Flexural Revolution
Jed Johnson, shralpin' his Salamander, WA. Photo: Peterson
In skateboarding’s early years, deck flexiness was considered pretty groovy, but then there was a powerful shift and the culture slowly moved away from it’s surf-style roots and began developing a strong trick-based urban dimension. Most of those original flexy boards were shelved and replaced with rigid, wider boards. I’ve been skateboarding since the ‘80s, and board flex was never something we ever talked about. When we talked of board design and characteristics we used words like pop, steepness, concave, and stiffness; but we never talked about a board’s “flex”. Today though, things are a changin’, and fast. Read More
Dynamic Duo: Dustin Hampton & Peter Eubank
U.S.A.'s 2012 Olympic Freeride Team, L.A. Photo: Bandy
Here is the second installment of the “Dynamic Duo” article I started at SkateSlate a few months back. This time around I chose two friends that have stoked my skatefire and inspired me to get better at freeriding. I met the both of them while working at Loaded last year and we’ve been friends ever since. Individually, these guys are hill-slayers, no doubt, but the real reason I chose them for this particular article is because together these dudes are inspirational to the level of bodacity paralleled only by super-hero status. And I’m not over-hyping this shit! Read More
