Oh the things I find to buy when I’m actually looking for something else. A positive balance on a PayPal account does not last long when I’m scrolling through skateboard related ephemera. This is the September 1975 issue of Sports Illustrated, with a feature called “Wheeling and Dealing.” Scanned and ran through the OCR for your enjoyment. File it under Things I buy so you don’t have to.

Leo Baker (né Lacey Baker) coming out as transgender has all the narrow-minded and transphobes up in arms, especially because it meant he couldn’t represent his country at the Olympics. Oh for shame, for shame… Yes, the skateboarding community is gradually becoming more inclusive to the LGBQT population, but you know, there’s still a lot of knuckleheads out there, especially when it comes to so-called “core” skaters. Although I’m sure it only scratches the surface, this Time Magazine article provides really good insight into Leo’s journey and decision. It’s a must read for anybody that naively parrots “Why doesn’t he just skate and leave his personal life out of it?”
[Photos: Ethan James Green for TIME]

Teen Vogue has a short bio on Navajo Nation skateboarder Naiomi Glasses, who skates in traditional dress, sometimes on not-so-traditional terrain. She’s blowing up on what the kids call Tik-Tok, which has nothing to do with Vine….

When a plain old skateboard isn’t enough and you need to add a motorized sound to get the kids excited, the Irwin corporation has you covered. The advert is most likely from a 1965-66 Playthings Magazine, an industry publication for toy retailers. A suggested retail of $1.98 ( Under $17 according to the US Inflation Calculator) would have gotten you a noisy plastic sled that didn’t really turn. Fun! Time to “cash in on this surfboarding business.” Order your Whoom-m Jr. Sidewalk Surfer now!

Thanks to Darren Haugen for the pics.

Apparently in the world of skateboarding there are these things called magazines, and in particular, the longest running skateboard magazine called “Thrasher” is still a thing. Why on earth would Skate and Annoy link to Thrasher? We like to help out the little guys. Yuk, yuk, yuk… You should definitely check out the Kevin Thatcher interview from the January print issue that just went online. Hey kids, Kevin was a name once synonymous with Thrasher. It seemed inconceivable that there would ever be a Thrasher magazine without him, but to hear him tell it, it was definitely a group effort. Learn about the gory, glory days of mechanical paste ups before everything became Wild Riders of Keyboards…

Photo: Self described Pro-for-5-minutes Kevin Thatcher in the Winchester halfpipe in 1978, by Gary Medeiros as seen at Tunnel Skateboards.

Girl is Not. 4 Letter Word has a good read on Stephanie Person, a female black professional skateboard from the 80s. I could not recall her specifically appearing in mags in the 80’s but she did, and I do remember the featured “Sugar and Spice” article in Thrasher. Her experiences as a black female skater in the 80’s are unique even to other female skaters in the 80’s and not all for the reasons you’d expect. It’s notable that her career and sponsorships were result of her smart thinking and persistence. I only wish this had been a little more in-depth. One amusing side note: The editors’s note has to explain what a Swatch is for younger readers.

– Thanks to Jason Lilly for the tip.

I expected this to be another article on old skateboarders, but the print issue of the June 2019 issue of ESPN Magazine instead features a brief excerpt of photographers David Burnett’s exhibit titled Fourth Quarter: Senior Athletes and Their Indomitable Spirit, currently showing at the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Fl. That’s an old friend of the site Judy Oyama in the two page spread there, probably wishing they’s actually shown her skateboarding. The web site article has some, well… gnarly looking senior athletes. The hockey team is my favorite. There’s also can alleged photo of Mark Lake in there too. I say “alleged” because the caption reads “Skateboarding legend Mark Lake, 61, began his pro career at 19. Here, he takes one of his patented “Nightmare” boards for a spin at the Ramp48 Skateboard Park…” but the photograph is a guy on rollerblades. I don’t know if that’s Mark on roller blades or not. I couldn’t have picked him out of a lineup in the 80’s let alone today. While opinions on the Nightmare remain mixed, we can all agree it doesn’t look like a pair of inline skates.

This is the cover of Elle Zen from the Spring 2018 issue. I couldn’t find any more photos from the cover session, but the web site had a couple “articles” including one that translates to “3 good reasons to go skateboarding.” From the picture I assumed at least one of them was going to be fashion accessory or dating related… but they’re all very good reasons: To feel good about yourself. To be fit. To have fun. They also have another article titled Mettez-vous au longboard! Although article is actually about surfing, it is inexplicably illustrated with a woman posing on a skateboard.

This is the actor  Milo Ventimiglia appearing on the cover and inside the November, 2018 issue of Men’s Journal, with a skateboard. He looks pretty comfortable on that cut down waterski.

– Thanks to Tim Rafferty for the tip.

Grandpa has a long board, and a radical attitude. This is the March, 2017 issue of Prime Time, an Rhode Island publication described as a “contemporary magazine speaking to the mature market, caregivers & medical professionals.”

– Thanks to Poeser for the photo.