Wow! The Element riders have definitely been doing the rounds showing off their sick skating skills. Earlier this month, the guys were on the East Coast, but this weekend, they’ll be representing the West Coast, when Element and Beachworks present Element day at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, CA.

Element team riders Nyjah Huston, Levi Brown, Chad Tim Tim, Nick Garcia, Julian Davidson and Ray Barbee will be on-hand for an autograph signing with free posters and giveaways this Saturday, September 15th from Noon – 5pm. It will be a day of Skateboarding, live music, arts & crafts, Team Signing and more. Events from the day will include:

No Board Left Behind Chop Shop
Bring your dilapidated deck, and get it cut into a cruiser shape. The first 50 people in line will be provided with trucks and wheels to turn your old board into a new cruiser!

Game of S.K.A.T.E.
Enter a game of S.K.A.T.E. at 3pm for your chance at $500 and a scholarship to Element YMCA Camp plus heaps of other prizes.

Jammin’ on the Guitar with Ray Barbee
Legendary skateboarder and musician Ray Barbee who was one of the first skateboarders to bring freestyle/flatland tricks to street, and is best known for his comply variations, will be jamming away through the afternoon with his jazz-influenced instrumental tracks. Pick up a provided guitar and join in the jam.

Live, Interactive Art with Mike Kershnar
Element Advocate and artist Mike Kershnar will be painting live at the event. Join him to collaborate on artwork that will be showcased at Beachworks following the event.

Recycled Bracelet Making
Using the scraps from the Element cutting room floor, help repurpose these into a stylish accessory with the Element Eden Advocate team.

Team Signing
Finally, don’t miss the Element team signing with 2012 Street League Champion Nyjah Huston, as well as Levi Brown, Chad Tim Tim, Nick Garcia, Julian Davidson and Ray Barbee for an autograph signing with free posters and giveaways.

Address:
South Coast Plaza
3333 Bristol Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Plaza Tower
(714) 435-2000
www.southcoastplaza.com

Go HERE for more info: http://www.elementbrand.com/us/events/view/214 Continue reading →

After the first 3 stops in Kansas City, California, and Arizona, the Street League Series is heading into its final stop in New Jersey, Saturday August 25-26, at the Prudential Center.

The Top 8 Pros will compete for $200,000, but only one champion will be crowned. Who’s got your vote?

Here’s the ranking of the top 8:

1. Nyjah Huston 280
2. Paul Rodriguez 258
3. Sean Malto 232
4. Chris Cole 230
5. Chaz Ortiz 227
6. Luan Oliveira 215
7. Bastien Salabanzi 194
8. Ryan Sheckler 192

Watch the final live on Sunday, Sugust 26, 2012 5pm ET on ESPN2. Continue reading →

Go Skateboarding Day, the official holiday of skateboarding, is right around the corner! Are you ready to blow off all your other obligations and just go skateboarding? Now going on its 10^th year, every year on June 21, skateboarders around the globe celebrate the pure exhilaration, creativity, and spirit of one of the most influential activities in the world by going skateboarding. Last year, skateboarders across the world – from China, Afghanistan, Colombia, Brazil, and the U.S.A., among others – gathered to celebrate the Annual International Go Skateboarding Day by participating in over 600 events honoring the international holiday.

Continuing the tradition this year, skateboarders everywhere will show their love and support for skateboarding by holding fundraisers, contests, protests and demos. They’ll skate across cities, gather in skate parks, stream into their local skate shop and some will even revel in the solitary act of skateboarding alone at their favorite spot, all bringing together the skateboarding community in the grind heard around the world.

The day began on June 21, 2003 as an excuse for skateboarders to make skateboarding their top priority, with Go Skateboarding Day hosting a few simple skate sessions and bar-b-ques held in skateboarding’s unofficial capital, southern California. Founded by the International Association of Skateboard Companies (IASC), Go Skateboarding Day gives passionate skateboarders as well as those who are simply inspired by skateboarding, the opportunity to drop everything and get on a skateboard.

Today the day continues to embrace skateboarding culture and to define skateboarding as the rebellious, creative celebration of independence it continues to be. In the years since that first celebration, the holiday continues to grow, but the mission remains the same: Have fun, go skateboarding!

For more details, check out the site: http://www.goskateboardingday.org.

  Continue reading →

Last Wednesday, The New York Times had a feature in their Fashion & Style section: Skateboarding Past a Midlife Crisis.

According to the story, the new symbol for the midlife crisis is the skateboard! Yup, forget the little red sports car, aging members of Generation X, and even those that are older, are reclaiming their youth and rebellious streak by “shredding” on a board. Some are even venturing to show off their old tricks in a skate park.

Apparently, it’s a detail noticed in the media lately. A recent satire in The Onion headlined, “43-Year-Old With Skateboard Not Fooling Anyone,” showed a close-up of Tony Hawk looking somewhat weathered in his helmet.

But, it sorta makes sense that it’s now appealing to the 40+ somethings since skateboarding itself is entering middle age. Like the older members of Generation X, the sport was born in the ’60s.

Most of the older skateboarders are riding longboards, which are usually about 40 to 48 inches long, compared with traditional street decks, which are around 32 inches. Considered the luxury sedans of the skateboarding world, these decks are fitted with bigger, softer wheels to roll over sidewalk cracks and pebbles and are built for cruising and carving, not tricks and aerials. They’re perfect for riders who no longer want to risk broken bones by grinding rails and ollying curbs, which they once did as teenagers.

Longboard manufacturers Honey Skateboards of Colorado, Bustin Boards of New York and Original Skateboards of New Jersey report a surge in sales among older riders, indicative of the aging skateboard demographic. The number of skateboarders over 35 has nearly doubled in the last decade, to 742,000, from 404,000, and now accounts for 10 percent of the market, according to the National Sporting Goods Association, a trade group in Mount Prospect, Ill.

What are your thoughts? Are you over it with the skate geezers or say more power to them? Continue reading →