If you’ve ever owned or frequented a backyard ramp you’ve probably seen the attempts to ride the neighborhood gas powered scooter or small cc dirt bike on a half pipe before. It usually ends in a lot of pain or hole in the ramp. Somewhere there’s a guy in a cube getting paid to send emails to sites like this one in hopes of instigating a buzz about a product. It’s called viral marketing and it’s either ingenious or insidious, depending on how you look at it. In any case, it’s kind of fun to imagine the possibility that there are guys out there somewhere taking Extreme!™ to the next level by freestyle car driving on half pipes. Who knows, maybe some day someone will do something like this on a really basic level. Most of the videos are really well done. The screen captures are difficult cause the car is only is barely ever in frame with the ramp, which is why it sometimes works. When it doesn’t work it looks like crap. The official site is still being coy about what they are really advertising. Captain Obvious says it’s an upcoming video game. You guys owe me a copy when it comes out. [Update: This turned out to be viral advertising for the Nissan Qashqai ]

The NY Times has a two page article on Bob Burnquist’s backyard mega ramp titled “Huge Skateboarding Ramp Beckons Daredevils.” It has some good pictures and video. I knew they built these things for Danny Way to play on and then tore them down. It was only a matter of time before someone with a lot of land found a permanent place for one. I wonder if he has the traditional crappy chain and padlock on the flat bottom. I’m picturing an amusing scenario where Bob pulls up to his mansion in an SUV and has to yell “You damn kids! get outta here!” to all the groms barging the mega ramp, except they are all laying in a shattered pile at the bottom of the landing ramp. Hope he’s got good homeowner’s insurance. Maintenance on that thing must be a royal pain in the wallet too. How much does a mega ramp cost? $280,000. Well, it was either that or spring for his and her 24k gold plated Plasma TVs. Thanks to EPM for the tip off. Now go read the article.

Motorola is the latest consumer electronics company to use skateboarding to help market it’s products. In this case, a cell phone. I’m not sure which object in the picture they are trying to fetish-ize. Poached from Engadget who poached it from Phonearena.com. Not quite as impressive as a 24K Gold TV huh?

I don’t know anything about your 1080p vs. your 1080i. I’m still waiting for flat screen TV’s of any technology to reach prices affordable for your average joe. In any case, LG must be one of the sponsors of the X-Games or the Dew Tour or something, and they are showcasing footage from said event on their 24k gold plated 71 inch plasma display. At $132,000, only Tony Hawk or Bam can actually afford it. Ridiculous, as seen on Aving.net via Gizmodo.com.

God Skates! Not to be confused with the seminal skate rock band McWilson’s tune of the same name. Skate churches are nothing new. Here’s a roundup of Christians and skatebording in the news.

FedEx, Gatorade Propel, and Levis Dockers all have commercials currently airing using skateboards. They range from pretty good to average. Decode my cryptic title with video links and commentary after the jump.

There’s a company in the U.K. that makes boxes for packaging cell phones. I can’t understand who would need to repackage a cell phone, but the important thing here is that they offer a skateboarder theme as an option along side of such other extreme perennial favorites as skydiving. Mobilephoneboxes.com. If you really need to see it larger:

Skateboard Champions. Flying is in style. Fun Colors and designs that let your kids show off their own personal look (as long as someone else has already pre-manufactured it.) That kid looks like a sassy Ryan Sheckler, and the little girl holding the skateboard has a head start on a beer gut.

This may be old news to you Social Distortion fans. I’m a fan but I don’t feel the urge to see them live anymore. Austin360.com reports:

Last year, Ness’ better judgment went downhill in a hurry resulting in injury and a last-minute phone call to a fill-in guitarist to save the Social Distortion tour from being detoured.

Which made me jump to the hasty and obvious conclusions: Did he have relapse or run in with the law? Turns out he was skateboarding with his son.

“I was helping my son do an eighth-grade school project,” Ness says. “We went downhill skateboarding and I was filming him, and I just ate it going about 25 miles per hour. I broke my wrist in about four places.” Skateboarding under the influence of good intentions is better than wiping out on drugs, which is what Ness was doing early in his career.

I wonder if he has any of the old Skull Skates Social Distortion boards laying around. Earlier in the article the author says that Ness laments having his tattoos. Oh well. Photo by Shigeo Kikuchi. Story by By David Glessner for Austin360.com. Read From punk riot to family man

I know we’ve covered this twice already. But since I have a weird and vague, sideways personal connection to this story I feel like I need to chime in again. Big Black, by the way, was one of the highlights of the 25th anniversary of Touch and Go Records. Rob Dyrdek and Steve Albini? Now there’s a reality show I would watch.