I like to geek out on multiple levels. The SkateDrive allows me to (over)spend money on two of my favorite areas of interest at once, computers and skateboarding. These are USB memory drives that come in the shape of skateboards with Santa Cruz logos. So you can put a bunch of skate rock MP3s on the drive and use it as a fingerboard when it’s not plugged in. Of course, you’ll pay a premium price for dual use “functionality.” In fact, it will cost you more than if you were to buy a 2GB memory stick and a fingerboard packaged separately, which hardly seems right. They must have done their market research on this one. I am a skateboarder who is smart enough to know how to use a computer, but dumb enough to pay an absurd amount of money for a skateboard shaped flash drive. – Thanks to Dr Brad for the tip.

This week’s Shot of the Week is the Q-Bert pool in Happy Valley, Oregon that everyone loves to hate. You don’t have to worry about how much it sucks anymore because it is recently deceased. This is Mark Conahan, obviously. If you think this pool is only good for “spending all day trying to get over the light,” I suggest you see the extra pic after the jump.

Check out the Shot of the Week

If you love America, go blow something up! Or else watch the intro to Lakai’s Fully Flared for the 100th time.

Here’s part two of the remnants of the Indy tour visting Pier Park. Don’t forget about part one.

Yesterday I had plans to meet up with an out-of-state friend of mine who was in town to skate some Portland area parks. I had assorted obligations for most of the day, but I definitely wanted to hook up for his last session at least. I got a text message that he was headed from Gabriel Glenhaven to Pier Park, so that’s where we were going to meet. A short while later I got the text message above. I have to be honest, my first thought was negative. I wanted to skate with my friend and not watch the Indy tour circus. That’s not a dig at Independent or their team, I just figured the park would be jam packed full of onlookers and there would be a heated session going on – meaning we’d have to stick to other parts of the park or go elsewhere if we wanted to actually skate. When MC showed up for the carpool and said he hoped the Indy team wanted to skate street… So how did it go? MC via email:

Any good shots? That was fun, much better than a Trifecta style blowout.

Since the early days of riding in pools, the object has always been to try and make over the light, or death box, or some other obstacle. If an obstacle doesn’t exist, the impetus is there to create your own. This looks like a fun little spot. Jeff doesn’t say where it is, but methinks it’s in or near Charleston, West Virginia.

Tracker has reissues of a couple decks stocked in new colorways. The GSD model and a Lester Kasai. That’s great and all, but what about Dan Wilkes? And while we’re at it, they should do a a proper Kent Watson model. Me, I’m waiting for the Tracker Man watch reissues.(No, I’m not.) Available at Tracker Trucks. I hope those boards turn… Yes, I’m phoning it in today.

One of my pet peeves in the industry is when magazines devote a huge spread to (Fill in favorite skateboard team) goes on tour to (Fill in exotic or mundane location). I mean how lame is that when a magazine can’t be bothered to come up with their own ideas so they end up having five pages of product placement advertising under the guise of editorial content, not to mention a full page advert from one of the same spots in the feature. That’s why, when I heard Colin Sharp was going to join his team in Sweden for a week in the middle of their tour, I practically begged him to bring a camera and shoot some pictures. You won’t find a Bacon advertisement anywhere on Skate and Annoy, unless you count the 10% of the time they show up at the top of every page… I thought I was going to be getting some awesome Malmo contest overage… but I got this tour diary instead. I kid, but only because I love. If you think this post graphic looks disgusting, you should see the version with the blue and yellow bacon. My Thanks to Colin for taking the time and making the effort. Geez, Mason, couldn’t you have gotten another crappy summer job after you got back from Sweden?

Read Colin Sharp’s Bacon Goes To Sweden.

Sleestock 2008. So I got hurt rumor has it Finley knocked himself out and got hauled off in an ambulance, he wins. I would have liked to get more footage but circumstance dictated otherwise. Enjoy this stuff I am going to to visit the vicodin couch. Party off.