THE
SKATER'S
EDGE
POOL SEARCH
I've skated quite a few types of terrain in my
life, ranging from long down hills to modern
monster ramps, but never in all my years has
anything matched the same feeling of skating a
true backyard pool: the type with stairs, a death-
box, big coping, and the nervousness of the al-
ways looming bust. This type of skating has to be
the funnest, purest, and rawest type I've ever ex-
perienced, but it's also the only type I've done on
a limited and irregular basis. Anyway, to help my
chances of locating an empty pool, I've picked
up certain techniques and I've found they've
worked over and over again. For those of you
who have skated backyard pools, you might find
some new tips in the following article and for
those who have never experienced this, the fol-
lowing may lead you to the best skating you'll
ever know.
Who to search with-When you do decide to
go out and hunt down a pool to skate in, it's al-
ways a good idea to go in pairs. Two sets of eyes
scanning the landscape will better your chances
of locating a pool, while also not attracting much
attention to what you are doing. Go out search-
ing with someone you can trust under heavy
stress situations (ie., dogs, owners, police, swat
teams) and someone who can think calm and
cool while being interrogated by the authorities.
The worst thing you can do is go out hunting with
a pack of wild skaters who will do anything to
skate a pool. Large groups of people tend to be
heavily unorganized as well as loud and con-
spicuous. Use the buddy system for best results.
What to search for-The first thing to do when
you actually start looking for a pool is to get the
attitude in your mind that pool searching can be a
24 hour a day experience. Stay aware of your
surroundings by keeping your eyes, ears, nose,
and mind open to any clue, no matter how small,
that can lead you to an empty pool.
After you've conditioned yourself for the task
at hand, start looking for the obvious signs of a
swimming pool pump houses, corrugated
fiberglass pool fencing, pool sweep brooms,
slides, diving boards, chlorine odors, inflatable
pool toys, solar power panels, large gushing
hoses, pool cleaning and service trucks, the hum
of a pump motor, and anything else you can think
of.
One of the easiest ways I located a pool was
by noticing the chlorine deposits (white salt
marks) in the gutter of a street. I just figured out
which way the water flowed and followed the trail
upstream until I pinpointed the origin. Oftentimes
It's the not so obvious ways of locating a pool that
will help you find one. The use of your imagina-
tion can be your main tool here so put it to good
use.
Where to search-Certain parts of a city are
more apt to have pools in their outlying areas
and you can start by dividing your hometown into
sections for searching.
The first section and the best place to look is in
the low rent, run down areas of the city. The
homes in this area are usually much older and
contain those big, round pools of the past before
pool companies started getting fancy. Rundown
homes, apartment complexes, and motels are
the main course of empty pools and are usually
drained simply because of upkeep costs.
A second area of the city to look is all the
places where homes are backed by fences that
lead into empty lots. For example, homes sur-
rounding the back of supermarkets, railroad
tracks, canals, creekbeds, and high voltage
power line corridors. Cruising the areas will most
surely uncover an empty pool, plus these zones
are perfect for quick escapes in case things don't
go as you've planned.
A third area can cover all those places where
you already know there is a pool, but it's just a
matter of checking for water. Places like high
schools, recreation halls, motels, hotels, apart-
ment complexes, etc. If you find out that the pool
isn't empty, keep these pools in mind for future
reference, as these pools are usually drained
yearly to meet health laws.
The last area to look is all the places the previ-
ously mentioned areas don't cover. What I really
mean is that an empty pool can appear any-
where, usually taking you by surprise.
How to search-Beside the obvious ways of
looking for pools, that is, roaming the streets by
foot, skate, bike, bus or auto, there are ways you
can cut out a lot of unsuccessful searching and
better your chances of locating a pool. For exam-
ple, your local city hall has aerial photo maps
open to the public to check on property bound-
aries. You can check these for empty pools
which appear as white dots and cross reference
this to a street map and zero in. If your city hall
will not cooperate, a large city or college library
should have this information available to you.
You can also look through home listings for
sale homes with pools, or even call up a real es-
tate office and ask the appropriate questions.
After locating one you can have city hall, believe
it or not, help you drain the pool. (Pools must be
drained for safety reasons if left vacant longer
than 2 weeks.)
The best way for immediate success in pool
searching is to grab a pilot and a plane and fly
over your area. An inexpensive way to do this is
to go to a flight school at your local airport and
split the cost with a licensed student pilot who
needs flight hours to get further experience in the
air. Prepare yourself ahead of time with clear and
easy to read street maps as you'll be surprised
how confusing it gets up in the air.
Newspapers often run stories on fires and/or
damage to homes in your area, sometimes list-
ing addresses for your ease in location. You'll
have a pool until the proper repairs are finished
on the property. You can also look for ads in the
paper pertaining to new homes being built in
your area as they usually lay the pool first before
starting on the home.
Again I will stress that using your imagination
is the main rule in looking for pools.
When to search-There are definitely better
times to look for pools and for good reasons.
From an overall seasonal standpoint, winter
months give the best odds in locating a pool,
mainly because people would rather drain a pool
than maintain it through this season. Also at the
end of the summer "swim season" pools are usu-
ally drained for cleaning and repairs.
From a day to day standpoint, midday or late
morning is a good time to hunt for pools because
traffic is light, people are working, and there is
less chance of being hassled for snooping
around. Surprisingly nighttime searching is usu
ally unsuccessful and almost always ends with a
hassle from local authorities.
Word of caution-The word trespassing often
enters the picture when looking for and skating
empty pools, so be prepared. Use your good
judgement when confronted with a bad situation.
Polite cooperation can usually get you off the
hook the first time, but it's the repeat offense that
gets a little hairy. Please be aware of the conse-
quences.
Why search for pools-With all the attention.
on ramps lately many people have forgotten the
origin of vertical skating, that is, pools. I've lo-
cated a fair share of empty pools using the
techniques I've just described and you can too.
With a little luck, imagination, hard work, and
brains, you can go out and find yourself an empty
pool and experience one of the best skate ter-
rains available. Take care and skate safe.
Bob Denike
PROMPT SERVICE
2204 EDGEWATER DRIVE
ORLANDO, FLORIDA 32804
Phone orders cal 305-422-5552.
orange
Cucle works
COMPLETE BOARDS
24-Hour Shipping, Weekdays
1. Vanflex ACS 651, Variflex Wheels 9 x 30 $60.00
2. Sims Lester, Tracker 6-Tracks Powell wheels 30 x 10.5 $110.00
3. Powell (Rod, McGill, or Caballero) 151 Powell wheels $99.00
4. Logan, ACS 500, Ray Rollers 29 x 7 $27.00
5. Vectra-Flat Vertex Trucks Variflex wheels 10 x 30 $79.00
6. Vectra-Concave Vertex Trucks Variflex wheels 10 x 30 $85.00
DECKS
Flagship 30 x 10
POWELL
McGill 30 x 10.25
Caballero 29 x 10
Tony Hawk 29.5 x 9.5
Skull & Sword 30 x 10
GORDON
TRUCKS
$45.00
GULLWING
$45.00
ACCESSORIES
Powell Nose
Regular Nose
Powell Tail
$4.00
7.25-8.00-8.75-9.00
$4.50
360 Tail Dome 6% or 7% $2.50
Schmitt sticks, pair
$5.50
LESTER
Powell rib bones, pair
$6.50
Tracker lapper
$5.50
Bird lapper
$5.00
Tracker 6 Coper, each
$5.00
Gull Wing Coper, each
$3.00
Independent Coper, each
Risers, each
$2.50
$1.00
SAFETY EQUIPMENT
RECTOR PADS
Knee S, M, L
Elbow S, M, L
Shipping Charges Ground Air
$30.95
$28.00
Wrist Guard S, M, L
$19.00
VERA VERA
PRO-TEC HELMETS
SIMS
TRACKER
Lamar 30.5 x 10.5
$47.00
6-Tracks reg. each
Red, Blue, Black
S, M. L
$32.50
$17.95
Kamikaze 29.5 x 10.4
$47.00
Ultra Lite each
$17.95 BEARINGS
Lester 30 x 10.5 (BI, Gr, Wh)
$47.00
Ultra Lite Black each
$18.95
NMB-1 set of 8
Screamer 30 x 10
$37.50 INDEPENDENT
New Wave 30 x 10.25
$43.95 159 each
$16.95
Sims Gold set of 8
Spacers set
$11.00
$14.00
$ 80
$37.50
169 each
$17.95
HARDWARE
$19.95 Set of 8 nuts & bolts
$1.65
$45.00
$45.00 9 Pro each
Colors blue, black, red,
yellow, white
$17.95
COLOR PREFERENCE WHEELS
COLOR PREFERENCE ACCESSORIES may be
necessary
Accessories
$ 2.00 $350 $4.00
Substitutions
Decks, Trucks
Wheels
Complete Board
$ 3.50 $ 6.50 $ 6.00
$6.00 $11.50 $15.00
$52.00 POWELL VIV
NAME
$52.00
$56.00
Zoners 29.5 x 10.4
Performer 29.5 x 10.4
Burst 29.5 x 10.4
ZORLAC
John Gibson 10.25 x 30.25
Doublecut 10.25 x 30.25
$43.35
$41.50
Griptape installed on board
$41.50
$5.00
& SMITH
Billy Ruff 30 x 10.25
Neil Blender 31 x 10.25
Gator 29.5 x 10.5
TOWN & COUNTRY
Concave
Big Boys 10.25 x 30.5
WHEELS
Cubics (hard) set of 4
Mini cubics (hard) set of 4
Street cubics (med) set of 4
Colors red, blue, green,
purple, white
$48.00 SIMS
$48.00
The Wheel II 50/50 set of 4
B-52's 50 50 set of 4 (hard)
GORDON & SMITH
Yo-Yo's 50/50 (hard) set of 4
Colors blue/black, pink black,
green/black
$32.00 ADDRESS
$30.00
$30.00 PHONE NUMBER
STATE
CHECK (2-week delay) MONEY ORDER VISA MASTERCARD EXP. DATE
$32.00 CARD NO
$32.00
$32.00
RETAILERS Sell TRASHED
NEW SHOPS
AND DEALERS
BRING IN CUSTOMERS
We can set you up with copies
hot off the press. Call us at (415)
822-3083, or write to:
THRASHER, P.O. Box 24592,
San Francisco, CA 94124. Ask for
Matt Etheridge; he'll fill you in and
start those mags coming. Ask him i
about our rad Thrasher Products.
St Pete Ja
THRASHER
SIGNATURE
Complete the order form specifying exact amount
size and color preference. Send to
SUBTOTAL
SHIPPING
ORANGE CYCLE WORKS, SKATEBOARD ORDER FLORIDA RES. ADO 5%.
2204 EDGEWATER DR, ORLANDO, FL 32804
THRASHER
ROCK!
TOTAL
SKATE
ROCK!
ON
CASSETTE
ORDER NOW.
$7.65 Plus $1.00 Postage & Handling
Send check or money order only to: THRASHER MAGAZINE,
P.O. BOX 24592, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124
WHAT THE HELL IS A NOSELIP?
TAIL FEATHERS
Sold at Better Shops Everywhere
Dealers Contact Your Distributor
15