Now this sounds like an amazing opportunity for the skateboarders of the Lower Mainland to experience a whole bunch of skate parks that they might not usually be able to get to. An awesome way to spend a week out of your summer. Plus I think you get to hang out with Ben Chibber, owner of Monke Skateboards, The Dry Spot, and one of Vancouver’s skateboard legends…
Check the flyer or go to the site for more details: www.skatethedryspot.com
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Here’s a write up from the Cloverdale Rodeo webpage about the amazing World Freestyle Skateboarding Competition being held over the weekend. Monty Little is from the Cloverdale area and is one of the main promoters of the event along with the legendary Kevin Harris and up and comer Kai Dunkel. I had Kai, Kevin and Ryan Brynelson here at Chuck Bailey Skate Park almost 1 year ago for the Grand Opening and they were all ripping it, I hope all 3 will be competing at this event. Freestyle skateboarders are a dying breed, but the ones that are still out there in the world practice every day and all seem to able to blow your mind at any time. Check out the video link below to see some of the competition they will be facing from around the world. I’m definitely going to try to get out for the final day of this event. It’s gonna be crazy…
We are Rounding-Up the top pro and amateur freestyle skateboarders from around the world to compete at THE WORLD FREESTYLE ROUND-UP for a chance to win part of the $10,000 in Prize Money. The four day event will be held at the CLOVERDALE RODEO & COUNTRY FAIR, just 25 miles east of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, from May, 18 to 21, 2012. Over 77,000 people attended the annual Rodeo and Fair last year making this an ideal high profile location for this contest.
The World Freestyle Round-Up will take place inside a venue on the Cloverdale Fair Grounds, that has an arena setting featuring a 80 foot by 140 foot flawless concrete floor that is ideal for flatland freestyle skateboarding. Several freestylers say it’s the best surface they have ever skated on. Each day there will be several shows featuring freestyle demos and contests in three categories, Best Routine, Best Trick and a 360 Spin Off all using a Battle Format making it more interesting for the riders and audience as well. Several skaters will compete as a group each going one by one performing a routine. If a skater misses a trick, they are out until everyone has skated and it is their turn again. There will be two heats, (20 minutes each) for each show, with an announcer and DJ spinning tunes to keep the crowd and skaters pumped.
The contest also has a new judging system that has never been used before combining the scores from the five judges with the scores from the riders and audience. Note: The contestants cannot vote for themselves.
Contest promoters Kevin Harris, Kai Dunkel and Monty Little have one goal in mind. To create a fun energy packed annual event that will help put Freestyle Skating back where it belongs and move the level of competition up a notch or two. We envision something new and unique to give freestyle a chance to be back in TV, back in major magazines, and back in the forefront of the sports world.
Schedule
Friday, May 18
Saturday, May 19
Sunday, May 20
Monday, May 21
Click this link to see Kevin Harris, Kai Dunkel and Ryan Brynelson last May 28th at the Chuck Bailey Skate Park Grand Opening in Surrey, BC
It’s ironic because I’m the one that feels like I’m having a rough go right now, but it’s the people around me that are in pain. 26 years I’ve skateboarded, and I’ve been out here in British Columbia since 1998. When you’re at skate parks a lot, you’re gonna see lots of people get hurt, and unfortunately, I always seem to be the one who helps them.
In the past 2 weeks I’ve had to deal with 3 arm injuries with kids, one was just a really bad sprained wrist, last Friday was a dislocated elbow on a 7 year old, and today this mountain biker decided to break both bones halfway up his forearm in Maple Ridge. All 3 of these kids were crying, half out of pain and half out of fear of not really knowing what was wrong with them. I’d have to say that the 7 year old kid, Isaac, was the toughest out of all 3 of these guys. The other 2 were 11 & 14. This little dude had his elbow completely dislocated and when I told him that, he asked me what the word “dislocated” meant. That’s how young he is. When I explained to him what was wrong with his arm and what the doctors were going to do to fix it, he got very nervous. Understandable. But the part I’ll remember forever was how no matter what, he was going to tough it out. He was one tough kid. We had to call the ambulance for him and when the paramedic asked Isaac if he could cut off his shirt to see his arm, he got no for an answer. This shirt was awesome, I wouldn’t have wanted to cut it either. And original E.T. shirt with the slogan “It’s All Good in the Hood.” So Isaac toughed it out and the ambulance attendant took off his shirt the hard way. Awesome!!
It’s always really painful for me to be the one providing people with the first aid they need and helping them to get to the next stage of getting assistance because I think of my own kid when I’m looking at them, and I think of all the times I’ve been in that much pain myself. I remember when I was 17 years old we were skating these gaps behind the CIBC in Barrie and my board shot out on me when I landed. I flipped over upside down and put out my hand to try to stop my face from hitting the ground. Of course, my arm bent straight backwards, dislocating my elbow, and then I hit my face anyway. I jumped up, screamed and shook my arm in pain – bad idea. The bones ended up locking back together with my upper arm and lower arm completely reversed. I just looked at Clayton and Malcolm that I was with and said Hospital…
It took 5 doctors and a lot of medication to put my arm back together the way it should be. They had to knock me out completely, pull my arm apart and then twist it back to normal. Damn I’d hate to be a doctor in the hospital. But they did get it together, and it works fine. And all these kids in the past 2 weeks are gonna be alright too. We have an amazing medical system in Canada, and I am very thankful for it. I’ve had a lot of bad injuries over my lifetime, and I’ve helped out so many people when they go down – broken bones, dislocations, concussions, all kinds of stuff. The biggest thing I think about whenever I see someone in need is what would I hope the other people around me would be doing if that was me lying there? Or my kid lying there? I would want them to help me, even if all they did was call someone else to help.
So when you’re at these skate parks all over the place, that we are soooooo lucky to have, be prepared for people to get hurt, it’s going to happen. But remember, when it does happen, please assist immediately, especially for head injuries, even if all you do is call 911.
You may end up someone’s hero; you might even save a life…
The Vancouver Courier and the writer of this article, Sandra Thomas, need to be told how offensive and hurtful articles like this are. Not to mention how shameful it is for a paper to give someone, not a expert, a whole article to RANT about something and have it come off like the truth.
Her email is ” sthomas@vancourier.com”
Click the link below to read this insulting article:
http://www.vancourier.com/
Please write her and let her know this is unacceptable.
Please no threats or bad words.
I was on an airplane the other night coming home from Ontario and I caught this amazing documentary on TV. The story of Reece “Goose” Tatum, the one time leader of the Harlem Globetrotters, and definitely someone who broke many boundaries in the world of racism. The documentary includes commentary from other historic father figures of the black community such as Oscar Robertson, Ernie Banks, and even Bill Cosby. These guys were all around during the times of struggle where the white man thought they were the superiors to all other races and made sure everyone knew it. A disgusting period of time which I am glad I wasn’t born to see.
The story starts out displaying some awesome, and almost unbelievable baseball tricks with the Goose just messing around with the baseball. His skills of deceptive magic were amazing. You just have to see it to understand it. I thought it was astonishing to learn that he was a baseball player by heart, not a basketball player, and it made me think of Michael Jordan and how he was totally the same. It made me very glad that both of them ended up on the NBA floors because they were both the leaders of change in how the game of basketball is played today. The Goose was credited with introducing the no-look pass and the no-look hook shot, while Michael Jordan taught us how to fly through the air for hours at a time. And they could both juggle a basketball like nobody’s business.
Reece Tatum was a baseball player in the Negro League on a team called The Indianapolis Clowns, and his magical talents were discovered by marketing genius, Abe Saperstein, who brought him into the basketball spotlight as the new leader of the Harlem Globetrotters (who weren’t actually even from Harlem) and the times began to change. Tatum would actually play Center even though he only stood approximately 6’ 3”, but due to his creative means, along with an 84” arm span, nobody could stop him from finding the basket. With the mixture of comedic genius and athletic skills, the Goose would help to attract major audiences, and it was planned for the Harlem Globetrotters to play against their first NBA Team – the “all white” Minnesota Lakers, the best team in the NBA. This was a major historic event as the Globetrotters took the win, and were immediately challenged to a rematch. They won again.
This was in an era, where African-Americans were not respected by all parts of the United States and sadly, no matter how big of a superstar you were, you were still black. You had to drink out of specified water fountains, and stay in certain hotels only. Unbelievable… But Reece Tatum was one of those men who opened the doors for the African Community to be respected as human beings across North America.
The story goes on and gets better. The Goose left the Harlem Globetrotters due to disagreements with Saperstein and began a new team called The Harlem Magicians. He had kids and took them with him on tour wherever he went. The Goose was a hero. He was respected by so many well known individuals, like Ray Charles and Sonny Liston, and of course anyone in the history of basketball or baseball. He was there to help change the world.
A tragic accident where he lost one of his sons drove Tatum into a bad state and he ended up passing away at a young age. The days of The Goose were over, but the impact he had made on society was there to stay, and the memories of The Goose would live forever.
Reece Tatum was eventually welcomed into the Basketball Hall of Fame recently, and his son, Reece Tatum III, was there to accept the honors. He had been there with his Dad through the good times and the bad, and no one respected him more. He quoted his Dad on stage with a statement that almost made me cry:
“Things change very slowly so pay attention, because if you don’t pay attention we will repeat where we’ve been before, and we don’t want to go back ever.”
What a statement. It explains a lot in my own life. And now I have another person to relate my being to. I break this statement down to what it means to me:
Believe in yourself and others will believe in you;
Trust people fully, only when you’re looking at them;
Change the world to make it better for everyone, and make sure that the changes have been accepted;
And never give up on your dreams.
He brought joy and laughter to everyone around him. Check out some of the links below and enjoy.
Classic comedic basketball footage of The Goose
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cjtEP2NHQg
Classic comedic baseball footage of The Goose
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PunxRJZzn6A&feature=related
View the induction speech by Reece Tatum III
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moljx66W_yw
Learn more about the Harlem Globetrotters
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/harlem-globetrotters-play-their-first-game
Click here to see the original promotional commercial for the documentary
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Life’s so easy when you’re a kid, even if you have it rough. You wake up in the morning and get ready for the day. Hopefully you get lots of time to play, and do the things you enjoy. You don’t really have to worry about money or the painful battle for survival. You don’t have to pay bills or worry about losing your job. Your biggest concern is usually trying to have fun without getting in trouble. The beautiful life.
As you get a little older, it changes a bit. You start being more concerned about your appearance, and what other people think of you. You want to fit in with the cool crowd and sometimes might do things you normally wouldn’t in order to do so. You start to get more responsibilities put on your plate, and less food. Your main concern becomes a little more complicated with some obstacles in the way, but it’s still all about having fun without getting in too much trouble. It’s a great life.
As you age some more and go out on your own into the cruel world, your life will change. You are now strapped down, and live for survival. Work to get paid, to pay for the things you need – shelter, food, clothing. Times get more serious and you might not enjoy life as much. You will start to refer to childhood as “The Good Old Days” and your body will begin to hurt. But through it all, it’s very important to always try to have fun and keep a smile on your face. Getting into trouble seems to cost a lot more now, so it’s smart to avoid it the best you can.
You never know what life is going to throw your way, or how fast it will throw it at you. Sometimes it may feel like the entire world is completely against you, like you are the sole person at the bottom of the pile and everyone dumps their garbage on top. Maybe you even want to give up, like you just can’t take any more of the abuse, of the pain, of the hurt…
I quote Bob Marley form the song Rainbow Country:
“Though the Road is Rocky – sure Feels Good to me.”
Bob is so amazing with his thoughts, and so strong. No matter what the situation, no matter what the cause of pain, you must step back and look at the rest of your life. Even if it’s been tough for a long time, remember the good old days. Think of the things that made you smile in your life and go do them. Bring back the past and put the present aside for a while, it may bring you a better future. We all have rocky roads we walk, and the paths are all a mystery, but you gotta put your head up and stand tall, walk with strength and confidence, and believe in yourself.
It will get better.
It was looking promising as I pulled up to the Chuck Bailey skatepark on May 4th, 2012 to start setting up for the skateboard contests planned to take place later that day. You could see the sun starting to peak through the clouds and the bright blue sky was making its way over the park. There were already a decent amount of people warming up and there was a good vibe in the park, with lots of familiar faces from those who competed in Hippie Mike’s Tour De Surrey last year. The only difference with this contest was that it was only going to be open to people 18 or under because of Youth Week and Jaden Easton-Ellett and Andy Anderson were going to be MCing it.
When the contest was about to start we had a total of 3 Minis, 7 Beginners, 7 Intermediates and 5 Advanced riders — which was not bad. The Mini category went by quickly with J.R. Barron destroying numerous obstacles in the park, definitely showing improvements from last year. When we got to the beginner category I think a lot of people were blown away by a lot of these guys skills. With a roster full of names such as Adam Lewis, Mathew Major, and Riku Mochizuki (to only name a few) it is no wonder why.
Just as we finished the Beginner category it started POURING rain, and I am not just talking about a little bit of rain. It literally soaked the entire park with massive puddles in minutes and then turned into hail later on. As everyone ducked for shelter in the bowl, we had to rush and make sure the DJ equipment would stay dry so we could continue the contest.
This meant the Intermediates and Advanced categories would have to be confined to the bowl, but this didn’t stop some crazy tricks from going down. In the Intermediate category Malek Salem threw down a rad nollie bigspin on barricade wall, and we saw some other tiiiight tricks from people rippin’ the bowl. When the advanced category came around things heated up even more.Dominic Devries pulled out a 3-flip on the barricade wall, a bunch of other tricks were landed over the quarter pipe gap. Sure enough, when it came to Andy Anderson’s run he hit up the entire bowl missing only a couple tricks in his first run.
The Youth Week Chuck Bailey 2012 contest was a great success, and we look forward to seeing you Sunday at the South Surrey Skatepark for a skate Jam starting at around noon.
Contest Results
Mini: 1st – J.R. Barron, 2nd – Bachuoch Michael, 3rd – Blaine
Beginner 1st – Morgan Skinner, 2nd – Adam Lewis, 3rd – Matthew Major
Intermediate: 1st – Jacob Drescher, 2nd – Jackson Hawthorne, 3rd – Malek Salem
Advanced: 1st – Andy Anderson, 2nd – Dominic Devries, 3rd – Gabe DiNorscio
It’s the final Member added to our revised Protest Skateboards Team – Jordan Strong. Protest has been around for a long time, almost a decade if you can believe it, and there are still most of the original Team Riders. In the past 2 months we’ve been revising the company, and the team, adding Stu Benoit, Andy Anderson, Jaden Easton-Ellett and now Jordan Strong. I’ve known Jordan for about 7 years and he brings even more creativity to the team. Another skateboarder who doesn’t follow what everyone else is doing, but just goes out and visualizes his own tricks and then brings them to life. He doesn’t follow the norm, and that’s one of my favorite things about him. It’s hard to find people like that anymore and that’s what Protest is all about.
He’s definitely got a wicked sense of balance and shows that off with some intricate manual tricks and funky powerslides. But at the same time, the dude can kickflip grind a ledge any time he wants. I’ve always enjoyed skating with Jordan, and I love his “Big Ollie Skills”. He’s also taking on the role of Team Filmer. Now it’s time to see what he has to offer to the world of PROTEST.
SHOW UP MIKE!!
An Original Online Skateboard Competition presented by Hippie Mike
“$500 Grand Prize”
Well, you better be ready… Ready to skate. Hippie Mike has skateboarded for over 26 years and has learned a lot of different tricks over his time. He may not be a good as he once was, but time has been taking its toll on him. Nevertheless, he is still one of the most creative skaters the world has ever seen, and loves to remind you of that.
In the past few months, Mike has been making his rounds to all the skate parks in the Lower Mainland and filming 5 tricks at each park.
From Abbotsford to Horseshoe Bay; Maple Ridge to Tsawwassen – over 45 different parks!!
Come mid-June, Mike will release the footage on the Protest Skateboards Website
and the contest will begin. This is your chance to
SHOW UP MIKE!!
The rules are simple:
The contest winner will be the video who receives the most overall votes. Viewers will be able to vote on as many videos as they want, but only once per day per video. Each park listed will have its own winner as well, and this person will win a Protest Skateboards T-Shirt.
Keep checking in to the site for more information of when the contest will begin.
Approximate date – June 16, 2012
Better start filming!
Skate Parks included in Show Up Mike contest
Abbotsford
McMillan Youth Park
Mouat Skate Park
Burnaby
Confederation Skate Park
Bonsor/Metro Skate Park
Coquitlam
LaFarge Skate Park
Delta
North Delta Skate Park
Ladner Skate Park
Tsawwassen Skate Park
Tsawwassen First Nations Youth Park
Langley
Brookswood Skate Park
Walnut Grove Skate Park
Aldergrove Skate Park
Murrayville Outdoor Activity Park
Langley City Skate Park
Maple Ridge
Schoolyard Action Youth Park/Thomas Haney Plaza
New Westminster
New West Skate Park
Queensboro All Wheel Park
North Vancouver
Seylynn Bowl
Kirkstone Skate Park
Parkgate Skate Park
Pitt Meadows
Pitt Meadows Skate Park
Port Coquitlam
Settler’s Skate Spot
Railside Youth Park
Port Moody
Port Moody Skate Park
Richmond
River Road Skate Park
Surrey
Bear Creek Youth Park
South Surrey Youth Park
Cloverdale Youth Park
Kwantlen Youth Park
Fleetwood Youth Park
Fraser Heights Youth Park
Guildford Bowl
Chuck Bailey Youth Park
Vancouver
China Creek Skate Park
Cooper’s Park
Hastings Skate Park
Leeside Memorial Park
Strathcona Park
Quilchena Skate Park
Skate Plaza
Kensington Skate Park
The Dry Spot
Mt. Pleasant Park
West Vancouver
Ambleside Skate Park
Lonsdale/City Skate Park
Griffin Bowl
Gleneagles Skate Park/Horseshoe Bay
I’ve been skateboarding now for 26 years, and I would say I have learned quite a lot of tricks, but the best thing about skateboarding is just running as fast as you can on to your board and surfing the concrete. Today’s generation doesn’t always understand that concept. They get dropped off at the skate park, practise their tricks all day, get mad when they can’t land them, and call their Mommies to come pick them up. That’s not what skateboarding is supposed to be about.
Skateboarding is about Freedom – Freedom to express yourself in any way you feel. I can skate for hours without doing any tricks and without ever leaving the ground. Just cruisin’ and carvin’. Some days my favorite thing to do is just grab a couple buddies and hit up the Surrey Downhill 3 or 4 times. You should try it some day. Quit worrying about who you’re impressing and just go skate.
Since the “What the F” video came out in 2010, I haven’t really been filming too much. I’ve kind of just been keeping to myself, riding my ramp at home, slashing around at Chuck Bailey, and just going back to the roots of why I love this sport. But it’s time to giv’er once again. Through all the injuries that have plagued me over the past 26 years, and the changes in my body structure due to some of these injuries, it is still my greatest passion to be out there on my board.
Here’s a little taste of the footage you’re about to get from the old Hippie Mike. Enjoy it, and get ready for a whole lot more….