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salba - bs 2 , shallow 4finger Anthony....

pool pals @ 'ridiculous'

Anyone that has been riding a skateboard longer than 6 months has probably heard of ‘Animal Chin’. I think the point that Stacey Peralta & his minions were trying to make is that,  ‘Fun’ is where you find it. The spirit of ‘Animal Chin’ rides with all of us…..it is the very reason we kept riding a skateboard when others quit. It feels fun. When I do anything else, all I think about is skating. When I’m skating, I can think of nothing else. Like Peter Pan, I refuse to grow up…(whatever that means). I refuse to bow down before a TV that tells me…”money is all you need to be happy!” I refuse to even consider the possibilty that I have to care about what is ‘normal’. I find that if I hunt, locate & drain pools, then ride them with pool pals…my life is perfectly peaceful. I’ve tried the smoke, the bottle, the pill….nothing comes close. Find ‘Chin’ for yourself. Grab a friend, a skateboard & roll…..it’ll make your life better….skate long-Ozzie

The dreadlocked godfather of skateboarding.

An ‘iconoclast’ is someone who attacks a set of beliefs or who thumbs their nose at societal norms.  Tony Alva is an ‘iconoclast’ & yet has the distinction of becoming an ‘icon’ while doing this. Its a strange dichotomy that cannot  easily be explained away. TA started surfing when he was very young in Venice…and -as such- was perfectly situated to be involved at skateboarding’s inception. When the waves were flat, the local surfers would cruise the strand carving back-and-forth, practicing cutbacks and simulating surfing. Los Angeles has many schoolyards built up into the hillsides. The contractors would asphalt the playground lots often creating banked walls around the periphery. TA & his friends would go to these schoolyards & carve the banks…cutting back, slaloming, doing ‘bertlemans’ or ‘berts’ at the top of these banked walls. There were no previous rules laid out. Anything was possible. This had not been done before. All that existed ….were barriers to be torn down; discarded. TA told me numerous times that ” if a person was riding with us, he had to have style! ” Style, speed & flow were paramount.

TA @ 'Gonzos'.

The drought of ’74 plunged LA into turmoil. Pools couldn’t be filled & lawns dried up. Desiccation followed all things like a vulture…and TA- with his friends- found themselves at a threshold moment. Coming back from the beach one day, TA & the crew were cruising their boards up an alleyway, and through a paint-chipped fence, saw the white, gleaming plaster of an empty pool. TA figured that since they rode the banked schoolyards…a round, deep pool wall might be ridden as well. It seemed like a natural progression. They hopped the fence & history was written. Imagine the thoughts that ran through their heads as they stood in the shallow end squinting into the sun; looking at the approach down the waterfall to the deep face wall! TA & Wes Humpston both recounted memories of those early sessions.

TA- grinding a Beverly Hills square pool @ 52 yrs old!

Wes told me that TA would carve down into the deep end and his legs would go straight out on the tiles. He would seem inverted with his head staying centered over the drain as his legs & the pool wall carried him around in a blistering arc toward the shallow again. Back then, Wes said they would take a run, then all the riders would have to go into the pool & pick up the loose ball bearings as they would pop out of their wheels. The equipment barely kept up with the riders progress.’ Devonshire’,’ Canyon’, ‘Fireman’ and other pools were ridden with previously unknown barriers of fear & discovery conquered.  Soon,  TA won the World Championships & found himself catapulted into stardom. Skateboarding was white-hot & TA its hottest commodity. At 18 years old, he didn’t mind.

Filming "Lords of Dogtown," Pasadena, CA "Dogbowl" re-issue

Money & fame, along with their ever-present shadows;  drugs, alcohol & misery, quickly ran riot. He thought he handled fame well. He reveled in it. He saw the darkness take his friends through drugs, booze, suicide & prison. Starting Alva skates, TA found himself touring, surfing, skating, promoting & trying to run a hugely successful company.  I was riding Cherry Hill skatepark in NJ back then & I would see -virtually- every other kid on an Alva board. Eventually, skating fell into another demise. The death throes were felt throughout the industry. Alva skates fell into a financial hole. TA kept at it. The company ‘Alva’,  resurfaced, dusted itself off & ignited as a force to be reckoned with in the mid-80′s skate resurgence. TA rode another wave of popularity. He had by this time become ‘Icon’ status. Few skaters out there could rival his influence, style or longevity. Alva was the man.

TA & myself @ Beverly Hills square pool. Jan 09

Perhaps never before, had skateboarders flexed their collective muscles in money-making or by the ability to influence popular culture. Fashion, music & art were deeply influenced by the skaters of this era. Then came the deluge. Catastrophe. The 90s saw a massive shift in the way skateboards were ridden. Street became master & vert  a pale shadow of itself. The previous glory was gone. Vert riders quit & quickly found themselves with day jobs, dreaming of how it was…’back in the day’. Armchair warriors…complacency. Resent. Some riders turned to drugs & alcohol. Some crossed the line. Some never came back. TA found himself in a bad place. With few board sales & scant interest in pool riding, he was relegated to existing in a small shop in Oceanside. He sold decks & little else out of the small, sparse skate shop. Times were tough. Again, TA struggled with demons. Some days the demons won…

Lords of Dogtown filming crew/stars in Pasadena @ 'Dogbowl' (re-issue)

In 1999, Stacy Peralta led the charge to complete a documentary called, “The Z-boys”. TA, Jay Adams, Wes Humpston, & a host of other ‘OG’ Dogtowners, were brought together & the story of their lives was filmed by Stacy. I helped out during the project & they are some of my best memories. The film exploded at Sundance Film Festival that year, winning best documntary. Accolades & money followed. Sony bought the rights & a full-length feature was slated to begin. The film, ”The Lords of Dogtown’ was highly successful & TA continues to enjoy doing what he does; surfing, skating & influencing riders  everywhere. No longer the contentious, ego-maniacal man of the past, TA has overcome his demons. He is affable. Approachable. He is truly an ‘Icon’. Skate Strong/Skate Long-Ozzie

Special thanks to JGrant Brittain for the photographs.

acerbic wit, and is always down for a session. Thanks bro. Skate Strong/ Skate Long- Ozzie

Tobee Burger skates pools really well. I met Tobee in 97 or 98 riding in the ‘Badlands’. He was one of Salbas crew. Over the ensuing years, we have sought out & drained more pools than most people have swam in during their lives. Tobee makes incredible skate videos. Tobee created ,”Under the Influence” which is a pool video that has become the measuring stick for all those that follow. He’s recently released a video ” Welcome to Ridiculous”. Tobee is rad! Skate Strong/Skate Long-Ozzie

Jim Tesnar , FS rock, 'Pala'

I first skated with gnar in 1980-1981. We are both vert guys from PA. We lived about an hour apart & he had ramps & we had ramps….naturally. We rode together & then didnt see each other for a few years. Now, he’s at Powell & still rips…naturally. Here’s to old vert brothers. skate strong/skate long- Ozzie

scott ward- stalefish,'ridiculous'

mark partain, fs rock, shallow cup, 'ridiculous'

mark partain, tailblock, deep to shallow, 'ridiculous'

michael serna jr., warp speed fs grind, 'ridiculous'

scott ward, fs grind, 'ridiculous'

bad billy, bs box, 'blackpowder'

dave reul, fs grind, los angeles

There are scores of pool rippers everywhere. People that ride pools -virtually- to the exclusion of all else. The previous collection of , Adam 12, Bad Billy, & Adam Morgan are only a microcosm of what is really out there. Here is another rad collection of people that refuse to rest on excuses or past glories….Skate Strong/Skate Long-Ozzie (thanks Peter King for pics!)

adam morgan-shallow stairs

Adam 12- fs shallow

adam12-fs box

adam morgan- fs box.

billy- bs box

adam morgan- rock-n-roll slide , shallow cup

adam morgan-

adam morgan- thread the needle,

billy- bs box

adam morgan- fs box

adam morgan, shallow fs grind, '

adam12- 'playing around w light saber & floaty

adam morgan- fs grind, mid cup,

Ozzie's Diner & Elvis pics

First of all, I must preface this story. Friday, Zach & I experienced a hella ‘twilight zone’ moment & ran with it…as you’ll see, sometimes a person ‘gotta get in, to get out’….ride the strangeness through to the other side– so to speak. I know this sounds vague but here’s what happened. Salba has been telling me about the ‘Elvis’ pool for 15 years or so. “…one of the best pools out there, dude.”  Salba dropped this pearl of wisdom conspiritorially. His story has it that after the Northridge quake of 94, a hundred pools opened up in the valley. Salba, Zask, Tyco, Rhino, Pstone, and the rest of the heavy hitters along with Swope & Royak killed all that shit on a regular basis. The ‘Elvis’ stood out among the best.

Zach grinding over loveseat

Major obstacles were to be found in its white-plastered environs; like 2 love seats opposing one another, 2 sets of side stairs in the deep end and fire-cracker coping. These obstacles, along with big transitions & a very peculiar shape, made the “Elvis’ a task for any good pool rat. The ‘Elvis’ was a permission pool for a short while then quickly found itself relegated to the status of ‘legend’….the one pool you should’ve seen & rode but probably would never get the chance. A few weeks ago, the grapevine sent out the word that the ‘Elvis’ was empty again. Friday, I had the day to myself, called up Zach & left San Diego @ 6am for the long drive up. It was bleak, overcast & grey that morning. The sky was like dull metal and we rode quietly north listening to Katatonia & thought of ‘Elvis’. Over halfway up, I sent out a text to Big Al (who was meeting us ) that we were enroute. I received his reply. “Its raining hard”. I groaned & pulled over , phoning him. “Wet” Too wet”,  Big Al stated tersely. Damn! Zach & I agreed to stop & get some coffee and here’s were shit got kicked fucking sideways. I pulled off the I-5 and stopped at a Starbucks.

Today's Special: New Pool

As we got out of the car we saw a diner on the opposite corner called….GULP! “OZZIE’S DINER”.

Click link to view skate pics: http://zachpetschek.com/090605

Ozzie threading needle/grind stairs

Spooner love seat grind

Last weekend was like every weekend for our crew. Insufferable craving for roundwall..deep glasses of beer & wine the night before, dreams of tiles & carving…yeah..that’s how we approach the weekends. I had worked a few days last week but spent Thursday & Friday driving the grid & reevaluating some potential pools in Salbaland. First– we call it Salbaland as does anyone in ‘the know’ simply out of respect for the man Steve Alba & his amazing contribution to skateboarding. The one salient fact that never escapes me is the particular area we visit, hunt & skate  happens to be his home stomping ground, as it has been his entire life. If you want to know about pool skating, its history or the Badlands- ask Salba.

I had found this abandoned property in a fairly upscale neighborhood in Salbaland during a hot afternoon last September. It was late in the day, the air was thick & angry; the receding dirty sunlight scorching everything. I had been driving the grid for well over six hours and had come away with little more than two Anthony square pools complete with huge coping & much pain to inflict. The day was turning into a fucking ‘No Go”. I saw the burnt grass in a little cul-de-sac to my right & figured ‘What the hell!”. I pulled in & gave the property a cursory glance. The hot air had kept most inside and the closer houses revealed little activity. I pulled myself out of my Nissan ‘shitbox’ & quickly made my way to the closest block wall nearest the car. I pulled myself up & saw the large pale blue, sun-washed sliding board perched like a lonely sentinel over a huge aomeba pool half-full of green pea soup water. Yuk! Excitement coursed through my veins & my pulse quickened. THIS is why I do what I do! I climbed over the wall & found a huge aluminum skimming net nearby. I upended it and ran the stick vertically down the transitions checking the radius… “the Salba stick test” as we call it. After checking a few things…ie- is the water on ? (doubtful, hence the dead lawn), electric? (doubtful, hence the pool filter not in use & green pea soup), and other important factors, I shot two pictures of the pool-one from each end. I photographed the mailbox & street signs with cross streets so I could find it quickly again. I thought of this pool often in the subsequent months & last Friday finally decided enough was enough. I grabbed my generator, assorted accoutrements, pool pump & drove over.

Zach grinding

Unbolting the fence, I made it accessible to get all my tools inside. Now, here it gets a bit gnarly. I am -virtually- trapped in the backyard if someone should come. Therefore- I stay fucking ‘ frosty’!  Subsequently, the pool was drained & cleaned in eight hours. Sunday, I took a small, tight crew over then we carved & rode. We ripped six other pools then ended the day there. We rode a backyard pool never skated before and the looks on our faces told the story better than I ever could! Skate Strong/Skate long- Ozzie