Stay Fly

Programming Injection?

My vacation from this is going great! At least Luke is promising content.

Is it weird how apropos Half Cabs and flannels Ethan Fowler would be nowadays? I think not.

Lottso updates over at Wiskate since after I got lazy.

My excitement for the T-Wolves season this year doesn't seem as pointless as last year!

Curbcut Mctwist Redux

Re:

Kill Fee: Angel Ramirez Interview

How apropos. Image yanked from Tumyeto.

The last time I looked at the following interview was July 13, 2009. I hadn't even realized that it had been so long. As things go, sometimes pro-type skateboarders can't scrape together enough photos to get an interview for a magazine going. All of a sudden, the couple of months that you usually expect to see your work in print turns into a couple couple of months, and then, all of a sudden its been 14 months, the whole thing is outdated, and there's nothing left to do but throw the interview on your local skate blog. Happy 600th post (on blogger--gotta be more like 3000).

If you ever run into Angel Ramirez, ask him about “The Utah Incident.” He’ll tell you about a road trip that he and his friends were taking from Denver to Arizona, and how they got pulled over in Moab, Utah. It being a proper skate trip and all, there may have been some controlled substances in the van, and or open containers of substances that become controlled when one is consuming them in a moving vehicle. Angel fell into/saw an opportunity to take the fall for the aforementioned substances to keep his friends out of jail, so he manned up and took the blame.

Angel was booked, kicked it for a while at the police station, put his laptop up for bail, and they were on their way for the skate trip in AZ. On the way back up to Colorado, they stopped in Moab for Angel’s court date, and, them being broke-ass skateboarders, no one had enough money to pay the amassed fines, and Angel was facing a 47 day lock up in Moab, Utah.

As Angel puts it, “[The judge] even slammed the hammer down…I was about to be stuck in fuckin’ Utah for a month and a half, that would have sucked.” He continues, “That was the only thing I was bummed on, because if I was to go to jail in Denver, I wouldn’t be that bummed, because I’d be at home.”

Luckily, Angel’s homies scraped together every last cent they had, and helped him narrowly escape the jail time.

That vignette pretty much sums up Angel Ramirez; he’s down for his friends, skating, having a good time, and the fine city of Denver, Colorado. Had Coors Light been featured more prominently in the story, well, it would have completely summed him up.

Where are you living these days?
I actually just moved to Long Beach with Abdias [Rivera], we got this two bedroom spot, it’s pretty tight.

Is it a pretty typical skatehouse?
No, no, this is the first [place] that I’ve lived in that isn’t a skatehouse. It’s just more me and him, just chilling; not trying to get it fucked up and lose our deposit like every other place.

How long have you been without a phone, what happened?
I don’t know, I broke it one night being all drunk, and I didn’t really want one after that. I was about to get it turned on tomorrow, but I don’t know, its been about three weeks or something, a month. I don’t really want one yet, but I have to get one, its kind of a must.

What are some of the nice things about not having one?
There are a lot of good things. I mean, I call everybody to see what’s going on with skate trips and whatnot, but its kind of cool when no one can get a hold of you because you can do what you want for at least a couple days. But, it definitely sucks too at the same time; my dad couldn’t get a hold of me and he was pretty pissed, stuff like that sucks. Otherwise, I love it.

So, is Denver pretty much one of the best places on Earth?
Oh, it is the best place on Earth! It’s the smallest, big city ever. It’s hard to explain, I love it. I wish I didn’t have to move from there, but you gotta do it, gotta do it.

What’s the deal with the Wet Boys?
Those are all my homies; shit, I’ve known them since before they were the Wet Boys or whatever. One year, some dudes migrated out to fuckin’ Arizona, and they’ve been doing their shit out there. My friend Micah [Hollinger] and some other dudes brought it up as some joke, that’s what it is.
It’s just a big crew of homies too, how every little crew has to have their own little thing, like the Pissdrunx or something dumb like that, everyone has to have their own little shit.

I’m just wondering, what makes them so wet and stuff?
I don’t know man. Everyone thinks they do all this gay shit but they don’t, I’ve heard so many stories, like I’ve heard that they just chill and make out with each other; no, that’s not at all what they do. The get mad bitches, so good for them. It’s a funny gimmick that girls go for; they’ve been running it for a couple years now, so it’s pretty funny. They’re all my homies, and people will talk shit on them, and I’ll say, “Chill out, those are my homies.”

What’s your favorite Colorado Kool-Aid?
There’s only one Colorado Kool-Aid, and it’s Coors Light. But I like them both man, the original, all that stuff. We got to go to the fuckin’, big, place where they make it in Golden, [Colorado], it’s pretty tight, you get a couple of fresh beers at the end of it. I love it.

Does it weird you out that Coors and Miller Brewing are now the same company?
Coors and Miller!?

Yeah, they teamed up and its one big company now.
I didn’t even know that, I like them both. I like Miller High Life; we used to buy those things by the 30 pack, like a couple of them everyday when I lived in this house in Colorado. That’s all we had to drink for a while because it was the cheapest and it was good.
But, I don’t know, this is ’09, this is Coors Light time.

How do you feel about being called “The Lucky Lazy Latino?”
The what?

It’s something that Ernie [Torres] told me about.
He’s always giving me shit, I’ll wake up and I’ll be chilling or whatever, and he’ll be like, “You’re so fucking lazy!” And I’ll be like, “Dude, I just woke up.” He always calls me lazy for no reason, its pretty funny because I do more shit than he does when we’re at home, in Denver at least.

What’s your favorite condiment?
Probably A-1.

A-1? What about Taco Bell mild sauce?
(Laughs) Those dudes are fuckin’ dumb! We were all drunk and went to Taco Bell one night after the bar, and I was like, “Hey I want some mild sauce. That’s the only kind I like, the other kinds taste like shit.” And ever since then they’ve made it this big inside joke.
My friend Trevor [Uriona] is in on it, and he’s always bringing it up. We’ll be at Burger King or something, and he’s like, “Damn fool, they ain’t got no mild sauce here for you,” talking all fake-Mexican, its so funny. He’s been running that shit for a little bit now.

How long have you been on Foundation?
Got on when I was 16? Nah, I got on when I was 15, and then they put me on the actual team when I turned 16. I remember we were in Denver, just at the hotel, and everybody came into the room, it was pretty tight, and they were like, “Well, you’re on the team now.” That was sick though, that was the most psyched I’ve ever been.

Did you feel like you had little kid status on Foundation for a little bit?
Yeah, definitely, I know Gareth [Stehr] didn’t like me all that much in the beginning because he was like, “This is just some little rat,” or whatever. But he kind of got over that shit.

Who’s your favorite guy on Foundation?
I don’t know, because as the oldest, I think the only OG dudes on now are just me, Gareth, and Cory [Duffel]. They’re all my really good homies, we’re trying to put on the homies, so I’d say everybody, they’re all my friends, I’ve known them for years.

Are you pretty much Foundation for life?
Shit man, yeah, I fuckin’ love them. As long as they’ve got my back, I’ve got theirs. I’ve gotten offers, but I just couldn’t do it because they’re too much of the homies.

How long ago was it that you turned pro?
I turned pro…shit, like a year ago, damn, that went fast! Right before my last birthday, like May 31st, a couple weeks before that.

Did you know it was coming or was it a surprise?
It was more of a surprise. They let me know before it actually happened; I got an email and it was my board graphic, and I was like, “No fucking way!” It was the coolest board graphic, like I didn’t know what to think of, and they just came up with it somehow, and it came out perfect, I couldn’t have been more psyched on it.

Do you ever floss your pro status to your amateur friends?
Oh, I’ll talk shit on them, but its not like I’m serious. I’ll talk shit on Abdias all day even though he’s better than me.

Do you feel like anything has changed since you went pro, or is it pretty much just the same deal?
Yeah dude, same deal, just skating and having fun with my friends. It’s always been the same for me; I’ve never tried to take advantage of it like a lot of other kids do. Like quitting companies to get paid more money; that’s not what skating is about. Nothing’s really changed beside I can’t really skate the crazy ass shit these kids skate nowadays, that’s about it. And that’s not even my fault, that’s what skateboarding is coming to I guess, thanks to the Lakai video.

Get some combos man.
Those things suck.

How many T-shirts do you own?
I’ve got this Coors Light t-shirt…I’ve got like four t-shirts that I actually own, the other ones I just kind of lose them and throw them away on skate trips. I’ve got my Shane [Cross] shirt, my Vans shirt, I’ve got a couple of them, my Super Weed T. I’ve got shirts that are kept, just coming up in thrift stores and stuff.

Is it kind of rough being a Denver Nuggets fan living in LA, especially in light of the Western Conference Finals [The LA Lakers beat Denver]?
That was bullshit! I don’t even care right now, I hope they get better next year, but nobody has really talked shit on me yet. I’ve been rockin’ the Nuggets gear all day out here, my girlfriend got me this hat with the OG Nuggets logo. It’s pretty tight, so I try to throw it on these fags in LA.

Carmelo Anthony or Birdman?
‘Melo for sure, I like them both.

What’s your favorite trip that you’ve been on?
I had a good span of trips last year, I started in Israel for a couple of weeks with Vans homies. That place is amazing, we went to The Med[iterranean], The Red, and the Dead Seas. The first time I got to float, I was chilling in the Red Sea, and I guess the only reason I could float was because of all the salt and shit in there. That place is tight. After that, I went to see Iron Maiden in New Mexico, me and my friends did a camping trip up that way.
After that, I flew out to meet up with all the Thrasher dudes to go on that Skate Rock trip, and that trip was so fucking insane, just five vans following each other, just meeting up where the bands were going to play. Pretty much, we went from Vegas to fuckin’ Oregon.
I’d have to say that that whole month and a half was one big trip because I never really went home. That was pretty much one of the funnest trips I’ve ever been on; I count all those as one.

That should be enough, what are you going to do today now that the interview is over?
Me and Abdias are going to go skate, I got to jump in the shower, then we’re going to cruise out. After that? I don’t know, probably just go get drunk somewhere.

One Post A Week!

Even if you've seen the above somewhere else, its still worth re-watching. That's all, have fun. Next post is #600. So cragee.

BTW, we're doing B.E.E.R.S. again soon, head over to Handjob HQ to see who is gonna skate it, and vote on who you think is gonna win.

Drug Induced Coma

Meyer snuck some more videos onto the Platinum Page which, dare I say, is starting to become respectable, in light of how much content could potentially be on there. The above must be from '05 or so, Stillwater park--how good was Nate's switchflip?

In other news, as figured out in the comments of the previous post, I'm moonlighting as a columnist at the Minnesota Daily. Alas, it only took me until my second column to work the skateboarding angle. I'll have to try harder to come up with ideas in the future. Non-skate column #1 here.

Also, this video is really good:

Via THE DUDES.

TGIF with Kenny Anderson

Can't Kill Me I Was Born Dead Redux

Above: a thoroughly entertaining clip with some nice Minne shots and some hair brain fast skating. Good stuff.
Via: MostlySkate and Templeton.

Immediate Experience

My immediate reaction to the way Thrasher announced the return of King of the Road was damn, at least they provided some text. But what is the video for? Has The Berrics so emboldened the skateboard world with their video stranglehold on content that now Thrasher is making me a choking victim, forced to watch an ad, just to get to the meat of things? Uh, sort of? My bitching was silenced exactly one nanosecond into the promo, when I remembered just how awesome KOTM is. JR Blastoff naked? Are the kids ok? Whatever.

Will Blastoff be showing off his now ink covered body anytime soon in KOTM? Doubt it. Is one lucky photo making friend of the Plat slated to be on board this year? We hope so. Is it weird that the final graphic on that video looks strikingly similar to the graphic design used in all Comedy Central promo spots? The jury is out.

We are way past the one month vigil for Boil The Ocean. Pilot Light, phone home.

School's back for fall. Doesn't have a ring to it like that one song does.

FOR SHAME

Tim Pawlenty is hereby irrevocably banned from Platinumseagulls. To put it another way that the skate community is no doubt familiar with, he is banned for life.

Malibu signs to film for Shitheads '10 year party' video

This Is Not The New BYRJ Flyer

Nah, this is from Year One. Found it in my copy of This Side of Paradise. Thanks Fitzy!

It does raise the question though, when's BYRJ gonna happen this year? If we just got around to doing BUBD, which has fallen in May the past two years, does that mean BYRJ is set for mid-January? Fuck.

Happy weekend, see ch'all at the bar.

Killing It Softly

Jerboi Tom Rohrer showed up on the Thrasher site, ripping no less.

Lennie Kirk Redux

Jaimes alerted me to Reeves' inaugural Think ad. In a word, respect. Even if Lennie Kirk did it his way frontside just shy of a decade and a half ago, you can tell that Reeves' arms aren't grabbing that wall anytime soon (not bagging on Kirk whatsoever; it should be noted that if you did that backside AND grabbed the wall, well, sick).

And yes, Think's promo rips:

THINK 2010 from Street Corner Skate on Vimeo.

BUBD 3