Session Magazine - Issue 54

SOUTH AFRICA R34.95 OTHER COUNTRIES R30.04

Adidas PE Tour

Horowitz, Dlamini, Retief, Van Staden

Frankincense and Murth Durban’s Murth crew

Leftfield

Damon de Clercq

Outlands

Louis Taubert

issue 54

June/July 2013

DCSHOES.COM

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5/24/13 3:08 PM

FAKIE HARDFLIP | BLABAC PHOTO

OLLIE @ELEMENTSA, @BOOJOHNSON1 @ELEMENTSOUTHAFRICA

BOO RIDES A SHAPE #14 BOARD WITH FEATHERLIGHT CONSTRUCTION ELEMENTSOUTHAFRICA.COM

Justus Kotze, frontside five-O, Tableview WC. Cover: Louis Taubert, 360 flip. Pic Sam Clark.

Co n t e n ts 5 4 M a i n F e at u r e s 20

Adidas PE Tour 2013 Horowitz, Dlamini, Retief, Van Staden

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Frankincense and Murth

Durban’s Murth crew

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L eftf i el d

3 Questions with J-Bay local Damon de Clercq

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O u tla n d s Louis Taubert

R eg u l a r s 8

Re d i al

Bod’s bullshit

10

Mailbag

Why your town sucks and why we suck

12

Bla c k b o a r d

Nicknames and Alter Egos

14 Th e B i z n e s s

News, views and some sketter skinner

54

Cl o s et E n v y

Shoes, threads, boards and other clobber

56

E leme n t St i c k T i p s

Stalefishies

58

dog and bone

Neil Hughes

59

I Ams

Ofentse Ramakanye

60

R a i n y D ay s Deathwish and Cliché

62

H a v e a n Ad r i a n D a y

King for a Day, Fool for a Lifetime

Redial // Brendan Body Editors Column

o’brien

“I sold everything I owned in Johannesburg, packed up my car with 5 bags of clobber, my cat and board and headed for the new Session offices on Kloof Street in Cape Town”

I’m Back I was having a beer with Clint and Adrian, after another fruitless session trying to get this issue’s cover, and asked what they think I should talk about in my Redial column now that I am back at Session after a year hiatus. “Just say, I’m back” said Adrian, and I guess that pretty much summed it up, yeah I am back and stoked to be back in my old driving seat.

But let’s take things back one year. I had sold Session in early 2012 due to a number of circumstances; debt, stress, burn out and god knows what other reasons but one thing I knew was that I needed to take some time out and regroup.

It helped put things back into perspective and I learnt how to relax again. I kept myself busy by doing freelance design work, going fly fishing, skating, sleeping on my couch and it felt good.

However it was only a matter of time before I realised that skateboarding was where I belonged. I breathe, eat and sleep skateboarding. I have since I was 10. All my bro’s are skaters so without them and skateboarding in my life things are meaningless. So when Clint called me up from Cape Town and asked whether I would be interested in coming back to Session as editor - something I did not expect - I was undoubtedly interested. After all I had breathed life into this magazine 10 years ago and it is all I have pretty much done with my adult life, so the decision was pretty obvious, although difficult. Yes! So I sold everything I owned in Johannesburg, packed up my car with 5 bags of clobber, my cat and board and headed for the new Session offices on Kloof Street in Cape Town, 1600 km away. I now live near the beach, have a sea view, a new office and basically a whole new life. I have spent the

Photographers Pablo Ponzone, Sam Clark, Tim Moolman, Wayne Reiche, Jonathan Pinkhard, Clinton Theron, Jansen van Staden, Ryan Janssens Writers Adrian Day, Brett Shaw, Luke Jackson, Brendan Body, Yann Horowitz, Darren Jacoby Editor Brendan Body Sub Editor Adrian Henderson Online Darren Jacoby Financial Clint van der Schyf Copy Editor Adrian Day Advertising brendan@sessionmag.co.za

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Support Independent publishing

Printers Typo Colour Printing Specialists +27 (0) 11 402 3468/9 Distribution RNA Distribution Support Skate Stores Please contact info@sessionmag. co.za should you wish to stock Session in your store, or if you are looking to find out where Session is stocked.

past 2 months reconnecting with old friends, advertisers, all the skaters in CT and generally getting back into the life of running a skate mag. Things are making sense once again.

I believe we all owe Adrian Henderson and the guys a huge high five for maintaining the mag’s high standard and delivering 6 superb issues in the past year while I have been away. AD is still heavily involved in Session [being one of the new publishers] and now keeps me in check with his ideas and views. After all he’s now my boss!

So with that ladies and gents I say hello again, I’m stoked to be back and hope I can keep delivering the same classic mag you have come to love over the years.

See you on the pavement.

Bod.

Post letters to Session Magazine, 2nd Floor, Earlgo Building, cnr. Kloof & Park Rd, Gardens, Cape Town, 8000.

Follow us on www.sessionmag.co.za facebook.com/SessionMag twitter.com/SessionSkatemag instagram.com/sessionskatemag

Session Skateboarding Magazine is published independently 6 times a year. Session will welcome all letters, e-mails and photos. We will review the contribution and assess whether or not it can be used as print or online content. The opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the magazine, it’s owners or it’s management.

Session Skateboarding Magazine is the copyright of Session Magazine cc. Any duplication of this magazine, for any media or sale activity, will result in legal action and the words welcome to taiwan tattooed across your face.

mailbag Photos, letters, drawings, facebook messages, snailmail, telegraphs and messages in bottles.

Jeandre Bester, gap ollie, Skinner PTA.

Toufeeq Raubenheime, halfcab noseslide nollie heelflip. Photo Julian Williams.

Robert Poynton, ollie. Photo Wayde D’Auguair.

Yann Horowitz drawing, Siraaj Phillips.

Khule Ngubane and Dlamini Dlamini drawings, Siraaj Phillips.

Kickflip. Photo Rynardt.

Ollie. Photo Rynardt.

Send your letters to info@sessionmag.co.za Session Magazine, 2nd Floor, Earlgo Building, cnr. Kloof & Park Rd, Gardens, Cape Town, 8000 Or just drop us a DM on Facebook.com/SessionMag or Twitter.com/SessionSkateMag

10 | sessionmag.co.za

THE GUNSMITH COLLECTION

L to R: The Rover Leather and The Sentry

TEAM-DESIGNED, CUSTOM-BUILT, GENUINE.

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// Brett Shaw Nickname Alter Egos

Charl “Skippy” Steyn, backside smith.

Nickname / Alter Egos As skateboarders we subconsciously label people, spots and random objects with names that only we understand. Skateboarding seems to attract a certain kind of person, regardless of our backgrounds. In this mass media world skateboarding has become mainstream but at the same time there are certain hidden treasures that only true skateboarders will understand.

Take The Matrix for example. That movie confused the hell out of the world. Not even Andy & Lana Wachowski (The movie’s directors) knew what the hell was going on. How could someone that doesn’t skate, possibly know what “EMB” aka “Embarco’s most blunted” was? If you’ve only been skateboarding for a few years you might not even know what went down at the Justin Herman Plaza in SF. The EMB crew had the best nicknames. Bobcat, Wing Ding, Jack-off Denis, Mcdude, Hurricane Helen, Geezer and Big Reeg were just a few of them. If you weren’t from Embarcadero you were a T-Dog or a “retard”. It’s like if you want to be referred to as a huishond you need to know what finger popping is.

Ask Wong he knows. Everyone knows who Moses is here in SA, the States and even Europe, but who’s Gavin Adams?

Now you take that to the next level. Chad Muska, aka “The Muska”, Andrew Reynolds aka “The Boss”, Jamie Thomas aka “The Chief”, Darren Navarrette “The Vertical Vampire” or Kien Lieu aka “The Donger”. Those are global nicknames.

Marketing budgets are spent on guys like “Lizard King”. A 12 | sessionmag.co.za

big company is not going to spend one cent marketing a guy called Mike Plumb, but Supra will throw huge cash at a “Lizard King” campaign. Entire skateboard careers are built on nicknames. Paul Rodriguez aka “P-Rod”, Ryan Sheckler aka “Shecks” and Tony Hawk aka “Birdman” have filled their vaults skateboarding. Duane Peters aka “The Master of Disaster”, and Mark Rogowski aka “Gator” have made different life choices but they have had just as much of an impact. The most famous skateboard shoe ever the “The Half Cab” is named after Steve Caballero aka “Cab”.

names just work as is, like Alva, Dill or Koston. But Koston is still “Froston”. Slash is “Slash” or Brian Hansen so some guys float in between names. Some guys names are just abbreviated like AVE aka Anthony Van Englen, or here in SA, GVB.

So if your bro’s have given you a nickname, wear it like a badge because it’s killer that they took the time out of their busy schedules to come up with a special name for you.

If someone says Skinner, Fox Street, Burnside, Hubba Hideout, Leap of Faith or San Dieguito you know that those are spots. You know what they look like in your head, you know who did what in which video and the song they rode to. The whole world knows who “Bam” is and the CKY crew.

Christian Hosoi aka “Holmes”, Jason Adams aka “The Kid”, or Raven Tershy aka “Big Couch”, the world of nicknames is ever-changing. They can make you or break you and you have no power over them, because the beautiful thing is that you don’t get to choose your nickname.

Mafia names fascinate me too. You get guys like “Meatball”, “Junior Lollipops” and “Jimmy Gooch”. Skateboarders are right up there with them. “Jaws” aka Aaron Homoki, “Trainwreck” aka Alex Gall, “Moose” aka Louis De Los Reyes or “The Mule” aka Erik Ellington. Some skaters

Skateboarders have also crossed over into the art world with their nicknames. People like Shepard Fairey aka “Obey Giant”, Brian Schroeder aka “Pushead” and “Neckface”.

And then you get people in a class of their own like Mark Gonzales aka “The Gonz”.

So if your bro’s have given you a nickname, wear it like a badge because it’s killer that they took the time out of their busy schedules to come up with a special name for you. However if you end up with a name like “Donkey Tits” it’s time to have a quiet word with your clan because they’ve done you in.

the bizness Industry news and skateboard banter

Eldon Van Aswegen

Legion Skateboards Legion Skateboards based in Cape Town have just added Jozi rippers Thabo Nage and Siya Ntuli to their team roster. Check out the Legion competition in the Closet Envy on page 54 and stand a chance to win one of their new Philly pro model boards, or check them out on Facebook and give them a like - http://www.facebook.com/TheLegionSkateboardComp any?fref=ts

Etnies Relaunches in SA Jamie O’Brien from Dope Industries and Woodies Ramps, together with Chris and Ross Hyland from Intende Action Wear are heading up Etnies in South Africa. The first drop of shoes is due for release in July at these selected retailers - Baseline, Johno’s Skate Shop, Boost, Boogaloos, Sport Scene and Sportsman’s Warehouse.

There will be a team search happening soon but in the meantime enter the contest below and win a year of free shoes:

Park Report, The Yard Skatepark, Knysna The Yard Skatepark in Knysna is currently going through some changes, including the existing outside area being turned into a new street section (+/-450m2), hopefully to be completed before the July school holidays.

This should put them on the map as a park to be stopped at when travelling. Also a new cottage is ready and able to sleep 8 peeps, who will have nearly 1000m2 of skatepark on their doorstep!

Contact The Yard - Steve 082 411 0950 / Ivan 083 325 2526 or find them on Facebook and Twitter or simply drive down to the park at 5 Progress Street in Knysna.

“Nick Garcia and Willow know about paying dues to earn your shoes! Here’s your chance to #EarnYourStripe.

Submit your Sponsor Me Footy and win a year’s supply of #etnies shoes. Nick & Willow pick top 3 finalists on June 21st, Go Skateboarding Day and one winner will be picked by public vote! WATCH & ENTER now to #EarnYourStripe at http://etni.es/earn-your-stripe!”

Contact Jamie 074 190 5444 jamie@dopeind.com, Ross 073 381 5582 ross@grand-africa.com Intende Action Wear FB page http://www.facebook.com/IntendeActionWear?fref=ts

Technique Skateboards Technique skateboards have been busy as of late setting up their teams who now include flow sponsored Reamo Leluma, Taylor Sturgess, Martin Stoffberg, Dean Marais, Marcel van der Walt, Warrick Delport and to the main team two new riders have been added, Alan Adams from CT and Brandon Valjalo from JHB.

Gary Schlechter (True Bearings) and Warren Stopforth (Technique Skateboards) have also joined up to start Technique Wheel Co. (a sister company of Technique Skateboards). It will be up and running by June and they have already signed Shuaib Philander, Wesley Schroeder, Uri Rubin, TK Modise and Anthony de Mendonca.

They will be running their distribution DPD (Diversity Products Distribution) skate factory shop and small indoor skatepark in Paarden Island, Cape Town. They are in the process of flooring the warehouse and preparing it for the ramps to go in.

Familia in Berlin UK Familia riders Gavin Morgan, Steph Morgan and Shaun Witherup are all headed to Berlin to connect with Sam Clark shortly and will no doubt get a bang load of goodness for these pages…

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Mosey Heading to the Berrics DC is busy working in on the REELedit 2013 contest. We were introduced to the online video submission contest last year, and this year they report that there are going to be some minor changes to the contest format in order to improve on the success of last year’s contest. Stay tuned in for more.

Moses has received a personal invite from Steve Berra to film an edit at the Berrics, thanks to the 20sk8 crew who created the little teaser video that caught Berra’s attention. The timing has not been confirmed yet, but he will no doubt spend some time in Cali soon. DC and Red Bull are combining forces to provide the support needed to make it happen for Mosey.

ET NIES P ROU DLY SALU T ES WILLOW AND NICK GARCIA ON JOINING THE PROFESSIONAL RANKS WATCH T HE SHORT F IL M “E ARN YOU R ST RIP E ” AT E T NIE S .COM

NICK GARCIA | RCT

WILLOW | RCT

FACEBOOK.COM/INTENDEACTIONWEAR

the bizness Industry news and skateboard banter

Baseline Re-Launches on Kloof Street Baseline moved upstream from the dirt and grime of Long Street to their new shop on Kloof Street in Cape Town. The new store opened doors on 1 May this year and is bigger, better positioned and stocking the freshest skateboarding brands in SA! They threw a mega launch party to celebrate. Check out some of the happenings and their online store (which is by far the best) at www.baselinestudio.co.za. Be sure to check out their Focus Feature coming up in AV19 too.

Gallery Skateshop Opens in PE The Gallery Skateshop opened its doors recently in the friendly city and is the brainchild of Clinton Theron and his wife Casey. Both Casey and Clint used to work at Element in Jeffreys Bay but decided it was time for a change, and packed it all up and moved themselves to PE to start The Gallery. So if you’re looking for some threads, boards or kicks in PE get yourself down to The Gallery Skateshop, 20 Clyde Street, Port Elizabeth, or contact them directly on 076 057 6186. They are open from 10:00 - 17:00 weekly.

shop.baselinestudio.co.za

All the best brands available with FREE SHIPPING anywhere in South Africa

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It’s the morning we leave to go back to Cape Town and I have just woken up in a single bed next to Khulu Dlamini. I slowly get out of bed and gaze utterly confused and epicly hungover at the empty bed next to mine. What happened last night?

Luckily I still had all my clothes on so I assured myself we were just too drunk to even notice each other stealing the blankets.

Words. Yann Horowitz Photos. Wayne Reiche

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sessionmag.co.za | 21

Yann Horowitz, nosepick to fakie.

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Khulu Dlamini, switch bigspin.

Piet has now awoken from his man cave and got his first look at the wasteland that is our house. He just bursts out laughing with a demonic look in his eyes. The same look he gets when he’s staring down a handrail. Pieter is an absolute beast when it comes down to the scary and the gnar. Take Pieter to a rail and watch his iris go black as the dark lord takes over.

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There are two familiar faces waking up in the lounge, I give them a shaky wave and a nod. Clinton Theron and wild local Mark are both somewhat half alive and give me a pleasant nod back. Clint’s shop was our home base for the tour in town and he’s doing an amazing job with it. Plenty of good books to read and tons of good merchandise to look through and wish you could afford. Located above a trendy coffee shop at the top of the hill inclined city, it was the perfect place to get a caffeine fix, pour a giant jar of water over Khulu’s head from the second floor, and maybe grab a quiche or two before we hurled ourselves towards inanimate objects. It’s all downhill into the heart of the city from there and all I can say is that PE has an impressive selection of spots for such a

small place. Rails, double sets, hill bombs, wall rides, flat bars, you name it. I could bore you with the details of some of the skating that went down but we’ve got pictures for that. Damon aka Demon joined us for the majority of the trip as our friendly tour guide around the friendly city. Locals were always smiling and intrigued by this silly thing we call skateboarding. Even guards were reluctant to chase us away. Maybe all these smiles and positive gestures got the best of us. By the last night we had ten days of sweat, pain and good times to drink away and all this positivity seeping out of the city was bottled inside of us. But for too long. It had gone sour, rancid and wrong. All we needed was a bit of chaos and destruction to feel normal again.

•

It’s still dark outside and I’m the first one up, so I bravely venture on to the lounge to try piece together the night. The whole trip we kept the place relatively clean, with Wayne usually the first one up doing dishes and straightening out the place. But he is nowhere to be seen this morning. Something dark and sinister possessed the crew last night. The Beelzebub came out to play some pool and gamble with souls. Our souls, battered and bruised and now covered in beer and food.

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“He’s got his arm around my shoulder as we hobble past his eleven hats and giant wardrobe he packed for a ten day trip.”

Pieter Retief, crook.

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With PE’s history of satanic rumours and undertones it’s no surprise we managed to come across an unborn foetus lying on the sidewalk on the way to go get some food. Jansen stopped dead in his tracks and pointed to the monstrosity that lay before us. The police shooed us away and off we went. Confused yet excited. Was it the fact that we had never seen one before or the fact that we were completely horrified? That meal was not as enjoyable as the rest. Maybe eating off the sidewalk had something to do with it. Pieter did way more than just kill it on the board. He bought the food, drove us around and made sure all us little spoilt brats were happy and comfortable. Having someone so dedicated to skateboarding and his team was a sure win for a successful trip. Papa Piet bringing the heat. BRRAAAP! It’s a big man ting!

Khulu is now calling my name from our bedroom. He blew his ankle out the day before skating a double set and his foot is looking like something out of the Nutty Professor.

“YANN! MOTHERFUCKER! WHAT WERE YOU DOING IN MY BED?!” I couldn’t even answer the question but I did know this; “First of all, you are in my bed and second of all, EXCUSE ME!?” Another question another human being couldn’t answer. “WELL HELP ME OUT OF BED THEN!” He’s got his arm around my shoulder as we hobble past his eleven hats and giant wardrobe he packed for a ten day trip. I can’t help but laugh a little inside and shake my head. Khulu was definitely A-Grade entertainment for the tour. The amount of loud and obnoxious profanities that came out that man’s mouth would make even the hardest of Hells Angels shudder and weep. Maybe it was karma that caught up with him on the trip. He ordered extra bacon on anything we got to eat. He lost copious amounts

of money playing pool with Mr. Retief. A breached written contract was his next downfall.

The following tricks were to be done on and over the J-Bay handrail - nollie crooks, BS tail, BS noseblunt and FS flip - for a hefty R1000, a case of beer and a bottle of his choice.

He failed to execute any of them so his wallet and pride got a little lighter that day too.

Even though things didn’t always go his way he pulled through and got some amazing skating done on the tour. He brought us plenty of laughs and good times always. Even when he was temperamental and grumpy we learnt how to take his harsh and somewhat aggressive comments on the chin.

I took a nice big slab of concrete to the face during the Jeffreys Bay rail session, which sparked off a mini holiday amongst the hard work. Cheron was kind enough to let us stay

sessionmag.co.za | 25

Yann Horowitz, gap to frontside lipslide.

in her beach side mansion for the night. With most of the team injured in some way it was refreshing to just sit down to a home cooked meal and relax over a glass of fine red wine. Cheron then appears from her booze cellar with a bottle of Patron and offers us a shot. Khulu was the first to accept and soon the snowball picked up momentum and we had finished the first bottle in 10 minutes. So out came the second bottle of Patron.

Relaxation time was officially over when we got through the third one and the rest of the night was spent playing beer pong, making beats on Adriaan’s computer and watching Jansen clean out a bottle of Amarula by himself. The next day it was an easy decision for all of us to take the day off and rest our bones. A mean braai (from Pieter and Leon like most evenings) and a good swim in the sea did golden things for morale. A piece of paradise just for a day and we were all ready to get back to business.

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It’s dawning on me now. We leave today, it’s all going to end. Like the sun rises in the morning so did Jansen. “Do my dreads smell like meat?” He holds one up to my face urging me to take a wiff. I really didn’t want to but for some reason I did anyway. “A little,” I reply, trying not to laugh. Pieter managed to empty all the braai vleis sauce over Jansen’s head. Not the best hair treatment for a vegetarian. But he’s still smiling. That’s the best part about Jansen van Staden. His knee gave in very early into the trip due to old injuries, but he was still nothing but smiles. I noticed he drinks more milk than any human being I have met. A Steri-Stumpi for all three meals of the day and a one litre milk for dessert is a must have in the van Staden diet. He gets mistaken for a Rastafarian on a regular basis. Random locals offered him some free weed regularly. Even a chick rocking a mean mall grab came running up to him to offer him some spliff. Funny enough Jansen

doesn’t even smoke the stuff. If everybody offered ice-cream cones or Amarula he would be way more impressed.

The whole house is up now and the clean up begins. Feeling like the undead we begin drearily cleaning and packing. Leon’s trying to get the caked beer off the kitchen floor, Wayne’s on the dishes and Adriaan’s getting some last bits of editing done. Those three were our documenters for the trip and tied the whole thing together. Patiently filming lines and lying in dirty and awkward places to get the right shot. With all their fancy camera equipment, we could have fashioned our own film studio in the bathroom if we needed to.

Leon filmed like a beast and still managed to slay it on the board for the majority of the trip.

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“Do my dreads smell like meat?” He holds one up to my face urging me to take a wiff. I really didn’t want to but for some reason I did anyway.”

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Jansen van Staden, ollie to manual.

Exposure Gallery and Lomography kindly sponsored us a box full of wierd and wonderful cameras to use at our disposal throughout the trip. Leon created an adidas / Lomography task book with different key words we had to interpret into pictures. Tequila faces, pushing mongo and loose change amongst them. Those little plastic gems really kept the creativity levels high throughout the trip. But needless to say there are definitely some photos about to be processed that no one would show to their own mother, nevermind getting them into the mag.

The van’s packed and the house smells less like a neglected brothel. I look at the clock but it’s no use. It’s been eternally stuck on 4:20 since the first day. It’s always sad to say goodbye to all the good times at the end of a trip. Then again the prospect of home feels good after ten days of non-stop skating and an apocalyptic food fight. We say farewell

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to PE, thankful for all the brilliant spots and wonderful weirdoes that crossed our path, for Cheron kindly taking us in and sharing her slice of paradise with us.

Thanks RVCA and Red Bull. A big thanks to adidas for making this trip happen, and lastly for all our photos from the previous night and Khulu’s ridiculously large foot to keep us entertained for the drive home. Buckled up and ready for the ten hours that await back to the Mother City. Velvet Underground blares out the speakers and tired eyes stare at the road ahead. Going 120 kph back to reality.

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The van’s packed and the house smells less like a neglected brothel.

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Pieter Retief, gap to 50-50. Photo Wayne Reichie.

Let’s raise a toast to the MURTH ramp. RIP you old Bastard. Animal Chin is waiting for you. Sure w e ma y be mour ning a bit but you know what? It’s not that bad. We got lazy there for a minute - the lure of Sla y er, beers , ribs on the braai, furious back yard sessions and high 5’ing your bro on the roll out deck is rad, how ever since w e got back on the saddle w e’ve found two pools a bunch of insane ditches and some cr usty street spots. Now it’s time to go g et some , somewhere new.

MURTH is all about who you hang out with. You don’t get to pick your family but you sure as hell get to pick your friends and that is what’s so insane about skateboarding. It’s a cauldron of tweakers, rich and poor in a whole bunch of different age categories. Kids, teenagers, twenty something’s and grown-ass men just going for it and that filters into every aspect of our lives. Skateboarders also come into contact with artists, musicians, photographers and a lot of other free thinkers. It’s like influence Ping Pong. It’s rad. We love it. If you stick with skateboarding you’re in for one mofo ride and this ride doesn’t come with training wheels or a safety belt. It comes with a blank manual that you get to fill in yourself.

MURTH is a mixed bag right now as far as jobs go. We have a Managing Director, Motorbike Salesman, Carpenter, Broadcast TV Director, Designer, Writer and a semi-vagrant. We have a Masters Degree in Commerce and a Bachelor of Social Science with Honours in Culture, Communication and Media Studies, plus diplomas in Video Technology, journalism and design. So on paper MURTH is bad ass. That’s the kind of stuff your parents dream about and recruitment agencies love. So it’s pretty ironic how we all ended up skateboarding. Some of us are sponsored and some of us aren’t, but we all have a similar approach to life.

Our responsibilities just vary, but if you want it, there’s always time to Whatsapp your buddies and hook up a session.

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Photo. Chris Decanha

“... skaters that need the dirty streets with piss infested gutters, abandoned houses with rancid pools, rough ditches with no shade and the lure of the open road. � sessionmag.co.za | 33

Brett “Bert� Shaw, frontside air. Photo Ryan Janssens.

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Patrick Duff, bean plant fakie. Photo Ponzone.

“We don’t all roll around like a gang, w e ver y rarel y all skate tog ether but w e’re all tight and if the shit hits the fan w e’ll be there in a second.”

You get two types of skaters. Firstly those that only ride parks, are full of excuses and are lazy. The fresh board, clean shoe cats. Parks are a good place to hone your skills, don’t get me wrong, but they’re like crack and some dudes just never leave it. Secondly you get skaters that need the dirty streets with piss infested gutters, abandoned houses with rancid pools, rough ditches with no shade and the lure of the open road.

That killer feeling of what’s around the next bend, on the other side of the ocean, behind that wall or in the next town. That’s what MURTH is. It’s the unknown progression of skateboarding, the possibility of finding something new where you’d never expect to find something and if you can’t find something you need

to get off of your ass and build it. Wood, bricks, some spare time and a crew is all you need.

If you’re like us, you puke in your mouth every time people refer to skateboarding as a sport and your bumhole clenches when people think of skateboarding as a career. For us it’s the act of skateboarding and all the other cool stuff that comes with it. Like music.

You get exposed to new stuff like the Future Islands song on Austyn Gillette’s new Thrasher part, then you download all three albums and get other people into Future Islands. You know you’re going to go check them out. You play Slayer riffs in your garage on a 20-year-old amp with a dodgy cable connection, dust

flying everywhere and your fingers burning because they’re all stiff from not playing for years. You go watch Shellac live in Barcelona with your bro’s and just think to yourself, damn this is cool, and tomorrow we’re going to roll through the city and skate 50 perfect spots and be even more stoked.

Art is also cool. Drawing stuff on your griptape, collecting tattoos, putting on art shows, photography, lomography, writing stuff for magazines, blogging, shooting 8 or 16mm film, making movies or web clips.

It’s all an extension of riding a board. Tapering your pants, getting a Mark Donaldson haircut, gluing your shoes - it’s all part of it. You are never going to see a

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36 | sessionmag.co.za

Dave De Witt, layback grind. Photo Pablo Ponzone.

“It doesn’t matter how good you are, it’s just about doing something out of your comfort zone and if you’re feeling it and the speed’s there, it’s about doing something that shouldn’t be possible.”

Martin Stoffberg, rock ‘n roll. Photo Ryan Janssens

hipster shoe patching his hushpuppies back together.

Skateboarding’s footprint on your life is endless.

Learning skills like drilling, different saws, pouring and floating cement. How to operate generators for pool pumps. Where to rent generators from. How to communicate with cops and steer away concerned citizens and then to juggle all this stuff with having a normal life and trying to pay rent, prepare for your future and save every spare cent so that you can drive, fly or swim to the next unknown spot.

We don’t all roll around like a gang, we very rarely all skate together but we’re all tight and if the shit hits the fan we’ll be there in a second. When your bro does well it’s like you just did well. Everyone gets stoked for you. Triple D is blowing up with his Sk8 Shades at the moment. Oh yeah how did Triple get his name?

Basically he used to be called Double Dave then he

got kicked off a cruise ship in Jamaica for hooking up with a fit Columbian swan so he became Dangerous Double Dave or Triple D. Li Edelkoort just invited Triple to be a part of her Totemism: Memphis meets Africa Exhibition at the Design Indaba in Cape Town. Which is huge. That’s like Koston inviting you to come stay at his house for a few weeks so he can tell everyone how cool you are. We are so psyched for our homie.

That’s where the whole ‘document what you do’ thing has become such a big part of skateboarding. Have a look around every time you skate there’ll be some dude filming or taking photos. Skaters take time to film each other and we are very thorough when it comes to documenting our progression. It all contributes because gnarly stuff becomes commonplace. There’s an overload of information, clips and photos and that’s why we were so stoked to get this Session article. It

took two days to shoot the photos and about two years to get the other random photos plus a bunch of life decisions to get here. But once it’s printed it will be there forever.

It’s like when you ride a pool and everyone’s in the shallow end waiting for their turn. There’s this crazy energy, you’re heckling the guy riding, calling out possible tricks and lines and everyone is feeding off of that electricity - it spurs you on. It doesn’t matter how good you are, it’s just about doing something out of your comfort zone and if you’re feeling it and the speed’s there, it’s about doing something that shouldn’t be possible. And hopefully you don’t hurt yourself but if you do who cares. The same as a street spot. You are not going to find a 20 foot marble ledge.

You have to look at spots through a different set of eyes and that’s where traveling is so important because you

sessionmag.co.za | 37

every spare cent so that you can drive, fly or swim to the next unknown spot.

We don’t all roll around like a gang, we very rarely all skate together but we’re all tight and if the shit hits the fan we’ll be there in a second. When your bro does well it’s like you just did well. Everyone gets stoked for you. Tripple D is blowing up with his sk8 shades at the moment. Oh yeah how did Tripple get his name? Basically he used to be called double Dave then he got kicked off a cruise ship in Jamaica for hooking up

with a fit Columbian swan so he became Dangerous Double Dave or Tripple D. Li Edelkoort just invited Tripple to be a part of her Totemism: Memphis meets Africa Exhibition at the Design Indaba in Cape Town. Which is huge that’s like Koston inviting you to come stay at his house for a few weeks so he can tell everyone how cool you are. We are so psyched for our homie.

That’s where the whole ‘Document what you do.’ thing has become such a big part of skateboarding. Have a look around every

time you skate there’ll be some dude filming or taking photos. Skaters take time to film each other and we are very thorough when it come to documenting our progression. It all contributes because gnarly stuff becomes commonplace. There’s an overload of information, clips and photos and that’s why we were so stoked to get this SESSION article. It took 2 days to shoot the photos and about 2 years to get the other random photos plus a bunch of life decisions to get here, but once it’s printed it will be there forever.

Brett Shaw, backside wallride. Photo Pablo Ponzone.

meet all these different people that eat, sleep and skate different. It’s a whole different approach that you can add or subtract from your own, so that your bag of tricks gets bigger and you can adapt to any spot. Watching how different skaters approach a spot, some guys just go for it and others build up to it, all the superstitions, frustration, anger, personal demons are all a process and they lead up to that insane feeling you get when you roll away from something bigger, longer and higher than you’ve ever done before.

It’s also about sharing. If your bro doesn’t have a board or shoes and you got two, give him one because then you’ll never do without. Make sure the less fortunate have what they need to progress. We always make sure that the Indigo kids have got what they need and sometimes that’s just to share a cream soda and to see you ride so they can progress.

38 | sessionmag.co.za

If you look around right now in SA there’s a ton of similar groups of skaters. Familia, Plankie, SSS, Funisu, 20sk8 and a ton more. Everyone’s on a different trip but on the same path. It doesn’t matter what you like. Ledges, pools, mini ramps, gaps, handrails or manual pads. We are still one big family. What do Tooth, Chippy, Big J and Coach Wessels have in common? Skateboarding.

Pablo is also on MURTH. He’s seen it all go down first hand. The man’s a champ. His poor camera bag has been dragged through some real filth. Huishond, he doesn’t miss a shot, complain or back out. A true warrior and we love him like a brother.

We all work to pay the rent but every opportunity we get we ride, and you may not see us around a lot but that doesn’t mean we’re not skating. It just means we’ve got something new up our sleeve. If you want

in, just ask us but don’t wear your pretty clothes and leave your iPod at home because we get dirty, and if you want to listen to music we can rock an iPod dock so that we can all be stoked together.

“If you look around right now in SA there’s a ton of similar g roups of skaters.”

sessionmag.co.za | 39

Leftfield

Damon De Clercq Interview. Bodcoby Photos. Clinton Theron

I first saw Damo in J-Bay probably 8 years ago, he was a tiny little ripper who hung out at the Element park all day long. Now he’s all grown up, rips transition, street and crete, and has a hip haircut. He also has interests outside of skateboarding, which in turn add to the entire experience.

- Bod.

What was it like growing up in J-Bay?

You don’t touch fizzy drinks and sugar, why?

Growing up in J-Bay has been very chilled. It’s so convenient to live in a small town because you can get around easily. From a young age I would just cruise around and do my own thing. My mom had great trust in me. But of course living in a small town can get real tedious, that’s why it’s always good to travel and experience new things. J-Bay will always be home.

I’ve just never liked sugar in my tea or coffee - it destroys the taste - but I do eat a shitload of chocolate. The fizzy cool drink thing came from me being scared of going bald because my dad is and he is only in his forties. I want a good head of hair then, so I googled how to prevent hair loss and the fizzy cooldrink drink thing came up. At the end of the day water is always a better thirst quencher.

How did you get the nickname “The Mussel Cracker” from Gio? We were on tour in Mossel Bay and ended up giving everyone nicknames. I got The Mussel Cracker because at the time my teeth were real bad and Gio thought that my mouth resembled that of the Mussel Cracker Fish.

40 | sessionmag.co.za

You’re a keen collector of cameras and shooting 35mm, what’s your inspiration to shoot film over digital?

Man film is so much cooler than digital. I like the mystery behind it, the fact that you don’t exactly know what the picture looks like until you get it developed. And by then you’ve forgotten what is on the spool, so you are surprised when you get your prints back.

The last man to get a photo on the Kings Beach quarters. Damo, frontside ollie.

sessionmag.co.za | 41

Frontside crailslide, PE Bowl.

What have you done with all the film, you must have some gems from all the tours you’ve been on?

I’ve got some, I just keep them for memories basically.

Lately I have been having bad luck with cameras - shutters jamming and whole spools going to waste. I guess that is the flip side of shooting film with secondhand cameras.

Do you think the new park at Kings Beach is a positive move? The tight transitions along the side have been destroyed in the process and they played an important part in the PE scene, even the South African scene.

PE has needed a park for many years now and the new plaza is definitely a positive step towards growing skateboarding in the area. It is not so secluded so parents feel safer bringing their children there and plus the kids 42 | sessionmag.co.za

find it way more appealing than just an open piece of flat.

It’s a bummer that the ledges had to go but on the bright side PE is not short of street spots and Clinton Theron is pushing the locals by filming them and just getting everyone hyped on skating again, because at a stage the PE scene flatlined. The new park has kind of revived the scene. People are crawling out of the woodwork, even Theo is back on a board now!

You’ve always been considered more of a transition skateboarder - how does one survive doing that in J-Bay? J-Bay is known for its wind so skating the park or street on these windy days is a bit challenging. Luckily we were fortunate to have an indoor bowl that we could skate.

That’s where I learnt to skate tranny and flat. Sadly the

bowl is no more, but there are rumours that they are moving it.

You collect and listen to a lot of music as well as play guitar. Tell us how big a part music plays in your life and what are some of your favourite bands?

Music plays a big part in my life. I myself play guitar and harmonica. Picked it up when I was sent to boarding school at the age of 14. I also collect LP’s. My favourite bands and artists are Radiohead, The Stones, The Beatles, Hendrix, Simon and Garfunkel, Johnny Cash - I was listening to him when I was 12 - and Bob Dylan. He is definitely on the top of the list.

Frontside Smith.

My favourite bands and artists are Radiohead, The Stones, The Beatles, Hendrix, Simon and Garfunkel, Johnny Cash - I was listening to him when I was 12 - and Bob Dylan

sessionmag.co.za | 43

Colourful crooks.

Did Morrissey influence your haircut?

I have never really been a fan of Morrissey… I think James Dean had something to do with it.

Somebody told us you are a bit of a bookworm, is that true? What type of books do you read and do you do any writing of your own?

I read more than I watch TV. My interests used to only be biographies but lately I have been reading a lot of Charles Dickens. Writing seems too tedious, I enjoying reading more but I have tried my hand at writing songs.

You tweak out a lot of your grabs, why? Do you know who Pete Dosset is?

I need to find a new thing to do haha! I’ve just found it easier to tweak a grab than to do a normal air - my legs just fold naturally. I have in fact never heard of him.

Clinton Theron has been somewhat of a mentor in your life, tell us a funny story about growing up around him.

Clint is a such a character. As far as stories go I remember when he started out at Element, David gave him the nickname BT which he said stood for Boys Town. The rumour behind the nickname was that Clint got sent there for killing his dad with a sharpened tooth brush, which many people in the office believed for a while.

Rumour is you’re headed to New Zealand indefinitely at the end of the year. Why the move?

My dad lives over that side and I thought that it was about time to pay him a visit. I’ve been itching to see another country and to experience new things. Might also get some studying done there.

“The new plaza is definitely a positive step towards growing skatboarding in the area” 44 | sessionmag.co.za

Troyeville Bowl, sweaty pits, James Dean haircut and a stalefish all in one go.

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46 | sessionmag.co.za

Frontside shuvit, Company Gardens.

OUTLANDS

Interview by Sam Clarke, AD Henderson and Melissa Williams.

Photos Sam Clark.

Louis Taubert lives in Kiel, Germany and is one of the most hardworking and super positive people in the world. He skates fast, has the biggest, most solid pop and has a penchant for ice-creams, tattoos and good times. This homie has done a lot for skateboarding in South Africa and it just won’t be the same without him and his crew out here in the summers. sessionmag.co.za | 47

“I know that I don’t skate for the fame. I skate because I love every single aspect that comes with it.”

You look pretty gangster in that profile photo. Have you got swag? Is that your car?

Fo’ sho’ dawg. That car gives you swag and lots of problems!

Where did skateboarding start for you?

I started skating when I was 11, which is 12 years ago. I had some dudes at school that told me skating is super rad. I tried it out and had a big skatepark next to the school, which Hannes Nockel built (Anker Ramps). I was there before school, in the breaks, after school, until midnight. I just got addicted.

Did you go after sponsors or did people just start noticing your skating?

They came to me after a street contest in Hamburg. On my 14th birthday our shop manager came to me and told me he wants to “support” me. As well as a board and a wheel company from Hamburg - Ayume/Tupiar - both not existing anymore.

I was super stoked and went on a trip with Willow and lots of guys one month later.

Who are you currently riding for?

Volcom, DVS, Enjoi, Modus, Support, Independent, Spitfire, and Lousy Livin’.

You won a Skater of the Year Award or something?

No never, don’t know if they have something like that in Germany and there are so many better dudes that would deserve that. And only Thrasher’s Skater of the Year counts.

Does it pay bills or do you do other work?

I get a little salary and have to do some work for Anker Ramps to get through, but I keep it skateboarding.

How many years have you been visiting South Africa for? Why did you first decide to come?

For 2 years now. Came like 4 times for about 3 months. Hannes from Anker Ramps told me how radical it is down there. After an America trip I had to try something else.

And fuck yes, it was a good decision.

What makes you keep coming back?

I had a pretty cool girlfriend from Cape Town, the best tattoo shop to hang out, sunshine in Germany’s cold ass winter and the best times with the best guys ever! I forgot to say how beautiful South Africa is.

What was one thing that freaked you out about Africa?

Seeing whales at a sundowner on the rooftop maybe.

Would you ever agree to a biltong sponsor?

Not a fuck. I can eat one or two. Imagining a flat rate on that stuff, haha!

OUTLANDS

48 | sessionmag.co.za

Ollie.

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50 | sessionmag.co.za

OUTLANDS

“I visited quite a few cool places on the Birdsnake Tour, which were rad. But my favourite is Tietiesbaai. Best spot, crayfish for days and a fun little skatepark in Langebaan.

And a casino. Hehe!”

What’s your favourite camping place or town to go to outside of Cape Town?

I visited quite a few cool places on the Birdsnake Tour, which were rad. But my favourite is Tietiesbaai. Best spot, crayfish for days and a fun little skatepark in Langebaan. And a casino.

Hehe!

How many hand-poked tattoos did you get while you were here this year?

Good question. Wait, I think it was 6 this year, but don’t ask for last year...

How many ice creams did you have to buy everyone from skate bets?

Another good one. My guess would be 75 - 100.

How different are the skateboarders here compared to what you’re used to in Germany?

You get different guys everywhere you go. I could say there is more love and more realness behind it in South Africa. But as well the business is not as developed. And people in SA also sell their asses. So I would go for “Skateboarding is Worldwide”.

Who would you say deserves a one-way ticket out of South Africa and into a world where sponsors give their riders what they really deserve?

Yann and Moses. These dudes are talented as fuck!

You’ve helped put together two international tours out here, thank you. What’s it like bringing guys out here to tour and how much different are the tours you do with guys like that in Europe?

It was a pleasure. I can say that everyone that visited loved it in SA. Spots are rougher and it’s just very far away compared to places in Europe with better spots. But I love rough spots and good-looking ones. Locals in Cape Town are nice and the vibe is just cool.

Tell us a bit about the Merc you bought for the last tour.

I bought that crap from a salesman in Paarden Island. I think I drove it for 2 weeks in 3 months.

I bought it because of the tour and it was in a garage every fucking day. I tried to get it fixed in Salt River. To all foreigners: Don’t do that if you don’t know anyone. That thing is still existing and I will never buy a car in my whole life again, haha!

Frontside 180.

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52 | sessionmag.co.za

OUTLANDS “I had a pretty cool girlfriend from Cape Town, the best tattoo shop to hang out, sunshine in Germany’s cold ass winter and the best times with the best guys ever! I forgot to say how beautiful South Africa is.”

Do you think it’s fair on all the other guys when trying to go wizard? You only have to drink half the amount of beer as anyone else.

Haha and I didn’t’ even make it first try. The other time I proved that I could be taller. I keep it fair.

Black Label or Castle?

Wizard - Castle. Otherwise Black Label.

Even though you’re skating for Enjoi, DVS and Volcom and skate full time in Germany, your part in AV18 was your first full video part. What was it like filming that with Joubert and are you stoked with how it came out?

Yo it was my first part. I never had a real chance to film a full part, only shared ones or had lots of footage in tour clips. It was fucking cool to work on something like that with Joubert.

Always good sessions and lots of fun. You always want more for your parts and besides I’m busy working on another part for the Volcom video 2013. But I love the cut, the spots and the memories that come with it.

You were busy shooting this interview for Session, filming for AV, helping with the international tour and building a concrete bowl all at the same time when you were here. You still managed to pull it off though. How was it for you? Were you stressed that you wouldn’t get enough done?

Yes I was pretty stressed. All the organising kak. Figured out that I get pretty unrelaxed doing that and that I should give some parts to others to enjoy it myself. Building and the skating in the end was fun and much more easy than being a tour guide. But it worked out and I was happy to get it done!

Over the last year you’ve become a skate comp killer, even though you hate comps. What’s it been like getting the park rider reputation and are you going to be skating comps this year?

I wouldn’t say I hate it, because I get a lot of profit from them. Without them I wouldn’t have the chance to chill in Cape Town or wherever it takes me next. I know that I don’t skate for the fame. I skate because I love every single aspect that comes with it. This year I’m much more relaxed when it comes to the comps, because my focus is on the next video part. But I wouldn’t mind some extra travels.

Any thanks?

Big thanks to Joubert for the filming, Seamus, Heidi and Melissa for taking care of my car, Sam for the photos, Sins of Style for all the tattoos and all my other friends for being fucking RAD! Flip shifty.

sessionmag.co.za | 53

closet envy Shoes, threads, boards and all assorted clobber

Etnies Steppen Beanie

Nike SB Koston 2

Adidas Buzenitz

Thrasher “Figgy” Doll

Etnies Jameson 2

Etnies RCT

Etnies Marana

Nike SB Janoski

Vans Era

Vans Lindero

Adidas Silas

DC Chris Cole

DC Anvil

Skate Metal Clock

Bones New Ground

WIN A

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Winner will be announced in the next issue of Session.

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The Legion

Verb Photographer Series

Vans Core Basic Hoody

Independent Reynolds

Volcom Jacket

Independent Koston

Get your hands on a pair of these Adidas Mark Gonzales kicks and a Lomo camera and celebrate 15 years of Mark Gonzales and Adidas!

Name the 6 photographers that will be exhibiting their work at the Gonz exhibition in Area3, Maboneng, JHB in July?

Visist the Session and Adidas websites for the answers. www.adidas.com/skateboarding www.sessionmag.co.za / Email your answers to info@sessionmag.co.za

Anti-Hero Issues Series

DC Weak at Heart Crew

Bones Swiss Bearings

Girl Darkroom Series

Quiksilver Misplaced Face Hoody

Quiksilver Snowed In Beanie

Stick Tips

theron

// with the element team

Frontside Stalefish If you can’t do stalefish airs yet get off your ass and go learn them. They are one of the best tricks you will learn while pushing wood and will crap on any flip in flip out rubbish you were thinking about learning on your friend’s grindbox. You’re going to need some transition, some speed, some balls and plenty of style for this gem so buckle up buddy, it’s time for a stalefish.

56 | sessionmag.co.za

with Giovanni Votano 1. Approach the lip hauling ass ready to pop a solid frontside ollie.

2. As you hit the lip pop the frontside ollie making sure to suck up those knees and bring your board up with you. Your right hand if you are regular like Gio should be ready to grab behind your right knee almost as if you were going to wipe your ass.

3. Grab it, hold on, and float as high and far as you can, as this is the best part of the trick. Style here will go a long way so flap it or tweak it, just make sure not to let go until you’re ready for the land.

4. When you have committed properly and are floating above the lip with a solid grab, prepare for the landing which is much like landing a regular frontside ollie or air. Simply let go and let gravity take its course. Land, bend those knees and roll away stoked on the fact that you can now call yourself a real skateboarder.

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Dog and bone //Neil Hughes

Neil “Huge “Hughes What’s on his phone

Thanks to Mark, Darren and JJ we have no CD reviews this issue, so we decided to rather see what was on people’s phones. Neil Hughes seemed like a good candidate to start with.

Phones he has had Nokia 3310, Sony Ericsson, Iphone 3G, Iphone 3Gs, Iphone 4, Iphone 4s and now Samsung Galaxy S3.

Music Player Mos Def, Nick Cave, Tom Waits, A Tribe Called Quest, Luscious Jackson, Modest Mouse, Roky Erickson and The Pharcyde

Videos he Last played Dog - Lost Mike Carroll B sides Testical Uppercut Bod Dancing

His favourite APPS

Last web visits

Tune in Radio Shazam Calculator

Search: Testical Uppercut www.fngmagazine.com www.capetown.gov.za/en/mycity

Big Baby J in a leotard

His stolen Scooter

Corkers he makes

HUGE Nugs

His burnt infected arm

Kev Love art piece

A ring he made

Pentagram face

BCN Tatoo and a broken toe nail

Hell Awaits Bar

An exclusive collaboration between Verb and some of South Africa’s most illustrious counterculture photographers, who individually, have tirelessly documented the personalities, and the life and times of skateboarding, music and art.

WEAREVERB.COM

BY SKATEBOARDERS, FOR SKATEBOARDERS WWW.REVOLUTION-DAILY.COM

I am Frsh talent

Ofentse Ramakanye

Switch heels. Photo Tim Moolman.

Age? 20 years old.

Favourite Spot?

Library Gardens, LBG’s.

Years Skating?

12.

Who got you into skateboarding?

A guy called Petogo was playing a skate game, I asked him if it was all possible, and that’s how I fell in love with skateboarding.

3 favourite video parts?

Cory Kennedy Pretty Sweet, Lewis Marnell 5 Incher, and Marc Johnson Pretty Sweet.

Who do you skate with?

I skate with The SSS & WSS.

Favourite SA crew?

SSS.

Place you want to skate and visit?

Barca and China.

Thanks and shout-outs.

Thanks to my Mom, Dad, Uncle Ed, Wandile Msomi, Sechaba Thebakersman and Jesus. Shout-outs to SSS, Steezkatz, WSS, Metja, Dada Marumo and Tim Moolman.

Where are you from?

Munsieville, Krugersdorp.

First setup?

PnH/HUD. Current setup?

Funisu 8’, Element wheels, Silver trucks.

Got any sponsors?

Sponsored by family and friends.

Are you working or studying anything?

Currently completing my Matric.

What keeps you motivated you to skate?

Skateboarding with a positive mind keeps me motivated. I thank God for that.

sessionmag.co.za | 59

Rainy days // Luke Jackson

Two of the biggest videos of 2013 just dropped. ‘Bon Voyage’ (Cliché Skateboards) and ‘The Deathwish Video’ (Deathwish Skateboards). Both were released on iTunes and on DVD but you’re more likely to find them via the online option. I wasn’t immediately blown away by either production as a whole but the more I watch them, the more I enjoy them both. Focus on the good and ignore the bad. Here are my pros and cons for each of these particularly contrasting productions:

Only being known by your nickname (nobody knows your real name) Webhead ‘The Deathwish Video’

‘Bon Voyage’

Pros:

Pros:

The Gnar factor!

Lizard King’s firecrackers.

Furby is G as fuck.

Ellington’s switch frontside flip lipslide down a handrail.

Neen Williams’ heelflips!

There is a guy named Moose who can ‘hardflip back tail - varial heel out’ and backside 360 down 16 in the same video part!

Only being known by your nickname (nobody knows your real name).

A feel-good friends section to lighten the mood.

Slash’s full cab back nosegrind revert down Clipper...by mistake!?!

Jim Greco skating to Slayer, wearing Dickies and doing tech shit.

Dickies!

Jon Dickson half cab to hill bomb.

Jon Dickson hammering it!

Limited use of slow motion.

JB Gillet and Pete Eldridge sharing a part.

Pete Eldridge skateboarding with a smoke in hand...again.

JB Gillet has one of the best styles in skateboarding.

Ams you’ve never heard of crushing it, where the hell did Paul Hart come from?

Joey Brezinski’s innovation.

Brophy’s pop.

Lucas Puig (AKA French Mariano) is arguably the best skateboarder in the world.

French Rap nobody understands.

Hélas caps.

Sammy Winter is so underrated.

Kevin Bradley is a beast! The kid is about to blow up, I guarantee it.

Flo Mirtain!

Lines.

Limited use of slow motion.

Cons: Slam montages.

Hand-drags.

California spots.

Jumping down shit for an hour.

No Antwuan Dixon part.

‘No Complies & Wallrides+shuvits’ The second Polar Skate Co. promo.

This edit was arguably the best thing in skateboarding this past Summer. At one point in December it looped for about a week straight on the TV in Baseline. Pontus Alv is genius and Polar is how it manifests. Youtube...Now!

‘GX 1000’ Slap Magazine’s online series filmed by VX1000 master Ryan Garshell. Each installment is a hard-hitting edit featuring individuals such as Jake Johnson, Yonnie Cruz, Ben Gore, Alex Davis and more.

‘Parisii’ The Paris project is an initiative to document skateboarding in each arrondissement (suburb) of Paris. You can view it at www.liveskateboardmedia.com. Click on each part of the map to view a different edit of local skateboarders cruising that part of the city. It’s an ongoing process until they cover the whole of Paris, stay tuned because the edits are getting better and better.

Cons: No more French Fred.

Questionable music selection.

Cliché isn’t the tight Euro brand it once was, Dwindle made it pretty generic.

JB Gillet and Pete Eldridge not having full individual parts.

Daniel Espinoza driving a sports car.

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Lucas Puig (AKA French Mariano) is arguably the best skateboarder in the world

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Have an Adrian Day // Adrian Day

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So it seems as of late a few South African skaters are setting up their own fan pages. Interesting.

I’m not sure how I feel about this.

Nor do most skaters I speak to.

My first wonder, is why? To gain fans? In SA do we have fans? It’s a bit like when I hear the term South African celebrity. It’s the big fish, small pond scenario.

I’m not saying I am against it as such. I think everyone should pretty much do what they like, but I can’t imagine feeling comfortable putting up my own fan page, and again, most people I know couldn’t either. And again I am just not sure why. To please sponsors? To get more? From that side of the spectrum, as someone who has sponsored skaters

62 | sessionmag.co.za

for years, I would definitely discourage that due to the people who generally count finding it in bad taste. Many of us have done questionable things in the skateboarding sponsorship world. Hell knows it. But in the age of energy drinks, over-branding, setup shoots, product placement, airbrush, lifestyle, X bullshit, radio interviews, TV appearances... holy fuck the scope for potential embarrassment is massive.

I think it always just makes me hope that people are skating for the right reasons.

And not for psuedo celebrity status on social media.

But do what you want, I don’t give a shit. Just please promise to Like my page, follow me on Twitter, check out my Instagram for sure, and check all the crap I stick up on Pinterest.

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