Cody Chapman #2.

"The sickest Derby story I have is my 21st birthday. Raven Tershy got a taco truck to pull up, we had all the homies from SC, SF, and Oakland. Homies were jumping over fires with the moped, glasses were shattering, it was epic. What else could you ask for?"

Cody is one of those all terrain rippers who somewhat flies under the radar. From growing up in Santa Cruz, Emmanuel Guzman is a big influence on his skating. I like how Cody mixes transition, street, and natural street transition stuff. I also like that he rides for Lakai. He had turned pro for Omar Salazar's Doom Sayers in 2019 before getting the call from Evan Smith about riding for UMA Landsleds. The rest is history.

It was another springlike day in December so I got to skateboard for a long time this afternoon once last night's rain finally dried up. Things weren't really clicking at first, but I got all my dumb tricks together eventually. Twas a nice end to the year.

Happy New Year!

The photograph is by Brian Gaberman. The art is by Griffin McPartland and Nathaniel Russell. Russell is one of the creative minds behind UMA.

For the quote: Thrasher - October 2020 Volume 41 Number 10

Thrasher - January 2022 Volume 43 Number 1

Maité Steenhoudt.

Maité is from Antwerp, Belgium. She turned pro for UMA at the start of 2021. She had previously ridden for Element. Maité also rides for Adidas. Her favorite skaters include Nora Vasconcellos, Elissa Steamer, Ronnie Sandoval, Oski Rozenberg, and Mark Gonzales.

I got skateboarding for the 300th time this year yesterday. Everything was damp from a night of rain, but I fit in an unspectacular lunch break flatground session at the skatepark. I even did a boardslide on a wet flatbar to keep it real. I didn't think I was going to hit the 300 mark unless we got the mildest December ever. Turns out we did. It wasn't a big priority except I was getting so close to 300 that it would have been disappointing not to hit the mark.

Is Jimmy Wilkins off of Creature? I realized he didn't have any tricks in Gangreen and he isn't on the website.

The photo is by Dennis Scholz.

Art: Thrasher - April 2021 Volume 42 Number 4

One footer: Thrasher - October 2021 Volume 42 Number 10

Roman Pabich.

Roman is from Ocean City, Maryland. His older brother Cedric rides for Anti-Hero. Their whole family relocated to California a few years ago. Roman had a part in Welcome's Fetish video full of pool and park destruction from 2017. He has since switched over to UMA and turned pro in September.

As of this past fall, Andy Jenkins is now the art director at UMA after Thomas Campbell departed.

For the love of all things evil and unholy, why aren't there any titles in the new Creature video? I know who most of the guys are, but I was at a loss trying to identify a few fiends. Gangreen was sick. I liked the Darren Navarrette part and the assorted East Coast road trips.

The UMA photo is by Alex Papke and the Welcome photo is by Richie Valdez.

Portrait: Thrasher - December 2021 Volume 42 Number 12

Welcome: Thrasher - April 2018 Volume 39 Number 4

Evan Smith #4.

Pittsburgh Steeler.

Evan spent much of 2020 confusing people on who his board sponsor was by riding a variety of decks from different companies. He even scored multiple guest boards on Anti-Hero spinoff Grimple Stix. Evan put in the work on video parts for Grimple Stix, which made his sponsorship status even more up in the air. Things all became clear once UMA Landsleds was officially announced at the end of 2020. Mr. Smith and photographer Alex Papke spent a night in jail after an ollie on the Bay Bridge. The photo was used for the September 2021 cover of Thrasher so it was probably worth it in the end.

I know I could've used a more recent picture for Evan, but I found this one a while ago and thought it was neat. That's basically how this site works.

Art: Thrasher - August 2021 Volume 42 Number 8

Indy: Thrasher - January 2012 Volume 32 Number 1

UMA Landsleds.

Land sledding.

UMA Landsleds was launched at the end of 2020. The initial team was Evan Smith, Maité Steenhoudt, and Cody Chapman. Longtime artist and photographer Thomas Campbell is the creative force behind the company. I believe they are partnered with Ace Trucks for distribution.

Evan: Thrasher - December 2020 Volume 41 Number 12

Maité: Thrasher - January 2021 Volume 42 Number 1

Cody: Thrasher - February 2021 Volume 42 Number 2

Adil Dyani.

Oslo's finest vert ripper feeds a dinosaur sculpture a Wheat Thin.

I kept flipping by this when I was looking for other stuff and I decided I had to scan it. The ad is just too amazing.

The weather was basically spring today so I got to skateboard for a long time this afternoon. It was so nice not to have to worry about an early sunset or racing back to the office from the skatepark on my lunch break.

It's only a ride-on backside 50-50. My new ledge turned out solid.

Happy holidays to everybody out there. Stay safe and party smart.

The design and photography are by Niko Achtipes.

Transworld - April 1996 Volume 14 Number 4

Adam McNatt #3.

Big sky country.

Adam was exploring some different spots in the 1990s. He was up on the rooftops and grinding some long curved handrails.

The new Chocolate video is pretty sweet. The best thing is there aren't any skits, except for one good one. It was a tad puzzling why Carlisle Aikens didn't get either the first or last part, but that's trivial. Congrats on the pro nod, Carl.

What's up with skating inside businesses and/or people's front yards? There was a bunch of that in Bunny Hop and it popped up in the new Quasi video. We really don't need another kickflip down a giant set of stairs or 50-50 across somebody's front porch just because there is a handrail.

The photo is by Brian Reid. The design is by Niko Achtipes.

Transworld - September 1996 Volume 14 Number 9

Mathias Ringström #2.

"On the infamous Osiris paint-balling day, Mathias drove up in his brand new Audi. I was checking it out and he said to me, 'You know, Jerry, if you skated vert maybe you could drive a car like this.'" - Jerry Hsu

The high tech vert ripper gave Jerry some classic life advice. Of note is that Mathias is riding a Mako Urabe board in the photos.

The design and photography are by Niko Achtipes.

For Jerry's quote: Thrasher - December 2019 Volume 40 Number 12

Transworld - July 1996 Volume 14 Number 6

Dan Connelly.

Dan does a casual 50-50 on a non-casual guardrail. He would go on to start SK8MAFIA in the future.

The design and photography are by Niko Achtipes.

Transworld - December 1996 Volume 14 Number 12

Tyrone Olson #2.

"During the height of The Storm I was out skating with Tyrone. We had to stop at his house to get something, the mail showed up and he saw his Osiris check had come. He opened it in front of us, pulled it out and was like 'Six grand? Kibbles, yo, kibbles. This isn’t even worth my time cashing!' And then he ripped it up and threw it away. Such a gangster move." - Louie Barletta

It's not the Sonic Youth album, but the cast of characters that made up the skateboard brand in the mid 1990s. EVOL happened after H-Street had run its course. They also had a shoe and clothing line that later evolved into Osiris.

The design and photography are by Niko Achtipes.

For Louie's quote: Thrasher - April 2021 Volume 42 Number 4

Transworld - May 1996 Volume 14 Number 5

Edward Sebastian.

Edward Sebastian was a 1990s clothing company distributed by Type A Snowboards. Carl Hyndman, the artist and graphic designer for Plan B Skateboards, was in charge of the brand. Most of their ads were arty lifestyle shots. The team had a few Plan B guys to start with and branched out to include Marc Johnson, Chad Knight, Jake Brown, and Dave Mayhew.

It hit 65˚ F yesterday. I only got to skateboard at lunch for a little bit, but it was really nice in the unseasonable warmth.

The new video from Limosine is a fun ride. It's far from perfect, but Paymaster feels genuine. I liked the parts from Nelly Morville and Max Palmer.

Chad's photo is by Ed Dominick.

Photo collage: Transworld - August 1995 Volume 13 Number 8

Matt Hensley: Transworld - May 1996 Volume 14 Number 5

Chad Knight: Transworld - September 1996 Volume 14 Number 9

Front Gear Co.

Frontside.

Front was a mid 1990s clothing company originally based out of the Cincinnati area. I'm not sure if they stuck to Ohio or moved out east. The team included a lot of guys from the Alien Workshop as well as Jahmal Williams and Panama Dan Zimmerman. They even had an ad with De La Soul. I believe Kyla Duffy, a vert skater for Rookie, also rode for them.

Panama Dan: Transworld - April 1996 Volume 14 Number 4

Jahmal: Transworld - July 1996 Volume 14 Number 7

Satva Leung #5.

Vanilla was a clothing company done by Joyride Snowboards in the mid 1990s. The team consisted of only amateurs. Sean Mullendore also rode for them.

The photo is by Paul "Skin" Philips.

Transworld - March 1996 Volume 14 Number 3

Caine Gayle #3.

Caine frontside 50-50s that one famous rail in a hallway for a poorly named clothing brand. It really would not have been difficult to think up a better name and gimmicks. Vinnie Ponte was also on the team and scored the cover of the October 1995 Transworld wearing the same jersey. Ah, the 1990s. I'm glad that's over with.

Was Pervert backed by Intensity Skates?

Grant Brittain took the photographs.

Transworld - July 1995 Volume 13 Number 7

Jamie Thomas #16.

A Zero on Zero Sophisto.

Actually Jamie would still have been on Toy Machine at the time of this ad. Sophisto was Andy Howell's clothing line in the 1990s. In looking back through Transworlds from 1995-6, I dig Jamie's no frills skate rat style.

Congrats to Mark Suciu on winning SOTY.

The photograph is by Gabe Morford.

Transworld - August 1995 Volume 13 Number 8

Kenny Hughes #5.

You may think you are cool, but you will never ever be Kenny Hughes standing in front of a Mercedes-Benz with a flock of penguins cool.

(Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know the penguins are stuffed, but we're gonna pretend they are real. This was the one shoot they probably could have used live animals for. Although I imagine penguins do their own thing and won't stand still.)

It's another Mike Blabac photograph. According to a Chrome Ball Incident interview with Mike, the same stuffed animals are still in circulation from the company that rents them.

Transworld - August 2002 Volume 20 Number 8

Stevie Williams #3.

This one looks believable. Well, except for the tiger. Otherwise, you could picture Stevie chilling with his sport bike in real life.

DC only did four of these ads and that is a crying shame. I think their apparel line was more of an afterthought.

I've been slowly building a new ledge over the last week. It should end up being the same height as my launch ramp so tricks can be done off the end. It's also designed so you can do ride on grinds, as those have been quite popular the last couple of years. I think the next project is going to be a silly little Neil Blender style quarter pipe.

The picture is by Mike Blabac.

Transworld - July 2002 Volume 20 Number 7

Rob Dyrdek #7.

Already been done.

Rob broke the ice on this advertising concept with a similar photo on the cover of the March 2001 issue of Big Brother. He was doing a frontside boardslide on a loading dock handrail while his Mercedes Benz, a model named Bronze, and a $19,500 stuffed leopard occupied the foreground of the photograph.

It's a Mike Blabac photo.

Transworld - June 2002 Volume 20 Number 8

Colin McKay #8.

DC Shoes ran a series of ads for their apparel line that featured a rider paired with a fancy vehicle and a stuffed animal during the summer of 2002.

Mike Blabac took the photo. The car was provided by 310 Motoring.

Transworld - May 2002 Volume 20 Number 5

Rudy Johnson #8.

Fresh kicks.

This was Rudy's third pro shoe from DC. Kenny Hughes was wearing a pair in the Landspeed ad from last week. A lot of folks were wearing this shoe at the time and I can never remember what model it is so I tracked down the ad. I sort of can't believe this advertisement has never been scanned before. I think they look pretty good, but the toe area might be a little snug. I have no idea since I never had a pair.

The photograph is by Mike Ballard.

Transworld - April 1998 Volume 16 Number 4

Donny Barley #7.

Gnarly Barley floats a frontside ollie on a unique piece of architecture.

This ad teases a video called Mobile Destruction for February 1999. The video would end up being called CKY and we all know how that turned out.

So I suppose we're at a toss up between Mark Suciu and Yuto Horigome for SOTY? I say give the people what they want and award the trophy to Mark. Yuto is young and still defining himself. He can win it next year. Although from what I gather on the internet, people have mixed feelings about the whole SOTY affair. The process does leave a lot to be desired and blatantly staging a campaign to win it feels forced. Also everybody is very good and that complicates the matter immensely. In the olden days, it was usually somewhat obvious who shredded the hardest for a given year.

I sort of can't tell what folks think of Mark. I thought his favorite part selections for Quartersnacks went beyond the clichéd picks that often populate those lists, but the comments were mostly negative so I never bothered to write about it on here. I know he has plenty of fans, too. Since a Deluxe guy won it last year, nobody from any of their board brands is winning it this year. Flip had some back to backs, but that was kind of an anomaly that reflected a different era. I'm saying Corey Glick for SOTY. And it's not just because he skated to Polvo. Although that certainly doesn't hurt his cause any.

The photo is possibly by Jamie Thomas.

Transworld - December 1998 Volume 16 Number 12

Kenny Hughes #4.

Big Hughes styles a backside noseblunt slide across a nice ledge in some classic DC Shoes.

Dan Wolfe took the picture.

Transworld - November 1998 Volume 16 Number 11

Kerry Getz #6.

Long Haul.

Kerry does a 50-50 across a long flat rail. He always said he preferred flat bars over steeper handrails. Did Kerry ever have a Pro Spotlight? I keep thinking he did and then nothing much ever turns up in my random searches for interviews.

The Landspeed logo soon evolved into a futuristic human figure set in motion.

Ryan Gee took the photo.

Transworld - August 1998 Volume 16 Number 8