Impending Futuristic Armageddon

I don't know if you noticed but it's been snowing around London lately.  Not only has this caused 15 car crashes for every square mile, a queue for the Eurostar that stretches for nearly 4 miles, brought all air travel in and out of the UK to a standstill and curtailed my skating for the last week but it seems to have a pretty dramatic effect on light pollution too.

I guess having the floor of the city carpeted in white snow reflects all this amber streetlight back up onto the cloud cover and then is reflected back down and on and on, until it looks like the opening scenes of a 1950's Sci-Fi movie.  These shots were taken at quarter past midnight last night.

[LIALC]

Snow Induced Skateboarding Drought

With the lack of skating going on in my life right now, I've got a few more shots rescued from the now dead Canon.  This was always the one camera that I would have in the bag, I'm now making do with an old Olympus Mju II that has a questionable record when it comes to focusing but it'll do.

Fingers crossed the snow will hold off long enough to get a skate in on wednesday.  

[LIALC]

 

Don't Let This Happen - Save Baysixty6!!

I can't remember when Baysixty6, or Playstation Skatepark as I've always known it, opened up under the Westway, but I do remember how important it's been to so many London-born and London-based skaters over the years.
 

The midi-ramp has been witness to countless Wednesday night sessions throughout the years, concentrated in the cold, wet winter months. The arrival of the mini-mini created a new era of snake/barge sessions that are some of the best fun you can have skating in London.

Whip enjoying the old tomb extension

The park has been the venue for the Crossfire Jams and many demos over the years, and having the park is just as important to getting big teams and tours to stop off in London as it is for the next Ross McGouran or Nick Jensen, who both spent many of thier formative years skating there.

Currently there is a threat hanging over Baysixty6, one that I hope to god we, as a community of skateboarders, can neutralize.  

The Westway Development Trust are trying to get planning permission to turn what is now the skatpark into a Garden Centre, yep a Garden Centre and office space.  The reason they are giving for this move is "The skatepark does not serve the needs of the local youth"  What a rediculously weak reason to give.  I'm not even going to go into why that is the most lame excuse I've ever heard. 
 

So how do you help? It's all about public oposition and the two best ways right now to register your oposition to this insane plan are,  to sign the petition here...

Save BaySixty6 Petition

and if your on Facebook show your support here..

Save BaySixty6 FB Fan Page

I'm signed up to both and I'm going to do all I can to keep this place available for skaters from not only London but the South East and even further afield who travel into London to skate one of the few covered skateparks in the South of England.

[LIALC]

Flying Cameras and Explosive Landings

The thing about Christmas parties and free booze is, that you are pretty much guaranteed to drink more than you would normally.  And if the free bar includes Jameson's Irish Whisky, well then you might leave early because you suddenly become acutely aware of how wrecked you are and then drop your trusty Canon SureShot instamatic camera on the platform of Vauxhall station, watching in slow-motion horror as it explodes into millions of bits at your uc nstable feet.

If I can recover the film that is currently residing in the destroyed and mangled carcass of my poor Canon, I'll post them up in a kind of emotional farewell, obituary stile post. For now, here are a few random shots from the film before last.

Going Way Down to Come Back Up For a Date With Skate Destiny

So what do you do on a Saturday if you spent Friday night driving for six hours to get down to Cornwall to visit Whip for the weekend?  Drive for an hour and a half back up to devon with Whip, to meet up with the Bristol boys, and skate the Radness that is PRIME Skatepark in Plymouth, that's what.

I'd never got down in time to skate the old Flatspot park in Plymouth but I did get the chance to skate the Domain park which was Nick Marker's second indoor park in Plymouth, that also disappeared a couple of years ago.  Domain was a brilliant quirky park that made amazingly good use of the floor-space and Prime does pretty well too.  The Ramp-Room that accounts for maybe 2 thirds of the park is my kind of room. Take a look at the photos below.

Fast, beautifully constructed ramps with loads of weird little touches and enough bigger stuff to keep it a challenge. Tom and Joe definitely made good use of the midi section before a combination of cramp and shredded toenails got the better of them, after about 5 hours of skating mind.

Fingers crossed Nick has the magic formula sussed for PRIME to stay around for a good long while.

Had a really good session and it was good to see and skate with Reggie & Son,  Joe, Pob, Mike, Sam/Jesus, Tom, Dougall and Whip.

Get yourselves down there to see what I mean.

[LIALC]

Habgood barges into my shot of what Whip
referred to as "The Wembly Gap" to 50-50

I've no ideas what Pob is smirking about
but Reg is not amused.

Whip approves of the ramp-room

Iced Feet and M1 style Skateboard Fun

Years ago I made a decision to make sure I didn't stop skating over the Great British Winter. Unbelievably there were those who did stop in winter. Admittedly back then the UK only had two indoor parks and they where in the NORTH while I had moved South.

When my decision was made Radlands was a two hour drive and worth every minute of the effort, even 5 up in a FIAT Panda. Then of course Playstation/Baysixty6 opened and all of a sudden all-year-skating in a semi-covered park was available, even if you did have to ring Kev to see if the driving rain was making the the place dangerous to skate.

This year the UK is suffering the earliest onset of winter conditions since records began with snow and Ice landing when none of us poor Island dwellers are mentally prepared for it and Radlands is just a fading memory.

But if you have the drive and a car full of shredders to share the petrol, you too could get your arse up to Corby and skate Adrenaline Alley (what a name). That is exactly what Alan (Danger), Adam (Johners), Jamie (Harry), Ivan (Daih) and I did on Saturday.

A ten o'clock start should have had us in the park by mid-day but the odd road closure and U-turn got us there in about 3 hours. Remember to take a helmet, that's one of the few negatives about this place other than the amount of BMXers attempting tail-whips onto every platform in sight, officially the most ridiculous use of a bowl I've ever seen.

Johners and Danger were suffering with arctic trench foot and moaning at each other for the first hour or so, Daih was killing it from the start, Jamie was smithing it all over the shop while telling me to stop taking photos of him while skating and I was sliding-out all over the bowl, thanks to my poor wheel choice of Bones Skate-Park-Formulas on a refrigerated wooden surface. 4 slams in 10 minutes takes it's toll. Thank christ I had an old board in the boot of the car with some ten year old urethane that would do just fine.

the other part of the very large park that we sampled was the "Skateboard only" Berricks style training facility out the back. A smattering of street stuff, ledges, grass gap and that granite block style stuff and a tight quarter the length of the back wall with pool coping and a a hole with Rip- The-Ripper peaking out.

4 hours skating for about 7 quid when it was -2º outside isn't too bad. All the staff are really nice people but beware, food choices are limited and what there is will harden your arteries just by looking at it.

Here are a few photo's from the days exertions.

[LIALC]

Daih going Indy over the hip.

Johners grabbing his nose

Danger caught early on a fast BS-Smith up the escalator

Johners floating Frontside

Out with the new, in with the old.

Entrance to the Berricks style bit

Johners grinding over the Ripper

Daih throwing it High.

Harry educating the Yoof

Lifeblood Promo! Watch This!

New companies pop up all the time but they are not always backed by names as big as Bryce Kanights. One of THE skate photographers that have shaped the way the world of skateboarding has looked over the last 20+ years.

LIFEBLOOD is his new soft-goods and clothing company that has some of the most talented riders around like Kevin Kowalski, Johnny Turgesen, Frank Faria, Mason Huggins, Oudalay Philavanh and Cody Lockwood.

This company already has my attention and I'm sure after you've watched this little promo you'll understand why.

Have a good week end you Lot.

[LIALC]

Real Skateshops stand out from the crowd

It looks a lot like our mini heat-wave has come to an end then. Now begins the part of your skateboarding year that takes a bit more self motivation and sometimes more planing, like checking the weather before cycling up to spots on my bike.

Thankfully I managed to avoid the rain on Saturday afternoon on my ride up to Stand Up Skate-shop, based inside Bay-sixty6 up Portabello Raod way. I'd decided it was time to go and have a chat with Kev (McKeon) about the new shop.

As you'd expect from a skater who rides for Death, Death Wheels, Ace Trucks and Vans shoes, he's stocking all the right stuff and for the right reasons. Kev reckons they've got over 200 different decks in stock at any one time, ranging from 7.5" to 8.5" beasts across of all different brands, which is something my size 12 feet appreciate.

Here are a couple of shots of the shop itself, I don't think Kev realised he was in frame.

The other thing I was super pleased to hear was that the shop has a proper team, currently consisting of Aaron Sweeney, Alex Lally, Marcus Adams, Jamal Bendriss, Tommy Richards, Jack West, Antoine Miller and Hector Barnett. My opinion tends to be that if shops supports skaters then skaters will support the shop, so seeing a descent team in place is always a good way to start.

I know Kev has a few ideas in the pipeline including a proper website in the new year but until then you can keep up to date with happenings on the blog www.standupskateshop.blogspot.com and facebook page HERE. Or you could get yourself down to Playstation/X-box/Gay-station/Bay or whatever in person, and have a skate only temper-tantrum-board's-throw from a proper skateshop.

As always, support your local Skater Owned Business.

The shop is open nearly everyday, but just give Kev a call before going on a weekday on 02089641105 or on 07780926702 to make sure he's open. Kev sometimes keeps the shop open until 9 or 10pm, again call to confirm. For any out of towners you can do the ebay thing here: www.stores.ebay.co.uk/STANDUPSKATESHOP

9.635 frames per second of pure darkness

If you go skating with Adam (Johners) you know that he's just going to pester you, and pester you, and pester you, and pester you to film his latest "New Line". It doesn't matter how dark, how crappy the video on your phone is... he wants that footy and he wants it bad.

Here's what he delivered down the lens for your enjoyment.

Beers, Boards and Bangers.... (Sausages that is)

Here in London Town we've been experiencing a bit of a heat-wave. Only a week ago I was arriving at work on my bike having lost the feeling in my toes and yet last night we had the chance to skate until 10:30PM in our shirt sleeves.

When T-shirt weather is around in the summer you can sometimes let a day pass without a worry, safe in the knowledge that are more to come. In early November such complacency is not the kind of thing that Johners tolerates.

Last night at Stockwell was a mini BBQ night thanks to Adam bringing his gas stove and frying pan down. Beer and bangers were the order of the day and for a while were back in the height of summer, with the added bonus of a distinct lack of micro scooters and kids with no brakes.

Special thanks to Toby for supplying the Ketchup.

I could get used to this weather.

How D'you Like These Apples?

[LIALC] blog-monkey is back again after a little time off from blogging and quite a lot of skating. I could and probably should write a long, in depth, academic article on the "Skate vs Shoot" dilemma that photographers and filmers, who actually skate, face every time we go out... but that is not for today.

Today is about [LIALC] media onslaught going truly global.

A while back [LIALC] was lucky enough to be asked to help a friend that resulted in the zine featuring it's logo and covers in a skateboarding game for the iPhone. Pretty rad in itself and huge thanks go to the guy who made it happen (he knows who he is and he's been a friend for over 20 years).

But wait... last week I saw a new ad for the i-Touch all over TV here in the UK. This current ad is focusing on the game playing side of the i-Touch. As successive pairs of i-Touch grasping hands appear on screen thay are in mid game play of some of the hottest games of the moment.

Have a guess what my sniper sharp eyes see flick up on screen... yep.. the front cover of Issue 1 of Lizard In A Lab Coat featuring Johners and his Stockwell foot-plant.

Check it out...




I'm not going to lie to you, you have to be pretty damn quick to spot it, and a sky+ box helps. But do you know what, I don't care. As far as I'm concerned [LIALC] is featured on an Apple TV ad and I think that's RAD as fuck.

Back with another update soon, maybe.

Forget the cold, skate.

[LIALC]

The Tottenham Spot

Today was all about hitting the idiosyncratic concrete spot in the boiling heat of a UK summer, for once.

[LILAC]


Sent from my android device.

The Hidden Benefits of Forgetfulness

Everyone thinks Digital Photography is a walk in the park and a bed of roses and generally a piece of piss with absolutely no pitfalls what so ever. Bollocks!

I had a bunch of photos that I'd save to disc and left in a case for a couple of years, went to look at them again and the silver layer of the CD had degraded and become transparent and so unreadable.. goodbye images.. FUCK!

last year I shot a bunch of photos and them on one of many SD cards, one that had given me a problem when downloading files from it a couple of times, when I came to edit the shots on my laptop the card was dead, unreadable, Ka-fuckin'-poot! To say I was annoyed is an understatement as it was first time a card has died on me. I've lost a couple, smashed one but generally had not-bad luck.

So imagine my surprise when looking for some e-bay related photography on the i-Mac I notice some un-named folders... well what do you know?? It seems that I must have needed to empty the card in a hurry, slapped them onto the i-Mac and completely forgotten doing it.. RESULT!

New technology, new problems, new surprises.

So here's one of the shots I thought I'd lost. Marcus giving it some on a Frontside Ally-Oop at Cantelowes.

Who's up for Stockwell at the weekend then?

[LIALC]

Nothing Ever Happens in Bristol... Hold on a minute!

So after a bit of a false start, the weekend began on Saturday with a drive down to Bristol for the Annual Deaner Day.

Normally an informal barge-fest with locals and visitors throwing themselves at the park in various states of inebriation while local bands play on the old band stand, this year Ghurka and Rings Around Saturn killed it.

The skating was spread over the usual park bits as well as the ever increasing DIY additions, including Habgood's Rainbow Rail/Deathtrap. Joe was the only person to make it over without getting hurt, actually scratch that, Joe was the only person to make it over. The wall ride got set on fire in order to add a new slippery and flamey flavour to that obstacle.

Of course the DIY creation that got the most attention was the newest of the Vert Quarters in the "Local's Only" installation at the top of the park.

Here are a few shots from that particular session.

Feebs to fakie

Frontside Hurraccacaine

Early-Grabs for the masses.

Front Blunts like it ain't no thing.

I'll hopefully get a few more up later this week.

[LIALC]

It's All About the Brakeless Segway, Yeah!?

If you spend enough time in and around Soho or East London you get to see some really bad stuff. I don't mean violence or drugs, I mean people slavishly following crappy trends in order to fit in and then take them to unnecessary extremes in order to out-do all the other hipsters.

Yes, I ride a fixed Gear Bike to work, but I have brakes on mine. Yes I had a mustache on my stag weekend, but I shaved it off when I got home. People need to know when to stop.

And some people take it too fucking far.

Like this guy and his Reynolds 531 Brakeless Fixie-Segway!!

What they tell you is cool.. generally isn't.

[LIALC]

Never say Die... or SEX.

You probably already know that the Jam/Comp that was planned for Laupside last Saturday didn't go ahead, mainly due to Laupside no longer existing.

It transpired that the local council demolished it on Friday morning, the day before the Jam. It has been mentioned that painting the date of the Jam on the wall of the spot may not have been the most covert publicity tool and that councils tend not to see irony in use when a web flyer announces "Skate Jam, Skate Comp, BBQ, Raffle, Beers, SEX"

You can just imagine the weird happenings that little list conjured up in Mr. Council Man's mind. Obviously the only possible course of action left was to make sure this debauched BBQ-RAFFLE-SEX party could not take place...the cry when up... "SEND IN THE BULLDOZERS!" ... and Laupside was no more.

BUT.... before Laupside there was another spot (that will remain nameless). For those who still came along we knew where we needed to go. Considering this was a second choice/emergency option it's pretty damn good.

Thankfully rain stayed away and the turnout was pretty damn good. Just some of the people in attendance were Witchcraft Coven (French, Sam, Jamie, Jake and Nico), Stevie Thompson, Stu Love'n'Skate, Laup himself, Alex I, and many more. the BBQ and Raffle went off without a hitch. After food there was even a kick-a-bout that nearly broke my foot when I mistook the ground for the ball. Definitely no SEX at any time.

Here are a few shots that I managed to get, to be honest I was having too much fun skating.

Jamie pole-jamming the super sketchy pole.

Chris P. front blunting the block

Alex pole-jamming to tail smack

Sam destroying the quarter

Thanks to all involved for a great day in the face of bureaucratic adversity.

[LIALC]

Build It And They Will Shred!

Portland has Burnside, Philadelphia has FDR, Sweden had Steppenside and now England has Laupside.

In the traditional manner of these DIY parks, skaters decided to start building stuff without any permission from anyone but have since struck compromise agreements with the powers that be, letting it happen as long as everyone is cool. With Laupside this is even more amazing as the spot's nearest neighbor is the local, and very large, Police Headquarters.

I'd been meaning to get up to this spot for a while but illnesses and all sorts of stuff had been getting in the way. Last night Jamie came over and we jumped in the car and headed for Laupside. It's an amalgamation of versions of standard skatepark stuff but built as either smaller, tighter, weirder versions of the originals. It's been a truly sporadic project, with new bits being built as and when, meaning that you need to have a good look and think to figure out what to do. Each element has character that's for sure and it all ads up to a spot that demands a lot and getting anything on these creations is an achievement. Oh, and it likes to hurt you too. I am currently suffering the effects of one of the worst Shinners I've had for years.

Of course Jamie loves it (check out his ollie on the bank last night), and I can see why, you'll never get to skate a spot as fun as this until someone builds another one. Maybe you?

So this weekend you had better get yourself down to Laupside and join in what is going to be an epic Skate Jam/Comp at a completely unique spot.

Seriously this will be the stuff of legend soon, make sure you can say you were there.

Details below. See you there.

[LIALC]

Legend of the Abandoned Bowls

I wonder how many mentions there are of rain on this blog each summer, someone with more time on their hands would probably look into that and come up with a definitive number... don't hold your breath.

Yesterday in the South East was wet, sporadic showers is how they describe it. Thankfully it was warm enough for the Meanwhile Bowls to dry out in time for my arrival for an evening roll. I figured there would be a few of the usual Wednesday night regulars there, some would be scared off by the rain, but the hardy few would still be up there.

I was wrong. I couldn't have been more wrong.

There were about 8 BMXers there when I arrived but soon they were more intent on getting stoned, so for about an hour I had the place to myself. A few puddles kept things interesting but that's about it. I don't often skate on my own and I'd forgotten how much I dislike it. Inspiration, motivation and conversation are things that the people you skate with provide and when they're not there, I notice. By 8:30 PM the next shower came and killed the one-man session for the night anyway.

Having the place to myself was great, but ultimately shit too.

Personally, it's not over until I turn up and the place is so wet it's un-skateable. The great thing is, I got a skate in last night. I'm planning on doing the same tonight.

Fingers crossed.

[LIALC]