Jack in the Box always has the lamest toys in their kid’s meals. Case in point, this Cartoon Network cross promotion for the show Chop Socky Chooks.I had no idea what Chop Socky meant, so I googled it. Crappy martial arts bar fights was the result. I think these are supposed to be Kung Fu Chickens. They battle the evil Dr Wasabi. I’ve never seen it, but these toys are weak. They are actually a step up for Jack in the Box kids meal toys, which are ore apt to be a plastic display stand for some nature facts collecting cards, or something equally as uninteresting to a kid. I saw them earlier this summer on the way to the Oregon Trifecta in Lincoln City. That’s KO Joe on the skateboard. I don’t know if he rides one on the show or not.

We’ve covered both the iJoy cross training board and Stowboard before, but our readers pointed out some new videos from both camps that are amusing. First up, the iJoy board is being marketed as both an exercise machine and an training device for board sports. It features workout settings with great names, such as “Taking It Easy,” (not to be confused with the Dethklok side project “Takin’ it easy!“) “Getting Serious” and “Pump it Up!” The closeups of the iJoy board in action are bizarre and disturbing. Check it out. Next up is the Stowboard in action. There’s cruising with the Stowboard, but more importantly, “with practice tricks are possible.” Check it out. And speaking of Dethklok, you can watch Murderface and Toki pitching their song Takin’ It Easy to Dethklok after the jump.

– Thanks to Benny Bones and Dave Arpin for the tip.

The ongoing concrete work in Hood River, Oregon is looking really interesting, at least from afar. This is a shot of what looks like a bridge over a creek that has one side with a steep tranny wall, almost like a modified Jersey barrier. I assume this is connected to the rest of the new skate trail that’s being built. Actually, I should stop making assumptions and make the drive out there to check it out. Carl Warren has the picture, and you can click to enlarge.

PBS Kids airs an educational program called WordWorld. It’s pretty crappy looking as far as animation goes, but it does seem to do a good job of teaching kids the basics of spelling and phonetics. You might think a show trying to teach kids how to spell would be, you know, spelled correctly, but that’s not the case with WordWorld. All the characters and most of the props are made out of letters. When they have challenges or adventures, the characters have to collect and place letters together to physically make the items they need to overcome their obstacles. WordWorld’s opening sequence has a brief bit where a bear rides a skateboard. The bear is a regular, but the skateboard isn’t a constant companion. In fact, I’ve only seen one episode where the bear rides the skateboard outside of the opening sequence. Why do I know so much? I’m not developmentally delayed (much), but I do have three year old kid. As with any vaguely popular TV show aimed at children, WordWorld has merchandising.

This month, at Fifty 24 PDX Gallery, skateboarder/artist/writer Michael Sieben has his original artwork in an exhibition entitled “From the Desk of Whatserface,” along with Mel Kadel and Travis Millard.  This exhibit is located at 23 NW 5th Ave, Portland, OR 97209, and will last until November 29.

Expect paintings with lots of cutesy, renegade monster things with cryptic messages.  Sieben is also a columnist/artist with Thrasher magazine, and has made many skateboards with his trademark style.  Some may remember the video he did with Adidas that SNA covered a few months back.  The above pictures were borrowed from Sieben’s web page.

Daniel Gesmer on Facebook.

Now where did I put my skateboard?

UPDATE: We’ve removed the photo due to the copyright restrictions of the photographer.

Went by Ed Benedict to see the progress. They finished the quarters opposing the shots Kilwag got earlier. They seemed to be finishing up a lot of smaller sections of the park. It seems like it might be a while before it opens. Enjoy these awful cellphone shots..

He’s got blisters on his fingers, but Joesf finally finished the last pour of this bowl in his DIY backyard concrete extravaganza. Two pics after the jump.

After probably a 30 year gap, there’s another Skitch Hitichock model out. This model made by Skate Designs looks like a pretty nice cruiser, complete with wheel wells. I want to say that Skitch the guy who invented the gorrila grip, but I’m not sure. Proceeds from the model will help Skitch with some life threatening medical needs. Video and pics of vintage Skitch after the jump.

– Thanks to Craig Snyder for the tip.

It was nominated last year and didn’t get in, but this year the skateboard made it into the National Toy Hall of Fame. Joining it this year were the baby doll and the “stick.” Proponents of the booger and the “doodle” (As in “They can see my doodle!“) were upset, as can be imagined. Tony Hawk appeared in a prerecorded video at the induction ceremony. In his words skateboarding “promotes individualism … artistic expression and it’s also very athletic.” Also, it doesn’t make you go blind if you do it too much.

– Thanks to Livmo and Sorenee for the tip.
[Source: CNN]