Midwest Zine Drop

Just uploaded 4 new issues to the 80’s Skatezine Gallery, bringing the total to 42, with plenty more to come. These latest 4 have a Midwest focus, Skate Straight (#8 and #9) from Dayton Ohio, featuring lots of Surf Ohio / Cow Skates action, and Chi-town Shred (#3 and #6) from Chicago. Still trying to […]

Tom Thumb Team Skate-ball

There are certain topics here on Skate and Annoy that though old, tend to cycle back into popularity every so often, and Skate-ball is one of them. If you’re not familiar, Skate-ball was a pinball-themed fiberglass ramp setup that had actual scores and scoreboard affected by different sections that you rolled over. Now, thanks to […]

chicago-bridge

Another Random Chicago Spot Check

Bridge launch ramp and/or bank in Chicago. Watch out for those bolts. Someone point me to a skate photo of a spot like this.

chicago

These things happen

I stumbled upon this skatepark while visiting Chicago recently. These things (new skateparks) happen when you move away from a city for 15 years or so. This street plaza-style park is much more interesting than this panorama photo may lead you to believe. I’m standing on top of a wall that is maybe 10 feet […]

terrorists

Midwest Skateboard Terrorists from the 80’s

Here’s an excellent time capsule of skateboard harassment from a local Springfield Illinois news channel concerning a proposed ban on skateboarding downtown. Local business and civic leaders speak out against “skateboard terrorists” in advance of the ban, which ultimately passed. The video was digitized from a decrepit old VHS tape, so there are tracking issues […]

macys

Red star for you

House of Neil spotted this not-made-for-skate terrain outside Macy’s in Schaumburg. Looks… like so much fun, and not even marked yet. Let the countdown to skatestoppers begin.

leopardknee

Radical Leopard Denim

In the second half of the 80’s I bought a barely used set of Pro Designed knee pads from local Champaign-Urbana skater Martin Pelequin. “The Mertster” as he liked to call himself, was a colorful character to say the least, almost a miniature version of Steven Tyler in appearance and behavior. Skinny, and around five […]

40

40/40

Remember 50 on 50? 40 Year Old Janitor does 40 Mini-Ramp Tricks at Jolly Roger Skateboards. I just reached the big 4-0 so I figured I would see what 40 tricks I could pull off on our mini-ramp last night. Warning: there are no McTwists or flip tricks in this video. I am really not […]

Cornboards from the University of Illinois

So far my alma mater is famous for two things, the birthplace of the fictional self-aware computer Hal 9000, and the place where internet browsers were invented. And now the University of Illinois is pushing the Corn board, a composite material made from the husks and stalks of corn plants. Think of it as a […]