skateboarding Archives | Page 31 of 54

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adidas Skateboarding drops the Superstar ADV

Posted on September 2, 2015September 2, 2015 by bythelevel

adidas’ Skateboarding department unveil the Superstar ADV with this clip featuring members of the brands expansive skate team.

In celebration of the classic 90’s silhouette’s skate reincarnation, adidas have put together a short promo clip featuring riders Tyshawn Jones, Chewy Cannon, Benny Fairfax, Jake Donnelly, Dennis Busenitz, Raul Navarro, Nak-el Smith and Miles Silvas exploring spots in Miami and NYC in the shoes.

The shoe itself doesn’t stray too far from the original silhouette. The iconic shell toe and three stripes on the side panels remain, but it has received a few subtle tweaks and modern performance updates to re-engineer and enhance the shoe for skate purposes. The Superstar in its first form was adopted by skateboarders in the early 90’s thanks to its protective rubber shell toe and flat sole, and because of that, just like Nike’s Dunk and Puma’s Suede silhouettes, they played an integral part of that decades skateboarding scene. Perhaps the most notable difference in the new adidas Superstar ADV is it’s weight, with a lighter, less bulky construction on the leather upper which also sees the three stripe branding streamlined on the quarter panels. Cushioning and comfort is important in any skate shoe, and the added drop-in ADIPRENE sock-liner protects the foot upon impact, while the Vector Traction outsole provides enhance grip on the board.

Get a closer look at the new silhouette in the video below and imagery above. The adidas Skateboarding Superstar ADV is available now at www.adidas.com and will be arriving in all good UK skate stores shortly (check back for links).

Check out our video recap from when the adidas Skateboarding team came to town HERE

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Nike SB present the Cory Kennedy Zoom All Court.

Posted on August 31, 2015 by bythelevel

The long overdue and highly anticipated Cory Kennedy pro shoe from Nike SB is here and its a banger!

Reworking Nike’s classic ‘All Court’ tennis silhouette, the design has been streamlined and materials upgraded into a durable skateboarding staple. Reducing the bulkiness around the All Court’s original rubber toe cap for improved ‘flick’, the shoes upper has constructed from a tough suede for grip and durability. The black upper is complimented with tonal lacing and contrasted with a white snake skin swoosh and heel panel. The shoes stark white sole unit features Zoom Air technology for responsive, spring-like cushioning for protection when landing.

All in all it’s a solid pro shoe from one of best guys in pro skateboarding, both on and off the board. The Nike SB Cory Kennedy Zoom All Court will be available this Wednesday the 2nd of September at Flatspot.

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Welcome Skateboards x Adidas Skateboarding “A-League” Capsule

Posted on August 26, 2015August 26, 2015 by bythelevel

The adidas Skateboarding department have announced their latest collaborative venture as they add Cali’s Welcome Skateboards to the ‘A-League’ with a concise capsule collection.

Having previously worked with the likes of Magenta, Helas and Streetmachine on collaborative releases, adidas now look to Welcome to put their unique stamp on some of the brands staple silhouettes in a football inspired release. Welcome Skateboards are renowned for doing things slightly different to the rest of the pack, with their unorthodox designs and non-conformist approach, they have gained a huge cult following which has seen their boards become some of the most popular on the market.

For the “A-League” capsule, the limited edition CLIMALITE® jersey has been reworked to feature both brands logo designs embroidered on the front and Welcome’s type logo on the back. The classic Adi-Ease silhouette receives an ADV upgrade, arriving in a premium stone coloured full suede on the upper, black leather 3 stripe branding and aqua blue colouring on the stitching and tongue label. Sitting on top of a clean white midsole, the shoe is completed with contrasting black lacing, leather heel panelling, custom insole featuring one of Welcome’s signature graphics and a coffin shaped tongue that is a nod to Welcome’s oddly shaped boards.

To commemorate the release, Welcome have also put together a short edit featuring riders Daniel Vargas, Brandon Perelson and Mark McCoy skating through Tijuana and San Diego. Check it out below…

The Welcome Skateboards x adidas Skateboarding “A-League” capsule will be available online at all good skate stores from the 1st of September.

Nike SB & Quartersnacks present CORE

Posted on August 23, 2015 by bythelevel

Nike SB and New York’s Quartersnacks come together on this short edit dubbed “CORE”.

The video follows riders Bobby Worrest, Hjalte Halberg, Nick Boserio, Antonio Durao, Cyrus Bennett, Andrew Wilson and Quartersnacks 2014 skater of the year Max Palmer as they shred various spots throughout Upstate New York with stops in Albany, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo and Ithaca.

Enjoy the video below by Johnny Wilson. Head over to www.quartersnacks.com for more.

Levi’s Skateboarding Fall/Winter 2015 Lookbook

Posted on August 20, 2015August 20, 2015 by bythelevel

Levi’s skateboarding unveil their latest collection for Fall/Winter 2015, which sees the brand draw inspiration from the working class citizens of their hometown of San Francisco.

Already a hugely popular brand amongst skaters worldwide, the heritage denim label made the seamless transition into skate after announcing their first skate focused collection in Autumn of 2013, and this season they continue to develop the line with another well rounded collection of robust, skate ready apparel.

One of skateboardings iconic photographs of all time would inform the collections aesthetic, in which photographer Bryce Knights captures Mark Gonzales shredding a vert wall in Alcatraz federal penitentiary, located seven miles into San Francisco Bay. From this, Levi’s centred the collection around the styles worn by those who were involved in building SF’s Golden Gate Bridge back in the 30’s, with the designers pulling key styles of the times from the Levi’s archive and giving them a modern update.

Within the collection we find the popular slim fit work pant’s alongside denim jeans that arrive in a variety of washes. Key cut and sew pieces in the chambray quilted shirts and lined denim chore coat are the stand out pieces from the release, which is bulked out by two pack striped tees and rounded off with hard-wearing sweaters and sweatpants that offer unrivalled comfort during movement. Arriving with the slogan ‘strong made stronger’, you know that you’re getting quality in construction with each piece built for a purpose by a brand who are famed for their long lasting, timeless designs.

To commemorate the release, Levi’s have put together this short clip of Marius Syvanen and Pat Moran skating through Oakland. The Levi’s Skateboarding Fall/Winter 2015 collection is available now over on the brands web-store.

Club Copson

Posted on August 18, 2015March 8, 2016 by bythelevel

The first real interaction I had with COPSON came when they released the ‘Resort Cap’ back in December of last year. In the middle of one of the coldest months, they had channeled their signature warm weather vibes and dropped a holiday resort inspired snapback bearing the words ‘Club Copson’ in a red, 70’s inspired type. Unfortunately for me, I had seen the cap a little too late and despite my efforts, I wasn’t able to get my hands on one. Although my search for the hat was fruitless, through it I had found out a little bit more on the London based brand and I was really impressed by what I found. I could relate with the lifestyle they were pushing, and with influences in skate to the classic Italian poolside feels, for me it ticked all the boxes. It was a lot more than just simple graphic t-shirts too, there was a lot of consideration in their design from colour to fit – even their visuals were strong.

The last year or so since starting By The Level I’ve been left a little uninspired by whats on offer in the UK market, and despite some of the great brands out there, there weren’t many who were really standing out and giving something different. For me COPSON are one of the select few that are setting themselves apart from the pack. A lot of effort goes into ensuring quality throughout their collections, but the general vibe I get is that everything they put out comes natural to the team behind the brand and because of that it feels authentic.

Their latest collection for Spring/Summer 2015 dubbed ‘Saverio Dream’ was a personal favourite release from last season and it pushed me to reach out to Maria Falbo, COPSON’s founder, to find out a bit more on the collection and the brand in general. Bringing COPSON into a familiar Brighton environment was the aim for the short editorial we put together (above) and we were also lucky enough to share some words with Maria on building the brand, inspirations and plans for the future….

How did COPSON get started? Where did the idea come from?

It was initially a blogspot to host my creative influences whilst living in Barcelona. Daily inspiration came fromm skateboarding, music and classic style references. It all started with Pet Shop Boys – Domino Dancing.

Is there a story behind the name?

We lived on COPSON STREET at Uni in Manchester.

The brand has developed a lot over the last 6 years. What would you say has been the most pivotal moment for COPSON in getting to where it is today?

A constant dedication to the COPSON lifestyle, and lots of learning along the way. I wouldn’t say there is one moment – but more of a case of building blocks and progression.

There is limited choice in the market in terms of UK, and in particular London brands, who are really standing out. As a brand that has managed to set itself apart, what have been the main barriers in building COPSON out of London?

We currently manufacture in London so price is a barrier for sure. We’re dedicated to keeping production in Europe though – especially as we grow. The general cost of being creative in London is the trickiest carrier to overcome I would say. A lack of sunshine for daily inspiration too of course.

COPSON encompasses a lot more than just clothing, with editorial content, events and music all under the brands umbrella. How would you personally describe COPSON?

It has always been a creative concept inspired by lazy sunshine days and the good life. We‘ve never had a business plan or set any rules, but have just developed along the way. Designing clothing has always been an interest so we just went for it. It’s constantly creating a world we want to live in ourselves, clothes we want to wear, music we want to listen to on holiday….

Could you talk us through the latest collection? What was the inspiration?

The pieces are always inspired by classic Italian Riviera style, with a touch of pastel. We want to create leisurewear that people can wear everyday, and offer something special to our consumer. ‘Streetwear’ is so boring – its fun to break the rules a little.

The visuals are some of the strongest we have seen from any brand this season. What inspired the ‘A Young Summers Heart’ video?

Once again… we’re so bored of all the generic lookbooks up on Hypebeast. The word ‘brand content’ is so saturated. My family are from Calabria, Italy where we shot the video – and I would say much of my inspiration for COPSON is rooted there. I’ve always had a passion to bring skateboarding there – in a very chill way and create something truly special – content that makes a difference. I had been interested in working with friend and Director, Romano Pizzichini, for a while. After a few Negronis ( of course) we were like ‘fuck it’ – lets just take Vilads – COPSON poster boy to Italy, and film something truly epic. It was shot in and around my grandmas house.

A Young Summers Heart allowed us to stand apart from being another ‘ streetwear brand’ or lo-fi skate brand, and create something true to COPSON that represented our lifestyle – once again with no rules…I’m glad you liked it!

You worked with UK artist Jamie Humphrey on the designs for the printed shirts. How did that come about?

I skate with Jamie in London– he’s a friend of mine. His liberal mind, and pastel saturated artworks have always caught my eye. I wanted to work with him, and it clicked – lets put them on the cocktail shirts. We printed our own cotton poplin from Jamie’s work.

With your own history in skateboarding there is a natural skate sensibility to COPSON. Would you like to develop this aspect of the brand or remain more fashion focused?

Whatever – again no rules – skateboarding has been a massive part of my life growing up so it will always be an influence. It is just one aspect out of many that make up the COPSON lifestyle. The most important thing is to remain authentic.

Having worked on collaborative projects in the past, are there any other brands that you would like to work with moving forward?

There are many – not fashion – but sadly can’t list any for now.

What’s next for COPSON?

More sunshine.

www.copsonlondon.com

Words: Kieran Sills

Images: Lily Brown

Spot Sharing

Posted on August 18, 2015March 9, 2016 by bythelevel

When thinking about writing this piece I re-watched Ricky Oyola’s brilliant Epicly Later’d episode and the politics of sharing spots with others (besides close friends) is brought up in discussion; especially regarding Bobby Puleo’s similar take/approach on spots. Both, who have influenced me a lot over the years (Bobby’s INFMS section was one of the early uploads onto the new and fledgling YouTube – which I would often watch during IT lessons) and are established east coast figures who have made a stamp on what people think of when thinking of east coast skateboarding. Using new and idiosyncratic spots such as cellar doors – synonymous with Puleo’s body of work – or more replicable/accessible ones such as pole jams, the pair have over the years pushed a strong ethic of becoming part of a city’s environment as a transportational agent, more than a stuntman. Choosing to ignore other aspects of honing the size of ones balls jumping down stairs and rails or patience with technical skill. A powerful and simplistic form is a large part of their art, however again as discussed in the Epicly Later’d episode, a big part, or as Oyola says, the biggest part of his skating, is the spot or looking at a spot or something that someone would not have considered to be a spot and making it so: “For me I was never a trickster or out tricked you, I’m gonna look at things differently and present something to you, so basically if I go out there and find something that part of it, that’s part of the trick.” Admitting that a lot of people could “out-trick me and that’s okay,” shows his modesty in acknowledging that for a lot of skaters, there is a level of competition and he doesn’t take part in this – in a stuntman attitude – but rather bringing something new to you through the medium of a video part. In his Static 2 section there are clearly notable elements of him adapting one spot and theme of spot, through a pretty ghetto approach to DIY concrete additions to making it skateable. For many people when they make a DIY spot there’s a honeymoon period where only those involved in building it and a select few know where the spot is before it gradually becomes revealed to a wider local audience to enjoy. For Oyola, when he was done with these spots and had filmed what he wanted to on them he tore them up, which in many ways is a shame, however can be justified by Frankie “If you found a spot and took me there I would show you the same respect, with Rick and those guys, those were the guys that went and found hard shit to skate….Rick took the time to pour the cement.” Now, not to belittle some of my favourites as Oyola or Puleo for their attitudes (see fact 17) to spot sharing or cataloguing, I do think it is rather close minded to hold such views, but without individuals like them in skateboarding, it’d be pretty boring. There’s always got to be some balance. Luckily however not everyone seems to share this same attitude when it comes to sharing the knowledge of spots, which is must be pointed out are street spots, usually established and well known ones and not the kind of unique and tucked away ones that you see Oyola or Puelo skating so it makes a bit more sense in that regard. Demonstrated in this excellent clip of Ricky showing you one of Philly’s best spots, City Hall, shows that he’s not always going to keep a spot a secret either.

Ricky Oyola – Epicly Later’d

When talking about comprehensive spot sharing for a city, one must first think of the New York foundation and high-brow establishment of skateboarding that is Quartersnacks. I hold this website very dearly in my heart, not least because of the often nerdy and in depth references that go into most of their posts, counterweighted by a love for rap and anything flashy, but mostly because of their fascinated and incredibly informed output about New York skateboarding that can leave a nerdy British skater such as myself lusting for more. Every time one of their updates or posts features has at the bottom of it: ‘spot update’ I can’t help but have a look. I’ve never been to New York – as much as I would love to, and will do one day – so these updates are essentially irrelevant to me. However although this may be a sappy sentiment, which they may not be intending to fully relay, QS’s ‘spot updates’ show a level of care and attention to let their fellow New Yorkers at large keep up to date with the going’s on of the city’s skateable architecture. Now these updates are usually supported by photo evidence for the spot’s individual page on their expansive and organised spot list, that can show anyone from around the world the good spots to go to from Downtown to Queens and I applaud them for initially and continually doing so. Alongside pictures of each spot there can be found a description of it, a ‘bust factor’ rating out of five stars and even photos from magazines where the spot’s being skated. We love you QS.

Columbus Circle, NY (image via Quartersnacks)

Montreal based geniuses Dime have collated their city’s spots into a comprehensive and useful ‘Spotbook’ for any skater who wishes to visit Montreal and sample any of their incredible and delectable looking spots. The first time I found this page I literally trawled through every single one and was in awe at a lot of them and met by jealousy at most – Brighton has hills but not such a wide plethora of ‘downtown’ marble and glorious looking ledge spots that Montreal has to offer. In lineage with Quartersnacks, their blend of humour and amazing skating has led to them becoming famous with skaters the world over and rightly so. Their wares are pretty dope and they sure do know how to do a skate ‘comp’

Carl Labelle, Ollie – photo Félix Faucher (image via Dime)

Satori’s Hill bomb list is one of the lesser known spot sharing sites on this list and if you like hills then I urge you to check it out. They even link in google maps and directions of the routes!!! With Google Earth street view you can remotely and jealously sample the bomb along with some of the spots littered along the way on people’s drives and so on. When I make the pilgrimage to San Francisco I’ll be using this list to sample some of the finest and also gnarliest bombs in the city, can’t wait.

‘Sanger Sings/SKATE THIS!’ is the Crailtap contribution in which skaters from all over the world can submit photos of new or old spots, or designs from architecture and design websites – which by the way if you’re interested in this sort of thing designboom is a great one to check out for architecture – for what is essentially a list of ‘spot-porn’ the world over; and it’s fantastic.

(image via Crailtap)

The slap forum has a ‘travel/spots’ and pictures of spots section, dedicated entirely to its members helping people out who’re visiting places that don’t have the fortune of a QS or Dime listing and it’s great to see skaters helping out and even offering to link up when the person arrives in the place to have someone to skate with. The best ones I’ve seen on there have to be from Japan, which is number one on my places to visit and when I go I’ll be sure to make a slap account and ask some of the natives for some help on where to go. Osaka looks pretty inviting!

(image via Slap Magazine)

Skate Malmo is a website curated by the dedicated skaters of Swedish skate mecca Malmo. Malmo is home to Pontus Alv and crew, as many D.I.Y spots as you could through a stick at and Bryggeriet, probably the most enviable high-school the world over, that functions as a normal school but also has an incredible and immense skate park, complete with vert ramp, that the attendees get lessons and sessions on. The city is skateboarding obsessed and the skaters have kindly made a section of their website dedicated to cataloguing the city’s spots. You’ll find pictures of the spots and some of the gnarly tricks that have gone down on them, ranging from natural street architecture to all of their D.I.Y ones as well. The even give a ‘RIP’ next to the spot if it’s no longer around and it’s definitely worth a look.

Bryggeriet Malmö Skatepark (image via Skate Malmo)

Sk8m8 and other early incarnations of skatepark websites have been around for well over a decade and they still exist. Using google maps and other tools to give you direction to the spot, a rating of it and hopefully some pictures and insight into what the park is like are all useful tools for someone who’s visiting a place, bored of where they are and want to visit somewhere new or are planning a road trip. London Skateparks is a good example of a modern and updated version of the skatepark websites of yore and doesn’t require dial up internet, which is always a plus. However when thinking of spots, as fun as a skatepark can be and the real vibe and culture of the place (see Stockwell and its native BMT) can be amazing, it’s not quite the same as a street spot. You could always ask a member of the public on the street if they know where the skatepark is in the local area, but chances are if you ask them where that sick bank to curb that Brady skated in that clip is then they’re clueless.

Mile End (Images via London Skateparks)

We all know that in the last few years the introduction of smart phones and their potential has drastically changed the landscape of much of society in the developed world. It’s not uncommon to see a couple out for a ‘romantic’ meal sat across from each other at a table for two gawking into their phones, where their parents would have been having at least some form of conversation. Now although smart phones could cynically be the beginning of the demise of social interaction in the real world, they do have some redeeming factors. With the aforementioned skate spot websites being often outdated, (Quartersnack’s 10 year anniversary post the other day apologized tongue in cheek for not having updated the spots page for 5 years) some enterprising fellow from across the pond has gone and come up with a skate spot app (I’m sure there are many others to be honest though) called ‘Skate Savant’. It has the ingenious revenue generating ‘in-app’ ability to purchase maps of different cities, like Toronto for example. Now although this is a great idea and if I’m to visit any of these places while skating I’ll be sure to commit and buy a map, often things like this (bordering on social media) need to be taken aboard as a cultural and industrial standard to make it what Facebook is for social media that something like Bebo couldn’t. However the notion of having a specifically designed piece of software in your pocket while exploring a new place is pretty darn cool.

Skate Savant

Published in 2001, Unabomber legend and possessor of ‘bastard pop’, Harry Bastard made a book of ‘Spots’ that showed many of the UK’s cities spots through his travels and endeavours to reveal them. Although I don’t own a copy of the book myself the reviews of it on Amazon about how useful and well put together it is and that it doesn’t have to be exclusively for skaters: ‘although I’m a bmxer it is extremely helpful’ (written in 2002). This comment written 12 years after its publication tells of how fragile the history of a skate spot can be ‘It’s old now and some places are long gone. It’s interesting to read and found it useful when I first skated in London when I was 14.’

Kenny Reed Static 2 Part

Videos are obviously one of the best mediums to see spots and companies like Ipath did some sick videos, especially with ex-rider Kenny Reed, who is renowned for his travels and exploration of countries that no one had been to before. There used to be zines showing backyard pools or vert ramps and places to go, far before the internet ever existed, but as sad as it is to admit, being a lover and supporter of printed material, it seems that the internet makes a lot of sense for being the best medium for effective ‘spot-sharing’. The closest thing to actual spot sharing in terms of video coverage would have to be Ride Channel’s ‘SKATE’ episodes, which are frankly the only worth watching on their channel, with local legends giving you a visual tour of their cities spots and culture. Enjoy finding and discovering new spots and if it’s something really good then I implore you to share it with the rest of us! I’ll be looking to do so myself. Now get out in those streets!

Words: Joe Coward