skateboarder, but they’ve moved on, while Ross remains, skating for himself, when the Stumptown rain lets up, and a break in his busy schedule as a student of history at Portland State University gives him the opportunity to do so. Hailing from a city where many of the aesthetic elements of rollerblading are calculated and intentional, including the attempt to make these calculations look effortless, Ross’ skating has proved two very important things to me: you can’t fake ease, and a forced effort usually leads to pretension. Ross seems intent on letting his skating happen to him, rather than forcing it in any particular direction. Rollerblading as a community has spent a prolific amount of time and effort trying to prove itself in one way or another, and in the process, I think that many of us as individuals have been bound to validation as a common denominator in our skating. Ross, who seems least of all interested in seeking validity through the approval of other rollerbladers, has demonstrated to me that you can't force something to happen naturally.
An excellent example of this aspect of his personality and skating came during a road trip to Lincoln City. This beautiful town on the Oregon coast has a gem of a skate park built by the same people who made magic happen with some bags of cement under the Burnside bridge. Excited and eager to skate after a two and a half hour drive, we were immediately confronted by a crew of angry skateboarding locals who threatened physical harm if we so much as strapped on our skates. While I got furious and tried multiple times to reason with these ignorant country bumpkins, Ross' lovely girlfriend, Leslie, went so far as to call the police (who had no interest in helping us, whether or not we were threatened harm), while Ross simply ignored the inevitable melee, put his skates on and flowed the park in the natural way that he does. I like to think Ross' innate ability to demonstrate ease on wheels kept him from being noticed by Billy Bob and the goon squad, but I know better. I know that natural talent speaks for itself. His skating stands outside of this prejudice, because it isn't intentionally biased in one way or another, it just seems to happen, so why mince words with morons when you can let your skating do the talking.
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contest
Bitter Cold Showdown 2009
calm before the storm.
by justin eisinger photos by drew amato, wes driver, and andrew murray Saturday mornings at Bitter Cold Showdown are always a buzz of activity, as for one five-hour block of time all the companies in blading appear to actually be on the same page. People are setting up their booths, putting the planning and work of countless months on display for purchase and review by the blading public. It’s a day that new companies unveil themselves and established brands offer limited edition wares. As noon draws near skaters are lined up in anticipation of being the first to take it all in. In a way it’s like when Wonka opens the door to the chocolate room. Where will they head first? What item is it that drives them into such a frenzy? For many it’s simply the moment that the BCSD truly begins. The next three hours are a blur of faces, products, money, grilled cheese sandwiches, and the palatable, building energy. Although the trade show is a major focal point for the companies that come to BCSD, it truly is prelude to the main event. In time it has become equally, if not more, important to the event’s success than the park and actual contest, but if all pistons are firing the established
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Bitter Cold format is hard to beat. At the end of the trade show the lucky booths are breaking down empty boxes and throwing away trash; the less fortunate repack and load their gear back into their cars for the trip home. This is free market economics at work in blading. While the company owners are doing their thing, wrapping up trade show loose ends, the bladers themselves are doing what they do — getting ready to shred their heats. This year Daniel Kinney put additional emphasis on the Friday night preliminary rounds in an effort to cut down on how long dudes had to skate to make it to the finals. Early rounds on Saturday went pretty fast, as Daniel repeatedly reminded everyone that the goal was to get them to the finals as quickly as possible. This worked in conjunction with the new contest format that was implemented as part of the current professional tour series, making it so “A-list” pros didn’t have to skate until the semi-finals. In both contests I watched use this format it’s clear that the skaters are not yet used
pushin'.
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ponzi.
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sparta!
"Anyone who has attended a BCSD knows that the 19-plus edits you can find online after the event barely express the true atmosphere of the weekend." V4N2
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housed.
hurt.
bah.
smith.
not hurt.
happy haffey.
philadelphia vampire.
fore dudes.
driver unmistakable.
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to it. It’s basically a “one-and-done” scenario for most; skate great and progress or go home. It will be interesting to see how this affects contests in the future. Of particular note during the preliminary rounds, A.K.A. the am contest, was the presence of Fallon Heffernan. If you don’t know Fallon, she’s the petite blond chick who rips most dudes to shreds on the blades. As the fifth place am she skated in the pro rounds along with Mike Koliner, Cody Porsche, Jon Fromm and Sam Moore, who rounded out the am standings. I think they also qualify for Amateur Inline League finals or something, maybe a complimentary fruit basket too, I’m not sure. Nonetheless these ams made it through some deadly dangerous rounds (literally and figuratively) and delivered solid tricks. Koliner’s disaster farside truespin soul on the drop box is especially nasty (1:19 in the Hawke Trackler edit). But there were a lot more redunkulous stunts yet to go down. How about Montre Livingston deciding to 540 or misty flip off the giant death box? Or the superman misty on the launch box? Don’t forget about Brian Shima’s switch 360 off the drop box (he got screwed and didn’t even make the finals)… or the guys who were dropping off that to grind. (The one homie did top soul!) Guys like Jon Jon
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Bolino and Cameron Card and Brandon Smith displayed amazing smoothness while playing on the park’s grinder rails, especially the yellow rainbow rail, and Matthias Silhan displayed superior ramppumping abilities as he broke off trick after trick on the quarter-towallride setup. His full-cab alleyoop topsoul to 540 out was scary smooth. There’s way more, but you can just go watch all 19-plus edits online to see ’em. Among those skating at the top of their game were Alex Broskow, reigning BCSD champ, Brian Aragon, Franco Cammayo (4:33 in the Vinny Minton edit), Jeff Dalnas (4:13 same edit) and David Sizemore. Looking back now I can’t remember exactly how the final rounds worked, but I remember MC Tracy White giving dudes like a dozen rebates. It was during the final such rebate when Broski’s endless lines peaked with the 720 on the quarter-to-wallride ramp to illusion true spin disaster soul that may be one of the most technical combos witnessed; certainly it was one of the most technical tricks ever landed at a BCSD. However, Alex’s dreams (I dunno if he dreamed about this but it sounds more dramatic if we pretend he did) of taking back-to-back crowns was snuffed out by the judges’ fondness for Montre’s huge spins, fakie 720 alleyoop soul 360 out, and boundless enthusiasm.
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montre livingston
"Overall champ Montre Livingston took top honors with a smile on his face the whole way."
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Some of the most impressive rollerblading ever seen took place in the span of a few hours at the 2009 Bitter Cold Showdown, but overall champ Montre Livingston took top honors with a smile on his face the whole way. From slangin’ product at the Rat Tail booth during the trade show, to talking to damn near every kid in the skate park, and skating the whole contest like he was playing a game of S-K-A-T-E with his crew, it’s possible that Montre won as much for his skating as he did for the energy he brought to the event. While on the surface events like Bitter Cold Showdown can be judged simply by the level of skating that takes place within its time limit, anyone who has attended a BCSD knows that the 19plus edits you can find online after the event barely express the true atmosphere of the weekend. This year, the nine-years-running Bitter Cold managed to again surpass its prior benchmarks of professionalism, participation, prize money payouts, and playing host to what is probably the largest single gathering of rollerbladers (non-race or -dance, mind you) in the Western Hemisphere. The 2009 event reaffirmed its reputation as one of the most important days for rollerblading all year. –JE
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/ carlosPIANOWSKI TRICK: disaster royale LOCATION: los angeles, ca SKATES: usd FRAMES: kizer WHEELS: chimera GEAR: usd PHOTO: driver
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/ michaelFROEMLING TRICK: darkside alleyoop unity LOCATION: milwaukee, wi SKATES: remedyz FRAMES: ground control WHEELS: eulogy GEAR: con.artist PHOTO: morris
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/ gregSCHLOSSER TRICK: mute air LOCATION: milwaukee, wi SKATES: nimh FRAMES: fiziks WHEELS: eulogy GEAR: denial PHOTO: morris
/ ericPERKETT TRICK: mute 540 LOCATION: lake havasu, az SKATES: razors FRAMES: ground control WHEELS: bhc GEAR: jug PHOTO: kola
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/ mats-kaarelRUUS TRICK: soyale LOCATION: riga, latvia SKATES: razors FRAMES: ground control WHEELS: 4x4 GEAR: hedonskate PHOTO: urbanczyk
/ caseyBAGOZZI TRICK: sweatstance LOCATION: sacramento, ca SKATES: roces FRAMES: valo WHEELS: scribe GEAR: amall PHOTO: korompilas
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/ brentonWHEELER TRICK: wallride to fakie LOCATION: lawrence, ks SKATES: nimh FRAMES: ground control WHEELS: 4x4 GEAR: vibralux PHOTO: stephenson
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/ jephHOWARD TRICK: window gap to bs royale LOCATION: minneapolis, mn SKATES: razors FRAMES: kizer WHEELS: undercover GEAR: b. unique PHOTO: haynes
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/ alexBROSKOW TRICK: gap to true top soyale LOCATION: kansas city, ks SKATES: valo FRAMES: ground control WHEELS: 4x4 GEAR: vibralux PHOTO: stephenson
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portrait by wes driver
dave paine / by mike opalek
David Allen Paine is 38 years old and living the dream... no, seriously, he is! He quit a very stable, decent-paying job at frito-lay — one that your parents told you to get after college, where after your 20 years of service you’re on Easy Street. But he wanted more out of life and wasn't going to settle just for a decent job. Dave had dreams and he made them come true. At a young age he always wanted to skate and film. Growing up in the Philadelphia area is where he cut his teeth, and in the early ’90s, like most of you now, found that filming could be just as gratifying as skating. Now he's been rolling and filming for 17 years. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Irene, and works for the action sports TV channel Fuel. You just got married, how'd that go? One video speaks a million words in this case. Publish this link for the kids: http://jasonmagbanua.com/ blog/2009/02/28/the-first-all-5d-wedding-video-shoot. Memory of a lifetime. I am a lucky man. I waited for the right woman. Never settle for second best. The Philippine people were some of the nicest, hardest working and most humble people I have ever met in my 20 years of traveling. How did you get into making videos? I was 14, and I started making skateboard movies with a friend. Then got into TV sports during high school in 1987. We started the first TV sports program at our high school — Pennsburry — that still exists today. I was an announcer, filmer, editor… you name it. We worked on VHS cameras and edited tape-to-tape. NFL Films, Warren Miller and Stacey Peralta (Bones Brigade trilogy) were huge influences on me. Then in Pittsburgh I got back into it with some friends who rollerbladed and skateboarded. We figured that the blades were better and smoother to film follow-cam lines. I moved back to Philly after I graduated and sent a tape to Shon Tomlin of Groove, and the rest is history. I left corporate life money that helped me pay my way through college for a shot at the good life. I guess it was the right decision, huh? What drove you to move out to California and film “18 Days”? I was sleeping on my brother Rob's couch in Philly, working at a skate/snow/golf shop called Wilburgers, when I got a call from Shon to come take over the VG series after they released “VG1.” So, it took 18 days for me to make my way out to California shooting skaters from Canada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York along the way. (Editor’s note: New York is not on the way to California from Philadelphia.) I had already worked a summer as a director of the inline program at Camp Woodward that summer of 1993. Shon Tomlin is my hero; he gave me both dream jobs.
What was it like to work with Groove in the beginning? We worked out of the Groove house in Huntington Beach and did all the rough edits, and then onto an online edit bay for a day or two. I lived with Shon (Tomlin), Morgan (Stone), and Remy Stratton from Volcom. It was so freaking fun. I got to DJ my first party, where Sublime played with me. Insane. Tom Fry was over from Australia all the time. I spent a lot of quality time with all the Aussies: Scott Crawford, Cal Mulvey, Blake Reed and Jon Polard. The 714 Posse was in full effect too: Roadhouse, BK, Jess D., Dan Jensen, etc. I traveled like 150 days that year. What challenges did you face when you bought Groove Productions and ran it all by yourself? Well... I had no money. I had no office, and VG was continually sinking. Sales did not look promising. I hit up Gary Ream to front the money for the Media 100, because of my long relationship with Camp (Woodward) and the “Colony of Summer” series. Thanks Gary and Ed. I did side work on commercials and other things to help out. “Battle My Crew” was the first release under the new ownership. That was crucial on many levels. I was definitely ready to do it; Shon and Morgan had been grooming me the whole time. I did it out of my room; a very small room. A lot of kids thought we were in some big VG office somewhere. You mentioned Woodward a couple of times. Is it true that the Woodward Camps are owned by Disney? Hell no… Camp Woodward is owned by Camp Woodward. I mean, I am not the official spokesperson for camp, but as far as I know… NO. Why was “Battle My Crew” so crucial? It was crucial on many levels. First, it was the first VG coming out under new ownership. Second, I wanted to bring the industry closer to me; every crew was making a video, so I wanted them
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the original slide from
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to be a bigger part of VG and start something special that no one had done before. Third, it was put up or shut up time; everyone got a taste of what it was like to be a VG director. How long have you been at Fuel? Shon Tomlin called me when I was in Miami for the Winter Music Conference working on a music project and VG was hanging on by a thread. I was barely paying myself. He said he was involved in a new channel for Fox called Fuel and wondered if I was ready for a "change." This was March 2003. I think VG would have died soon thereafter if not for Fuel TV. I put out three more issues when I got the job, just to finish it up properly. I worked on weekends and spare time to get “VG22,” “VG23” and “Best of VG23” done by the time 2005 rolled along. So I was working on both ends basically. The Fuel TV checks let me keep it alive for two years after the fact. What do you do for Fuel TV? I am a senior producer in charge of specials and events. I am the only producer still here at the channel from the four originally hired at launch in 2003. I still film and edit my own work. I have produced and directed almost everything in house: Firsthand, Check 1-2's, Documentary Series (Camp Woodward), etc. It's been a great six years. I feel like it's been like TV school for me. I work with really talented friends and peers who push each other. It was time to make a move… and it worked out, what can I say? It's an incredible story to be working at FOX after dreaming about working in TV and film. You've said from day one of you working there that you were going to fight to get rollerblading on Fuel TV. It’s been years and I haven't seen it. What's up with that? There is the famous question. I have answered it every time. I am not the man in charge anymore, so the buck does not stop with me. All I can do is make my opinion known and keep trying. I know I can wake up in the morning and say I have done that. I put Fabiola in one of my Firsthand
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a legacy.
segments with Matt Hoffman. I pushed to have a rollerblader in the Camp series I am working on now. Fuel TV just does not cover any of the fringe sports outside of the six core ones we cover. Trust me, there are other action sports wondering the same thing: body boarders, mountain bikers, etc. If it were as easy as everyone thinks it is, it would already be on the air. Why would I not want rollerblading on TV? Think about it. It’s stupid. I have a freaking rollerblading tattoo on my leg. Every pro from surfers, to skaters, to snowboarders knows my background. I don't hide from it, I am proud of it. In fact, I still use the blades to film. Who or what decides the "six core sports" that Fuel can cover? The sports they do cover were all at one time fringe sports, so why exclude venues that have potential to get bigger? Isn't Fuel supposed to be cutting edge? How many times do you want to rephrase the question of why rollerblading is not on TV? Trust me, I get it and will not hide from answering the question. I spent 13 years of my life wondering the same thing about other media outlets prior to working here. My understanding is that Fuel TV is young (only five years as a channel) and is focusing on the six main sports. I cannot answer for other people who make decisions here, but I do trust them and know that they have open minds. Rollerbladers should be looking inside their industry to strengthen itself. I am not one to be negative, but it seems we all are looking for excuses why things are the way they are. It just is; I wish it wasn’t. The more of us who work hard in and outside of the industry to make it stronger, the better we have a chance to influence what goes on the air, in print and in film. No one more than me wants to see rolling on TV. Yes, I understand that I am in an influential position and so is Shon, but we don’t make all the decisions. All we can do is keep on trying, moving forward. Here’s a sidebar for you: Ask the question, why does ESPN X Games cut out not just rollerblading, but now skateboarding and bike events too? Apparently, it’s not just because they don’t like what they ride, huh? Yeah, we were the
screen shots from camp woodward piece for fuel tv
"Rollerbladers are more original than most people; they aren't afraid to step outside of the 'what's cool' crowd." first to go, but these are events that used to be premiere time slots for them? Answer: NUMBERS. It’s reality, you guys, the numbers just are not there. Yeah, I hear the argument about “if we had more exposure we could get more numbers.” Well, surfing, skateboarding, BMX, etc., at moments in history grew their numbers with minimal or no exposure from TV. There was not even an action sports channel until Blue Torch. In that same thread, what is it that blading is missing in order for us to get that sort of exposure? You ever gotten any hints as to what that is? I also don’t know the answer to that question. All I know is I work with open minded people here at Fuel TV who come from all sorts of backgrounds in action sports and sports. No one here hates on rollerblading, at least in the open. Sure, we joke about it, but that is part of the misconception. If you decide to take up rolling you know that it comes with a tag. That tag means you are going to have to prove every day that we are not dancers on Venice Beach on Sundays. Rollerbladers are more original than most people; they aren’t afraid to step outside of the “what’s cool” crowd. So, at this point, who cares? Just be a rollerblader and keep growing and evolving. Time is the only answer I can give right now. Time to keep changing people’s opinion about rolling.
When are you coming back to make another VG? Well... I am glad you asked, Mike. No problem, that’s what I’m here for! Yeah sure. I would love to. Will I? Who knows? Maybe, I just don't like to make promises I can't keep. I think one day I’d like to get one out with the help of my good friends (Chris Majette, Drew Bachrach, Lonnie, Dan Jensen and Beau) for one return issue that blows everyone away, and then be out. What are a few words of wisdom to inspire videographers? I always want to support kids in any way I can. I am always here for advice. Seize the day. If you really love something, go for it. Don't live your life in regret; do all you can for this moment right now. No one is going to hand it to you; make your own opportunities and kick through the door. What’s the future look like for the Paine family? Well, we hope to buy a place in two years and start a family here in LA. Irene wants to have one, and then we might adopt our second child. It’s exciting. We want a dog too. And... keep living the dream as long as possible.
How involved are you in rollerblading these days? I hope as much as I can be. I have been judging the local LA All Day comps and whatever else I can. I support the video premieres around the LA and OC area. I still skate from time to time, more in the summer.
Is there one person you've watched drift away from skating that makes you think, "Damn, that's a real shame?" I don’t want to put anyone out like that. As I get older, I realized that everyone has their own story and background and reasons for making decisions in life. I am not here to judge.
It’s easy to get a good camera and film, but how hard is it to make a video? I think it's easy to make a video but harder to make a memorable skate video. There is just so much out there these days, and the prosumer camera and editing setups are built to bring everyone on the same playing field. I really like what Connor (O'Brien) is doing with his work experience and bringing that back into the industry with his latest film.
Last words? I just want to say that VG was 100 percent rollerblading. We always gave it our best. A huge thank you to all the skaters who have supported me and VG throughout the 13 years of work. It was a very special time.
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portrait by matthias vriens
folio
dan busta / by ryan schude Growing up in the small western Chicago suburb of Clarendon Hills provided Dan Busta with a crew of kids that made it their priority to blade on the daily. These times were something else, when blading wasn't necessarily any more accepted than it is now, but at least there would be a small faction at your local public schools as opposed to what I am assuming is zero now. Yep, he threw bio 540s off the wedge ramp in camo pants and sported a backward hat. His friends built grind boxes in their driveways, and weekends were spent taking the train into the big city to explore the unlimited spots. At some point, Dan broke his leg real, real bad; I think it was his femur, or something gnarly like that. During the long healing process, Dan picked up a camera and continued to express his love for the blades in that way, taking advantage of the facilities in his classes to exploit rocket fishbrains.
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Published in Daily Bread and Box magazine while still in high school, Dan moved out to California to go to photo school in 1999. Then came San Diego, where Dan worked full time at Daily Bread for more than seven years. Nearly a decade of skate photos put Dan into the history books of legendary blade photographers. Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and the days of begging security guards for just "one more try" are over, but the love never dies. You can find Dan every year on the annual Colorado Road Trip, ripping the bowls with topsouls and backsides for days. In the meantime, his energies have been transferred into a new style of photography, which is surely going to constantly progress and evolve as his skate photos did. His time is now spent in fashion, editorial and a hybrid fine art/ advertising style of conceptual imagery.
"runaway"
danny boome
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left to right (from top): aaron feinberg, nick riggle, jeff stockwell, connor o'brien, robbie whitcomb, abdiel colberg, oli short
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retail
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contributors
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/ adam morris, writer, photographer, and copy editor, Milwaukee, Wis. Yep, still here. Riding out the Great Recession in Milwaukee, writing, editing, shooting photos, and generally enjoying myself. Basically, having a blast out here off the regular rollerblading grid, and hopefully doing a little bit to put the Brew City scene on the map. This issue I reviewed “Jack Be Nimble” in addition to cleaning up all the mistakes Justin let through the first round of editing.
mike opalek, “I do stuff,” Park City, Utah I’m 36 and a member of the ISP. I make my own beer, shoot guns, fly fish, mountain bike, ski and play soccer. On weekends I watch Stoke City when they’re on TV. I’ve been skating for 18 years, and I do it as much as I can these days. I get pleasure from punching James St. Ours in the face and interviewing the older skaters for ONE magazine. Eulogy gave me a legends wheel and that was pretty sweet!
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john haynes, photographer, Minneapolis, Minn.
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ben magaziner, writer, Portland, Ore.
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josh jabcuga, writer, Buffalo, N.Y.
Stocky, troll-like, red haired, bearded, 25-year-old photo enthusiast seeking talented, fit, quirky skater type. Ages 16-30 preferred, must be willing to sacrifice body and risk life for picture-taking fun. Enjoying beers afterwards and good laughs is a plus but not vital to our relationship. Willing to travel to make this work, don’t mind the cold or the heat. This issue I shot with Farmer here in Minneapolis.
Leaning back, drinking a kombucha, calling all of you out on your antirocker, no-grabbed, sloppy excuse for rollerblading, Ben finds time to shred some of the best concrete parks in the world when he’s not preparing vegan fare at a yoga studio or making the best raw chocolate you’ve ever had. Ben left the claustrophobic allies of Philadelphia for the open air of Portland, “where slackers go to slack.”
Born and raised in Buffalo, N.Y., Joshua Jabcuga has written two comic-book miniseries (including “THE MUMMY: The Rise & Fall of Xango’s Ax,” the official tie-in to the popular Universal Studios franchise), formerly wrote for Kevin Smith’s website, is a regular contributor at Chuck Palahniuk’s website, and runs a weekly column at Comics101.com. This is his third review for ONE.
Volume 4 Issue 2 published by Molotov Media, LLC.
Editorial Director
Justin Eisinger Creative Director
Wes Driver
Contributing Photographers
John Haynes Brandon Smith Jeremy Stephenson Andrew Murray Drew Amato Adam Kola Adam Morris Nick Korompilas Matthias Vriens Guillaume Latrompette Katie McCurdy Kuba Urbanczyk Contributing Writers
Drew Bachrach Mike Opalek Adam Morris Josh Jabcuga Guillaume Latrompette Matt Lewis Brian Krans Ben Magaziner Mike Rios Dustin Black Billy Kostka Illustrations
Robert Lievanos Copy Editing
Adam Morris Retail Sales/Distribution
Jenn Kirby
jenn@believeinone.com
Ad Sales
Justin Eisinger justin@believeinone.com PO Box 40458 San Diego, CA 92164-0458
DISTRIBUTION Rat Tail Distribution www.rat-tail.com
LEGAL INFO ONE rollerblading magazine, V4N2, JUNE/JULY is © 2009 MOLOTOV MEDIA, LLC. The advertising and articles appearing within this publication reflect the opinions and attitudes of their respective authors and not necessarily those of the publisher or editors. We are not to be held accountable for unsolicited manuscripts, transparencies, or photographs. ONE rollerblading magazine is published five times a year. Printed in Korea
WHERE TO FIND IT ONE rollerblading magazine is available at the most open-minded sporting goods outlets and newsstand agents in this and every other country on Earth. If you still have difficulty finding ONE or would like to carry it in your shop please email sales@believeinone.com.
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wellness
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15-minute
workout
illustr ations by robert lievan os
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www . fadehur ricane . com
The best defense is a good offense, so for overall health, and session longevity, it helps to maintain a level of physical preparedness. This workout takes minimal time (15 minutes) and equipment (one dumbbell), but will aid in core strength and flexibility. Do these four exercises back-to-back, with no rest in between. Complete three or four sets, resting two minutes between each circuit, and enjoy your new daily routine.
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Dumbbell Swing
Squat and Press
With the feet shoulder-width apart, hold a dumbbell at arm’s length with both hands. Squat, and bring it between your legs so your forearms touch your inner thighs. Then, as you straighten your legs and back, bring it up to just slightly above your eyes. Return to the start position, and repeat 10 times. Keep your torso slanted forward at a 45 degree angle at the bottom of the movement.
With your feet wider than shoulderwidth apart and your toes pointed slightly out, hold a dumbbell with both arms extended downward. Squat until the dumbbell touches the floor. In one movement stand up as you bring it up to your chest, and then over your head with your arms extended. Be sure not to bend at the waist. Squat, pushing your hips backwards. Do 10 reps.
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Row and Twist
Cork Screw
Hold a dumbbell in your left hand. Bending at the waist, assume a bentover rowing position. With your left arm perpendicular to the floor, your right leg staggered forward and your left leg back. Pull the dumbbell to your chest and rotate your shoulders to the left. Rotate the shoulders as far as possible, as if you are trying to drive your elbow up and across to the right side of your body. Do 10 reps. Switch hands and repeat on the other side.
Assume a squatting position holding a dumbbell with both hands at arm's length, to the left of your left ankle. Push to a standing position keeping your arms extended, rotating your torso as you bring the dumbbell above your opposite ear. Then lower it. Perform all your reps on one side then switch to the other. Do 10 reps of each.
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/ ONE rollerblading magazine
75
tyson > flick p.o.s. > sound check dave paine > 15 minutes dan busta > folio
76
ONE rollerblading magazine /
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