ESPN are carpetbaggers, when the sport hits a lull they will ditch the sport and follow the money. The X Games was ridiculous and cartoony anyway when it dies I hope the uninformed phrase “Extreme Sports” goes down with it”.
Nike contributed $75,000 and Tony Hawk Foundation contributed $11,000 to Pier’s rebuild. As the person who led that effort, I can say without hesitation the rebuild would not have happened without their support. I’m not asking anyone to buy shoes, bagel bites, or anything – whatever you think of these entities is your business. I’m simply presenting facts.
I will add that it is interesting that both these entities are firmly entrenched in the mainstream. After two previous failed efforts to enter the skate shoe market, Nike SB has done a miraculous job of using mega-corporate resources (financial, institutional, etc.) to establish itself this third time around as an acceptable brand for skaters who invariably perceive themselves to be non-mainstream. The latest issue of TWS Business details how effectively Nike SB has moved into the lucrative skate shoe market where profit margins are significantly bigger than in hard goods, for example. I wish I had the numbers in front of me; they’re startling. This should be an award-winning exercise in branding.
Tony Hawk Foundation is a slight different situation. The Michael Jordan of skateboarding, the name is larger than the industry itself. Tony has actively sought to serve as skateboarding’s de facto ambassador, exposing skateboarding to new audiences. Tony’s is a wholesale rejection of the insular, elitist, keep-skateboarding-dirty Thrasher/Anti-Hero, etc. vibe. The Foundation is a savvy tax strategy as well as a genuine investment in skatepark development. If I were Tony and shared his view of skateboarding, I would be doing the exact same thing.
Nike, the ultimate in mainstream, rebranding itself to a core market. Tony, as core a skater as there ever was (if you judge by skateboarding not cliched attitude), actively and unabashedly seeking out mainstream recognition, in part to serve skaters through skatepark development. It’s fascinating. And just for clarity, I have not expressed a personal opinion (which isn’t relevant or important). These are just facts.
powell spf, tony hawk foundation and nikeSB?
i hope that was sarcasm. good god, those are all essentially worthless additions.
none of those have enhanced skateboarding in any real way, with the possible exception of THF which gives money to modular parks and bullshit built by purkiss rose among others but at least it helps create skatespots. powell spf? wtf? its not like they are better wheels or anything, i can ride a park on any wheels essentially the same way, so can you all..so that shit’s moot. thats a preference call right there. i wont even get into my opinion on the Nike thing. to pre-empt the same dumb argument as always, yeah i know..they gave money to pier, and probably some other shit but what little they give as opposed to what they take and dilute from our culture in order to make tons of ducats from shoe collector nerds and gullible little kids with no sense of history isnt even worth talking about. and beavertron? jeezus fuck what a waste of space that shit was for skateboarding, it was built to bike tranny standards for god’s sake!. old pier was more fun IMO. (except the vert ramp, i guess, but whatever.) now as for louisville…the town seein money come from that event is totally true and thats one of the few positive things x-gay has ever brought to skateboarding. anyway its just my opinion and alot of you guys wont like it, but i respect that. its cool.
i totally love fried eggs i just decided.
The Louisville skatepark finally getting built is a DIRECT result of the “X-trials” event held here, as well as B3 (remember Bikes Boards and Blades?). The locals had been trying for years to get something better than shit ramps on an unused tennis court. But not ’til 90,000 people came downtown (for lots of reasons, but the X-Trials was one of them that weekend) and the Mayor saw $$$… I consider that a pretty good result of mainstream popularity… Thank you sir, may I have another?
Not to be cynical, but I tend to agree. Except for high quality public skateparks, what else that’s good for skaters and skateboarding can be traced back to the latest dance with mainstream popularity?
just one more harbinger of skateboarding inevitable downfall into “mediocre” popularity levels. thank god.
i cant wait till i can stop seeing skateboarding on tv at all, and out of commercials and out of big money competition. the cycle has taken too long this time. when skateboarding is again stripped of the big dollar influence it comes back to its roots.. no more kiddies with cameras at every session trying to go pro, no more bad jock attitudes, no more cool-guy bullshit. lets cheer for a return to the roots of skateboarding, roots that are embedded deeply in that foreign concept of “fun”.
This is a logical and predictable move. Vert ramp is too foreign for most to relate to, and not spectacular enough in the era to motorcycle double back flips to sustain the wow! factor. It’s in a tough spot.
The Super Park concept is potentially cool. If the terrain is legitimately interesting and the money is big enough to bring out the best, it could be cool. Trifecta is super fun to watch, but too many guys at once means the quality of the skating gets diminished by the just-hang-on factor. It’d be sweet to see no more than 4 top-tier guys at once at say… Orcas.
Or, take it to LC and do quick 1/2 hour sessions in each of the four sections. Four disciplines, most overall points wins.
Granted, ESPN would have no part of this. Fuck ESPN. But if sponsors could be found to pay the top dogs X Games-like dollars it would be killer. Not that they’d compete, but you’d see Anti-Hero type skaters up at the top with the regular contest names.
Super Park will die too… because most of the competitors will be over 30… and it’ll be the same “talent pool” all over again… ESPN is jockspeak for Lame…
some of the biggest names in skateboarding have come out of vert. Vert isn’t dead till the rider is dead and with us vert skaters out there pushing the limits everyday it will inspire people to give vert a chance. street skaters say vert sucks because they like to look better than the vert skaters and they can’t skatte vert so they do some lil kickflip while were doing 540’s 15 up in the air. Verts not dead, assholes just want it dead.
Vert is alive wherever skaters want it to be. Although ESPN has decided that the televised event is no longer viable as a money maker with TV ratings, doesn’t mean it is dead. But the announcement sure as hell is going to hit the vert guys hard that make a living with sports drink endorsements, broadcast incentives and all. Those pro level skaters that can adapt to round walls, spines, cradles, etc. will move on with it and claim their medals and cash. Rune, Bob, Bucky, and even PLG come to mind. Shaun White and others… well.
20 comments
Chris
ESPN are carpetbaggers, when the sport hits a lull they will ditch the sport and follow the money. The X Games was ridiculous and cartoony anyway when it dies I hope the uninformed phrase “Extreme Sports” goes down with it”.
Tom Miller
Nike contributed $75,000 and Tony Hawk Foundation contributed $11,000 to Pier’s rebuild. As the person who led that effort, I can say without hesitation the rebuild would not have happened without their support. I’m not asking anyone to buy shoes, bagel bites, or anything – whatever you think of these entities is your business. I’m simply presenting facts.
I will add that it is interesting that both these entities are firmly entrenched in the mainstream. After two previous failed efforts to enter the skate shoe market, Nike SB has done a miraculous job of using mega-corporate resources (financial, institutional, etc.) to establish itself this third time around as an acceptable brand for skaters who invariably perceive themselves to be non-mainstream. The latest issue of TWS Business details how effectively Nike SB has moved into the lucrative skate shoe market where profit margins are significantly bigger than in hard goods, for example. I wish I had the numbers in front of me; they’re startling. This should be an award-winning exercise in branding.
Tony Hawk Foundation is a slight different situation. The Michael Jordan of skateboarding, the name is larger than the industry itself. Tony has actively sought to serve as skateboarding’s de facto ambassador, exposing skateboarding to new audiences. Tony’s is a wholesale rejection of the insular, elitist, keep-skateboarding-dirty Thrasher/Anti-Hero, etc. vibe. The Foundation is a savvy tax strategy as well as a genuine investment in skatepark development. If I were Tony and shared his view of skateboarding, I would be doing the exact same thing.
Nike, the ultimate in mainstream, rebranding itself to a core market. Tony, as core a skater as there ever was (if you judge by skateboarding not cliched attitude), actively and unabashedly seeking out mainstream recognition, in part to serve skaters through skatepark development. It’s fascinating. And just for clarity, I have not expressed a personal opinion (which isn’t relevant or important). These are just facts.
jf
SPF is all I ride…best wheel out there.
Hateboard
powell spf, tony hawk foundation and nikeSB?
i hope that was sarcasm. good god, those are all essentially worthless additions.
none of those have enhanced skateboarding in any real way, with the possible exception of THF which gives money to modular parks and bullshit built by purkiss rose among others but at least it helps create skatespots. powell spf? wtf? its not like they are better wheels or anything, i can ride a park on any wheels essentially the same way, so can you all..so that shit’s moot. thats a preference call right there. i wont even get into my opinion on the Nike thing. to pre-empt the same dumb argument as always, yeah i know..they gave money to pier, and probably some other shit but what little they give as opposed to what they take and dilute from our culture in order to make tons of ducats from shoe collector nerds and gullible little kids with no sense of history isnt even worth talking about. and beavertron? jeezus fuck what a waste of space that shit was for skateboarding, it was built to bike tranny standards for god’s sake!. old pier was more fun IMO. (except the vert ramp, i guess, but whatever.) now as for louisville…the town seein money come from that event is totally true and thats one of the few positive things x-gay has ever brought to skateboarding. anyway its just my opinion and alot of you guys wont like it, but i respect that. its cool.
i totally love fried eggs i just decided.
Kilwag
Yeah Conahan, the vert ramp you use to love in Beaverton… wasn’t that cast off from B3? (Whole rest of the park too)
Concretin Nik
The Louisville skatepark finally getting built is a DIRECT result of the “X-trials” event held here, as well as B3 (remember Bikes Boards and Blades?). The locals had been trying for years to get something better than shit ramps on an unused tennis court. But not ’til 90,000 people came downtown (for lots of reasons, but the X-Trials was one of them that weekend) and the Mayor saw $$$… I consider that a pretty good result of mainstream popularity… Thank you sir, may I have another?
bobcat
well if EXPN says it is dead then I should stop.
conahan
Powell Skate Park Formula. The Tony Hawk Foundation. NikeSB shoes. I’m sure we could come up with a few more.
Tom Miller
Not to be cynical, but I tend to agree. Except for high quality public skateparks, what else that’s good for skaters and skateboarding can be traced back to the latest dance with mainstream popularity?
JF
totally agree Hateboard….but can we keep Rob & Big?
Hateboard
just one more harbinger of skateboarding inevitable downfall into “mediocre” popularity levels. thank god.
i cant wait till i can stop seeing skateboarding on tv at all, and out of commercials and out of big money competition. the cycle has taken too long this time. when skateboarding is again stripped of the big dollar influence it comes back to its roots.. no more kiddies with cameras at every session trying to go pro, no more bad jock attitudes, no more cool-guy bullshit. lets cheer for a return to the roots of skateboarding, roots that are embedded deeply in that foreign concept of “fun”.
Tom Miller
This is a logical and predictable move. Vert ramp is too foreign for most to relate to, and not spectacular enough in the era to motorcycle double back flips to sustain the wow! factor. It’s in a tough spot.
The Super Park concept is potentially cool. If the terrain is legitimately interesting and the money is big enough to bring out the best, it could be cool. Trifecta is super fun to watch, but too many guys at once means the quality of the skating gets diminished by the just-hang-on factor. It’d be sweet to see no more than 4 top-tier guys at once at say… Orcas.
Or, take it to LC and do quick 1/2 hour sessions in each of the four sections. Four disciplines, most overall points wins.
Granted, ESPN would have no part of this. Fuck ESPN. But if sponsors could be found to pay the top dogs X Games-like dollars it would be killer. Not that they’d compete, but you’d see Anti-Hero type skaters up at the top with the regular contest names.
Baldy
I heard the Huck Jam is going to replace the vert ramp with two railings and a parking block.
Concretin Nik
Super Park will die too… because most of the competitors will be over 30… and it’ll be the same “talent pool” all over again… ESPN is jockspeak for Lame…
chris
some of the biggest names in skateboarding have come out of vert. Vert isn’t dead till the rider is dead and with us vert skaters out there pushing the limits everyday it will inspire people to give vert a chance. street skaters say vert sucks because they like to look better than the vert skaters and they can’t skatte vert so they do some lil kickflip while were doing 540’s 15 up in the air. Verts not dead, assholes just want it dead.
chris peterson,
vert rules skateboarding…
bk
Vert is alive wherever skaters want it to be. Although ESPN has decided that the televised event is no longer viable as a money maker with TV ratings, doesn’t mean it is dead. But the announcement sure as hell is going to hit the vert guys hard that make a living with sports drink endorsements, broadcast incentives and all. Those pro level skaters that can adapt to round walls, spines, cradles, etc. will move on with it and claim their medals and cash. Rune, Bob, Bucky, and even PLG come to mind. Shaun White and others… well.
Aaron
vert RAMP is dead. Vert Bowls are alive. Duh.
Concretin Nik
As long as we’re skating, skating ain’t dead.
Skate ’til death.
Jakeandannoy
I love skateboarding…to death.
t-roy
SKATE VERT!