Cambridgeshire Warehouse Session

It's odd what emotions thirty minutes stuck in Sunday shopper traffic can evoke. Sitting there on our way into Cambridge my mood changed from optimistic high, eager to see this derelict warehouse left to the element in the Cambridgeshire countryside to a feeling of absolute self loathing. I should have taken the other exit. And when Reece called Harley twice in 5 minutes from the warehouse while we were still queuing on the outskirts of the city to find out our current location, I reached over and tapped the 'END' button on Harley's iPhone. This made me feel a little better.
Harley, Aaron & I eventually collected Matt from the far side of Cambridge and picked our way out of town and through the flat, ploughed landscape to the site of the warehouse.
After following Matt's phone for about fifteen miles, we parked up and discreetly jumped the fence following the sounds of skateboarding to the nearest entrance on the rear of the building.
On entering, we found a completely derelict wide open factory space. No machinery remained, but the remains of long disconnected electricity supplies and isolators were hanging from the walls and as with every pane of glass, every thin wall panel & door, every light fitting, every bulb, every remaining item of substance, they were smashed.
Large puddles scattered across the expansive floor were clear signs of serious roof decay. Ivy & other such plants cascaded down the inner walls through the blown bricks and roof panels taking advantage of the elements and invading the factory.
Dotted amongst graffiti covered walls were flat banks and makeshift quarter pipes and the floor was scattered with various DIY obstacles. Some concrete, some wooden, some desks and filling cabinets and a lot of glass. A dry spot for the bags was located and away we went.

Dan, Fuller, Sam, Radman, Nate, Charlie, Rob, Nicolson, Justin, Shaun and a number of others were already skating and filming a desk with a kicker take off made from scavenged materials.
Harley was looking at the flat bar/mini Jersey barrier with very rough concrete sides.


Harley Miller - 5-0 transfer

Harley - board slide transfer

Harley - blunt transfer

Taking these shots of Harley, I could see in the distance that the boys had replaced the desk with an empty 205 litre oil drum and were putting things down. I set up at a leisurely pace as Rob had set up his shot before I arrived. I got in the mix and these were the best I took.

Nathen Farrow - k-bonk

Charlie Munro - shovit 

Charlie - shovit (2nd angle)

Justin Rawnsley - kickflip

In the background I could see Fuller rolling around a puddle-avoiding line ending with a footplant over a destroyed sofa carcuss. Dan got it on video, and after a little cunning flashgun placement...


Fuller - sofa plant

Unfortunately, at this time in October the natural light has faded sufficiently to halt any sensible skating without artificial light by about 5pm, and our surroundings and the amount of cloud cover were not exactly conducive for bathing us in light at any time so I only managed to document a couple of hours this time. Video was more productive in this instance. I anticipate a return visit soon.

Milk & Friends London Filming Mission

I've had four root canal surgeries today. First dental work I've had to endure for more than 15 years and I can tell you kids, look after your teeth! Back next week for a filling.

And so I write this post still marvelling at the weather in early October ( and maybe a little  under the influence of Novocain).
It seemed wrong to turn down a place on this trip, ever fearing it could be the last Sunday with guaranteed sun this year.
With Dan driving, Fuller, Justin, Harley & I entered the capital at around noon, parked and skated to St. Paul's Cathedral front steps to meet Rob, Charlie, Mark, Sam, Jordan, Radman & others.
I remember even when skating London as a child in the late 80's early 90's that this was the regular place to catch up with everyone if your Liverpool Street train was late in. 
Wren's building hasn't changed much but as you can probably imagine, every conceivably skate-able surface is now skate-stopped. Damn the man!

After the ever present fist bumps and high fives the group headed over the river via Millennium Bridge to a set of steps on the south side of London Bridge.
At the top of this set is the main pavement exiting London Bridge so on a sunny Sunday afternoon, it was useless hoping that it might be quiet. And on arrival we found that it was indeed heaving with tourists going about their business.
These steps have a challenging uphill take-off that is approached by a long downhill pavement being criss-crossed by a sea pedestrians. The take-off has been intentionally pitted after building to either warn the visually impaired of the 10 steep stairs of pending doom or a vain attempt to dissuade us from jumping down them. In the latter, it didn't work.
Pretty much on arrival, Charlie & Radman proceeded to draw a crowd with warm ups.
Harry took the job of look out and hype man at the base of the stairs. The landing is flat and horizontal, laid with smooth stone slabs, so he ended up collecting a lot of loose boards too!

I tried a couple of different shooting angles and lens setups and ended up preferring the long shot through the crowds. And with Rob shooting closer to the stairs, I took to crossing the street.
This decision placed me far from the action on the far side of a busy road. It was interesting to experience the session from this distance as the people passing me were completely oblivious to the skating on the other side of the street that was now drawing an ever larger crowd and observed me pointing my camera at a traffic light.

Charlie was going for straight flips and nollie backside bigspins which were put down on the bolts and Radman had his eyes on something I can't name right now. I'm not even sure if either of the tricks I shot here were makes but I like the pictures I ended up with all the same!

Charlie Munro

Radman

I am still unsure as to why the plod didn't move us on. This was London Bridge on a Sunday afternoon after all. We were at risk of causing serious injury to any number of passers-by with our antics and I spotted a number of police cars slow as they passed the steps, but no hassle at all!
Moving on we skated back across London Bridge to a 5 stair to pavement gap in Mincing Lane. Yup.
Nathen was right on it and tried a huge flip clean into the road and made one, just about, squirrelling away with fingers down.

Nathen Farrow

On being moved on by a rent-a-jobsworth and with a quick stop at the shop for refreshment, we hit a spot just round the corner.
Glass smooth, 18 inch high, rounded marble blocks in groups nestled between high rise offices. We were ejected within 2 minutes by another big fella in a suit.
We skated round the corner to find a well skated granite bank/ledge and set up camp across a quiet Billiter Street.
Charlie was trying 5.0 fakies, Jordan front blunt slide fakies and Justin b/s crooks. All were made.

Charlie Munro

Jordan Thackery

Justin Rawnsley

We haven't seen Justin out skating in months, due to a serious injury. It was great to see his pace and determination once more.

After being chucked off the smooth ledges again and having got most of the stuff we wanted on film in the bag, we moved on again.
This time to a road gap on the Junction of Queen Victoria Street & Watling Street which was next to a flat bar outside a betting shop.
As the road was lined with benches, we took our places to watch the show.
The boys made the mistake of waxing the bar before skating it, rendering it practically unskateable, so Radman attempted the road gap which has no natural kicker and is on a downhill slope at some speed and Sam got a 5 trick line ending with a b/s crook which Rob Galpin got a fine shot of.
I noticed a floodlit St. Pauls Cathedral hiding in an alley, so I shot that instead!

Moving on back to the cathedral we made our play for the famous (rinsed) steps/ledges on the Thames side and Rob made a move towards home.
This was pretty much our resting place for the remainder of the day. 
Justin went straight in with a nose blunt slide which took a while to get and as I remember, Justin wasn't happy with the first make and had to get another. I stand by my opinion that the first one was the best.
Jordan & Radman larked about but didn't really try anything too seriously, and I spotted Sam & Fuller playing with an ollie up to bench clearance round the side. The rest of our crew positioned themselves comfortably on the Festival Gardens masonry.

Justin Rawnsley

We left at around 10pm happy in the knowledge that we'd got some good footage and some great photos. And of course, had a blast.
Earlier that evening I had noticed a skate stopped block as we walked to our final spot which had the dome of St. Paul's as it's backdrop.
Sam & I stopped and I shot a poor frame which I rushed so as not to fall too far behind the rest of the group. 
I'd like to go back and get a better lit shot another time and having been reminded of how much I enjoy pushing around the streets of London, I don't think I'll have to wait for too long.

And so it's back to the day job for another week.
I'm already anticipating a good day in an abandoned warehouse in Cambridge next Sunday.
So until then, check out Rob Galpin's blog for more great photos from this trip: http://harlowskatepark.blogspot.co.uk
  

United Skateboard Photography Project

Shameless plug time!

I am very proud to announce that a selection of my skateboard photos have been featured on The United Skateboard Photography Project's website (www.unitedskateboardpp.com).
The man behind this project, Jonathan Young, aims to publish a 300 page hard bound book showcasing work by photographers profiled on the site in early 2014 and help support Grind For Life a charity founded by life long skateboarder Mike Rogers. 
The mission of the Grind For Life organization is to provide financial assistance to cancer patients and their families when traveling long distances to doctors and hospitals. In addition, they educate and inspire these patients and families concerning cancer survival and recovery.

I noticed the site a couple of months ago and wanted to get involved with the project, so  I contacted Jonathan and today, I am featured on the home page with one of my photos - a shot of Mark Munson taken at Urbside earlier in September and a portrait shot of me taken by my friend, Neil Piper.

A selection of ten shots taken in England, Denmark and Barcelona and a short interview make up a profile page which will be one of many. The list of fellow contributors already boasts such names as Grant Brittain, Jim Goodrich, Brian Fick, Fred Ferand to name but a few.

Please take a little while out of your working day to break the rules and look through the profiles on the site, the photos featured on each profile are outstanding and I am honoured to be pictured on the same page as such outstanding artists.

Big thanks to Jonathan for the opportunity to display my pictures on the site and to all the skaters featured in my photos. 

A proper post next time,

Later yeah?

Dunmow Jam 2013

Today I dropped in on Dunmow Jam. Organised by Essex locals this gathering was expected to be held at the outdoor skatepark set in a small park close to the town centre, but due to a light but persistent misty rain the jam was relocated to a well attended Urbside - an under-bridge DIY park on the fringe of the town. This was a fortunate turn of events. As we passed the park area we noticed it had been occupied by a travelling fair and was swarming with thrill seekers.
I am very lucky to know this pocket of skaters fairly local to me that are so enthusiastic about concrete construction. Helped by local authorities appearing to either ignore or approve of the project, it takes shape slowly. 
This park is small, but a growing, interesting place. Covered by the standard concrete motorway bridge with a large bank on one side and pillars on the other, surrounded by lush green with the added danger of a river. Many boards have been lost to it's depths.  
With every build, the quality improves and the large quarter pipe - a recent build which received massive input from skaters with building skills and equipment from all over the region, was the main focus of the session for the short period I was there.
One of the nice things about local events is that you get to see a lot of the skaters you meet at different parks and spots around the region when visiting, all in one place, and most of them know the spot a little. And if you look, you see the interactions between skaters from various areas which have also met on different occasions when visiting and the various crews that intermittently settle on the edges of the park. 
There is usually an 'MC' with a megaphone getting the skaters hyped or more likely taking the piss. And sometimes a friend surprises you or you get your first good picture of a friend.

--I've included both colour and black and white copies of these photos. I would appreciate any comments you may have about the tweaks. Thanks.--

Mikey Joyce, No Comply F/S Crail Revert

Nick Remon, B/S Feeble F/S 270 (?)

Mark Munson, Invert

Mark Munson, F/S 360

Barcelona September 2013

So, I haven't posted for a while, let me explain with what has turned out to be an epic post...

Earlier this year my good friends at Milk Skateboards were invited to the DC Embassy - a private skate park in Barcelona, Spain operated by the foot wear giant DC Shoe Co.

On Monday 9th September at 4am, a group of six skaters - Sam Hayter, Harley Miller, Jordan Thackery, Charlie Munro, Luke Petty, Nathen Farrow and myself met at London Gatwick airport.
Due to date/cost issues we were forced fly from Gatwick rather than the much closer Stansted and the day before, I admit I was unsure that we would all make it to the airport! After some good bargaining (and a bit of luck) we were checked in and sitting airside with a pint by 5am.
Knowing that Dan Shervington - trip organiser & Fuller weren't arriving in Barcelona until Tuesday due to other work commitments, I felt it was my responsibility to get everyone to the DC Embassy on time on Tuesday afternoon to meet Dan & Fuller and everything up till then. With skaters.... not something to take lightly.



On arrival at Barcelona Airport I relied on Sam - who has lived in the city in the past to get us on the right bus to our home for the next five days - the Kabul Backpacker Youth Hostel and thankfully he didn't let us down.
I've never stayed in a backpacking hostel before, and although I'm no stranger to rough sleeping this was going to be a new experience for me and I have to say, as we climbed the stairs to the reception desk, I began to get a little nervous.
Once keys were arranged for each of us and a surprise security deposit of €90 paid, we moved into our already occupied rooms (one of us, Nathen was booked into a separate dorm which turned out to be full of Brazilian lads).
In our room, a couple of German fellas who stayed two further nights and a guy from San Francisco who was gone when we awoke on Tuesday morning. All the German guys seemed to do was sleep. They were there when we left in the morning and there when we arrived back each night. 

Dumping all non-essential items in our lockers, we headed out to search out some spots. In Barcelona, this is not difficult.
Sam, Charlie and Luke have all skated Barca before, so they took us to MACBA, a renowned spot and meeting point outside the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art a five minute skate away.

 

Charlie,  a very long nose manual drop off

Harley playing with footplants

The 3 set at the back of the museum gave us a quiet place to warm up, we also met a large group of drunks and a very elderly lady with 2 tiny dogs.

Jordan,  crail 

Harley, Backside ollie

 Feeling very hungry as we'd not eaten since 10pm the previous night (it was now mid-afternoon), Sam recommended a kebab shop around the corner, and so, we ate.
This was to set the tone of most feeding times over the next 5 days varying only in the direction of bad pizza a couple of times. Not ideal, but cheap and filling!

We moved on following Sam to the next spot.
Just around the corner was a large double stair set at the end of a terraced garden dropping down a six foot wall to a road. 
Nathan - recently added Milk Skateboards flow rider wanted to ollie from the top of the steps, over a high hand rail into the road. Three attempts and it was all done. By the time he got it, quite a crowd of onlookers had gathered.
Unfortunately, on the final attempt, although he rolled away, Nathan popped his ankle. This put Nathan on the bench for the rest of the trip. Nobody wanted to see him hurt, especially with what was to follow over the next 3 days and I know he was pissed about not skating further.




Nathen, Ollie

With Nate down and finding walking a challenge, we opted to rest in the gardens at the top of the stairs.
It was covered in dog shit and smelt of piss. This in my experience is the general scent around a lot of the city, not pleasant at all at times.
Harley & Jordan played on a long ledge down some steps and Harley rolled away from a nice ollie up to long manual.

Harley, Ollie up to manual

 After this short break we headed down to the port area to a ledge to gap spot.
We skated through the streets looking out for police as we had been told they like to confiscate boards and ticket people skating on the street. An uneventful journey saw us to the spot. I promptly fell asleep on a bench.
Once everyone was skated out, they woke me up to make our way back to our hostel.
On arrival, Sam, Harley, Charlie and I decided to shower and have a drink before finding food in the courtyard below our room surrounded by shops, restaurants and cafes. The remaining guys opted to return to MACBA for street beers and chills.

A waiter seated the four of us at a table in the corner of the courtyard and took our drinks order.
When our order arrived, we realised that large beer meant large beer. A litre each. Awesome.

After two large beers some shots and an €80 bar bill, the conversation turned to our imminent three day filming stint at the DC Embassy, spots we wanted to skate around the city and ended up getting deep.
With the party mood now enveloping all of us, the others decided to get proper sorted so they acquired something that resembled a good time from a fella in the hostel bar upstairs.
I hung around in the courtyard, people watching. I also met some pleasant people staying at the Kabul and chatted to people for an hour or so. People of interest include a friend of the Kabul security guard who was a camera man for an Algerian news channel, an American girl with a Russian friend and a German guy obsessed with a video of Ken Block drifting a Ford Fiesta around New York & San Francisco cities. He would be quite jealous of the photo later in this post.
At one point, Harley appeared with a pint and with a "there ya go mate!" thrust it into my hand, grinned and ran back upstairs.
As I had finished my beer I made my way back to our room on the 4th floor.
I later found out that the party was not what it seemed and after laughing at the others for a bit I left to find food and returned to sleep in the early dawn.

Waking at around 7 with a banging headache I showered to avoid the rush (this, I found was a good trend to set), and returned to bed with water and painkillers. I slept for an hour and awoke fully functional, which was not how last night's party pros were feeling!
Once all the crew had assembled in the courtyard, we made our way to one of the industrial areas outside the city. After some wrong turns on the Metro we got within skating distance of the park.
Stopping only to buy fruit, snacks and drinks for the day ahead, we walked on with tensions rising, to the DC Embassy.

As we arrived, Dan & Fuller were relaxing in the shade of the unassuming formed concrete warehouse within which the skatepark is contained. The greetings between everyone seemed elated yet slightly apprehensive. 
We entered the park via a full height hallway with a huge steel staircase and a gigantic DC Shoes Logo covering the entire wall.

Not too intimidating 

Immediately, the mood changed and everyone got down to business. And once Winkle put some tunes on, things started to take shape.

-I did not take any photos of tricks in the Embassy as flashes would spoil the video edit and I would have to declare anything to DC Shoes. Also, park photos aren't very interesting.-

Over the next three days the crew set down some great lines and bangers in around the park, and played a game of honour around the park - a filmed knockout competition where three skaters take it in turns to perform a trick on a pre-agreed obstacle within the park the two challengers have to repeat the trick or receive a strike. 3 and out. this would make up part of the video edit that Winkle - DC's filmer at the Embassy would produce with all the other footage shot over the three days.

We left the Embassy after a good session looking for spots, food and beer.

Sam led us to yet another spot. This time a banked hip.

We ate pizza and drank beer and went home. Sleep came in the early hours only to be awoken by a naked drunk girl throwing up on our boards and Sam's shoe. She didn't clean it up. 

Charlie, 360 shuv while the crew look on

Jordan, tail drop from the rail into the bank

The next two days brought more afternoon filming at the Embassy and evening skates around the city.

On Thursday afternoon, after the final filming session in which Jordan near killed himself attempting a frontside 360 down the big stair set, we gathered around Winkle's desktop to watch a rough edit. I got a ten minutes to look around the showroom while Winkle worked his magic.

Winkle doing his thing

 

On Thursday evening, having seen Dan & Fuller off back to the airport, the remaining crew took the metro to Parallel and seafront spot the Forum. Some night shots of a barely standing Jordan at the brick banks were taken. He really took a beating that day but just kept going!
On our way back to the hostel in the early hours, we met up with an old friend of mine - Wolfie. Once a Bury St. Edmunds resident but now living in Edinburgh back on home turf with his wife and young daughter.
It was great to see him and hear his outstanding news. We chatted at the side of the road for about an hour as the crew skated a small concrete park. 

Jordan, Backside nose blunt

Nate shedding a little light on the subject

We skated on along the smoothly paved sea front stopping at a 2 foot deep DIY bowl for a while and skated back through the city to our beds.

On Friday - our final day we decided to return to the Forum spots for a few hours before returning to the airport.
Very little skating was done, not really a surprise considering the late nights and constant skating!
We collected our bags and caught the bus to the airport.

Another good trip with the Milk Skateboards crew and a one off chance to skate the DC Embassy.
Next stop Australia?