Tilt Mode! from Tilt Mode Army, circa 2000. Tilt Mode Army is a group of skaters out of San Jose, California. The videos are the mastermind of Matt Eversole, Chris Avery and Jesse Erikson, with help from NC Clothing. The Tilt Mode videos seem to be more about having a good time with friends rather than landing a single trick after fifty tries, which makes the video stand out from all the others out there. A lot of companies now-a-days could learn a lesson from these guys.

Not Blind skateboards, but skateboarding for the blind. In a departure from the usual “how to clean your bearings” type articles, About.com has an article titled Blind Speed – Daredog, blinded as a child, picks up skateboarding at age 20. Pretty interesting stuff. To top it off, Daredog AKA Jennifer Tissot, is a woman, which is no big deal but when combined with being blind and a skateboarder makes her a super-minority. Check it out.

The Skateboard Archives has coverage of the Seaside Oregon skatepark grand opening that many thought was rained out. Apparently, nobody told Benji Galloway that the park was wet. I don’t know how those guys ride wet cement without cracking their skulls. What’s the scoop with the strange miniature brass sculpture sitting in the rain on the deck? Go to the The Skateboard Archives for two pages of photos, including some animated sequences. Hey Seaside! look for some of the Skate and Annoy crew and hangers-on at the Seaside skatepark this Father’s day, June 17th. Hopefully some of our new stickers will be done by then.

There were two skateparks grand openings this past weekend, one in Kent Washington and one in Seaside Oregon. We didn’t go to either, but Hughes has some Kent shots on Northwest Skater. Looks like it rained part of the day at least. Gotta love the Pacific Northwest. 176 miles south was the Seaside Oregon park opening. I can’t find any pics from the grand opening, so you’ll have to be content with the conveniently rain-soaked overview shots from the park’s creator Placed to Ride. If you know of any other opening day galleries, leave them in the comments. [Photo: Dan Hughes and Placed to Ride]

No, the guy in the bottom left picture is not a rabid Adam Ant fan going through a Prince Charming phase, it’s Toronto skateboarder Ben Davis after he got hit by a car while skateboarding in the street. A security camera caught the whole thing on tape, and City News reported on it. The street is supposed to be one that gets a lot of foot, bicycle and skateboard traffic. It’s not a major artery, and some residents even want it closed to automobile traffic all together. It’s not shocking that Ben got hit by a car, after all, he was in the middle of the street going against traffic. The interesting bit here (aside from gawking at the carnage) is the fact that the car driver got off scott free and Ben is the one who got the ticket. Check it out. [Source: Altered Skateboarding] Postscript: I had a hard time picking a Prince Charming link to reference, check out this alternative.

The great thing about the new millennium is all the small skateboard companies that are started by guys who aren’t really trying to be the next World Industries, and are more concerned with making something they think is cool. A lot of times the first board is a signature model for someone who used to be quite a bit more popular than they are now. Why are so many non-industry type skaters doing this? Maybe because it’s not that hard to scrape up the money to get a run of boards done. Maybe it’s because once you are older it’s easier to meet these people, especially if the star of their celebrity has faded some. Frequently, these signature board projects end up being something that misses the boat in timeliness by about 10 years or so. I’m not being critical, just honest. Heck, I’ve done the same thing, even twice. No wait, three times. What’s the latest? De La Soul has board out on Signature Skateboards. It’s got artwork from 3 Feet High and Rising and comes in two colorways with a total of 150 boards in production. I like me some punk rock, but I probably would have bought…

I had always kind of wondered if this day would come, and it looks like it is finally dawning upon us all. That’s right folks, skateboarding is being considered for the 2012 Olympic Games. Spurred on by the success (success being a relative term of course) the IOC is considering the proposal right now, which would allow our favorite 4 wheel warriors to finally win those real gold medals instead of the cheesy X-shaped ones that they win at the X Games every year. What will the track and field athletes think? Read more after the jump.

Old friend of Skate and Annoy Bob Mechtly sent in these pictures of a Tony Hawk demo at Six Flags. Bob didn’t send any details, but near as I can tell from the color cast of these pictures, the event was held in the late 70’s, probably underwater. But seriously folks! Take my wife, please! Maybe it was just an added attraction, or maybe he was promoting the new Tony Hawk’s Big Spin ride, which would be odd since these shots are from Missouri and the Big Spin is at a different Six Flags in Texas. I love the kid looking in the opposite direction as if to say “I wish I was riding on that roller coaster instead of sitting on my dad’s shoulders watching this carnival sideshow.” Check out the size of that screen. Jeebus, that’s huge!

There’s a Bennett Skatepark DIY Skatepark BBQ & Show this Sunday, June 10th @ the Larimer Lounge in Denver. All proceeds from the door go to the park! Also, check out our eBay auction for a chance to bid on a super rare (one of 125!) Pushead Swampwoman skateboard from Conspiracy. Auction ends on the 19th. Support the Bennett project! What is the Bennett Project? It’s a skater-built project in Denver that is similar to Burnside in nature with a main difference being that they are trying to get approval in advance of building. Go to coloradoskateparks.org for more info. That bowl at the top? Why that’s a concept render for the “left nut” bowl. If you are in the area, go to the benefit. Just make sure you are on the lookout for any bad eggs.

Graffiti facing same issues as early skateboarding is the name of the article, to which I respond “Bullshit!”. The gist of the article is that just as communities provide public skateparks, so should they provide public art canvases. Hmm. That’s a pretty weak argument.