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THE CONVERSE CONS STAR PLAYER PLUS
CONVERSECONS.COM
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Editor/Photographer Taufek Asmarak info@waxfeathermagazine.com Concept/Designer Taufek Asmarak Associate Editor Petra Tomljanović Senior Photographer Nur Amsyar Contributing Photographer Pontus Alv Nils Svensson Reece Leung Sam Hutchinson John Lindsay Tommy Zhao Taufek Asmarak Sergej Vutuc Nur Amsyar Eman Kece Florian Lanni Matt Price Zool For submissions/advertising enquiries. Email to info@waxfeathermagazine.com No part of this publication may be reproduced without the permission of the editor. All Rights Reserved. www.waxfeathermagazine.com info@waxfeathermagazine.com Wan Black
Backside Tailslide By Nur Amsyar 6
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Firdaus Rahman Million Miles journey to Tampa Pro 2014
How did you start skateboarding? I started skateboarding when I was 11 years old. My dad brought my brothers and me to East Coast Park. There was an old skate park next to McDonalds. I was rollerblading with my brother when we saw some people skating on boards, I was curious what that was and had to try it. From that day on, I fell in love with skateboarding. What are your current sponsors? My sponsors are Billabong, Vans, Boneswheels, Nixon, Von Zipper and Voltgrip. How did you get on board to Billabong Asia/Vans SG team? After winning Shanghai Asian X-Games in 2007, few days after I got a call from Tony Sruntul, Billabong Team Manager, asking me if I would like to skate for Billabong. I was surprised and damn hyped! I got on Billabong from there on. Vans had also approached me the very same year I won the Asian X-Games and I was on flow during the competition. However, after the competition, it went quiet for a while and I started skating for Element shoes. After few years with them, Vans got back to me with a better deal for skate shoes, while the waffle grip and designs are definitely better! Surely, it’s all about a better board feel, while my favorite is definitely the Era Pro’s. Do you feel that your advancement comes with ease or do you need to push hard for it? One definitely needs to push hard in order to improve, therefore I watch skate videos and check out skate sites like: The Berrics, SPOT (skateparkoftampa), Transworld, Thrasher, Skatemalaysia, Skatehere, Skateboard.com.au. They provide me with the latest info and tricks. One needs to update own skills and constantly push further. One also must try new scenes and explore, such as traveling to Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia or America. Whether for the competitions or a skate trip, one’s skating will benefit either way, while doing it among different people and learning from different scenes. It opens up one’s eyes and mind, while trying new tricks one never thought of.
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There are so many things going on for you at the moment. What are you currently working on? At the moment, I’m working hard for the VANS video whose deadline is by end of month. I have also received an invitation to skate at the Shanghai Kia World Extreme Games that will be taking place from 30th April to 3rd May 2014. Subsequently will be the Backsmith KOTR 2014 representing Voltgrip, and hopefully, a Billabong video tour coming early next year. How do things come about for Tampa Pro 2014? Were you invited or is it a self funded trip to compete among international pro? I always wanted to go to Tampa, whether competing or watching. I have watched the competitions and hyped myself on the level of skateboarding. If there is any place I wanted to go skateboarding at least once in a life, it’s definitely Tampa. It was my New Years’ resolution since 2010, a great wish to go to Tampa, but never had the chance. My bro’s Feroze and Farris went to Maloof Money Cup in South Africa telling me that the SPOT guys were there. At that point I was working, so I couldn’t go, and obviously, I was kind of bummed because I didn’t meet them or ask how I could there. Last year when I went to Shanghai Kia World Extreme Games, I met Porpe and Ryan Clements from SPOT Tampa. Seeing them there was almost unreal which led to my huge praise about Tampa (I was being a fan boy, ha-ha). I asked them how could I get to Tampa and they advised me to send a video or a skateboarding resume to SPOT email. During the Kia World Extreme Games 2013, I made into the finals when Jared from Boneswheels approached asking me whether any wheel company sponsored me. He asked would I skate for Bones and how awesome would it be for Bones to have a rep in Asia. I was hyped, blessed and I definitely said yes! Last November I asked my Bones Team Manager Jared about possibilities in Tampa, him knowing my goals to compete there. He talked to Brian Schaefer from SPOT - and the next thing was getting a spot to compete in Tampa Pro 2014! I was so happy and bless-
ed. My sponsor Billabong therefore provided me with the trip and the accommodation. Other sponsors such as Boneswheels, Nixon, Vans, Von Zipper & Voltgrip supported me with different products, on what I owe them my sincere gratitude. You made Singapore/Asia proud by committing yourself to professional level of skateboard competition. Is there anything you would like to share with us that made you step to this level? Firstly, I’d like to thank everyone supporting me and staying up late in order to watch Tampa Pro 2014. It was indeed a very honorable experience and my wish is for every one to experience similar. Here, the level of skateboarding is different, but that inspire one to skate better. My advice is to set goals where you want to be, and travel as much as you can, experience skate scenes, overseas competitions. That will definitely make you a better skateboarder. It might be a bit scary at the beginning, but honestly, it’s well worth it. Were you travelling alone? Yes I was. Have you ever consider starting your own skateboarding company, having your own pro model, proper team, footage? Yes, I have, but now I want to skate some time before I focus on starting my own company. I’m definitely thinking in different perspectives, when it comes to either starting a board company or any other merchandise. I’m looking into different ideas and I definitely want it to be good a one when it starts. Good things come to those who wait. What is your preference: HD or VX? HD. Skate Park or street? Honestly, both and vert. If you can skate different obstacles and disciplines, this will make you a better skateboarder. Any last words? Thanks to Waxfeather Magazine for this interview, thanks to my sponsors Billabong, Boneswheels, Vans, Nixon, Von Zipper, Volt Grip and Everyone, friends & family that supported me since the very start. Thank you so much, God bless you. Keep skateboarding, keep shredding! Always set your dreams high and don’t ever let anyone bring you down, believe in yourself and get yourself there. Peace. By Taufek Asmarak 9
Firdaus Rahman Backside Flip By Marcus Tay
Firdaus Rahman
Frontside NoseBlunt By Nur Amsyar
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Firdaus Rahman Backside Smith By Nur Amsyar
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Tommy Zhao The producer, ‘‘Something Sinister’’ Skateboarding film
Where did you grow up? I’m born in Nagoya, Japan, but when I was 5 years old, I moved to Delaware, USA. There I spent my entire childhood. Why did you choose to move to Shanghai? My dad got a job transfer to Suzhou, China, when I was 10 years old and we lived there for one year. When I moved back to the States after graduation in autumn 2008, instead of taking a full-time office job, I decided to come to Shanghai because I knew the skate spots would be insane here. When did you started filming and what makes you want to document? Since I started skating, the “homies” and I were always filming each other, but I always had a notion of how I wanted things being captured (hahaha). I don’t know, I just wanted to capture the most from people even when the camera is out... It’s motivating. When were the first time you picked up a camera? When I was 14, using my parents’ super hi8mm. Why do you still prefer to film on VX? Have you filmed anything with HD camera? For the project, Something Sinister, we started and ended filming using VX. Somehow, that only made sense...and honestly, I think that skating looks so fucking badass in VX. It’s undeniable that technology progressed in that direction, towards HD. Of course, we (as film-makers) obviously had to move on. Although, I also film on HD/DSLR, which I love for its crisp image and best of all - no more tapes involved.... Ha-ha. We, skateboarders, will always remember the VX, as a huge part of skate history.
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Do you search for spots on your own or is it already prearranged with a skateboarder you are filming, them wanting to have the footage there? We decided to look out for spots, as we didn’t just wanted to film at the most blown-out spots. How long did you spend filming ‘Something Sinister’ video? In total, it took about 1.5 years. What do you look into when selecting music for a video part? Music rights are tough, but since we’re nobodies.... hahaha. I leave it to the skater to tell me what they want to skate, and consequently we reach a mutual agreement. Of course, I wanted the skater to skate to what they really want to. It definitely has to fit the whole vibe, but eventually, we all listen to the same music, so it all worked out naturally. Usually, it is classic hip-hop from the 80’s. How do you approach a skater featured on ‘Something Sinister’ video? Can you describe production for the film; was it a long time reflection on mutual collaboration? Somehow, it’s a mutual thing. I desired to see the best of them and they wanted to see how well they could perform too. Finally, we’re all super good homies, eager to see how far we could push each other. To be honest, I just wanted to set a good example for Chinese skateboarding altogether, to the rest of the world.
TOP Brian Dolle
Noseblunt Hubba By Tommy Zhao
BOTTOM Dan Leung
Frontside Blunt By Tommy Zhao
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What other films have you seen and liked recently? Ultimately, I wanted to make sure that people grasp that it isn’t only about visiting teams killing it, but also about the locals. I watch films constantly, depending on my free time, especially movies and other skate videos. I’ve been watching more movies than skate videos, due to harder distribution here. What other skateboarding film you produced before? Just the ‘Gift Skateboards’, a wrap, which really wasn’t my creation, so... ‘Something Sinister’ is certainly my first. Do you feel that you gain more during the actual filming or during post-production, footage and editing? One can learn a lot while filming with a person more than any other way! That’s when one gets the heart of the spirit with all its rawness, its non filter-ness and its limitlessness. I’ve made my best friends through skating and I don’t intend to lose them, so yeah, definitely... The process can be cruel sometimes.... It is something unique. What do you appreciate in Shanghai skate scene? It keeps growing! Really, this is only the beginning... Let’s see what comes after! One can see results with the buzz around the interview that consequently influences people to visit and step up! It’s good to stay stimulated and motivated! By Taufek Asmarak
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TOP LEFT Lucas Puig
Backside Tail up By Florian Lanni
BOTTOM Stephen Khou
Back Nose Blunt By Tommy Zhao 16
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Md Umar Al-siddiq Bin Rahman K-Grind By Zool
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Paul Shier
A British-born brand from the ashes of Blueprint Skateboards, founded by creative mind of Paul Shier and Nick Jensen. Isle Skateboards had set a unique creativity onto skateboarding culture that no one has done before.
Where are you from and how did you start your career? I’m born in Croydon, which is a short train ride from the London city center. I started skating when I was 13 and eventually got sponsored when I was 21 years old. At first, I rode for a U.K. company called Panic, a predecessor to Blueprint Skateboards. After a year in Panic, I started skating for Blueprint. For the last 16 years, I was riding for them, since I quit and founded Isle. Please share your insights on why have you decided to form Isle Skateboards? I love skateboarding. Once I left Blueprint, I was eager to start a new brand that would allow me to take care of rad skateboarders; grow and build something fantastic that is all about people. I spoke to some guys who rode for Blueprint and we shared similar interests in future project. After mutual discussion, I set up a financial plan for the brand. I collaborate with Nick Jensen and Chris Aylen who are in charge of graphic design and creative. As a team, we work together very well and the riders, who are a part of Isle, still continue to impress me everyday and be my favorite skateboarders out there. How did you start to collaborate with Nick Jensen who lives in a different city/ country? With the strength of the Internet, relationships are very easy to keep up with. The time difference can be a problem sometimes, and I do miss skating with Nick on a daily basis, but we get by very well, ensuring that we are in touch with each other weekly. We also have a team Whatsapp in order to always keep in touch with each other. That gets pretty funny on a daily basis! Isle Skateboards has its own unique style/creative approach. What inspires you? Skateboarding, friendship, music, nature.
Paul Shier
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50-50 By Matt Price
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Which skateboarding companies you’re currently riding for? I currently ride for Isle, DVS shoes, Broadcast wheels, Diamond Supply and Remind insoles. How did Isle skateboards get onboard by putting up video series with Dazed Digital? This was a connection that Nick Jensen made with Dazed Magazine, thanks to the help of Dan Magee, Mark Jackson, Hopps, Jake Harris, Chris Massey and everyone who skated in it. While the finished product of the project came out great, I learned that working with a company that does not fully understand skateboarding or our vision on a project we came up with, can be a difficult task. We are happy how it turned out visually, but ultimately we ran into a few problems with the end result. The videos were supposed to be online daily over one week period, as everything had been filmed as a series to build up with a concluding video. Dazed thought it was a better idea to screen them all, on the same day and out of order clashing with our wishes. What are you up to these days? I got back to L.A from competition in Florida with some guys from DVS. It was amazing working with them in Nicaragua on a project with the Berrics that will be coming out this summer. Being back in L.A, I will be starting a film for the Isle promo that we will be dropping out later this summer. Share with us some stories of your recent trip to Athens. It was just a fantastic trip and great way for us to get started on our promo video. Any trip with Isle is always a good one. Athens is an incredible city to skate and be in. The people, the food, the weather, the spots. Is there any plan on releasing a full video part for Isle skateboards? At the moment, we are working on a promo that is to be released sometimes this summer. Stay tuned.
By Taufek Asmarak
Paul Shier
Frontside Rock By Matt Price
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Sylvain Tognelli Wallride (Japan) By Matt Price
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Tom Knox
Backside Flip (Japan) By Matt Price
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Sylvain Tognelli
Kickf lip to Banks By Matt Price
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Sylvain Tognelli, Paul Shier Hill Bomb By Matt Price
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Firdaus Gerl As you may have already known from his famous video part‘‘ The Conquest” by Terrorkota. Nailing a huge Nollie Backside Heelflip down the demolished set of stairs opposite Tanjong Pagar Mrt Station, Singapore. Incase you don’t, we’ve re-captured it again on a still format, different location. Firdaus aka Gerl is no stranger to the local skateboarding community. Having appearance in almost every local advertisement, be it for commercial or independent. Gerl has set a unique appearance for every topic related to skateboarding.
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Firdaus Gerl
Nollie Backside Heelf lip Photo by Nur Amsyar
Firdaus Gerl
Frontside Noseslide Photo by Nur Amsyar
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Pontus Alv Creator of the wierdess brand, Polar Skate Co.
What have you been up to these days? My life is just working on the company, taking care of all the things everyday – from production to graphics, team, filming and everything that you can imagine. Are you working on any new stuff lately? Yeah, we are working on some video and we’re finding some time to edit it. I have so much work all the time with the production so it’s hard to find time to edit the film. We’re done filming pretty much by now. We just need time to put it together. It will probably be our full or half length video, I don’t know, we’ll see along the way how it will turn out. So yeah, it will come out this fall in September or October but I’m just going to take my time to work on it and not just mess it up. It’s a very important piece. I want it to be a really special one and unique, so it’s going to take some time for sure. How would you describe you arts? I don’t know what you’re thinking about specifically because they are all different. Some of them are photographic and some of them are illustration, painting. We don’t really have a big master plan to do the stuff. We just go with the feeling so when it feels good then it’ll look good, if it’s right or if it’s funny or not. It’s very spontaneous. We just produce stuff and try to make the best of it. I mean, there isn’t some deep meaning, but sometimes there is. It really depends on the graphics. Some stuff is just funny or looks good. It’s not like some deep process. To describe my art, the graphics I do, I do them just for fun. I just like doing them. I’m not a graphic designer or a painter. I just mess around and try to make it. Is there any inspiration from the art side of skateboarding? Yeah, of course. We’re inspired a lot by the old master in the skate history: all the Old Bones, Santa Cruz, Powell stuffs, all the stuff from the 80s and early 90s. There was some really amazing artwork being produced then and of course, the time of skateboarding means a lot to us and sometimes we find inspirations in it, create our own twist and do our
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own things with it. The main inspiration is some skating from my childhood memories, late 80s or early 90s stuff that we’re into or I’m really into. For me, it’s my childhood, so we’re just creating our own things and everyone is developing their own ideas. We also find inspiration anywhere. It’s like where you can find anything in life – walking down the streets, seeing other things, travelling or just hanging out with the team rider, anywhere that we’ve travelled and what we usually do. Do you give art direction to your artist/rider who worked on the art or is it by individual creativity? For sure. Like, sometimes the riders have their own ideas and creativity that they would like to see on their graphics, or sometimes they don’t have any ideas so we try to come up something for them. We’ll just do stuff and show them if they like it and most of the time they will like the things that we’ve done for them. It just works out in a natural way and yeah, if we don’t like it we don’t produce it. So, it’s a mix. Was starting POLAR base on a long time reflection, a dream for you to run your own skateboarding company? It’s every skater’s dream and for me too. I’ve been involved in skateboarding for 27 years. I’ve done so many different things, from projects to video and films, being part of a team and whatnot, and of course what else am I going to do. Like, I’ve produced my own film and I was a pro-skater and all these things. It’s my last chance is to run and create something of my own. Put all my ideas to it and my vision. Create a team and video, create a full circle with all the knowledge and show my vision of skateboarding and the world, so this is what comes out and that is what you guys are seeing. It has always been a little bit of a dream, and also a challenge trying to create something new. Many years of skateboarding can be pretty boring: I wanted to make skateboarding fun again. I think a lot of people get inspired and they start doing their own things and now, I think skateboarding is nice again, a lot of new energy in the industries, new brands, new people are all doing cool stuffs and these are great times.
Photo by Nils Svensson
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What do you look into from someone to ride for Polar? Relationship starts from everything like skating and hanging out to making sure they are cool guy. The person has to be someone you want to hang out with – great personality – and of course, the skating has to be cool and interesting. Yeah, so it’s all about originality, great personality, great creativity, and having your own style. It should be also possible to hang out with the people and the rest of the crew. It’s very important to have unique character. Are you particular with spots that you want to film? Yeah, the spots are kind of really important. It has to make sense where we ride, so we don’t have spots from like China, Barcelona, L.A., Florida, you know what I mean. I try to film where the guys live or where the guys skate and of course I try to keep things rough and industrial, old rusty-looking. I think it looks more interesting that way. Making a film is not only about the tricks, it’s also about the spots as the spots tell the concept of the whole thing. It’s like, when people feel it then it’ll make sense. It’s not just another random spot from around the world, so it’s important to have ideas on what spots you want to skate and film. Does that bring you to build your own spots? Yeah, I’ve been doing that for many years. If you don’t have enough places to skate, the best idea is to build your own spots. If u can’t find it on the streets where you live, then of course you’ll have to start building your visions and ideas. 36
How long does a spot last, before it gets removed? Some of them last for a month, some a few years. That you’ll never know, you have to see what will happen, when you build it, you need to skate on it. One can’t have a fix plan on its durability. Sometimes, we need to rebuild it, because there will be fucking people breaking the spots. There might be times in which you’ll have so many problems you’ll have to look after them. What makes a brand works well in the market? I don’t know, because I don’t have a set plan. It’s not that we do it to make it a business; we do it because it’s what we do. We make film, art and skate. This is what we’ve been doing for so long, keep on doing until people are into it and support it. One has to be original, do it’s own thing without copying existing brand, trying to create something new and fresh. There’s no guarantee for this, one will have to create message-like idea or a vision to make people dream. One has to be a lifestyle creator for them in order to join in or to be part of it. What comes first: hype value or aesthetic? We really don’t care about the hype, because people are the ones who make the hype. If you do a great job that people like, eventually they will write and tell stories about it. They want to a have the piece of it. Of course, you need to push the culture and aesthetic forward, as well as great ideas, quality skateboarding, videos and products. That’s how you’ll do well in the things you do. The hype will come by itself. It is not on us to create it. Are you satisfied on how the brand is evolving right now? When you grow global, every company has issues. There will always be problems with cash flow, money, production, business and distributions. The moment you create a brand, it is impossible for everything to be perfect. Sometimes, having a brand can be a real, very tiring nightmare. Yeah, it’s not easy all the time. There are a lot of things that needs to be done with.
Artwork by Pontus Alv
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Artwork by Pontus Alv Photo by Nils Svensson
Are you planning to tour Asian market? Yeah, we are going to Japan this year, featuring Carhartt and Polar. I really like Japan. That’s the only thing I have in mind for this year. It’s quite expensive to travel in Asia with the team, considering our company’s budget in order to travel around, say China or else in Asia. We only had the opportunity to go to Japan. Also, we’re doing collaboration with Carhartt this year, which is already done and is about to be released this fall. Surely, that’s going to be fun. Of course, if there are some sponsor opportunities, we will definitely be in other part of Asia. By Taufek Asmarak
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DUSK (Tokyo, Japan)
Toshiaki Fukitake
Photos by Daisuke Eto
DUSK is an independent skateshop based in Tokyo, Japan which is fully operated by skateboarders. Founded by Akira Matsusaki in November 2013. It has now fully formed a team with riders Takuya “Wakky� Wakiyama,Toshiaki Fujitake,Takaaki Taguchi,Yuki Koriyama and Disuke Eto.
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Takuya “Wakky” Wakiyama
Nollie Backsde Tailslide (Japan) By Makoto Ishikawa
Akira Matsusaki Ollie (Japan) By Daisuke Eto
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==========AZ
GALLERY A collection of analogue photography. Sergej Vutuc Taufek Asmarak Reece Leung Heywood Ward Sam Hutchinson John Lindsay Eman Kece
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Photo by Sergej Vutuc
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Photo by Sergej Vutuc
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Syed Muhd Syed Alwi Syed is the most underrated skateboarder grew up in this little red dot Country One of the smoothest all terrain skateboarder to know by now. Fusing big style with technical and that makes him one of the most enjoyable skaters to watch, hang out and the master mind behind the construction of DIY skate obstacles.
Syed Muhd Syed Alwi
Switch Front Blunt, Singapore Photo by Taufek Asmarak
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Syed Muhd Syed Alwi
Frontside 5/0, Singapore By Taufek Asmarak
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Jono Coote
Front Rock. St Helens, UK By Sam Hutchinson
Laurie O’Hara
Wallride. Bradford, UK By Sam Hutchinson
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Reece Leung
Frontside Noseslide By Heywood Ward
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Izad
Noseslide (Malang, Indonesia) By Taufek Asmarak
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Myles Rushforth Backside 50/50 By Reece Leung
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Moose
Ollie, Singapore By Reece Leung
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Foz
Wallride Nollie, UK By Reece Leung
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Preduce Skateboards Lion and Tiger Tour (Singapore)
Geng Jakkarin - Tao Kitpullap - Lert Saeri - Jeff Gonzalez Photos by Taufek Asmarak - 35mm Film Potra 400
From the archive. Photos taken during Preduce Skateboards team, Jeff Gonzalez (8Five2) tour to Singapore for a Converse CONS Project event held at Aliwal Art Centre which is located at the central part of Singapore.
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Jeff Gonzalez
Ollie gap to Big Drop By Taufek Asmarak
Jeff Gonzalez - Lert Saeri Caveman Boardslide By Taufek Asmarak
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Jeff Gonzalez
Nollie HArdf lip By Taufek Asmarak
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Tao Kitpullap
Boardslide By Taufek Asmarak
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The Sleeping Horse Magenta Hill Street Blues 2 By John Lindsay
“We were skating near San Franciscos’s Mission District where Leo had been living at the time and ended up at this ledge spot with him and Colin Read, aka Mandible Claw during the filming for ‘Tengu’. I had an idea for a line I wanted to film, but quickly gave up once I realized it was much harder than I had anticipated. As I was grabbing my backpack up on the ledge, I snapped a quick pic of Leo as he casually Front boarded this ledge with speed and ease!” 58
Taken during Magenta Hill Street Blues 2 photography show that included video premiere featuring photos by John Lindsay, Ben Gore, and Isaac McKay-Randozzi. The guys met up earlier that day to film an episode of ‘SKATE SF’ for the Ride Channel on YouTube with Josh Steward. They skated the entire day that lead up to the photo show and video premiere, having Josh filming them for a video part.
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Evan Kinori Casual Sunday skate session in SF’s Financial District.  The Financial District in San Francisco is a relative Ghost Town on the weekends making it a great place to skate with little worry. By John Lindsay
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Carlos Young Pushing San Francisco By John Lindsay
Steve Brandi and Josh Stewart I was at work when I got a phone call from Ben Gore telling me that him, Steve Brandi and Evan Kinori were outside my office. I walked down and saw Josh on the ground with a 16mm camera in the middle of California Street as Steve is directing traffic to keep cars from running over Josh. Â During all of this, Ben is now at the top of California street with my cell phone coordinating with Josh at the bottom telling him that he is about to bomb the hill. Â This was all for the filming of Static 4. By John Lindsay
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Hairi
Nollie Frontside Noseslide, Singapore Photo by Eman Kece
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