The economy sucks, and BMX riders and skateboarders at Burnside will be closer neighbors as a result. The Burnside Bridgehead redevelopment project is having funding issues. Instead of funding some of the planned landscape architecture, a parcel of land overlooking the new addition to the skate terrain is going to be turned into a temporary BMX dirt “pump track” filled with “rolling jumps, step-ups, and berms” according to BikePortland. You’d think the city would know that once you let anyone squat, it’s going to be hard as hell to get rid of them! That reminds me, there’s a bizarre new mural at the Department that shows a skatepark under the Fremont bridge and a buttload of bicycles going over the bridge. There’s only one or two skateboards in the whole thing. It’s strange indeed. Who commissions those things anyway? There must not be much of a screening process. – Thanks to Fitz for the tip.

California used to be synonymous with skateboarding. If you can believe it, there once was a time in the not to distant past when California had to export skateboarding to the rest of the country, let alone the world. In some parts of the midwest, even as recent as the 80’s you might still hear the taunt “Go back to California, dude!” if you rode a skateboard. It was supposed to be a put down, much like jocks would yell “Devo!” as an insult to anyone who dressed like they didn’t listen to Journey or Zepplin. Ahh… fun times. This California key chain skateboard souvenir dates back to the 80’s according to the eBay auction. They also have another one in pink with an inscription that says “Super Boy,” but I’m willing to be that was a typo that was supposed to read “Surfer Boy.” It’s funny now, but California might not be the first thing that non-skating people think of when playing the word association game with “skateboard.”

My grandfather once made me a pretend switchblade out of a clothespin, rubber band and a popsicle stick. He also made me some stilts and one of those metal rings you push down the street with a stick. $100 will get you this historical inaccuracy, curiosity, and conversation starter. It’s a replica of the precursor to the skateboard, an orange crate scooter. The irony is that instead of roller skate trucks, it has actual skateboard trucks. It’s kind of like watching a period movie about a civil war vet where the female love interest is a white chick raised by native americans but still has a feathered 80’s hairdo. Or a WWII movie about Hitler where all the Nazis have British accents. Mountain Boy Sledworks makes these things by hand.

Legos are some of the best toys ever. I’ll be a skater for life, but I might not be able to actually skate at age 90, assuming I make it that far. But if the arthritis gets too bad for me, I’ll still be able to build stuff with those oversized Legos they make for preeschool kids. Bricks 4 Life! Nathan Sawaya is a brick artist who among other excellent constructions, also built a lifesize skateboard sculpture out of Legos. Check it out on The Art of the Brick. [Source: Zedomax]

The Berkeley, California skatepark will host the rain delayed Day After St Valentines Day Skate Massacre on this Sunday the 22nd of February. That’s a mouthful. Is that vintage hardcore act Verbal Abuse I see on the flyer as well? Yes it is! I’m sure they’ve aged well, like a fine, angry wine. Catch the full, confusing flyer after the jump. – Thanks to Tom from Weirdo for the tip.

No word on what/who/why this is. I found it over on Ghettopool Ripper, under the label “goddesses of skateboarding.” The extended link over there appears to be dead. I guess some things don’t need an explanation? UPDATE: It’s a series by fashion photographer known as Chenman. Navigate to Work>Artwork>Beijing skateboard or just go here. [Source: Skateboarding Sucks]

This week’s Shot of the Week comes from Chris Eggers and his web site sk8boarding4life. It’s bilingual (German and English) and features skate photos from his archives over the years. This shot is a Lance Mountain frontside invert over the channel at the Swedish skateboard summer camp in 1986. Check out this week’s Shot of the Week.

Believe it or not, one of the more heavily travelled post on this site is the one about Simon Woodstock. Well, Skatebook.tv has a couple entries (one -two) on their blog and a couple videos on YouTube. He was in the Skatebook Paul Sharpe edition. In any case, the new Skatebook is out and it’s the Mike Vallely issue. I wonder what Mike V’s take on Simon… Watch the Skatebook vids on Simon Woodstock after the jump. [Source: Happyfeet]

VIMBY has a short feature on Portland’s longest running skateshop, Cal Skate. I think I actually mail ordered one of my first real skateboards from a Cal Skate advert in the back of Thrasher back in the 80’s. I remember being perplexed finding out they were actually in Oregon instead of California. Well that mystery is explained at last. Once again, Paul Fujita is the mouthpiece of Cal. He’s hell bent on promoting local skateboard companies in every media piece he does, and once again Steve and I owe him something nice… [Source: EPM]

Last year’s New York Toy Fair turned up this amusing iteration of the alternative skateboard, the Swerver Ultimate Carving Streetboard. I find this amusing if only for the fact that they adapted RipStick or Hurricane wackyboards to make them look more like a skateboard: The advantages of longboarding and skateboarding combined into one. Whether you want to go cruising down the street or tackle a new obstacle course, the Swerver is the only board you’ll need. The Swerver Ultimate Carving Streetboard combines the advantages of a longboard with those of a skateboard. The rider propels the Swerver Board forward using a twisting motion, eliminating the need to push off the ground every few feet. Set up complicated courses, perform tricks off the half-pipe or just fly effortlessly to your next destination. With the Swerver Ultimate Carving Streetboard, the journey is the fun. Somehow a whole year passed without the Swerver becoming a;ll the rage. I can’t even find an official web site for the product. See it in action after the jump. I can’t wait to perform some tricks “off the half-pipe.” – Thanks to Concretins for the tip.