Useless Crap Part 1

There’s something funny about the world of mainstream news coverage and their treatment of action sports. Perhaps it's the fact that they see everything in black and white when it comes to anything sport related that doesn't involve a ball or a massive steroid use. I mean how many moral gray areas are there within skateboarding, really? Moving along, I stumbled across something from the San Diego Union Tribune that made me chuckle. Apparently, staff writer Jennifer Davies dug into this Pulitzer award winning piece with a fervor usually reserved for war crimes and cataloguing our current administrations gross incompetence in office. Here’s the sound bite I picked up on

“For action-sports enthusiasts who crave the rush of adrenaline with ever-more-demanding and gravity-defying feats, the question has long been: What's the next big ride?”

Oh, that’s the question I’ve been long asking. The question hasn’t been “how do we get more funding for public skate parks?” Nor has the question been “How do we make skating more accessible to the masses?” certainly the question certainly wasn’t “why do tax paying citizens get ticketed in Binghamton, NY skating from one part of down town to the next?” Nope, it’s “how do I get a new adrenaline rush?”

Aside from the obvious issue I have with her "portrayal" of skaters and surfers as adrenaline junkies, the article takes it one step further. Here is the answer to her question. I present to you straight from the skate toy aisle at ASR: freeline skates.



Yes, freeline skates. I weep for the future.

Since I am all for D.I.Y and invention my only defensible point is this: you can’t recreate the wheel. I stand by this in many ways but it boils down the simple fact that in and of itself the skateboard is a near perfect creation. The object is mainly comprised of one board, two trucks and four wheels. However, this simple object transcends the obvious transportation use and has moved into a place where action and energy create a new beast. I have no clue how or why people keep trying to come up with something better. Even Handstand Man knows this. Wow, Handstand Man. Now I've sunk to a new low.

If you want to really chuckle check out the following links to get a good in-depth look at more of the skate toys from ASR.



Colin Bane's Skate Blog

ASR With Old Man Army