Sometimes I Prefer 1000 Words, or The Art of a Good Dialogue

To start, it is an unfortunate duty of mine to have to pass along the news of the recent passing both of Thrasher Magazine and Independent Trucks co-founder Eric Swenson, and Jackass alum Ryan Dunn. Both of these men's lives were cut short by truly tragic means, and my thoughts and sympathies go out to grieving friends and family.

On a slightly happier note, today marks the day I get my cast off. It's been a surprisingly fast-moving seven weeks, and I had considered writing a sort of survival guide for anyone laid up with a bad break, except that there is little to know, except for the fact that you will do little more than watch web shows and gain a few extra pounds, so good luck to anyone in a similar situation. I know I'm still a ways off from actually skating again, much less at the level I was before my break, but I will toss out the occasional update as per my status.

To be perfectly honest, I had no idea when I started this post what exactly I planned on writing about. Typically, ideas for this blog come from my glancing a handful of skate news websites, maybe watching something that catches my eye, or a discussion with someone, with any of the three somehow going through a series of filters in my head, eventually leading me to some kind of conclusion I wish to ramble about that Monday or Thursday. This week, there was little to work with, or at least, little that my mind was able to form any kind of thoughts about that would carry for longer than maybe a paragraph. For instance, Go Skateboarding Day came and went on Tuesday... most skated, I didn't (for obvious reasons), end of story. As far as skate news, there didn't seem to be much to go on; perhaps it was the two months of not buying either Thrasher or Transworld, or the fact that there were no recent videos that really caught my eye...

...Alright, so the part about the videos isn't exactly true. In fact, in the last week I came across two videos that very much piqued my interest. So why then, you are likely asking, am I not blogging about said videos? Well, for one, I haven't given myself the time to watch them both in their entirety, and two, they are both interview-heavy skate documentaries.

As I find myself growing older, I can't help but note that creeping sense of disconnect between myself and the pulse of popular skating. Yes, I do make an effort to try and buy skate magazines every month, and yes I do peruse my handful of skate news sites daily, but the reality of the situation is that while, yes, the act of skateboarding may be the closest thing to the fountain of youth, even skateboarders mature to some degree. That being said, while I do still enjoy reading skate magazines and watching skate videos, it has gotten substantially harder to relate to the up-and-coming new-jacks of the industry; sixteen year old handrail hellions who, when interviewed, seem to have trouble using multisyllabic words, much less saying anything meaningful or engaging.

I can't be too hard on these kids, though. They're young, they lack life experience, and while it pains me to say it, most of them care little for being educated. The truth is, as a university alum and an older skater in general, I require substance in my reading and viewing material, and flipping through a series of six page interviews with maybe five hundred words of text simply feels sub-par.

Maybe it's my age, or maybe it's the fact that you can only read the same interviews and watch the same video parts so many times in one decade, but the important thing is that I, we,  live in a day and age with choices. For so many years skateboard media was run by skaters, and skaters were kids; no one over twenty-five skated, because skating hadn't been around long enough. These days, the kids who ran the skate media of yesteryear have grown up enough to provide content for the grown-up skater, and thank god for that.

In terms of text media, a cornucopia of books lay at the disposal of the eager skater who craves some meatier writing over the best-selling mags; you all may remember the review I wrote of Stalefish, and thankfully Sean Mortimer is but one of many skate-centric authors. For those of us, however, who can only budget so many books a year, there is always Juice Magazine, where the interviews are long, the stories are rich, and Steve Olson is, as always, a joy.

Thanks in no small part to Stacy Peralta, the skate world is also growing increasingly more rich in documentary videos. While this may invoke immediate imagery of Dogtown and Z-Boys, Rising Son, and Stoked, rest assured for all you skaters less than enthralled by the prospect of history that this bandwagon has been jumped on by contemporary companies as a welcome breath of fresh air to the typical relatively dialogue-free skate video, notably in Tent City, Drive, and The Final Flare. Regardless, though, the upcoming Bones Brigade documentary has most skaters probably about half as excited as I am about it, and when it does finally come out, I suggest you watch it immediately.

All told, I know that I've spent much of this blog pointing out what I consider to be some noticeable problems with the current state of skating, but I am proud that we have finally reached a point where there is a choice in the type of skate-related media we consume. at least, a better choice than "Thrasher or Transworld".

By the way, sorry there are no pictures in this post. Here's a picture of my surgical scar - hope that makes up for it...

My Thoughts on Others' Thoughts: A Review of "Stalefish"

Skateboarding, and skateboarders, owe an obscene debt of gratitude to Stacy Peralta. In his years as a professional skater, he may not have given us the frontside or backside airs, as did his peers Tony Alva and Tom Inoyue. At best, as a pro Peralta gave skateboarding backside 540 bertlemanns, frontside lipslides, and the knowledge that skateboarders, and skateboarding, could be marketed to the masses. As Peralta himself put it, it was behind the scenes where he truly flourished.
Perhaps it was the tutelage of Craig Stecyk, arguably one of the first skaters to become well-known and to make a career out of documenting skateboarding. Maybe it was Peralta's own ability to segue from having a career by skateboarding into having a career because of skateboarding. Maybe it's entirely ineffable. in the end, though, one cannot deny that Stacy Peralta has a unique ability to see where talent lies in a person, and to know how to guide said person toward cultivating that talent, honing it to the point of greatness.
The book Stalefish: Skateboard Culture from the Rejects Who Made it, was not written by Stacy Peralta, but rather, was penned by Sean Mortimer. One may be inclined to ask me why I just spent two paragraphs waxing poetic about Peralta as a means to preempt my review of a book that he did not author, which is valid. Mortimer, the author of Stalefish, as well as co-author of Tony Hawk and Rodney Mullen's autobiographies, rode for Powell Peralta as an amateur in the late '80s. As Mortimer once recounted in an interview, Peralta once overheard his musings as he shared an observation of a particular event. Peralta suggested Mortimer try his hand at writing, and for anyone who has read any of his works, this was yet another shining example of Peralta's innate eye for talent.

Stalefish the book is a few years old now, but is still, in my opinion, entirely worth reviewing, as I feel it to be somewhat underrated when cast in the gargantuan shadows of Occupation: Skateboarder and The Mutt. My girlfriend got me the book as a Christmas gift last year, and I am casually re-reading it now for what I swear is the tenth time.

The book is, more or less, a collection of anecdotes. The cast of contributing skaters is an astounding one that runs the gamut of skateboarding's past and present, as far back as Jim Fitzgerald and as contemporary as Chris Haslam, with a litany of others in-between: Russ Howell, Stacy Peralta, Steve Olson, Dave Hackett, Salba, Lance Mountain, Tony Hawk, Rodney Mullen, Tommy Guerrero, Kevin Harris, Mike Vallely, Bob Burnquist, Jamie Thomas, and Daewon Song round out the rest of the cast of characters, ensuring that no era or discipline is left unturned or unappreciated.
The stories themselves are not exactly autobiographical per se, as each chapter of the book focuses on a different aspect of skateboarding, and whomever has a tale or two to contribute as a means to chime in on the topic does so. In spite of the inherent looseness of the book's format, there is, understandably, some repetition in material for those who have read the Hawk and Mullen autobiographies. This is, of course, not necessarily a downside, which leads me to my next point.
What makes this book truly great, aside from instantly appealing to any and all skate-history nerds like myself, is that it is a collection of great stories being told by many of skateboarding's great storytellers. Anyone who has ever listened to Steve Olson say so much as three words will tell you that it is impossible to read anything he has written without hearing it in his voice, and that is not a bad thing. Most, if not all of the skaters interviewed for this book are so unique in their capacity to tell stories that one cannot help but hear their voices, be it Olson's cavalier slur, Mullen's excited mumble, or Mike V's intensity, every word truly jumps from the page, reverberating in the reader's head like the opening track of a favourite record.
While I cannot say enough great things about this book, no amount of my rambling will do it near as much justice as going out and giving it a read, and maybe later, nine more for good measure.

Stalefish is available for purchase here.