I’ve been cleaning out a space in my back yard to build a small bowl under two giant pine trees, so it’s got to be above ground. If you know anybody looking to get rid of some cinder blocks (for the retaining walls), please let me know. I’m on an extra tight budget. Yes, Craig’s list. I know. This project will come together as I am able to accumulate materials, there is no schedule. I figured it was time to put up or shut up. DIY or die!

I spotted a pump track video online via Michael Brooke’s Facebook feed, but he was tight lipped about it at the time and I forgot ot follow up on it. Progressive Pumptracks makes modular pump tracks from three different materials, wood, steel, and concrete. The wooden ones seem like they would have a short useful lifespan for a skateboard, even though they are covered with a composite surface. I can imagine the repetitive “thunk thunk” sounds at each seem would only get louder and slower after a season in the rain or snow. The concrete version looks pretty fun though, although technically still reconfigurable, in reality it seems like it would be really hard to move without a good forklift, maybe two.

It’s a pretty exciting idea until you realize that ARC is the company behind it. Actually, it’s still a pretty cool idea, just hard to swallow considering who makes them. A pump track is not really a “skatepark” but more like a skatespot. It looks super fun, and I love the idea of plopping these down on a disused tennis court. Videos and pics after the jump, plus a bonus video of an asphalt pump track someplace called Lake Hayes Estate.

– Thanks to Tim Jamison and Matthijs for the tips

Right after they first came out I remember hearing Thunders were just Indys with different baseplates, but I never had any confirmation.

NEVER BEFORE SEEN: T H I N D Y ‘ S. Prototype THUNDER base-plates tested with INDY hangers.

WHY? I can’t remember. For some reason it was important.
Something to do with checking the geometry.

ANYWAY – – – this is a one-of-a-kind set of trucks, prior to the release of THUNDERS onto the world.

I always loved the baseplates on the old Thunders, with lizards, lightning bolts and skulls and no text to be seen anywhere. If you didn’t already know what they were, there was no way to tell what company made them. UPDATE: Added another Mofo shot of some OG Thunder baseplates in reference to Terry Nails.

– Thanks to MoFo for the photo

Porsche Pavilion by architecture firm of Henn, in Autostadt Park, in Wolfsburg, Germany. These look like renders, so I’m not sure if its real or not. UPDATE: DesignBoom, says it’s real.

[Source: Fubiz] – Thanks to MC for the tip.

Skaters for Public Skateparks (Still at it!) has an interview with Billy & Catherine Coulon, the proprietors of Evergreen Skateparks. That’s nice, but we all want more footage of the dog.

Elias Parise has released the full length version of the Dreamland Skateparks promo titled Bridge to Bridge.

Designboom has a lightweight interview with Jim Phillips. It’s nothing new for the most part, but it’s interspersed with lotos of graphics and the great shot above of Jim in his natural habitat. It’s worth checking out just for the larger version of that photo.

– Thanks to MC for the tip.

UPDATE: Image links are fixed.

A very short documentary on Marginal Way Skatepark. I think this is the whole thing and not just a trailer. I would have liked to see more, even though the story is very simple, I feel like the filmmaker barely scratched the surface. I’m not sure what happened to the official web presence of Marginal Way, it seems to be limited to this Facebook group.

Shogo Kubo died from a heart attack while stand up paddle boarding in Hawaii, as reported by Glen E. Friedman.