I just added two issues of Skate Life generously donated from reader Will Heesp, some 5 years ago. Better late than never. Funnily enough, I skated with Mark Conahan last night and he told me that he once sold Will a Datsun pickup in the 80’s whose ignition was in such bad shape that it had a screwdriver instead of a key. In other plate-of-shrimp news, one of the tales featured in an issue of Skate Life mentions that Dave Tobin lost a $100 bill and the keys to the van on a road trip to the Chicago Blowout. I was at that NSA contest, but wouldn’t meet Dave (or Mark) until I moved to Portland circa Y2K. Skate Life was based out of Newburryport, MA, and has the distinction of being one of the rare zines that doesn’t seem to include any issue number or title, so it’s hard to tell what order they came out. Check out Skate Life in the 80’s Zine gallery.

Two products for carrying your skateboard. One is cool in a silly way, as in “What if I made the cellphone holder on my car dashboard big enough to hold a skateboard?” That’s the JKT System carrier. Clippy, on the other hand, started off as just a clip you hung on the top loop of a backpack, but evolved into a skate tool that also doubles (triples?) as a cellphone stand for filming your, wait for it… clips. It’s a bit clunky, but it’s way more useful.

– Thanks to Adlan Farazi for the tips.