The 2009 dates for the 2009 Oregon Trifecta have been up for a while. The big surprise this year is the addition of two extra days of qualifying events, bringing the grand total up to five consecutive days of skateboarding contests. So it’s official, event organizers are definitely trying to kill me! The web site is mum, so I’m not exactly sure why the extra qualifying days have been added. I would have guessed it was to make the big three days shorter, but the schedules posted don’t reflect that. Also very interesting, this year marks a return to Pier Park (!) a fan favorite, and once again it’s an all Oregon event. Qualifiers on August 5th and 6th at West Linn (It’s been a long time…) and Tigard, respectively. The main events are at Lincoln City, Oregon on Friday, August 7th, Tigard, Oregon on Saturday, August 8th and Portland’s Pier Park on Sunday, August 9th.

There’s a little over a month to go, so I’ve rounded up 2008 Trifecta coverage from all points, after the jump. If I missed your coverage, let me know and I’ll add it.

From the Orange County listings of Craig’s List.

im selling two keven grooss skateboars and albow pads and knee pads for sale . im also selling
tow hlements and an extra pair of whells

ask for tim

Hello is a collaboration between skateboarder Buddy Carr and graphic designer Antonio Carusone. The result is pretty slick, in my opinion. The retro cruiser market is getting pretty crowded, but there’s always room for one more, if you do it right. There’s a whole photo set of this complete up on Flickr, and the board specs are available on Tail Tap.

The first one is an updated version of those pumpboards, this one looks like it’s been crossed with a shopping cart. Seems like it would be utterly unsteerable. The second one is, believe it or not, an inflatable deck. This is a brand new approach to the collapsable skateboard concept, but one that seems to be based on of some sort technology that doesn’t currently exist.

– Thanks to Concretins Nik for the tips.

It’s going on right now! Get the details for the contest over at the Department. NOTE: The finals are downtown Portland at Pioneer Square. The whole thing is part of Red Bull’s Manny Mania amateur contest series.

BURNSIDE ART SHOW BENEFIT after the contest. Opening at NEMO (1875 SE Belmont) from 7-11pm. Proceeds from the sales got to Burnside. Artists include, Bryce Kanights, Chet Childress, Rich Burton, JayMeer, Gus Van Sant(!), Rich Charnowski and more. Exhibit will be up from June 26-July 31.

More Farrah Fawcett skateboarding action. Toys from the past. I’d seen the officially licensed “Jill” doll from Farrah’s Charlie’s Angels days, as seen above left. Reader Hung Chang also found this knockoff “Sport Girl” doll that features a cartoon drawing of Farrah.

I don’t know whether the architects are cooler in Europe and Asia, or the people with the deep pockets have more progressive outlook. Why doesn’t any of this stuff get built over here? The Aphalt Spot is in Tokamashi, Japan. Head on over to SpaceInvading to get the pics. Bonus walk through vid after the jump. – Thanks to Sk8 D for the tip.

Skateboarding’s second (chronological) pinup died today after battling cancer. What celebrity death could possibly top this?

Ron Cameron was the skater/artist who helped define the public identity of Blockhead Skateboards. His web site features his paintings, graphic design, and very meaty sections on his board design, skateboarding and advertisements for Blockhead Skateboards and other companies like Acme. For instance, his board gallery features Disposable type commentary on the background of the designs and what was going on in the industry. The same goes for the ads he designed and the coverage he received as a skateboarder. I especially enjoyed his hand painted boards. The image above is a Grant Brittain photo from a 1990 issue of TWS, with a couple of classic Blockhead designs superimposed. As you can see, Ron was in the vanguard of bringing narrow boards back to skating. Sure that’s a 70’s era deck, but he did actually produce some narrow boards in anticipation of changing times, but he was a little bit too early to make it stick. Definitely worth spending some time at, check out Roncameron.net. Ron says a major chunk of retro content is imminent for the Blockhead site.

This just in, from the San Francisco Chronicle:: Physics discussion ends in skateboard attack.

A homeless man is on trial in San Mateo County on charges that he smacked a fellow transient in the face with a skateboard as the victim was engaged in a conversation about quantum physics, authorities said Wednesday.

I know GVK, Rich and I have almost come to blows in the car on the way to a skatepark, but we’re usually arguing about how to raise kids instead of quantum physics. They want to build a particle accelerator in my neighborhood, but I’m organizing a petition against it because it will just attract scientific method graffiti and discarded lab jackets and pocket protectors littered on the surrounding lawn. Stephen Hawkings image from Nerdtests.com. Also check out Einstein skateboards on Zazzle and Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge, Einstein’s Skateboard.

– Thanks to Tito for the tip.