Mark Gonzales in Hawaii at NSA contest

Vintage Gonz with a 12 foot ollie

This is contest video from one of the the last hurrahs of the N.S.A., the organization that would eventually end up as World Cup Skateboarding, believe it or not. Mark made this ollie gap twice, once in practice and once in the contest. It’s the branch of the y-shaped miniramp that Team Pain built for the the Honolulu, Hawaii contest in 1988. On the bottom left you can see a flash going off. That’s Grant Brittain. Don’t believe me? You can see the shot he took at that instant at The Skateboard Mag. Watch the video after the jump.

– Thanks to Tito for the tip.

Discussion

24 thoughts on “Vintage Gonz with a 12 foot ollie

  1. Gnarles Copinghagen on October 2, 2009 - Reply

    One of my all time favorite skaters. He’s still badass!

  2. nweyesk8 on October 2, 2009 - Reply

    I used to have the video of that contest. I wore that video out 🙂

  3. that shit was hella sick, yo… and that ramp looks FUN

  4. Jerkins on October 2, 2009 - Reply

    Stylin’.

  5. I think that was Scott Starr’s flash……….what happened to Starr Saturdays?

  6. Livin’ in the ’80’s.

  7. zomg, so fucking sick.

  8. Estes – you think? I’m talking about the bottom shots, compare it to the photo that Grant Brittain took, it places him where that flash is.

    Saturday Starr’s disappeared because Scott keeps getting kicked off YouTube.

  9. just think how heavy that board was, compared to the sticks they ride today.
    what a kook ,ya gotta love him.
    gonz!

  10. that got me so stoked, so gnarly.

  11. After reviewing the footage, ’cause I have nothing better to do… I don’t believe that photo is from the run… neither the slam, nor the make. I say GB’s photo is from practice. There’s no body in Grant’s position on the floor in the vid, AND look on both decks… wrong positions for all present… only the one photog with his arms raised between the decks has the same basic body pose… just sayin’… still gnarly, photo and skating. And I remember questioning their definition of a ‘mini ramp.’

  12. I don’t agree. Grant’s post says other photogs were trying to get that shot all day and he just happened to walk into it. Also, form the anouncer, that trick was only made twice. A wide angle lens from a low shot would make it look distorted. If you look in grant’s photo, there is a guy standing with his arms up holding a camera, same as the guy standing next to the flash.

  13. skaterhusseindave on October 3, 2009 - Reply

    My first mini ramp had 9ft. transitions chopped at 7.5… what alot of folks today call minis, I call micro minis

  14. I’m with Nik on this one with respect to if the video and Grant’s image sync. Where is the big white banner on the left side of the ramp that appears in the video. Grant’s pic doesn’t seem to have that element. Also, shirtless Fabio skater is on the left deck in Grant’s pic he doesn’t show up on the video frames.

  15. You might be right. Anfd both of you have too much time on your hands. I’ll ask Grant.

  16. Like Sgt. Joe Friday says: “All we want are the facts, ma’am”

  17. michael on October 3, 2009 - Reply

    i dont find any other footage from that contest on youtube, any ideas?

  18. Sick…my first board was Gonz and now also Gonz from Krooked…

  19. There’s one glaring error in the “Grant’s flash” theory… Grant’s photo is from in front of the ramp, towards the bottom of the tranny, not behind it like the flash in the video screen grab. I mean, isn’t it? Or am I crazy. Also, he could’ve touched it up and taken out that white banner on the left. Anyway, Gonz is the best.

  20. nweyesk8 on October 3, 2009 - Reply

    I think the photo is from the practice session make and not from the contest run pictured in the video???

  21. That was so fuckin huge! so sick!

  22. Jeff Phillips had a sick ass boneless over that thing too…I think he also did one from the deck into the transition, man what a great contest I had to rent that from blockbuster video when i was a kid, it was my only source for skate videos at the time.

  23. oops didn’t see the video prior to my previous comment.

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