I’ve seen pics of this spot in the mags over the years, and while they may have said Big O in some of the captions, they pretty much never said where the damn thing was, which is Montreal. It’s one of the more iconic skate spots, that’s for sure, especially since it’s not designed for skateboarding. Every time a picture would turn up I’d be surprised that it was still around and hadn’t been skate-stopped. Turns out it was going to be destroyed, but now it lives. MudScout Media is publishing a book about it called Pipe Fiends. If you are in Montreal on Dec. 15 you can go to the book launch from 8-12 pm at NEST (3673 St-Dominique, Montreal). If you are looking for more info, the Montreal Mirror has an article, SaveThePipe appears to be the de facto web presence, and Parfond.com currently has 62 (!) images in a gallery dedicated to the spot. Stop and think about the fact that such a small spot is important enough and has been around long enough to merit having it’s own book. Pretty amazing. Photo credits: The Color images are from MudScout and the b&w are from Parfond.com.

IRVINE, Calif.–DC Shoes and Action Pursuit Group, producers of Hot Import Nights (HIN) and HINCity, gave one car enthusiast the ultimate “drive all day party all night” prize package. Dave Senders won DC Shoes’ custom Gumball 3000 Subaru WRX STi, which was driven by pro-skateboarder Rob Dyrdek in the infamous European race… …Senders is now the proud owner of the $65,000 DC Shoes Subaru STi. $65,000? Huh. I wonder if those guys over at DC Shoes are making any money? Poached from The Auto Channel via

No. You are not seeing things. Bob Burnquist supposedly has the largest ramp, but it may not be as tall as this giant skateboard-looking contraption on roller coaster tracks. It’s supposed to be a snowboard, actually, but it sure looks more like a skateboard if you ask me. This ride opened in 2004 as near as I can tell. More pics and video links after the jump.

Emerica had a tour this summer where they travelled the whole thing on Harley-Davidson motorcycles for no other discernible reason than it was a chance for extra publicity. Well that, and I’m sure it was, you know, fun. Harley-Davidson stepped up to milk it for themselves by hosting the video and pictures, all the while being careful to note that “Harley-Davidson is not affiliated with these photos or the development of this video and is not responsible for the content or views expressed in it.” What a bunch of rebels!

ABC News has a crush on Vans Shoes. They have a two page spread on the 40th anniversary of Vans Shoes titled Skateboard Style Hits Middle Age. It’s a fluff piece obviously, but it’s got a brief history of the shoe and a gallery of some old ads that are worth checking out for comedy nostalgia, plus they have a Jeff Spicoli reference in the first paragraph. I’ve pulled out the highlights after the jump.

Originally this was to be titled Which one is the idiot?: The girl bombing mountain hills at night, dressed in black, or the person believing angels kept that girl safe? Last night I was driving on the winding mountain road by my house and a girl/young woman came sailing down the middle of the road – dressed all in dark colors – on a skateboard. She had no lights or reflectors. I could so easily have hit her. It was only by her angels watching over her that I didn’t. I thought, what an idiot. Please, please. Let’s not get into a religion debate here. Instead let’s band together to to make fun of Tara Taylor Quinn because she writes Harlequin Romances and had the poor fortune to write about skateboarding on a blog titled Story Broads (get it?).

This is not about whether or not you should wear a helmet. Even skateboarders who wear helmets are not under the illusion that they look cool. In an article titled A Bike Helmet With Skateboard Cool, the New York Times mentions that skateboard helmets exude a certain renegade cool and have panache. Aside from these attributes being at odds with each other, skateboard helmets just aren’t that cool. The article talks about Bell’s quest to design a cool helmet for mountain bikers who didn’t want to look like Lance Armstrong (which wouldn’t be that bad if you factor in Sheryl Crow). Highlights and the improbable conclusion after the jump.

Anybody that knows me knows that I’m a total wrestling mark. Actually, I’m a smart mark, so that makes me a smark. Anyway, you’re probably reading this wondering why is he writing about wrestling on a skateboard site? Well why not? I started this zine with Randy 20 years ago, and what made S&A unique was that we wrote about whatever we wanted, not worrying about what was “cool” in the skateboard world. Anyway, back to wrestling. Here’s a list of wrestlers from the last 20 years who are dead now. It’s actually pretty amazing that a “fake” sport has so many dead stars, most of whom were younger than me. Owen Hart (the Blue Blazer), Chris Candido, Eddie Guerrero, Davie Boy Smith (the British Bulldog), Crash Holly, John “Earthquake” Tenta, Miss Elizabeth, Curt “Mr Perfect” Hennig, David Von Erich, Kerry Von Erich (the texas tornado), Michael von Erich, Chris Von Erich, Terry “Bam Bam” Gordy, Chris Adams, “Flyin” Brian Pillman, Joey Maggs, Hercules Hernandez, Big Boss Man, Classy Freddy Blassie, Road Warrior Hawk, “Ravishing” Rick Rude, Andre the Giant, Big John Studd, Yokozuna, Gorilla Monsoon, Junkyard Dog, Dino Bravo. All dead. Pretty sad.

I am not making this up. A new study by the nonprofit Rand Corporation finds that girls who live near parks with active facilities like jogging paths, basketball courts, and playgrounds are more likely to be physically active. (Duh!) Sounds good right? Except, Skateboard areas and special-use parks were negatively associated with physical activity in adolescent girls.

This started out as a quick post about this guy who has been floating around the news wires as the Sole Man. He entered a Red Bull soap box derby dressed as a classic Vans checkered slip-on on top of a homemade oversized skateboard. But like all things concerned with the Interwebâ„¢, it’s not always that easy. There’s the obvious comparison to Tod Swank and Foundation’s super-sized Ripley’s Believe It or Not appearance, and at least two others. Pictures and videos after the jump.