Plaid Again?

Blogspot blows.

2008-12-15T20:48:00.000-08:00

After growing more and more frustrated with blogspot (basically just with how big it will let me make my photos) I said to hell with it and purchased the URL www.plaidagain.com. So I'm moving on. If you would like to keep up with the life in times of a retard... go to plaidagain.com and forget this blogspot crap.
- Gordo

"You Freegen Bum!"

2008-11-14T12:08:00.000-08:00

For Halloween Jam and I showed up to the party dresses as bums. It wasn't to hard. All I did was hang a cardboard sign around my neck, carried around a Starbucks cup asking everyone for change, bummed beers off everyone there and collected all the cans from the party.

At one point I looked at Jam and asked him if his disability check from the goverment had come in yet and we just died laughing because I wasn't joking. We really are homeless... and a couple of bums. We both slept in a tent in Rob's backyard that night.
We're really doin it.

Suffer Camp III

2008-11-07T11:44:00.000-08:00

Horn and I drove to SD to Suffer with Hitz and Heddings.

And it all started at Hitz's house.

Thats the Thrasher Beer Helmet on the right.

Horn... Splif life.

Straight to the Tilted Stick in OB.

Keg ollie in front of the Stick.

Then straight to the bar stool.

Suffer ditch.

Day 2 of Suffer 3 we started out at Sketch park.

This thing is fun as fuck.

"Dudes... I got this pool..."

Shit was sick.

Hitz called the steps in the shallow "free lunch" so of course when I gave it a few good attempts I almost knocked myself out by slamming my head on the lip. pretty stoked.

Ditch thing.

Horn knows how to really suffer.

See the Suffer Camp III video at: www.strangenotes.com
(its buried in the Creature Blog)

The Rip Rider

2008-10-06T15:23:00.000-07:00

I got a new toy in the mail courtesy of Creature. The "Rip Rider" is a new mini cruiser board that comes complete with huge translucent black OJ3 wheels, black bullet trucks (I changed them to Ace trucks) and a pured plastic, pre-griped coffin shaped deck. It's SO fuckin sick!

I've been tearing around the streets of San Francisco on this little thing. Its so fun. My board collection is starting to get out of hand and I might need a bigger apartment to support my addiction of cool little cruiser boards.

I fucking love skateboarding. Just in case you didn't know.

Let me Introduce you... this is Mr. Rosser.

2008-10-02T13:51:00.000-07:00

Over the last year or so I've had the chance to get to know and become good friends with Mr. Billy Rosser. Here is his story.

Gordo: Well, Billy Rosser… What inspired you to go to school for wine?
Rosser: To be completely honest, um… Someone told me I could be a drunk, and get paid for it.

Gordo: What is your favorite bottle of wine? Make, Model and year.
Rosser: I really should say something expensive but I’m actually going to say something shitty and cheap.

Gordo: Two buck Chuck?
Rosser: I love their Sauvignon Blanc you got me. Any year, its all Calafornia blended. From start to finish it’s the best wine on the market. Hands down.

Gordo: Charles Shaw?
Rosser: Shaw.

Gordo: Alright… Two buck chuck. Red or white?
Rosser: Red usually. Unless it’s two dollars, and then it’s the Charles Shaw Sauvignon Blanc. Ice cold. Preferably on ice.

Gordo: Wow, on ice?
Rosser: Yeah.

Gordo: What is wine, on ice, with soda water? That has a name right?
Rosser: …Spritzer.

Gordo: Yeah yeah. If you could be sponsored by a Vineyard, who would it be?
Rosser: Ahh fuck… these questions are fuckin curve balls man!

Gordo: We’re talking paychecks, photo incentive… we’re talking product. But you basically need to be how Shawn White is to Target. Fully blow it out. You have to be the poster boy for this Vineyard.
Rosser: AHH, Fuck am I in it for the money or am I in it for the cred?

Gordo: That’s the question you need to ask yourself.
Rosser: Well, if I’m in it for the money I’m goin for the fuckin Château Rothschild, which is the Ferrari of wine.

Gordo: Shat-toe Roth-Child?
Rosser: Rothchild. I’m butchering it. They have a couple different vineyards. BUT, if I was gonna go the way of my heart I would be skating for Charles Shaw.

Gordo: Fuck it. Skate for Chuck.
Rosser: Charles Shaw is basically the Pabst Blue Ribbon of wine.

Gordo: So is it more like Anit-hero or like Natural Koncepts?
Rosser: It’s way kookier then Anit-hero would ever be, so its more like Natural Koncepts.

Gordo: It’s the Natural Koncepts of wine? Sick. Sick. Um… Fruit or cheese?
Rosser: Cheese…. Fruit just gives me the shits man.

Gordo: Goat, Sheep or Cow?
Rosser: I’m gonna have to go with Goat.

Gordo: Excellent. That is what you’re eating right now. (as I point at a small plate of goat cheese and crackers that I set out on my coffee table for the interview)

Gordo: So my friend Noah (DAF) told me this story, about bums in Santa Cruz that were drinking Gasoline and Milk. One part gasoline to three parts milk. They said the milk coated your stomach so the gas wouldn’t kill you, but you got super fucked up. Do you think that’s possible?
Rosser: Yeah.

Gordo: Would you drink that?
Rosser: Yeah. Probably.

Gordo: Have you ever heard of a Chicken Milk Bomb? Do you have any idea what it is?
Rosser: Chicken Milk Bomb?

Gordo: Or a Roach Bomb?
Rosser: No. Chicken? What would a Chicken be? Do you shit in a beer and give it to someone?

Gordo: No. You take a two-litter bottle, you shove pieces of chicken into it and then pour about two cups of milk in, then cap it, then you hide it.
Rosser: Oh god!

Gordo: As the meat rots and the milk goes bad it fills the bottle with gas that will make it pop. It happens over a long period of time.
Rosser: It blows the cap off?

Gordo: No. Well… maybe. See you hide it. Lets say your landlord fucked you over and you needed to move out because of some lame crap? You could make one and hide it in an air vent or inside the drywall. They’ll end up ripping down every wall in the house before they find out were the smell is coming from.
Rosser: Man, this is some Maryland call out shit, but when I worked at Giant (foods), we would knock open ceiling tiles and throw whole raw chickens into the ceiling, and take the broom and knock it back over.

Gordo: Did you work at night or during the day?
Rosser: During the day.

Gordo: You would do that during the day?
Rosser: Well… around 9pm when no one was around. We would come up with tons of shit because we were so bored. We would hide banana peels around the store and check on them from time to time for development.

Gordo: Who just texted you?
Rosser: Some chick.

Gordo: Does she know she’s part of the interview now?
Rosser: She does. (laughing)

Gordo: Text her right now “how many stairs have you ollied?” That’s your next question.
Rosser: I believe the answer will be one. Me, 5. When I was a kid huck. I mean, my shit is I skate ledges man. But here you’re a kid you don’t know the difference. Saving your body. I would say the most I ever hucked myself off of was the Glen Burnie 11.

Gordo: WOW! Glen Burnie High! Callin it out!
Rosser: I don’t think I ever landed it. I blame Glen Burnie High School for every problem I have, Physically.

Gordo: Which you should. Do you think Bobby is ever going to ollie Canadian Embassy?
Rosser: Yeah

Gordo: If Bobby didn’t, who do you think will be the next to attempt it?
Rosser: (still I don’t want to impede on some secret shit, but Zach Lyons really tries to keep this a secret, but in his “Behind the Griptape” he uses footage of someone else ollieing it, but I saw him ollie Canadian Embassy. He is one of the gnarliest people I have ever seen ride a skateboard. He tries to pull this art-fag bullshit but I know that dude is gnarly.

Gordo: So Bobby should just give it up?
Rosser: Actually! Zach ollied it because Cameron, future Zach, ollied it first.

Gordo: Future Zach?
Rosser: Yeah. Cameron. Zach’s older brother. (still texting some chick on his cell phone).

Gordo: Could you walk us through a perfect day with Billy Rosser?
Rosser: wake up, vomit, drink two beers, eat a burrito, vomit, drink two more beers, it’s probably about 7 or 8 at night…

Gordo: Is that when you wake up?
Rosser: No I probably woke up around 6(pm). So Wake up, vomit, drink, eat, vomit… perfect day, it’s a Sunday, you’re working at Pops. Perfect day, I go to Pops, I puke at 3, I’m out from 8pm to 3 in the morning. Perfect day. I’d fall asleep vomiting in Danny’s bed and not feel any regret.

Gordo: So you’ve been living the perfect day for the last three weeks. Any final words?
Rosser: Can I get another beer?

So there he is. Now you have met... Mr. Rosser. What can I say... dude likes wine.

Obsessed with collecting Neil Albums

2008-09-19T15:01:00.000-07:00

In tribute to my latest obsession, here is a collage of album covers edited to one of my favorite songs. And yes... I still don't smoke weed... and I fuckin love Neil Young.

Justin Schlegel interview coming soon...

2008-09-15T15:56:00.000-07:00

...but for now watch this clip that Bagel made about a year back. This shit cracks me up ever time I watch it. I freakin love that dude.

Surfs up on the SF hills (bro)

2008-09-11T17:05:00.000-07:00

Shit was gettin weird in the hills of San Francisco the other day.

Strubs! How does my ass look in this suit bro?

High fives were comin out of everywhere.

Bomb a hill on that thing!

Toad (Bodhi) was at full hang loose status.

Strubs (Johnny Utah) was just waitin for the tide to break all day.

Field Agent Puddin: Baltimore update

2008-09-07T11:53:00.000-07:00

Puddin comes through yet again with excellent work. Big guy, might turn out to be a real photo journalist just yet. Here we have...

Lindseys brothers girlfriend after eye surgery.
aka. crazy eyes.

Then...

Anther great hand crafted Baltimore treasure. How long to you think Al & Donna worked on this before deciding it was worded perfectly?

PS. I just got a text message from Rory The Rattler that reads:
"just purchased 120 bud lites"

On the Road with the Creature Ams

2008-09-04T13:24:00.000-07:00

I was on the road with all of the Creature AMs for almost 2 weeks. It was a month and a half long trip that I got to spend two weeks on. I flew into Denver and flew out of Portland. Heres a few photos from the trip.

Loaded up.

This was in Denver. The head honcho over at the Vortex Union (CO chapter) lined up the ramp session. Thanks again big V!

South Park corner store.

Just outside of South Park, CO is this park. I think its the highest elevated skatepark in the nation at somewhere around 9000 feet. It's hard as hell to breathe up there.

The roads between Denver and Portland look pretty much like this...

...and this.

We stopped to look at the snake river at the point where Evil Knievel tried to jump it. Dude was the gnarliest.

Pro filmer dude-guy Garrett Hunt was stoked on this Snake River bridge.

Twin Falls, Idaho. An early morning warm-up skate session turned into a full on Creature demo. All it took was a few phone calls from the locals and the whole town was there in minutes asking for free product and autographs. Shit got kinda gnarly so we broke out pretty soon after that to finish off our drive to Portland.

Imagine the NHS van following Knuckle in his new midlife-crisis-mobile. It was pretty dam funny.

Mumma, Vince (black label tag alongs) and Marky... not being very covert about their weed consumption (hourly).

Knuckle, driving the 00knuckle-mobile.

My last night on the trip we camped out on the beach in Lincoln City, OR. After I woke up it was off to the Portland airport to fly back to SF.

Recap: The trip was fun as hell!

Field Agent Puddin: On Baltimore Styles

2008-08-22T00:01:00.000-07:00

Puddin sent me a few photos keeping me updated on what is going on in Charm City. This first photo is of and classic Baltimore hair-style gone... wrong? Or maybe dude asked for this cut? Not really sure. Just another hair cut that is keeping Baltimore trashy.

Then... this lady.

Passed out on a Baltimore city bench, her cane about to fall, front-butt folding over her lap, and an empty beer under her right hand. It was obviously a nice day to get drunk on the street. No problem for this lady... she looks like she's pro at being a pile daily.

Good work Puddin! We can't wait to see more.

The Backyard

2008-08-17T13:46:00.000-07:00

I was just home for a week in Waldorf, Maryland where I grew up. I spent more time at my mom's house then I have in the last 4 years for sure. We grilled out in the backyard almost every night. The weather was so nice we had to. While I was there, sitting in the backyard I couldn't help but think about all the days spent skating back there with SO many of my friends over the years. This is an old photo of what the yard once looked like.

Then.. to add to my nostalgia, I got a call from a local Maryland newspaper wanting to do an interview with me about my parents old backyard. He was contacted because of articles he had written lately about skateboarding in Maryland and was tipped off about our old yard being once called "the Waldorf Skatepark". Check it out HERE. I was asked about a lot of stuff that I hadn't thought about in a long time.

Austin Memories

2008-08-11T21:30:00.000-07:00

I realized the other day I never posted any photos from my trip to Austin, TX for Toad & Salmon's Austin Chili Bowl cook off and skate contest. It was my first time in Austin and even Texas for that matter. Heres some photos I shot while on my week-long Austin hell ride.

The two in charge.

Grass Valley?

420 Gus!

It was SO dam HOT most of us spent much of the week in Ian and Heidi's pool.

Strubing gave it big ups.

Dude! party!

Pool time after-party.

Sandy and Skato... killing it.

It was so freakin HOT the day of the contest...

...Mumma crawled into a cooler filled with ice water.

Halsey, riverside.

and Toad, filming it.

This well known skate spot is just outside of Austin.

The Salmon crashed out after a long, long week.

Ps. Yesterday was my birthday. I'm pretty old now.

Cool shit from June & July

2008-07-23T23:46:00.000-07:00

K-Rock (aka good friend and old roommate from Baltimore) moved to SF!! ...and found a place right across the street from Maggie Mudd's Ice Cream shop.

Hustle made it to the TOP of the Pop's 86'd list. Way to go Jamie!

This is me, sandy and billy closing up Pop's on my last night working there (ever).

Pork Chop got a new toy!

...and loves it.

I don't remember this... and have no explanation for what is going on right here.

Sandy and I went to Sushi Boat at 16th and Church. The place rules.

...and got named Randumb photo of the week over at the TRIFE.
No big deal.

Interview-wise 48 block style

2008-07-19T15:21:00.000-07:00

Jimmy asked the questions and 48 Blocks put up the interview. Pretty stoked. Just in case you needed to know more about ME or just like listening to ME talk about ME... well... Click HERE.
Photo by Kevtron. Thanks again Kev!

Drehobl on Pop Culture

2008-07-18T19:31:00.000-07:00

Well... that basically covers it.

Invaded by Crackheads!

2008-06-20T16:28:00.001-07:00

Our store got broken into last Wed. night. Read more about it on our new home page over at Cruzskateshop.com.

This Friday..

2008-06-17T20:36:00.001-07:00

Hesh out in denim.

How to talk to Chicks

2008-06-07T18:54:00.000-07:00

I went to Austin, TX and met this chicken.

Thrasher Skate Rock Tour 2008

2008-05-15T19:54:00.000-07:00

This last week I found myself on Thrashers west coast skate rock tour. I met up with all the boys in Sacto to skate for the day and ended up following them all the way to Seattle. Not my plan from the get go but ended up being the best thing I could have done.

For the most part I was following the SHED van.

Schmitty jumped in with me for awhile. This is pretty much what it was like. Me driving and Schmitty texting.

After Sacto, I met up with the tour in RENO. Then it was off to Red Bluff, CA to skate and READING, CA for the bands to play a show. (check these links... They're gnarly). Then we headed to Medford, OR for a demo we didn't do and a show that didn't happen (Medford sucked).

After the Medford show got called off the SHED guys set up a last minute show in a backyard in Talent, OR (only 3 miles from Medford). Best SHED set of the tour.

Navs.

Slippery.

With back up drums by Hewitt.

After the Cops shut down the SHED show in Talent we took it up to Portland were I found a build your own Bloody Mary bar at the Sandy Hut. Pretty sick.

Then it was off to Seattle.

Grindline the Band featuring Jimmy Moore and Mark Hubbard. Two of the gnarliest dudes on the planet.

"TURN THE FUCKING MIC UP!!!"

This is about as close to downtown Seattle as I got.

For being two dudes that weren't even invited on the trip, by the last day Sammy Baca and myself ended up with our own hotel room and were off the floor and in beds. Way to come up Sammy!

Then... it was off to the West Seattle Bowls.

The Butter Bowl.

After most of the crew flew out I drove back to Portland solo and went straight to Burnside.

Then met up with Childress and Kanights and went over to the private Nike skate park.

For my last day on the road I went to a new park just outside of Portland called Tigard.

Complete with T Rex.

The drive home was a long one but I had a few cds to keep me company. It took me 9 hours from Portland to SF on only 2 tanks of gas.

Repair this file...

My last stop before home was in Weed, CA. where apparently some dude buys Mushrooms.

Billy & Wiley (also ripping)

2008-05-02T16:10:00.000-07:00

Awhile back Wiley visited SF and me and Billy met up with him and went shralping.

Billy with a stationary front rock. Sick, Sick.

Big W with a ollie nose stall on the new "Tra & A" QP.

Me doing... a smith grind? I think.

Then a quick stop at the dog park for a front board contest on an unwaxed rounded ledge. It was between Bill and Wiley. I think Wiley stock it first but Bill came in with the land only a try or two after big man.

Then... STRAIGHT TO POPS.

Wiley's saying, "can you believe that we were ripping all day and Danny didn't skate with us?" (a little butt hurt)

Then, later Danny set the record straight by giving us a SHOCKA. We all know the Shocka is the international sign for: after I finish all this college crap I'm going to be ripping harder then ever.

I believe it too.
Do you?

Mom's Billiard Class

2008-04-25T15:15:00.000-07:00

Sickest name for a bar... maybe ever.

Graphicly amazing.

And here are the students. My mom is the first person on the left. She told me awhile ago that she was taking a billiards class and sent me photos of her last day of school.

I don't know if you know this yet but my mom freakin rules. And now she can kick your ass at pool too.

El Vortex's Griptape Paintings

2008-04-22T02:08:00.000-07:00

Last time El Vortex was in town he came with a handful of original artwork done on sheets of griptape. Seems to be his new thing. Here are a few examples of what is going on inside that dudes head.

Strange huh? Where does that guy find the time to paint on top of trying to save the world daily? I know... blows me away too.

Polite Graffiti

2008-04-19T18:04:00.000-07:00

Whatever happened to kids writing graffiti like "eat shit and die"?
I mean, come on now... what the hell?

Danny... Ripping.

2008-04-13T12:16:00.001-07:00

So I called Gotimer the other day and found out he was posted up at his place doing crossword puzzles. No way... not today, not when its this nice out. I pulled up and forced him into the ol' frontier.

When we got to the DC super ramp (aka the Daly City skate park) Dan decided to pull out the guns and show me how its done. Nice work Dan.

Rollin 3's with Creature LEE

2008-04-09T22:32:00.001-07:00

Just the other day I decided to roll down to Santa Cruz and pick up a Creature box and kick it with Lee for a bit. I grabbed Biggs and we made it to SC just in time for lunch. All of us went to this brew pub across the street from NHS where Lee treated us to fish tacos and brews.
But... Why the face?...

Heres why... Biggs. Lil' Biggums was on a bad one. He decided to get drunk early as hell and was goin off and everything. It ended up being comedy for everyone who attended lunch. They kept ordering more beers just to feed the fire.

After lunch... it was off to the tables.

Lee challenged anyone and everyone to a game of 3's.

Lee... lookin hard.

It was an open house for retailers and they set up a small street course in the parking lot for team riders and friends.

Complete with a ramp up to a truck that had another ramp in it.

GUS! 420-Gus is livin the Goodtimes out in Grass Valley. He showed me his SICK new Blood Wizard tat. So sick.

The food was good as hell. Even ol' Pork Chop got some scraps.

Another fun ass day in Santa Cruz.

New Orleans SPB (part 3)

2008-03-30T13:07:00.001-07:00

Easter Sunday we all went out to the Chicken Coop in Hammond, LA. It's this amazing old coop that dudes built a bowl in. Right now the bowl is layered in wood until they can raise the cash to get a final layer. SO SEND THEM FOOLS $! This thing is so much fun.

Its 5 foot in the shallow and 8 foot in the deep-end, complete with door and bank/channel. Like I said, SO SICK.

After skating, it was straight to Coop's for more southern home cookin! Fried chicken that will make you cry its so fuckin good.

The next day Sandy and I crossed the Mississippi river.

While on the boat Sandy said, "Hey, thats the dude from Talladega Nights. Whats his name? The dude that played Cal Naughton, Jr." She then pointed out John C. Reilly and his family. Pretty sick.

Fried Alligator tail?

Taste like shrimp and chicken together.

Pick your poison...

...but we could only afford one. Everyone says SF is expensive?

Our last night in town Sandy and I went out solo. We went back to the Blacksmith Bar, the oldest bar in the US, and enjoyed some music and local brews.

Beers and whiskey by candle light. Abita, a local LA brew, was something new on this trip I had never tried before. The Abita Amber was the jam.

Our last stop of the night was the hot dog guy. It wasn't wrapped in bacon, but still did the job.

Our last meal in town, Turkey Po-boy and a Dixie Brew (my new favorite beer). Our concussion: New Orleans was a blast!

On that note... it was off to the airport.

New Orleans SPB (part 2)

2008-03-26T18:19:00.000-07:00

This is Adam, the bunny that organized the entire weekend. We met up with him and a gang of dudes walking on the street and he took us to Humidity skate shop. After checking out the shop it was straight to the bar.

Our second room in the same hotel.

The view from our hotel room door.

Went over to Mox and Marr's hotel to meet up with them.

Black eye Marr man.

Fred-lock told me the only time he blacked out on the trip he woke up in the VIP room of a strip club with two hot strippers and a bottle of cheap champagne.

Hutch hooked up a ride to a Grindline park in Hammond, LA. Thanks Hutch!

There were kids posted up all over the park... sitting on stuff. It was rad.

Then, back to the R...

To feast...

On these things.

Crawdads!

The crawdad line wrapped around the block.

Then it was Underskatement time via Dave Franklin.

The next day we went to Dave and Mickey's hotel and drank beer by the pool waiting for the rednecks to get out of the hot tub.

Then... it was dinner time.

Our table was Me, Sandy, Mickey, Dave and Maria.

Mickey was dubbed "Porn Jacket" by our waitress.

Marr was voted best mustache in the gang.

Donnas.

After dinner we went to the Balcony Bar on Magazine Street. The place is sick, its super big. Pool tables, two bars (one on each floor), food (that we didn't try, might suck) and tons of space. Open til 4am, but thats all bars in New Orleans.

Then it was back to the St. Peters House Hotel (again).

This was the third and final room we stayed in at the St. Peters House. I layed back and watched some TV before passing out. Another great day.

New Orleans SPB (part 1)

2008-03-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

Right off the plane Cruz was on the horn and straight to TCB.

The weather was so super bad the day before we arrived, and the baggage area was filled with bags that had arrived with no people. All of them were stuck in other airports. Apparently Dulles and Chicago airports had grounded all planes.

A nice introduction to New Orleans as we were looking for a room.

We took the bus from the airport right to the French Quarter.

Wait, Nevada City? Nah... French Quarter.

Checked in at the hotel, dropped off the bags and went to get some lunch.

Stopped here for dinner.

When was the last time you got a bad joke on your dinner check?

After dinner, we walked around and hit about 4 different bars. In the French Quarter there is a bar, pub or smoothie/pizza shack about every 10 feet.

Second to last bar, Irish coffee stop.

Then we made our way back to the Hotel.

Im pretty sure the hotel is haunted.

CRUZ grand opening

2008-03-13T18:26:00.001-07:00

It should go without saying, but the opening was amazing!

Brian, Neal and Rob all flew in from CO just to party with us.

Richard flew in from Baltimore and was put to work once he walked in the door. He hung all the shelves for the roller skates. Thanks again big man!

Randy also flew in from Baltimore. Both Randy and Rich were SO jet lagged they only made it till about 11pm west coast time before passing out beers in hand.

You should see this dude grip a board. He clocks in at record speed. No bullshit.

Los (aka: dlxsf.com or crazy face) is our web dude at cruzskateshop.com. Without this man we'd still be at square one. Thanks Carlos.

and speaking of high fives, Randy thinks they are the lamest thing ever. So the more I got drunk the more I high fived everyone at the party. My hand was even soar the next day.

Mr. & Mrs. Lowcard were in attendance.

Get um out! What Brian? No iphone?

Drehobl and Toad... lurked out.

Heres Brian... butt hurt because Drehobl wasn't talking to him.

Danny asked, "are you blogging this?"

"Well then blog my mustache!" - Danny Gotimer

Donny & Morty were feelin it.

Rosser showed up just in time for us to close up shop and go across the street to a bar called Naps Only to slam Buds and Jager. (Billy Rosser interview coming soon)

Brett Howard helped us paint the whole shop and did an amazing job doing it. We couldn't have done it without you ether blondie!

Brian couldn't believe his eyes.

Thanks again to everyone who came out to support!

Cruz Skate Shop / 3165 Mission St. SF, CA 94110 / 415 285 8833

The last photo was stolen from Epicly Trife.

Lowcard Goes to SoCal (part 2)

2008-03-05T00:18:00.001-08:00

I got up the next day at Jeff King's place to a Labon, Ted and the film crew walking around talking about where to build stuff inside the house.

We spent the whole day working on this stuff..

but were skating before the day was out.

Then we stayed with a friend of Strubing. This is her dog showing me how much Magnet sucks.

While the crew all went to get sushi Dave and I went to some corn ball taco spot that had live music and open mic comedy. It sucked other then the fact that they had $3 pints and $2 tacos.

Then we ended up at a bar called the Live Wire drinking PBR tall cans. A perfect way to cap the night.

Then on day 4 we went right to Washington St. to suffer. We basically all fell hard as shit and limped back to the van.

Next stop... VOX. We talked to the designers, watched the new Black & Blue video, picked up some sneaks, then back on the road.

Dinner? At Matt Hensley's bar!! So sick.

Toad (texting).

Stubs (drinking).

The trip... another success.

Lowcard Goes to SoCal (part 1)

2008-02-23T14:28:00.001-08:00

The road crew was Toad, representing the Blood Wizards...

Me and Magnethead (total retards)...

Dave Mitchael for team Coda...

and Strubing... in deep thought about his recent Master Cleanse.
Our first stop was straight to Lambert's place in LA to crash on his living room floor.

The next morning it was right to Channel Street in San Pedro where we met up with Tyler Mumma.

Channel's one of my favorites. Its free, padless, shaded, and...

No pussy shit... ever.

The new addition at Channel Street is looking good.

After Channel, Mumma took us over to the Burger Bowl at Mr. Burger's house. This thing is so fucking fun. You'll be able to see a ton of footage from it in Lowcard's video "Pissing in the Wind" coming soon.

The bowl is complete with deep end bar.

Then we drove to SD to stay with Jeff King for a night. King has a ton of weird shit at his house, and this board is a perfect example of it.

I finished off day two by passing out on this sofa in front of a nice fire. So siked... no complaints at all.

CRUZ Finds a Store!

2008-02-18T13:36:00.001-08:00

After weeks of searching Sandy Cruz of Cruz Skate Shop found a store front! As seen here with her new two year lease, she's SUPER siked (and a little scared).

This last friday she got the keys from the landlord and we went in for the first day of work. We are going to need to rip up the carpet, sand and paint all the walls, rip a few walls out, clean up the mess and build all the store displays.

With tons of work ahead of us... we are still so excited.
Doors are set to be open for business on March 1st, and a huge grand opening party is planned for Friday March 7th. Get ready to get wasted.

Cruz Skate Shop
3165 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA 94110

Skateworks Santa Cruz

2008-02-16T13:24:00.001-08:00

We took it to Santa Cruz the other day. In the van was Magnethead, Strubing, Naz, DAF Noah and myself. We ended up stopping into Skateworks to visit with Strubing's old man. If you ever get the chance to make sure to check out the shop if you're in the Cruz. Im sure they sell Silo boxers too.

1970s Skate Books

2008-02-08T15:01:00.000-08:00

I was searching around google and found these.

Two New Videos this Monday

2008-01-30T16:46:00.000-08:00

Check out a the trailer for Natural Koncept's new video Disfunctional Family. These dudes are gnarly. I'll be showing both the new N.K. video and Thrahser's new King of the Road 2007 video this Monday at Thee Parkside. Come through.

Fun-s-ton

2008-01-20T15:17:00.001-08:00

Ol' Fort Funston is an off-leash dog beach in San Francisco. Pork Chop heard about it from the vet and really wanted to check it out.

The walk down to the beach from the parking lot is kinda gnarly.

I think it goes with out saying but... she loved it.

Then we ended our day with yet another California sunset.

San Jose? (Are you kidding me?)

2008-01-17T10:54:00.001-08:00

Look at this crazy shit! The new San Jose skatepark is fucking gnarly.
Check out more photos on Concrete Disciples.

Argus Tuesdays

2008-01-13T18:45:00.000-08:00

The Argus Lounge on Tuesday nights are great. Halsey bartends, Scott DJs, and $1 Tecates flow across the bar as fast as you can put em back.

If you go, you might even run into P stone, Corpsey, Mr. & Mrs. Magnethead, and a ton of other ladies out on the town for ladies night.

You might find The Outlaw, playin pool.

The WILEY interview:

2008-01-10T22:59:00.000-08:00

What is the last thing you ate that made you puke and why?
The last thing I ate that made me puke was probably whiskey. Can you eat whiskey? You can eat beers. Maybe it was beer. I don't know. I don't really throw up often. Somebody accidentally put meat in a burrito I ate a few years ago, that made me puke.

What was it like growing up in NapTown?
I didn't grow up in Annapolis. I guess I grew up in Annapolis. I didn't move there until I was seven years old. It was super nice. I met about one million awesome people in Annapolis. All the OG PMA brothers are from Annapolis.

Dam, well... I alway thought Annapolis sucked when I lived in MD. But you guys are rad so I guess it's alright. (for now) So ahhh... Whats your most memorable moment from the days of 684?
Giving Danny Arabian Goggles and having him like it. Or maybe eating nachos from Cancun. Those are amazing. Getting to bartend when I was 19 or 20 was cool. Living with you and watching you sleep was nice. Just living in a closet was awesome.

How high can you ollie?
Like four fucking feet! Or four inches. I don't remember. About 0.25 probably.

photo by Kevtron

You'r so pro. Who would you say is the hottest female movie star you have seen in person?
I haven't seen too many female movie stars in person. You and I saw Tera Reid in LA! But she's kind of busted, right? My friend saw Keira Knightly in person, does that count? One of his friends went on a date with Sienna Miller! That counts, the hottest female movie star I've seen in person was when my friend's friend went on a date with Sienna Miller.

What is the band/person/musician of the week?
Brian WIlliams. Or Peter and the Wolf. The Beatles. The band of forever. The Beatles.

What about your stuff? When should we expect a Guilty Pleasures CD/LP to be released on a major label?
Dude, I don't know. Shit is getting hot right now. The debut Guilty Pleasures record was released a few years ago when I lived with the other member. After we moved out we went on a hiatus for a few years. But he just moved back in last week! I think we're probably about to drop some shit. And if we do, it will only be a matter of weeks until that shit gets picked up by Warner Brothers, Atlantic, or Motown.

Oh, and what the fuck is up with all the light beer? Why is there nothing in your frig but Bud Light or Coors Light?
It's just fucking awesome. Look at this picture...

Buddy Cohen drinking a Bud Light and Rory Sheridan drinking Coors Light. Epic.

Who sucks right now?
People who aren't reading your blog right now!

I guess so. Who would you say should be the spokesman for PMA?
Maybe if Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, Chan Marshall, Will Oldham, Keira Knightly, Billy Rosser, Holly Golightly, Tom Waits, Britney Spears, Jaime Lynn Spears, Jaime Lynn Spears' unborn child, Jerry Garcia, Ashlee Simpson, Charles Bukowski, Jessica Simpson, the casts of The OC and Desperate Houswives, Lenny Bruce, and W.B. Yeats all had a baby. That could be the spokesman. I don't know what they'd say though. That shit would be fucked up!

Fucked for sure. If you had a pro board, what would be your first pro graphic?
I'd like it to be a drawing probably. I've never thought about this. That's hard. Zach Lyons was talking about PMA graphics he wanted to do. He did a drawing of a dick fucking the soft spot on a baby's head or something like that. That's gross though, I would put my name on that. Maybe just a picture of Paris Hilton, or B. Spears. Is that too obvious? I love celebrities. Eva Longoria! All of the Desperate Housewives. I'd like that. A picture of me with all of the Desperate Housewives. Maybe if I went pro I could hook that shit up.

Photo by Kevtron

Whats up with the All cell phone filmed skate video? Who's in it? When is it coming out?
Thats whats up! The video is called Self Own. (Get it, like cell phone) I stole that from a song. The whole thing, like you said, is filmed on cell phones. It's rad. I've been editing it on my computer and the quality is already horrible, so I can't imagine how bad it's going to look when its on a full television screen. But it's funny, I think, having horrible video quality and scrolling titles and shit at the same time. I want to have the same kind of juxtaposition with the skating too. For example, Brendan Ash has the best footage. He's killing it. But, me, I'm just trying to skate curbs. You know? It's really hard to do though because you can only film like 15 seconds at a time on phones, so it seems like it's taking forever to get any length to the video. Everyone is in it. And by that I mean that some people are in it. All the PMA brothers for sure. You've got a part. (But you need to get your shit together and send more footy!) I've got a part. Sterling Schlegel, Danny Gotimer, Zach Lyons, Rory Sheridan, Kevin Madsen, Brendan Ash, Billy Rosser, Adam Fligsten, Cameron Lyons. I've got a bunch of footage that people have sent me and I can't tell who the fuck it is. People have sent some of Will Sultzer (spelling?) and Paul McElroy. Maybe Bobby Worrest. I heard Gordon Eckler might have some tricks. I don't know, I'm trying to get people to send lots of footage. Anything. Send it! Right now, you can type in my email where you normally put in a phone number on a picture message and it will go right to my computer! wlaufman@umd.edu Send video of sunsets! Thats nice filler! I'd really be excited if I could get a lot more. You should hook it up and start filming everyone in San Francisco. Bootleg them and don't tell them. They'll never know, nobody will ever see this. Because it's never coming out. You're buddies with Dan Drehobel, right? Does he read your blog? He's my favorite. Dan, are you reading this? Get in on this! 443-995-4432/wlaufman@umd.edu. You can have a part! I said January 15th was the deadline. But I was bluffing. It's cold out. Maybe May. The new deadline in May 1st. And it's coming out June 1st, 2008! Check the trailers!

I'll tell Corpsey to call you. Tell me about your short-lived debut with playing in Rattler. Whats up with that? You still in the band?
It was nice. I was Vick Viper. And you gave a wonderful review of the show that I played in Lowcard. That was exciting. I think I was in the picture that was printed in there. It was super fun. I think practicing with them was about as fun as it was to play live. It was a party! We drank a lot of beers and Jaegermeister at practice. Riley jokes about it on stage, but having seen both sides, I think it's maybe more fun to be in the audience at Rattler than in Rattler. They're amazing.

Last words or shout outs?
Sterling was telling me about bro-beers. You know when you are cleaning up after a bunch of people who were at your house and you find half full beers? They are "clunkers" and that shit sucks. But Sterling was telling me, and I think he's right, that when your friends leave them in obscure locations because they forgot, then it's ok. Thats a bro-beer. Like if your buddy left one on top of the toilet, thats fine. But if some random dude leaves one on the table in the room everyone is in, thats lame. But if you go to bed with one and you find it on your bedside table, or in your covers, all over you, then it's ok. Thats a bro-beer. Does that make sense? I don't know if i explained that right. Look, all I'm saying is that in today's dog eat dog world, it is important to separate clunkers from bro-beers.*

Look for more WILEY in... well... on my blog. He's www.famous.com/plaidagain_killingIT.
More interviews with random friends of mine coming soon.

684 and the RATTLER show

2008-01-07T21:30:00.000-08:00

On December 29th, in Washington DC, RATTLER unleashed another epic rock and roll set.

Right when I got to the bar it was a 684 reunion. All five roommates under the same roof for the first time since we moved out of our apartment on South Van Ness. Left to right is: Rory, Danny, Wiley, Brian, and Me.

The opening act was the premiere of the new Pit Crew video, "Feels Like The First Time".

The Rattler merch booth was run by two roadies, Rory & Riley.

Then RATTLER took the stage!

Look at how wet the dude in the red is. And, yes... that is a giant snake head on the left side of the stage.

So... so epic.

Heres Peter, another roadie. No big deal. Just a roadie.

From the show (that was amazing by the way) Sandy & I drove to Dullas airport, checked in and slept at the gate. We were able to get on the plane at 8:30am the next day.

Our trip to the east coast was everything I had hoped for.

Home For Christmas (Part 4)

2008-01-04T19:14:00.000-08:00

The following day we possied up and went to the National Aquarium in downtown Baltimore.

Then it was down to Annapolis, MD to visit with Wiley, Brian Williams and Company. It was a botched 684 reunion that was missing 2 members. It was still amazing.

Annapolis LOVES light beer.

Brian "Hush" Williams

Wiley's Uncle mailed him this table from Hawaii. Pretty Epic.

Then spent the rest of the night skating in the living room.

Home For Christmas (Part 3)

2008-01-04T00:29:00.000-08:00

The day after Christmas Sandy and I rented a car and drove to Baltimore. We met up and stayed with my good friends Richard, Billy and Lindsey. While in town we set out to hit local bars, visit with old roommates, find Justin Schlegel, see him live in concert, eat crab and drink Natty Boh.

We all went to Brewers Art for one brew, but then it was straight to the Otto Bar.

Where Wed. night ladies drink all night for $10. So...

...Sandy went for it just as Mr. Schlegel showed up to try on her stash.

Then it was off to Paper Moon.

After stuffing our faces at the Moon we called it a night.

The next night we went here...

... to see this dudes stand up comedy set.

Schlegel was the headlining comic and no bull shit, was amazing. Fucking hilarious.

Back in Waldorf we went the one of my favorite bars ever.

A bay area girl in Redskin parking.

$1 drafts, $3.75 shots of Beam, and 75 cent pool games.

Home For Christmas (Part 2)

2007-12-30T15:15:00.000-08:00

My mom, Sandy, and I all went to our Nations Capital for a day. The first spot on our tour was the Natural History Museum to look at a bunch of bones.

Then a quick stop by the idiot's house to check out the national tree. Not bad.

I think the more she thought about it, Sandy decided she was siked on the White House.

Sandy received the full tourist package complete with "could you take a photo us?".

Then found Jesus.

This was the Cali girls first trip to the east coast (non-derby related).

So I introduced her to ol' Abraham.

On the way home we stopped by the Griswolds. This dude has so many lights on his house his neighbors don't even try.

Santa on his hog.

He even has a donation box in his yard to help with is electrical bill. He told us the donations help, but still don't come close to what he pays every year.

The Big Man Quit His Job

2007-12-27T22:55:00.000-08:00

While in Baltimore we stayed with my good friend Richard. And, if you couldn't tell, doesn't have a job. It seems to me he's accepting being a new member of the unemployed pretty well.

Merry Christmas (in plaid)

2007-12-25T08:19:00.001-08:00

I think Pork Chop hates us (with good reason).

Home For Christmas (Part 1)

2007-12-24T10:38:00.000-08:00

I know in New York City on 34th it's all about Kris Kringle and the Macy's department store, but in Baltimore you'll find neither. 34th street in Baltimore you'll find an entire city block of holiday crazed Baltimorian maniacs who take decorating to the next level.

Oh, I guess Kringle was there.

... and a hubcap Christmas tree.

At this house the owner had a display on his porch of dolls that moved. All of them move their arms and or head up and down or side to side. Creepy.

Sandy was a little scared of all the moving dolls.

The Filming of "The Catamaran"

2007-12-21T21:00:00.001-08:00

Bryce Kanights called me up one day and asked me if I thought I could catamaran down a hill with Toad. "Sure, well... I never have but I think I could" was my answer. A few weeks later he came into town and we all met up in the Sunset to shoot a short film he wanted to submit to Underskatement (a skateboard film festival). Here are a few photos from the day we filmed "The Catamaran".

Me and Toad were basically clueless about what we got talked into doing. Once we got out there and to the top of the first hill we were to bomb, Bryce opens the trunk of his car and says "Put this on".

The on site "crew" was The Salmon, Visser, Toad, Bryce, and Myself.

The Salmon making power moves on his cell phone. This guy was all business that day and was really taking care of shit.

I had never done a catamaran before so just the fact that I made it to the bottom of the hill got me super siked. Something I think every skateboarder should attempt. The leather jacket and duck tape covered gloves were pretty key in me walking away, but the goggles and the hat were completely for show and only for the film. In fact, just having them on made it way harder.

It might sound strange but his is another example of why I love living in San Francisco. Where else other than SF would you see two nut jobs dressed up like this skating down a hill, sitting on their boards, and holding hands? I can't even imagine what people passing by were thinking.

The Popside Holiday Party

2007-12-18T19:52:00.001-08:00

So since I no longer work for Ebenezer Scrooge, and my new boss Malia rules, I attended my first ever work holiday party (for a place were I worked). It was as epic as it should be. The party was all employees of both Pops Bar and Thee Parkside (both places that Sandy and I currently work).

The core of my work week is with this dude, Rick Marr (aka The Marrback). His date and roommate, Miss Moxxxie is also a good good friend of Sandy's, as well as the captain of her roller derby team (The S.F. ShEvil Dead).

Eli. Killing it.

I swear there was chicks there.

All in all the party was a hit. Here is Sandy and Malia screaming about how much they love the holidays & booze.

Before leaving I read this in the bathroom and tried not to take it personal.

On a completely unrelated note:

I went to the hardware store the other day and picked up all the crap I needed to hang some boards in the new apartment. A few old were retired and a couple new were added.

Skate Indoors

2007-12-14T16:08:00.001-08:00

A few days ago Me, Magnet, Naz, & Mikey all drove to Santa Cruz to hit NHS and Consolidated to drop off a few boxes of Lowards. We wanted to hit the park in the Cruz but got rained out.

Rain sucks even in Santa Cruz.

So we took it to this place on our way back up Route 1.

I know they had this crazy mini ramp but I didn't know they had a little street area too.

Complete with waxed curbs, 2 vert walls, a few small quarter pipes, benches, and a picnic table.

Frontside over the door? Whos got it?

If the rain keeps coming you can take it to Pacifica and still get to skate. Indoor spots are hard to come by in the bay area. If you haven't checked out The Log Shop yet and live around the Bay, its not that far and not half bad.

Ol' Cone Head

2007-12-10T22:12:00.000-08:00

After only having Pork Chop for 3 1/2 months now she has found a way to rack up five visits to the vet (2 in the doggy ER). It turns out shes a walking calamity. Looks like I found the Train Wreck I was always looking for in a pet. It was only a matter of time, and yes, this time she got the funnel. She is so... so sad looking.

She hurt her foot and keeps biting it so much that her paw is staring to come apart. I love her... but she's a walking nightmare that other dogs totally laugh at. But I can't help it, I love that dam dog.

684 coverage VIA epiclytrife

2007-12-09T19:01:00.000-08:00

I love all of these photos. On the night of Underskatement, Danny took drinking to a whole new level. Oh... and Rory... I think it's time you and Jessica moved to San Francisco. Stop this pussy-footing around bull shit.

Schmitty, thanks for the photos.
(the above 3 photos were lifted from the Trife)

Super Fishal Hits

2007-12-05T17:20:00.000-08:00

San Francisco art dude, ex Unbelievers co-owner, and SPB overlord Jeremy Fish has released a new clothing line called Super Fishal. All the gear is hot off the press and is just in time for the holiday madness. I ran into J.Fish a few months back and he told me all about his new venture. So then when I saw him the other day he laced me up with some stuff. Fish is a good dude and has helped me out ever since the Unbeliever days. So in short... Thanks Jeremy. Go buy his shit.

The full line is being carried by the Umbrella Market for your purchasing pleasure.

My First Real Christmas Tree

2007-12-04T19:21:00.001-08:00

I know my mother would say that I'm full of shit and that we had a real tree when I was probably 4 months old, but the only tree I remember from my childhood was fake. I'm not hating, I loved the fake tree we had growing up. We just never did the real tree deal.
So this year Sandy and I did it up. We went to a small Christmas tree lot out in the Sunset and got this little guy. I hope everyone is gearing up to have a good holiday season. I know I am. Sandy and I are headed to the east coast in only 17 days. I seriously can't wait.

The Thanksgiving Hell Ride (part 2)

2007-12-03T21:00:00.000-08:00

From left to right we have: B.Ball, Jam, Rob, Brando, Fuzz, A blow up doll, Gabe B., Neal, Lazer, Gabe F., and Me. Posted up inside a whack shack somewhere off I-25 south of Denver.

The first spot we hit was the Snake Pit in Colorado Springs.

Every time I go to the Denver area I always try to order something with Denver in the title, (Denver omlette, Denver Scramble, etc...) and always regret it.

I think your shorts are dry now. (This was the second sign of snow on the trip)

Fuzz in the war zone. With the snow coming in on the hour we ended up spending two full nights in our hotel room. Not even 20 minutes in the room smelled like 30 wet dudes soaked in beer.

Nap time.

Quote of the trip:
"I want to meet a girl that is going to remember me and never make that mistake again." - Lazer

If you put your beer staff up to mine we can tape them together.

Almost to La Junta.

The La Junta park is super sick. We finally had a good day of weather and were able to skate all day.

For dinner we went to a place called "Boss Hoggs".

All in all the trip went good. We all got to skate, drink a ton of brews, and all made it home safe. It was everything that thanksgiving should be. Well... almost. The rental van was a few men short from last year. Some of them choose not to come and others had no choice. Like our really good friend Lee Bender who made it out last year. Get better Lee. We all love you man.

The Thanksgiving Hell Ride (part 1)

2007-11-28T19:38:00.001-08:00

Meet "John Smith". This is the Trick Factory van of all vans. An amazing machine. Note the weather, this is what it looked like when I landed at the Denver airport.

This is what it looked like a few hours later.

Here is JAM and Mr. Smith the next morning.

Determined to do something outside of Brian's Apartment JAM and I headed to Longmont, Colorado, just north east of Boulder.

To go here. Sol Skateboard shop.

In the back of the shop is a vault.

With treasure inside.

I met a few local dudes and got to skate the ramp for an hour or so. JAM shot a few clips of me then we kicked it in the shop for a bit then it was back onto the icy shitty highway Boulder bound. We then all met up at Brian's place were we decided the final direction of our trip. Even with the snow on the ground (and more on the way) we wanted to press on and head to southern Colorado to skate Canon City, La Junta and Pueblo.

To be Continued...

Cruz Skate Shop Online

2007-11-28T13:09:00.001-08:00

If you have a second go over to Cruz Skate Shop's new online store. Sandy has been putting a shit ton of work into getting the site up for the holidays. Peep it, leave a comment, tell your friends, you know.. all that holiday crap.

Thanksgiving Mayhem

2007-11-19T23:41:00.000-08:00

For some of us Thanksgiving means a lot more then a cold cut turkey sub from some bullshit Colorado truck stop just south of Denver. No way. It means way more then that. About 4 or 5 years ago, 4 good friends of mine went on a skate trip over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in Colorado. Now, the yearly pilgrimage to the mile high area is a staple. We come from all over the country to be part of it. You can't miss it. It is one full week of shredding with all your homies while killing 30 pack after 30 pack. I pity anything that gets in our way and fan out on any new comers to the pack.

The above photo was from last year. This was some Mexican spot that we rolled in 20 dudes deep and took over the place. Like I said... I pity any poor bastard that had to deal with us. It's so much fuckin fun. Check back here sometime next week for photos of the carnage.

But... while you wait, check this. The Marr Back went to Rome with J. Fish and got a ton of super sick photos.

Laid Back

2007-11-11T11:08:00.000-08:00

The other day at the dog park Pork Chop and I ran into this dude.

I can't remember the last time I felt that comfortable. On a park bench that is.

San Francisco Parkage

2007-11-07T14:25:00.000-08:00

Movement on the Potrero Del Sol skate park status: bowl is looking good. aka: anything 2 blocks from you house this rad is fucking amazing. So... lookin good. San Francisco is about to have a sick ass park right here in the mission baby! ETA? Anyone? Anyone?

Exploring Gnarlem

2007-11-03T17:34:00.001-07:00

Balmy is a short one way street right in the heart of a neighborhood know to SF locals as Gnarlem. The street has become a canvas for local artist. Not "graff" or "tag" bullshit. Nothin but real talk on this street.

No need for captions. These speak for themselves.

Dude in a Dress

2007-10-28T14:30:00.001-07:00

Last night was another bizarre night at Thee Parkside. This time a lead singer of one of the bands was dressed in a short skirt and white tights and said, "There are no brakes on this Rock-n-Roll car." What does that even mean?

Best Flyer Ever.

2007-10-24T20:46:00.001-07:00

The FBI is really cracking down on Jagerbombs. Its time to Blast RATTLER as loud as you can and start crushing Jager now before the FBI finds you!

Ps. I found out that I ride for Ace Trucks today. Joey called me and we talked about it. Shit like that makes me feel like I'm 14 again and nothing else in life matters more than skateboarding. It's the best feeling.

The Media Loves The Chopper

2007-10-12T14:22:00.001-07:00

Pork Chop's media attention has exploded! The tabloids are going nuts and can't get enough of the Chop. It seems like we can't go anywhere without getting rushed by fans. As seen in the above photo, one of our photographers here at Plaid Again happened to get a shot of her fending off the media frenzy with her own paws.

Lowcard in Mammoth Lakes

2007-10-10T01:30:00.001-07:00

On the way to Mammoth we got lost driving through Yosemite Park, but it was worth every minute. We ended up on the valley floor (with no photos to prove it) and it was amazing. I can't wait to go back. All-in-all it took 7 to 8 hours to get there with stopping to bomb a hill and eat.

It's a same Rob was born retarded. It was so nice of the SFFD to hire him as an EMT. The crew that rolled out there was Me, Toad, The Body, Trolf and Robtard (aka Magnethead).

Yosemite National Park.

I can't decide what is more awesome in the picture, the landscape or Rob's face. Priceless.

The Park. (40,000 Sq/Ft.)

The one aspect of Mammoth, that set it apart from every park that I have ever skated, was the way they used the landscape. The area is covered in large rocks and the park builders put crete right up to them. In many parts of the park they used rocks for coping. So rad.

Me, rock front pivot. (photo: Magnethead)

Lurked out.

The Funniest Man Alive

2007-10-09T23:17:00.000-07:00

I'd like to introduce you to an old friend of mine, Justin Schlegel. I met Jay in the 7th Grade, and right then I decided he was the funniest person on the planet. Now, 16 years later, I still think it. About 4 years ago he started doing stand up comedy. I couldn't be more proud of him or his accomplishments. This is a small example of how great this guy really is. This man was made for comedy.
Check out more of his stuff at www.justinschlegel.com. Its amazing.

Cruz Skate Shop

2007-10-05T16:01:00.000-07:00

Miss Motley Cruz of the Bay Area Derby Girls (aka my girlfriend Sandy), has stepped into the world of young entrepreneurship. After much deliberation and tons of research, Sandy has decided to open her own retail skate shop here in San Francisco. Her main emphasis is on the fast growing sport of Women's roller derby. To put her plan in motion she decided to start setting up accounts and getting the word out that Cruz Skate Shop is come'n in HOT!

Amazing enough... for now, this is Cruz Skate Shop. Inventory is kept in a single crate, the register is a small cash box with a sales book to write receipts, and a calculator to factor in the totals and tax.

Currently in inventory are indoor and outdoor speed skate wheels, sets of bearings, laces, toe stops, and skate tools. Not to mention new products are being added everyday. Though her main focus will be on roller derby and quad roller skates, she is also going to carry some skateboard goods and tons of clothes and apparel.

Sandy is working really hard to make her new business venture work. Here she is checking invoices and going over inventory. The Cruz Skate Shop store front is planned to open with-in the first few months of 2008. It will be the first ever roller derby focused skate shop to open in California. With over 17 roller derby leagues in the state of California alone, and only mail order companies to get high quality skate goods from, I think Cruz Skate Shop is going to do pretty well for itself. Oh, and Sandy too. All of us here at "Plaid Again" (IE: just me) are confident that Sandy's hard work will all pay off.

If you have any questions, comments, or want to place an order, you can contact Cruz Skate Shop and Sandy will be waiting to help you in anyway she can.

cruzskateshop@gmail.com

Boards of Old

2007-10-03T13:00:00.001-07:00

I'm sure that it's no mystery to anyone that I am thoroughly obsessed with skateboards. As of lately I have become more and more intrigued with the history of skateboardings first boards. Here are a few boards I found along my California travels.

Looking at these made me feel like such a kid. The shapes, graphics (top and bottom), trucks & wheels, all of it! I love it. I can truly say that I really do love skateboarding.

Remembering 684

2007-09-25T16:01:00.000-07:00

684 South Van Ness in San Francisco was a hell ride skate house I lived in for almost a year. It was (from right to left) Danny Gotimer, Wiley, Myself, Brian "Hush" Williams, and Rory the Rattler. Here are a few photos to help rekindle the good times.

Pre Rattler party with Rory.

Rainy day weirdness.

Classic Gotimer photo: After hanging out with Rory all night he pissed his pants on his way back to the house. If I remember correctly he also made a ton of phone calls that night too. Regretfully I was not someone that got a call. (Sorry Danny, I love this photo.)

Marr Mania

2007-09-20T23:22:00.001-07:00

Rick Marr (aka Dick Barr, aka Marr Back, aka Creepy Uncle Rick) has been... well I think this shirt says it all.

Find out more on Rick here. Then you'll know.

Sometimes I miss Maryland

2007-09-15T13:26:00.000-07:00

My good friend Richard sent me this photo from his iphone. I know that it doesn't have Maryland plates but I'm sure this was some shit he saw on one of the I-95 variations. Not to say that jacked up retardo cars like this gem don't exist in California (Oakland fo shiz), but there is just something about this one that screams Balti/Wash. Don't you think?

Pork Chop!

2007-09-08T13:07:00.001-07:00

I used my birthday money this year to adopt this pretty lady. Her name is Pork Chop (aka Porkins, aka Big Pork, aka Chopper, aka Fat Ass, aka Maple Bar). Her former owners named her Bagel (sort of sentimental to me) but I still had to change it. I always wanted to name my pet "Train Wreck" or "Lunch Box", but after I met her nether name seemed fit. She is short, stumpy, and round with a food name already... so we went with Pork Chop. So far I think her name fits perfectly.

We have been parking it daily.

We met up with creepy uncle Rick at the Wiz Burger for lunch one day. This is pretty much how lunch went.

Rick has been anti-shirt lately.

Pork Chop can play ball for days. She freak'n loves it!

Pork'ns and Sandy parking it.

Pork Chop you hungry?

Hungry for or high fives!

(more photos of the Chop coming soon)

A Short Trip to Portland

2007-08-21T23:28:00.000-07:00

Just a week or so ago I took another trip up to Portland. I was on a mission to skate and shot photos with my friend Bryce whom just moved up there a few months ago. My photos however might not be as good as his but I documented a thing or two. For instance...

...this Bacon Maple donut. Its just as good as it looks. Where could YOU find a bacon maple donut? Only at Voodoo.

Its a tiny donut shop in Portland that makes super good donuts.

Like this one was a classic cake donut but covered in crushed Oreo cookies. So good.

While in town I got the chance to skate with Salba. He happened to be in town and staying with Bryce as well.

On day 2 of my trip Bryce said that we were picking Salba up at the airport and he wanted to come right to this park. This is Peir Park in Portland. This giant thing has a door in it and Salba wanted to do nothing but go over the door. From the airport right to the pipe. Pure dedication.

One Week In Hawaii

2007-08-12T17:19:00.000-07:00

Thats right... 7 days, 2 islands, 2 rental cars, 9 beaches, 4 flights, 2 digital cameras and over 500 photos taken, here is a small glimpse at our trip to the Hawaiian islands.

Day one in Oahu starts with a fresh cup of Kona coffee.

The night we landed we went to this cheesy Hawaiian bar and ordered the most obnoxious drink we could find on the menu. If it was a contest to see who was the biggest dork at the bar Sandy and I won hands down as we drank out of a fish bowl. I was great.

The first beach on our list: Waikiki.

Due to stupidity, I ended up getting burned pretty bad the first day. To make up for it I decided to shove really bad pizza in my face.

The next day we jumped into this little thing and flew over to the big island into the Hilo Internationl Airport. I think the Hilo Airport could fit on one SF city block.

The north shore of the Big Island.

Another beautiful Spencer Beach sunset. This was the first beach we went to on the big island. It was amazing. Nothing like Oahu. Barely any people at the beaches and most of them were islanders.

This one LOVES the water and just couldn't wait to get in every time.

Afterwards... what could be better then to dry off by just laying out. Sandy was in heaven.

Right next to Spencer Beach was a historic landmark called the Pu'ukohola Heiau. Each one of these rocks was placed by hand and are held together with nothing. Its crazy when you look at it up close.

Hapuna Bay. In my opinion this was the best beach of the trip. Not that many people and everyone was super cool. The beach sand was beautiful and the water was perfect.

Driving south on the west coast of the big island.

This was our VW camper that died on us at this beach. Yeah, the one with no running water, no pay phone or cell phone reception. We were stoked.

After dumping the van in the ocean and telling the owner of it to go blow himself, we rented this sweet ride from Dollar. Straight to Kona baby.

If my friend Gus was in downtown Kona I bet he would say that it was "so kill".

Looking for shaved ice the size of your head? No problem.

With no more VW van to crash in Chris and Michelle Senn (friends of friends) offered us a spot at there place to crash for a few days. This is us out to dinner with Chris and his youngest Julian.

At the Senn family home you can shread their driveway. Regretfully it rained almost the whole time we were in Kona. It was never dry enough for us to skate.

After leaving Kona we drove south to Black Sands Beach. So crazy looking. This sand is so freak'n hot to walk on.

Black Sands is also a sea turtle refuge. They are just lurking all over the beach.

Then it was off to the Volcanoes National Park and into a lava tube. This cave goes right through the middle of the earth and was created by lava.

Then we drove down the Chain of Craters Road inside the Volcanoes National Park. Here is one of the craters we went to. If you look really really close I'm pointing at people walking on a trail.

This is the Volcano skatepark built by the locals in a town called Volcano. Its like a wooden burnside. So much fun. I got to skate it for a little bit just before we went to that airport to fly back to Oahu.

We landed in Oahu, rented a car and drove to the North Shore where we saw this dude.

Sandy and I heard all about Steve before we finally met him. He lives on the North Shore of Oahu right across the street from Pipeline (a world famous surf spot). Steve owns a Mexican resturant called "Cholo's" (Spanish for gangster) on the North Shore. He was nice enough to let two total strangers, after a mouth full of name dropping, follow him back to his place to check out his set up.

This is Steve's yard. Two of the best bowls I have skated I quite a while. Plus a bar in the back called the "Deep End Lounge" and two guest house cabanas on the left. But, if that wasn't enough, you could look just to your right and see...

... two ramps complete with skatelight, pool blocks and a beautiful ocean view of Pipeline.
So, so sweet.

This was my favorite photo from the trip (believe it or not). Frontside carve over the light, shot by Sandy with her new camera. Our 7 day island getaway ended up being one of the best trips of my life.

Lowcard kills AZ

2007-07-10T22:47:00.000-07:00

So the crew started of as Magnethead behind the wheel, Toad, Trolf, Jonah, Dime Slots, Strubing and Myself. We also ended up meeting up with a ton of people in Phoenix because of some big AM contest put on by Cowtown.

Here is the crew at Rob Welsh's ramp. The ramp isn't at Robs house but at his friends place and I think we came in hot and bummed him out. hey, its a Lowcard trip. We can bum um out like no other.

I can't really explain to you the importance of these trucks and why we needed to FedEx them back to DLX because if I did I would end up at the bottom of the bay. Shit is top secret. But what I can tell you is...

... Jonah is gay.

Toad comin' in hot with the Backside 180.

And a fur vest with matching hat? Hamknuckle couldn't be more stoked about it either.

Why is Lee Bender making that face?

I answer is written on the windshield of his car.

Even though Jonah is gay he has a mean back tail. Proof will be in Lowcard with the new article "Jonah's back tail of the month". Where will the next one be?

Then Rob, Toad and I drove to LA to help Laban with his show on fuel called "American Misfits". We dressed as reporters and yelled shit at Laban and Ted. I'm not gonna lie, I think I might of had more fun in LA then in AZ.

Don't you think Toad looked like a real reporter?

While in town we got to skate at Mike Manzoori's house. He has this crazy ramp with no flat. Super fun.

Then it was back with the weirdos to work on the show some more. This time we were walking into a circus scene. Weird but still fun. It is never a dull moment around Laban or Ted.

Take this midget for instance... he just walked up to Rob and made crazy threats about how he could kick his ass (meaning Rob's) in 1000 different ways. Crazy shit like how he could punch right into him and rip out his liver. We ended up driving back to SF just the three of us, Rob, Toad and Me. This sparked Rob into calling the road crew the BRC. This is only because 9 people went on the trip but only 3 made it back. The rest flew home and or just stayed in AZ because they (just Jonah) were killing it to hard and didn't want to come home yet. The BRC consist of Rob, Toad and Myself ... and were not currently accepting any applications.

Blow'n it in Oregon

2007-07-06T12:06:00.000-07:00

For Magnethead's unofficial batchler party we drove up to Oregon for a week to camp and skate. It was The Body, Corpsey, Magnethead and myself.

This was campsite #1 in Brookings, Oregon.

The Body really went for it on day one and ended up puking all of day 2. Way to kill it kid.

Corpsey was super pumped on his $15 tent that he didn't want to get out of it. I think he even went the whole trip without any cigarette burns in it. I can't say the same for his sleeping bag though.

Stopped for breakfast... The Bod was feel'n it.

The first night we stayed in Brookings and went to the park in the morning. No one was really feeling it so it was a hit and run and back on the road.

The Body... still feel'n it.

Made it to Reedsport for another hit and run sesh. This Whole pipe funnels. Its gnarly.

Campsite #2. This night was animal kingdom. We had cats, raccoons and what we all swear was a wild pig fighting in our spot. We made food pretty late and it was a call to the wild to come fuck with us. Pretty fuck'n funny though. Magnet also got super wasted and started calling numbers out of a skate mag we had to try and get me on "Boner Bolts". He's an idiot.

The proof is in the eyes. Magnet being creepy. On day #3 we also hit Florence, Waldport and Toledo. None of them I got photos of. Sorry, Blow it.

I did get a photo of the Lincoln City Park though. Well, just this bowl really. It was the only thing we really skated. Its super sick. It has lights built into the sides like a real pool so you can light it up at night.

Next stop was McMinnville. This was my second favorite spot on the trip. That massive hole/channel is for drainage. Oregon gets rain pretty gnarly in the winter time.
Then it was off to Portland.

Burnside was completely empty. Other parks we went to in the Portland area were Glennhaven and Battleground (in Washington just across the river). No photos of those two parks ether. I know, I suck.

I did however get a photo of Drehobl's homemade ashtray he added to Rob's door.

And a photo of Rob pissing on the whole pipe at Pier park in Portland. Pier park is the first of 19 parks that are planned to be added to Portland's parks and rec over the next 5 years. Whats up with just one of these in SF?

Oh, and Rob drove the entire trip. Look at how stoked he is. He loves it.

and Drehobl, being creepy.

In Medford on the way home we stayed with these chicks that own a skate shop. One of the roommates (Christina, I think?) jumped in with us to skate a park in nearby Jacksonville.

I think the best thing at the Jacksonville park was this beer bench made in the side of the hill next to the park. This is the P-stone post up spot. Where the hell is Stone anyway?

Alright, last park of the trip. We stopped to check out the new park in Weed, CA. Rob still had crazy eyes but ended up being able to skate for a little bit before it was back on the highway and straight to SF.

But before we got on the road, heres Corpsey... creep'n out the employees.

How rad are these?

2007-07-05T12:45:00.000-07:00

I found these skateboard trading cards from the 70s at a diner in SF called St. Francis. On top of serving amazing food they also sell vintage cards & candy. Here is a small sample of what I have uncovered so far.

To make them even better, each card spotlights a skater on the back of the card with a small photo and short bio. Look at this dude that rides for team pepsi?

I love this crap. If you ever find old skate stuff like this mail it to me. I'll pay you back somehow. Beer? Food? whatever.

Dixon County Fair

2007-06-24T19:36:00.000-07:00

A bunch of us from SF drove up to the Dixon County Fair for the day then went to Grass Valley to stay with Sandy's Mom Lisa for the night.

Corn Dogs.

Another pork party?

Tressa showed up soon after we did

The demolition derby was sold out

So we snuck around the back and climbed up on a truck to watch until we get kicked out. We got to see a few good hits. The crowd in attendance looked like all class.

At this point we were also with Sandy's brother Cameron, Mom and Grandmother.

Its hard to explain how bummed Sandy was when she found out the Derby was sold out. She was determined to find a way in without a ticket.

Then it was off for more fair food! This is how much Lisa likes fries.

Heres Jill and Rick (blogging)

Candy Cruz

Fair game

The Farris wheel is still a classic.

Dixon Fair lights / Warm Summer nights.

Anheiser Ottoman

2007-06-21T12:42:00.000-07:00

This dude was posted up at the corner of 16th & Bryant in SF. Luckily I was able to get a shot of his awesomeness as he waited for the bus on top of his 18 pack. Later, after looking at the photo I realized he already had one cracked and tucked in the shade. P-stone was proud.

HESHER!

2007-06-19T17:14:00.000-07:00

Whats Hesher? Oh just a heavy metal karaoke & air guitar contest held at Thee Parkside every other month. Seriously, amazing. Peep these heads get down on the mic like its 1985 all over again.

Your host and fellow hesher, Motley Cruz...

Karaoke man Butt-Rock Bill...

DJ Shane In Blood...

... and MC Matt D!

Matt showing the crowd how its done.

Fred-Lock destroying the mic.

and the air drums! Thats P-side loc Zack on the mic.

Kelly... feeling it.

The Judging wasn't even rigged.

Can the judges be payed off?

This is how you pay off a Hesher. Gotta keep'n um happy.

Shane from Walken was on this stage two nights in a row. Tell me this dude doesn't loves metal or Thee parkside. I dare you.

Check the dude on air drums. Epic.

The Que...

The one... the only...

Schmitty & Toad. Look at killing it on Air guitar.

And I mean KILLING IT on the air guitar!

Here are the Winners. They did a Scorpions cover that blew the roof off Thee Side. It was serious. Schmitty and friends got second place and parkside happy hour loc Zack landed in third. The top three move onto the finals which will be held at Thee Parkside later this year. See you there. - Gordo

SoCal with P-Stone

2007-06-13T12:55:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Stone and I drove down to pick up the rest of his stuff from SD and move it up to SF. Stone has a bun in the oven so he moved in with his lady here in SF. First stop was LA to visit with Buddy, Rick, Bailey and some homies.

This is a beer bench we built at Bud & Rick's studio in LA

Bud trying to keep up with P-Stone

B & R, hard at work

A pool in LA with the possie

Bloody Pickles

My first time in Pedro

The Channel St. Park in Pedro

The view from Stone & Rhino's place

SD fish taco style

We drove by this house while running errands in SD. Epic.

To finish off our short stay in SD we went to "The Holiday Bowl" with Mumford, Hewitt, Rhino and Mattias. Yet another amazing day (NBD).

Puke Rainbows

2007-06-09T16:03:00.000-07:00

Sandy's necklace

My belt

Deal with it.

SBPSF 2007

2007-06-08T19:28:00.000-07:00

Old news / New blog. SPB April 2007

My Dad (in plaid)

2007-06-08T17:14:00.000-07:00

Hands down, I am who I am because of my parents. My dad passed away when I was 19 of cancer, and not a day goes by that I don't think about him. My mom is still crushing it daily in Waldorf Maryland (my hometown) to this day. I just wanted to say that my parents did a stand-up job of doing what they needed to do for their children, and that's what got me to where I am today. I couldn't love them more. It just isn't possible.

Ken Nagahara

2007-06-08T01:29:00.001-07:00

Even before any beer comes near his lips Ken Nagahara is killing it (photo-wise). Then a 12oz-er later ken is ready to party like a real Asian. I love this dude. Since Ken loves plaid as much as I do, I thought it was fitting that he be the subject of my first post on "Plaid Again". Just like any other dork with a digital camera I'm tired of having photos with nowhere to put them but Myspace. So to quote my friend Wiley from months ago, "Ah... why don't you blog about it?".