SK8
JANUARY 2016
la c a t a e b t ’ n a c u Yo
. c i ss
Table of Contents
4 about the editor
6-7 thrasher skater of the year 8-9 history of sk8 10-14 MTE style spread
About the Editor Krista O’Donnell was born and raised in New Jersey. She has committed her life to Vans and has worked her way up the chain all the way into the design department at our California headquarters. While not personally a skater she has been surrounded by the culture since her youth. Her love for exploration, creative spirit, and passion for everything she does makes her the perfect person to put behind the scenes here at Sk8 magazine.
photo by Dave Emmons
P I W
O E
T U
Vans is proud to congratulate Anthony Van Engelen for the coveted recognition as 2015’s Skater of the Year awarded by influential skateboarding institution, Thrasher Magazine. With Vans since 2005, and star of the final part in Vans’ first-ever full length skateboarding video, Propeller released in May, AVE’s performance has dominated the skateboarding scene for the better part of the decade, representing a class of style all his own while influencing generations of skateboarders both modern and legendary. Today, he becomes a legend in his own right, joining past SOTY winners from the Vans team including John Cardiel, Geoff Rowley, Tony Trujillo and Salman Agah.
“Anthony Van Engelen is the Skater of the Year and we all know why: he absolutely annihilated the streets.” —Geoff Rowley “Anthony’s filming isn’t even like trying a trick, it’s like a bloody battle. I hear about him going back to spots seven times to do shit. By the third time you have to be so over it, I can’t imagine how thick the tension is when he’s trying some crazy shit like that. He is very focused and intense.”—Chima Ferguson “For a lot of younger dudes AVE is someone to look up to. He works really hard, he really gives a shit about what he’s putting out and he’s a good dude. I’ve looked up to him ever since I first started skating. He was the first dude I tried to emulate. I saw him do a switch back nosegrind over the back of a ledge in an old Transworld video. My dad had built me a box in my driveway and I rushed home and tried to learn backside nosegrinds over the back of my ledge because of him.” —Gilbert Crockett “AVE is one of those dudes who you’ve watched your whole life and so to be on trips with him is kind of unreal, you know? You’ll be going to spots and you’ll be like, ‘What the fuck am I doing here? That’s Anthony Van Engelen!’ He’s such a legend.” —Kyle Walker Cited from http://www.vans.com/article_detail/ave-soty.html
1950s
Surfers in California get the bright idea to surf concrete and invent Skateboarding. The origin of the first skateboard has never been proven as it seems to have been the spontaneous invention of multiple people. Wooden boards with roller skate wheels slapped on the bottom where the makings of the original boards these pioneers took to the streets. Could you imagine the looks on the faces of people seeing this for the first time? Long haired shaggy surfer duded ripping up the streets on 2×4’s and roller skate wheels! The world ‘Radical’ comes to mind in such true original form.
1960s
By 1963 Skateboarding was all the rage. Popularity of the sport was at its peak. Companies such as Jack’s, Hobie, and Makaha started having real competitions consisting of Downhill Slalom and Freestyle where skaters like Torger Johnson, Woody Woodward and Danny Berer paved the way for future skaters. Then in 1965 for some reason Skateboarding seems to simply die. Considered to be a fad that came and went, skateboarding seemed to fade over night. Some few stayed true to the sport and continued to create homemade boards and fine tune their craft. One of the reasons I suspect skateboarding loosing some of its ground was the fact that the sport was very dangerous. The clay wheels
they used were everything but safe and lead to many injuries.
1970s
Then like all things, in a moment, everything changed for skateboarding. The invention of urethane wheels by Frank Nasworthy in 1972 made it possible for skateboarding to make its comeback. He started the company Cadillac Wheels. In 1975 skateboarding got the boost it needed. In Del Mar, California a slalom and freestyle contest was held at the Ocean Festival. That day, the Zephyr team showed the world what skateboarding could be. They rode their boards like no one had in the public eye, low and smooth, and skateboarding was taken from being a hobby to something serious and exciting. The Zephyr team had many members but as some of you might know the most notable of them where Tony Alva, Jay Adams and Stacy Peralta. Then in 1978 Alan Gelfand (nicknamed “Ollie”) invented a maneuver that gave skateboarding another revolutionary jump. He would slam his back foot down on the tail of his board and jump, thereby popping himself and the board into the air. The ollie was born, a trick that completely revolutionized skateboarding. At the end of the 1970s skateboarding took another hit when the public skateparks that were being built suffered from the outrageously hight insurance rates due to the danger factor of skateboarding.
1980s & 1990s
Skateboarding continues to grow as the anti-establishment subculture that we all know it as. Skateboarders had become hell bent on progressing their passion for the sport so they started building there own ramps in their backyards. It’s no secret that this became a problem for local construction companies when they started to notice their lumber was disappearing. But lets not forget that construction companies where part of the establishment so to hell with them they thought. Aside from the ramps they built in their backyards to skate on they saw the whole world as there skatepark and took to the streets. During this time many new board shapes took form allowing for skaters to overcome obstacles otherwise impossible. Another invention in the 1980s played a major roll in skateboarding history. The intention of VHS. Stacey peralta and George Powell’s Bones Brigade team starts recording skateboarding videos that will reach kids all over the world. The team included Steve Caballero, Tony Hawk, Mike McGill, Lance Mountain, Rodney Mullen, Stacy Peralta, and Kevin Staab. This is the team responsible for The Bones Brigade Video Show. At the end of the 1980s skateboarding took yet another dive in popularity when vert skateboarding became far less popular than street skateboarding. In the early 90s skateboarding starts to rise again as it finds some common ground with the emerging punk music. Then in 1995 ESPN holds the first ever X-Games. The event was a huge success and brought skateboarding into the mainstream light sparking interest in many more young kids.
2000s & Now
Skateparks pop up everywhere and skateboarding video games lets every kid be a skater. Tons of companies emerge and become more and more acceptable in society. The notion of skateboarders being criminals starts to dwindle. The X-Games continues to become more and more popular with Skateboarding at the helm. One of the big factors today that makes skateboarding so huge is the fact that pros make real money. Wining events can bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars. Kids are realizing that you don’t have to become a doctor or lawyer to make a buck. Skateboarding has also played a big role in fashion earning its place among the masses. Companies like Diamond Supply Co, Hurley, Vans, and RVCA all making millions off the skateboarding lifestyle. http://www.skateboardingmagazine.com/the-evolution-of-skateboarding-a-history-from-sidewalk-surfing-to-superstardom/
photo by Dave Emmons
LYNCH FAMILY SKATEPARK GRAND OPENING IN BOSTON
This past Saturday, Vans joined thousands of skateboarders, BMX riders and passionate city locals from greater Boston to celebrate the long-awaited grand opening of the Lynch Family Skatepark. As the final contributor to the project, Vans provided a leadership commitment of $1.5M, joining The Charles River Conservancy (CRC), the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), and the Lynch Foundation in supporting a brand new community skatepark located in East Cambridge, MA. The exciting ribbon cutting ceremony welcomed various dignitaries to the podium, including key city officials, representatives from the CRC and DCR, Vans skateboarding legends Tony Alva and Ray Barbee, rounded out by a warm welcome from Master of Ceremonies, Vans’ own Steve Van Doren. With steadfast leadership from the CRC’s Renata Von Tscharner and enthusiastic commitment by Vans, the $5M, 40,000-square-foot Lynch Family Skatepark project has finally triumphed after being in the works for more than a decade. Vans’ contribution to the city’s laborious efforts provided the final dollars needed to begin construction, and in addition to this support, Vans has secured giving $25,000 each year for seven years to the DCR for ongoing mainte-
nance of the skatepark. “Since our founder left Massachusetts to start up Vans in California, we have sought ways to give back to our original New England roots,” said Vans and VF Action Sports President Kevin Bailey. “Vans is honored to join the city of Boston, the DCR and all the dignitaries who worked so hard to make this happen, to provide a platform for locals to express themselves through skateboarding as our brand has done for nearly 50 years. Vans’ commitment to this incredible partnership is strong and spirited, and we look forward to supporting the Lynch Family Skatepark for many years to come. Moving forward, Vans plans to partner with the new skatepark to host world class competitions, local skate and BMX clinics, and community events year round. The Lynch Family Skatepark is owned and maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and will be open from dawn to dusk. Visit www. thecharles.org for more details on the project’s background.
http://www.vans.com/article_detail/boston-skatepark-opening.html