Last week we got a mention on a/the Vans Blog, written by a guy in their marketing department named Nikki. I assume Nikki is a he? The only other people I can think of with that name spelling are Nikki Sudden and the dude from Mötley Crüe. I’m not sure if the blog is part of the job or what, but one of the things he pointed out as being noteworthy is our 80’s skate zine archive. After getting the heads up, I told the author that he she had somehow incorrectly identified us as being Texas based, which we aren’t. He She said his her coworkers dug the fact that the zine archives featured actual skate zines instead of music zines. Surely there have to be other archives out there? I got to thinking that it has been a while since I added a new one. So this one goes out to Nikki and the clock punchers at Vans. It’s issue number six of Exotic Pets out of Dallas Texas.

So here we are again. Another month down, and more old decks to talk about. Just a quick reminder, you can click on the small images to enlarge them. Sometimes they show the top and bottom of the deck or some other detail that was cropped out for the sake of display in the article. Most times the enlarged versions are vertically oriented as well. Check out eBay Watch for January of 2008

Sure, we may have actually skated more parks on the NW Cannonball Run, but the crew from Old Man Army one-upped us by barging a bike-only park in Chandler Arizona, known as the, uh, Chandler Bike Park. According to the city’s web site, it’s the first bike-only public skatepark uh, bike park. Who knew they even existed? It’s not a dirt track next to a skatepark, like so many facilities are, but a full blown cement skatepark, (Sorry, hard habit to break) bike park. Chandler must have a lot of money burn if they can afford separate facilities on such a grand scale. How does it work for the respective communities? Is everybody happy? The OMA crew got the boot from an officer of the law, whom we are told was less offensive to look at and listen to than you know who. I wonder if the bikers are afforded the same courtesies when getting the boot. Maybe not, since skateboarders barging a BMX park is such a novelty. All of this has nothing to do with the photo above, which is a gal named Jean (See, I told you they wouldn’t discriminate) in the deep end (13ft?) of the…

You’re viewing thiss pot from beyond the grave! Oohhh… Spooky! Well, who knows, maybe it’s still active. Joesf Heffner (nweyesk8) sent in this possibly xeroxed copy of an old photo that his buddy Jason Walker took of him in 1992. In Vicksburg, MS there was this old parking lot of actual concrete, not asphalt, that had transition along one edge. The transition went up against the side of this building, but as you can see there was a slight deck still. The main problem was there was a water pipe that leaked from the building and the lot would get completely covered with a thick layer of algae. making it unridable most of the time, except durin the scorching heat of summer. This is a cropped version of the original, you can see the whole thing after the jump. How about it Mississippi readers, is this spot still a go?

OK, Officer Salvatore Rivieri doesn’t just hate skateboarders. He hates radio controlled cars, or maybe street artists or most likely himself, because he’s been driving that ridiculous go-cart police car for at least a year. Another video has surfaced of officer Rivieri serving and protecting. Apparently this guy has a very short fuse. Here’s hoping he gets an attitude adjustment via painfully boring and embarrassing anger management counseling, or better yet, an old fashioned pink slip. What a dick. – Thanks to Eric Cherry for the tip.

It’s not always about the clarity or the technical execution. Sometimes I just like the way a shot looks, as is the case with this shot of Jeff Phillips taken in Houston. I like the blur and all the artifacts. The overall quality of the pic outweighs any faults. Photo by Sonny Robertson, 198… See the uncropped version here.

Sixteen skateparks in one day. This shot above is Gabe from Salem at the Aumsville park which was our last stop. I wonder how the guys in Arizona did on theirs? More pics and details to follow. In the meantime, Conahan put up a park shot from each spot via cell phone on Antigrav Remote.

Hey guys, I work for the Tualatin Hills Parks District, and this morning my boss gave me word that the Thursday after next the parks district will be having an open house with Grindline to hear from local people what they would prefer for a NOVICE skatepark. I highlight novice because I know if there’s anyone that’s all about ripping the deep end, it’s MC… I swear, if I hear any complaining about building novice parks for beginners, you are all fired, kicked off the staff, team or whatever! I hear that they might consider a bowl if there is enough interest, but please, let’s not stack the deck. Instead we should consider the needs of the community. Plus, a good novice park might draw all the little scrappers away from the more advanced parks in the region. So there you have it. When: Thursday February 28. 6pm- 8pm. Where: Dryland Conference Room at the Howard M Terpenning Recreation Complex. 15707 SW Walker Road, Beaverton, OR 97006. Additioanl information contact Wendy Bell, Park planner at 503 529 6305 x2932, or wbell at thprd dot com.

John Aguilar’s sister went to South Africa and all she brought him was a lousy newspaper. There’s an article from the December 1st 2007 edition of the Weekend Argus titled Flying high on the vision of one man. It’s about Dallas Oberholzer’s mission to bring skateboarding to rural South Africa. Our interview with Dallas was published in 2005. Looks like he’s still at it. Unfortunately, you need a subscription to read the article online. It’s a very positive story. You can read the scan after the jump. Hey James… Stuff it! I think I heard that goat just yell “Draa-aa-aa-aa-aapping in!”

Two mediocre shots of Dave and Damien from some recent sessions at the DOS bowl in Portland. Mediocre because of the photographer, not the skaters. Enlarge the action after the jump. They recently added lights to the bowl and now you can actually see back there. Where as it used to be like skating in a very dusty closet, it’s almost too bright now! With the fairly new birch layer and the sudden illumination, it’s like the bowl riders are now more than an afterthought there. Thanks guys! These shots were taken mid installation, so it’s actually a lot brighter now.