I never got Archie, even as a kid it just seemed boring. This is Archie Pal-N-Gals #36 that dates back to April of 1966, a full year after skateboarding supposedly died a violent and sudden death in 1965. Coincidentally, I just read an interview with in the Skateboarders Journal with Patti McGee who mentioned the same thing, conventional wisdom reports the death of skateboarding in ’65, but Patti said she was still touring and making public appearances in 1966. So that’s the most interesting thing about Archie. It sort of corroborates Patti’s story. There’s no further skateboarding in this issue of Gals-N-Pals except for the cover. View it after the jump.

MC found this Nike SB outdoor advert that was produced in Brazil circa 2006, so don’t go looking for these here and now. There’s not much information from the source because you have to (pay) subscribe to actually read the content. It’s called Mub Skateboard, from a firm called F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi. It looks like an appendage they add to existing structures to make them skate able, like a skate-prosthesis. I don’t remember I we talked about this earlier or not, but Nike had plans to tear down the artificial barrier they erected between SB and the rest of the company, and looks like they’ve been absorbed at last, the old url redirects to the corporate site. Very sterile.

[Source: Advertolog]

The Wall Street Journal (online) has a short piece on private skate spots across the country. It focuses on the age of aspect, as most of these operations are helmed by a 30 and older crew. Minneapolis gets mentioned as having an unusually large concentration (Hiawatha, Blood Bowl) but at any given time I think Portland has more. Some of them are there for a while and gone, but I can think of four going right now. Also mentioned in the article are New Yorks defunct Autum Bowl, DOS bowl in Portland and the private vert ramp facility in Seattle (More on that in a little while.) A video clip shows a cool little tunnel under the Hiawatha ramp. Conor Dougherty is the author, and if I’m not mistaken I have corresponded with him before. I think I recall him saying that he likes to sneak in as much skateboard content as he can. Check out I Say, That’s One Gnarly Grind You Just Executed: Aging Skateboarders Join Exclusive Venues to Avoid Those Darn Kids in the WSJ. (I swear that’s a punchline in one of MC’s comics.) Colin was supposed on call for an interview, but they must not have needed him. That’s a shame, cause I would have loved to see his likeness as one of those little point drawings.

– Thanks to Jeff Roenning for the tip.

Pendelton Woolen Mills has a pretty conservative approach steeped in their history and name. They’ve also got a somewhat secret operation going on to appeal to hipsters, with limited and semi-limited production runs ranging from t-shirts to higher fashion wear in their Portland Collection. They want to expand their market without alienating a loyal customer base. Then there’s this advertisement at Windells that features what they’re mainly known for, which is a wool semi plaid looking fabric. Bonfire’s connection? They must have used some Pendleton wool lining their snowboarding gear. So this is best of both worlds, young action sports enthusiasts and the 45 year old housewife together at last. Fire up the Cougar Life theme song. I may sound bitter, but I’m not. I’m just a little bit puzzled. A snowboard clothing company hooking up with an uptight fabric mill in the middle of an identity crisis. What better way to advertise than with a Skateboard? Actually, Bonfire has been throwing the Pipe to Pipe skateboard/snowboard contest for fifteen years now, so it does make sense after all. Unobstructed view after the jump.

Update: Pendelton wool covered Vans, thanks to Ben.

Running a marathon on a treadmill is in reference to skating in a skatepark that mimics real world spots. 99% Invisible is Roman Mars’ radio show about design, distributed on Public Radio. Episode 71, In and Out of LOVE features the familiar theme of skateboarders reinterpreting their environment for their own needs. It’s made with the help of skaters for the non-skating public, but just as your attention starts to wander they get down to focusing on Love Park. You know the story, but listening to a well produced audio version makes it fresh again. A big part of it is the random asides, including audio of the original architect, Edmund Bacon. Definitely worth checking out. You can watch video footage of Edmund’s act of civil disobedience after the jump, but do yourself a favor and listen to In and Out of LOVE first.

[Photos: Mike Blabac] – MC is artsy

Limited time offer, subscribe to the Skateboarders Journal and get a set Seismic Cambria wheels. Volume 1 #3 is out.

I haven’t actually held a copy of teh Neiman Marcus publication known as The Book, but near as I can tell it’s like a fashion magazine masquerading as a very fancy catalog that you can’t actually order anything from. Walter Chin is the photographer, but he’s not Walter Chin, the wedding photographer. Register those domain names early kids. As much as I tend be annoyed by gratuitous skateboards in fashion photography, I actually really like this as a photograph. It transcends the norm for this kind of thing. Chin’s photos are in the March, 2013 edition of The Book. I have no idea how you actually get a copy, but you can view it online here, page 58.

– Thanks to our recent fashion correspondent Seth Levy for the tip.

Back in 2003, Bob Burnquist had milk. Holy cow, that was 10 years ago. I think Hawk did one too.

Drink Water is trying to get people to skip the energy drinks and buzz cola in favor of drinking water instead. They don’t sell water, but they sell shirts, stickers and water bottles with the logo. 10% of the profits go towards water.org, an organization working towards getting clean drinking water for the almost 1 in 9 people in the world who don’t have access to clean water. Man, that seems really high. And for our purposes, they have a promo video with some skateboarding in it. This whole thing sounds like a bit in Portlandia. If we don’t drink energy drinks and soda, who will make TV commercials with skateboarding or sponsor the contest series that air on TV to show those commercials?

– Thanks to Tom Bender for the tip.

Yogurt is Extreme!™, especially when it’s… I don’t know. Cold? Who is that DC wearing model/athlete? We’ll never know. Unless you do.

– Thanks to RJ from Pittsburgh for the tip.