Don’t Bite the Pavement is clone of another mechanical game from Tony called Kongman. Game play vaguely resembles the video game Kong I suppose, but it’s all mechanical. There are buttons to punch activate pinball-like levers, and a battery that runs some of the steppers and the swinging guy on the top. You have to maneuver a metal ball through various stages all the way up to the top. Earlier on there are opportunities to get the timing wrong and have the ball return all the way to the beginning of the puzzle, but it seems like once you get past a certain point you’re pretty safe. If you do get to the end, the ball is returned to the star anyway. Kongman came out in 1982, but I’m not sure about Don’t Bite the Pavement. My guess is a little later because they were probably figuring out what to do with unsold stock. – Thanks to Wesley for the pics

There are so many hybrid bike skate scooter thingies these days. The Dryft Board positions itself as snowboarding simulator if you can believe that. It’s more or less a backwards Skate Bike with a caster wheel. And instead of a single axle, the back truck is hinged. Oh, and it’s electric too, because why not? Comes with brake lights and a switch to make the caster wheel stable. I’d bet there’s a fistful of overlapping patents on this $2000 toy. At least they ship it for free. I totally forgot about Bikeboards and Strullers. I’ll bet you did too.

Kape Skateboards is the latest in the long line of alternative skateboard manufacturing techniques. These boards are a combination of fiberglass and recycled ocean plastic, which is super cool. How much of the materials are recycled ocean plastic is hard to tell because the closest the web site comes to being specific is to say that they are “largely” made of recycled plastic sourced from the sea. These things are supposed to feel like wood for the life of the deck without getting spongey. Waterproof too… They only make one size because they are molded and not laminated, so each deck would require a different mold. Curiously, the size they came up with is an 8.25″ wide deck with a 14.13″ wheelbase that is supposed to “fit most skaters just right.” That’s an odd claim for a board that is likely wider than most kids are riding and probably has a shorter wheelbase. What do I know, I’m still riding the new old stock from my mostly dead skateboard company. You might expect to pay a premium for a long lasting deck that can’t delam and slides like everslick, and you will. It’s about $120 USD, which is the price…

Well folks… welcome to government sanctioned skate harassment, in fact government sanctioned pedestrian, if not citizen harassment. Read all about the sad state of the USA at Wired. Apparently they (DHS) are more concerned about skateboarders acting as scouts and surveillance for protest organizers than they are with skateboarders using skateboards as a weapon. The threat bulletin came in advance of the No Kings protests and warns that more Americans are likely to turn against ICE, like maybe… this guy. Senior ACLU staff attorney Vera Eidelman to the rescue: “Exercising those rights shouldn’t be justification for adverse action or suspicion by the government,” Eidelman says. Labeling something as harmless as skateboarding at a protest as a violent threat is “disturbing and dangerous,” she adds, and could “easily lead to excessive force against people who are simply exercising their First Amendment rights.” – Thanks to Dustin Michel and Rich at EPM for the tip.

Which of these are names of tricks typically used in skateboarding? I once broke my ankle on a switch swizzle. – Thanks to Troy Sliter for the tip.

A couple of weeks ago I flew to Colorado Springs for a wedding. There are plenty of proper spots to skate in Colorado, none of which I saw during my short allotted time there. I did see an interesting banked curb setup in Colorado Springs, and street skating in Manitou Springs.

The age old tale… The session looks good, the concrete has dried and cured but the park is closed until the landscape architects are done with the finishing touches. Enjoy some over-the-fence pics that I took after leaving the soft opening of Parklane a month to the day from today. Is it open now? Head over to Berrydale park in NE Portland and find out. Those are giant sacks filled with something heavy to keep people from skating it. Is it rocks or sand? I don’t know because I stayed behind the fence like a good boy. That bowl looks fun to me, not very deep. Public skateparks are popping up like weeds in Portland.

There are a few overpriced “natural” grocery stores in my hood. Someone at this New Seasons keeps putting the Thrasher Magazines up front by the register. The only thing more surprising than the realization that this is still ongoing is the fact that Thrasher is on the shelves here in the first place. What’s next? Alternative music in the aisles?

I’ve been listing to the Hard-ons from afar for decades, ever since I picked up their US debut EP on Bigtime in 1987, purely because the cover had a skateboard on it. I’ve never been able to see these guys live, and the only thing I know about them as humans comes through looking at their artwork and listening to their music. Aside from the skateboard on the cover, the racial makeup of the band portrayed in that crude illustration definitely had an appeal to me. It was unlike anything I was seeing in punk a the time. I assumed they were punk because, you know, 80’s DIY art and a skateboard. The style of the some of the music threw me for a loop at the time as my tiny brain recoiled at anything vaguely-heavy metal. However, their spirit really stuck with me, and I loved the underdog nature of an ethically diverse non-mainstream band from Australia. I kept buying their albums and they really grew on me. Terrible Happy Talks has a long interview with bassist and founding member Ray Ahn. You can listen on THT or wherever else you might find podcasts. This is an atypical band…

Summerboard, the board with extra caster wheels, skyhooks, motors, and batteries! The only thing missing is a speaker! ( I’ll stick with my Soundboard, thanks. ) I know you’re thinking “This thing probably weighs a ton. I hope it costs a lot.” Don’t worry, they have models starting at $899 and $1699! Oh no, those base models don’t come with skyhooks, “Freshies” or “Launch Pads.” Thankfully, they’ve got packages that range from $1799 to $1899, as well as financing. Success!