I’ve been remiss in posting this on S&A, as it is about a week old by now, but it has been reported that Mike Weed passed away. I’ve read it was after a battle with lymphoma. There appears to be no official announcement online, and Weed’s official web site has not been updated at this time. You can read a 2009 interview with Mike in Juice Magazine #66.

Dead at 53 from a heart attack, as reported by Fox Sports, among others. Catch a 2008 Interview with Jay after the jump. Photo: Glen E. Friedman

Dead at 65, original drummer and producer for the Ramones. Legs McNeil of Punk Magazine and co-author of Please Kill Me remembers Tommy and the brudders in Spin Magazine. [Source: New York Times]

Hobie Alter of Hobie Skateboards (surfboards, sailboats, etc..) passed away last Saturday at age 80. The image above right is from a recent Surfer Magazine interview with Hobie concerning his recently published biography.

The Stooges drummer Scott Asheton passed away on Saturday night, as reported by Iggy Pop. That’s Asheton on the right in a promo photo for the reunited Iggy and the Stooges circa 2010. More details on Asheton’s history with Iggy at Rolling Stone.

Reggie Destin, killed by a drunk driver while skateboarding in a bike lane. He died from his injuries last Saturday. I didn’t know him personally, but I knew Push, and I hail from Chicago (ages ago) so I feel for you Chicago. There’s a fund set up to help his family pay for his medical expenses.

Tom Sims died last week from a heart attack. My first snowboard was a Sims, because it was in the 80’s and quite frankly, there weren’t a lot of other choices out there. Sims put out some of my favorite skateboard graphics courtesy of Bernie Tostenson, so why would any self-respecting skater choose another brand? The Sims name was trusted and it legitimized the sport to a certain extent, at least through my eyes in that time period. As his clout in the skateboard industry waned, he picked up more steam in snowboarding, and that seems to be how the mainstream media is focusing on. The images above were poached from a gallery on ESPN. They’ve got a story and a video up too, mostly focusing on Tom’s influence in snowboarding. Interesting fact, Sims was instrumental in bringing the halfpipe to snowboarding competition, otherwise it would have been endless slalom races.

Larry Stevenson,founder of Makaha Skateboards, publisher of Surf Guide and Poweredge Magazines and inventor of the kick tail passed away at age 82. RIP indeed. Update: Obituaries in the NY Times and LA Times.

From the organizers: The past two years people of Williamsburg have started a tradition of Tommy Karafa Skate Day. This is a yearly skate contest to honor our friend and neighbor Tommy Karafa who passed in a tragic car accident two years ago in Williamsburg, VA. This contest is to serve as a remembrance of him, as all profits go toward the Tommy Karafa scholarship fund to help underprivileged youths attend college. His father runs the fund and helps students with paying for the ever rising costs of furthering their education. Last year we had a great turnout of over 150 in attendance, with 30 participants in the contest. This year we hope to double that number by teaming up with Anti-Gravity Skateshop in Newport News, VA to bring the premier contest to the Peninsula. 1st prize is a $1000! I believe that’s more than the entire purse for this year’s Oregon Trifecta! Anti-Gravity Skatepark 371 Chatham Dr. Newport News, VA 23602 757-890-8040

The BCSA is holding a memorial skate challenge for Tommy McGuigan called “Dawn of the Shred” on Saturday July 10th @ 1pm. The event will be held at the Eric Scott McKinley Skatepark in Corvallis and is a fundraiser for the proposed Corvallis Skate Bowl. We will have live music from Hermit, The Left Ovaries and others and a BBQ. The skate challenge includes a skate track time challenge, long ollie (ramp to ramp), longest grind in the bowl, best trick and highest ollie/hippy jump.