Thursday, February 28

Build It And They Will Come

By Keith Eric Davidson
EXPN.com

Picture this: You're out skating with your homies and off in the distance you see what appears to be a perfect spot, upon closer inspection you then realize it's far from perfect due to the huge ass cracks in the roll up zone or a pothole in the landing area. Or maybe you want to skate those perfect ledges at the Shop and Go, but some fool slapped some anti skate knobs on top of those buttery ledges. Lastly those abandoned tennis courts with the smoothest riding surface in the hood sure looks fun, but you could do flat ground tricks anywhere right? Well luckily skaters are little more intuitive than most, so with a little imagination fixing up a spot can be well worth the effort.

Street skating involves going out and skating things that are not made for skating, so you have to make it happen. Horrible pavement has been a plague for skaters since the beginning, fortunately there is a relatively easy cure for cracks, holes, and misplaced curbs. If your driving a car to spots (like we do everyday in L.A.), carry a road sign or piece of metal in your car and some duct tape to hold it down to the ground. Curbs can be easily ascended, holes or grass patches can be easily rode over, and cracks can be covered.

The Ghetto Rig.

If it's a spot that you skate frequently and carrying around a sheet of metal isn't feasible, go to the hardware store and drop about $6.00 bux on a can of "Bondo". This is just like going to the dentist, you mix up a bunch of chemicals and then smear it into the cracks and holes. It bonds to the pavement and creates a smooth concrete like finish. You should clean out the cracks as much as possible so the "Bondo" adheres to the existing concrete. Make sure you follow the directions exactly, and try not to eat delicious pizza or fried chicken with your hands directly after. "Bondo" takes about an hour to dry, but an overnight curing is your best bet. You can even get wicked techy and sand the "Bondo" finish so it's invisibly smooth.

Skate stoppers are another story as are knobs on rails. If you're lucky(or live outside of So Cal), just removing a couple of nuts and bolts might do the trick. I carry a selection of hand tools, a small hacksaw, broom, and a portable power drill with a metal carbide bit, both of which could be used creatively to correct these situations.

Dylan Gardner frontside nosegrinding the "All The Sudden Not So Ghetto Rig."

If your tired of the same spots, make your own! 2001 was the year of the homemade spot. Every single skateboard magazine had a least one cover shot last year with a homemade prop spot. That piece of metal in your car can be quickly converted into a bump, to get you flying up to that chest high ledge. After scoping out an abandoned tennis court for months two blocks from my house, the Shorty's crew converted this urban eyesore into a virtual hassle free skatepark using found objects in an adjacent field. Old metal lockers turned sideways became perfect ledges, discarded gym equipment such as balance beams and parallel bars became perfect rails, and existing benches and nets made for perfect combo lines. Now we have a spot to skate without worrying about getting in peoples way or getting the boot.

Now you have no excuses not to get your skate on!

Related Photos:
Build It Gallery