Mark Gonzales #23.

"Me and my friend Paul Nicole met Natas Kaupas, and it was trippy - Natas had a noseguard screwed into his tail, I don't know for what reason. He did two ollies that were pretty high, but they weren't as high as Eddie Gomez's ollies."

Gonzo story telling.

Vert Is Dead is taking a fall break and will be back on Monday, October 8th with a week of Kastel Shoes. I think I might also put together another week of DC Shoes for the future, too.

I should hit the 200 mark for skateboarding this weekend as long as the weather stays mostly nice.

For the quote: Transworld - January 2012 Volume 30 Number 1

Thrasher - February 1998 Volume 18 Number 2

Kenny Hughes #3.

Big Hughes.

This spot has some milage on it. It's also interesting to see how skateboarding has progressed over the decades and what newer tricks are done at a long standing location. I wonder how thrilled the property owners are that people have been skidding their tails and grinding their trucks on this ledge since the late 1990s?

Thrasher - April 2000 Volume 20 Number 4

Tim McKenney #4.

"It started out with 10" wide boards, going off launch ramps, doing early grabs, not giving a shit, big wall rides, when in the super tech days, couldn't do anything unless it was a double-flip or a noseslide down some 30-stair ledge. Now it's kind of at a point where it's both intertwined. That's my definition of the way I skate right there, just technical as well as gnarliness from ten years ago mixed together. It just makes skating that much better. There are no rules, just whatever goes, goes, I love it."

For the quote: Thrasher - July 1997 Volume 17 Number 7

Thrasher - March 2000 Volume 20 Number 3

Pancho Moler.

Pyromania.

Pancho is from Santiago, Chile. He moved to the United States when he was young and got into skateboarding. He lived in San Jose and was pro for Think. A back injury meant Pancho had to give up skateboarding, but he has since became an actor and appeared in a bunch of movies, many of the horror variety.

Pyro was footwear company from around about 2000. They didn't last long. Pat Duffy and Tim McKenney were also on the team.

Thrasher - February 2000 Volume 20 Number 2

Matt Dove #2.

Curb attack.

Matt is an East Coast vert legend with an affinity for technical tricks.

The photos are by Remy Stratton.

Thrasher - April 2000 Volume 20 Number 4

Max Schaaf #12.

Ye olde destruction.

Max had a couple of photos in the September/October issue of Transworld.

Thrasher - February 1998 Volume 18 Number 2

Sean Mullendore #4.

Washington monument.

Sean is from D.C. and rode for Capital. He is known for his massive pop on tricks out in the streets. Circuit was a wheel company done by Think. They had a team full of heavy hitters.

I like Chris Joslin's new part for his Etnies pro model shoe. It's all ledge tech with minimal knee ruiners.

Thrasher - March 2000 Volume 20 Number 3

Jim Gagne #3.

Flying out of Mt. Baldy.

There's an old urban legend that Jim once used a marker owned by Mark Gonzales to color over a pair of shoes he wasn't into. Mark was not thrilled about this so he tightened the trucks on Jim's board in the middle of the night. The next day Jim couldn't figure out why his skateboard wasn't feeling right until it dawned on him that his trucks were way off.

Thrasher - June 2000 Volume 20 Number 6

Chris Senn #6.

Hyperspace jump.

Thrasher - April 2000 Volume 20 Number 4

Tim Upson #6.

Rise above.

The Updog frontside flips at Burnside.

I picked out some Deluxe, Think, and an expired shoe company for the next two weeks.

Thrasher - February 2000 Volume 20 Number 2

Gilbert Crockett #4.

Grainy video grab.

Is it too early to start making nominations for SOTY? Gilbert gets the Vert Is Dead vote. What I really like about his recent video part for Quasi is that the bulk of it is filmed in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia. You can tell he put in the effort to make creative use of the local spots instead of flying 3000 miles for another 50-50 on a giant handrail.

It will be stuff from around about 2000 on Monday.

Thrasher - October 2017 Volume 38 Number 10

Chima Ferguson.

Spinning away.

Chima lives in Sydney, Australia. He's been pro for Real for a long time now. Chima's sponsored by Vans, Thunder, and Spitfire. He rips out in the streets with a good selection of classic tricks, done both regular and switch.

There's been some wildlife at the skatepark the last couple of nights. A fox wandered by on Tuesday. I saw a bat and a praying mantis yesterday. Bats are very common, but I hadn't seen a praying mantis in ages.

Note: The same photo ran in Chima's interview, a couple of pages before the ad.

The photo is by Thomas Robinson.

Thrasher - May 2018 Volume 39 Number 5

Cody Chapman.

Hands of Doom.

Cody is from Santa Cruz, California. He rides for Lakai, Doom Sayers, Independent, Spitfire, and Bronson Bearings. Cody had a few tricks in Lakai's The Flare video from 2017 in a shared part with Raven Tershy. Doom Sayers is Omar Salazar's company that has expanded to include boards.

I set up a new board on Saturday and put new wheels on it yesterday. As is the yearly tradition, I always forget how nice new wheels are until I get a fresh set. It's also nice having a board that isn't worn out and doesn't have dirty grip tape.

The photo is by Joe Brook.

Thrasher - June 2018 Volume 39 Number 6

Jeremy Leabres.

Last known surroundings.

Jeremy is from Corona, California. He got sponsored by Toy Machine on a recommendation from Billy Marks. Ed Templeton turned him pro in 2015 based upon his ability to do the popular street moves down handrails, stairs, and gaps. Jeremy had the opening part in Emerica's Made video from 2013 and now has a pro shoe for them. He also rides for Independent, RVCA, Bronson Bearings, and Active.

Thrasher - February 2016 Volume 37 Number 2

Ace Pelka.

Annihilation Time.

Ace is from Oceanside, California. He is pro for Assault. Ace had a part in the Assualt video from 2014 that was nearly all street and ditches. He jumped down some big gaps and did a few impossibles, including both the regular and front foot kinds. It seems he is focusing more on skating parks and transitions lately. Some of his favorite skaters are Lance Mountain, Neil Blender, Eric Dressen, Darren Navarrette, and Peter Hewitt.

Assualt is the long running company of Ned Hadden. The team features legends like Ricky Winsor, Mario Rubalcaba, and Kien Lieu along with new guys such as Shonn Oquendo, Garrett Lekas, and Mike Bricke.

I was wondering what Lee Yankou had been up to on Friday and just like that he's got a new video part on the Thrasher website. It is for the Blue Tile Lounge's Baby Blue video. Lee does a bunch of his signature wallrides and blasts a number of huge ollies.

The photo is by Dave Swift.

Thrasher - May 2017 Volume 38 Number 5

Lee Yankou.

Person of the North.

Lee is from Toronto, Canada. He was on Think before that company went under in 2014. Fos at Heroin offered him a spot on the team and he has been riding for them ever since. I was wondering why we hadn't see much of Lee since he got a lot of coverage a few years back. It turns out he works a day job as an insurance broker at his parents' firm so he has to balance his time between the office and skateboarding. He's into baseball and drawing. Lee does a lot of wall rides, late shove-its, and lipslides.

Jeff Comber took the photo sequence.

Thrasher - February 2016 Volume 37 Number 2

Lucas Puig #2.

VHS or Beta.

Lucas channels the power of an Andrew Brophy board and blasts over a street obstacle.

I'm never sure what I think of Palace, but their somewhat recent expedition to Hawaii that was featured in print in Thrasher and documented on Betamax cameras was entertaining.

Thrasher - February 2016 Volume 37 Number 2

Chris Gregson.

Top shelf sorcery.

Chris is from Irvine, California. He grew up skating with Justin Figeroa and Collin Provost. Chris had a gig as a filmer for Flip when he was younger and is still filming skateboarding today. Blood Wizard elevated him to pro status a couple years ago. He's a fan of early 1970s heavy psychedelic tunes.

The graffiti at FDR always makes me laugh.

Gilbert Crockett's part in the Quasi video is proper.

Thrasher - June 2016 Volume 37 Number 6

Kristian Svitak #3.

Ohio ollie.

Street Plant is Mike Vallely's most recent endeavor and it seems to be doing well. Mike has maybe found the right mix of nostalgia and staying current to appeal to his fanbase of older skateboarders that grew up on his classic video parts in Public Domain, Rubbish Heap, Speed Freaks, and 1281. Kristian Svitak joined the team early on and Bigfoot is handling much of the art. They even make a Jerry Garcia tribute board.

The photo is by Grant Brittain.

Thrasher - September 2015 Volume 36 Number 9