SIMSIMFAST IMSIMSIMSIMSIMSIMSIMSI BUCK SMITH
SIMSIEXPLOSIVEIMSIMSIMSIMSNITROS
BAKARS
MAL
SIMS
SIMS SKATEBOARDS
1711 Whittier Avenue, Dept. SB
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
(714) 631 1800
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SIMSIMFAST IMSI
SIMSIMSI 90A & 97A
UNFAIRTH
structed ramps burned and trashed, and one
converted into a ladder. From then on we tell
them to steer clear of our space.
June, 1986. One vagrant creates a permanent
home in an old ticket booth and others move in-
to the fake watertower. David "Jr." Justice ar
rives one morning to find our hideout swarming
with police detectives. The Unfair appears close
to death, but death comes in a different form; dur-
ing the night, two vagrants hed gotten into a knife
fight. Casualties: one dead, one hospitalized with
8-inches of steel stuck in his head (we hear later
that he survived). We demolish the ticket booth
and the silo and use the wood to build new ramps.
This time we also talk to a local bike shop about
a contest.
July, 1986. The bums are gone and the few
police who saw our "skateboard track" have
forgotten all about it. Things are looking good.
We celebrate by aquiring more wood, building
new ramps and having a party at our spot. A cop
shows up and wishes us well with our new place
(he didn't see the keg o' beer). The bike shop
also flows. We get $300 to build ramps for the
contest, and we even get to keep the ramps after
the show. Team Madrid shows up to provide the
demo. About 1,000 local redneck-types show up
to check it out.
August, 1986. Word of the Unfair location, a
secret until now, soon seeps into the halls and
playgrounds of schools all over the city, where
kids with Mom and Dad's credit and colorful surf
shorts are found in abundance.
September, 1986. The number of people us
ing our spot doubles and then triples. Millions of
kids who can't even kickturn or do berts, yet try
to do "Rocket-to-tails," "olle-to-grabs" and the
infamous "street-vert," begin to get in the way
of the serious skaters. It begins to look like a
crowded Saturday afternoon at the skatepark in
the old days. We have the first in a series of jams
where the skaters are selected by their peers to
receive a t-shirt or something. A fun time is had
by all, and we make plans for the next.
October, 1986. Things are picking up. More
building and more skating. By this time the num-
ber of ramps along with the number of people
are getting out of hand. We know this place won't
last forever, and we decide it is time for a blowout
We send out posters and directions all over the
mainland. We hope something big will happen.
Friday, November 28, 1986. We relayer and
fix all the ramps. B. Kanights arrives from Cal.
Batmite greets him and they proceed to the Un-
fair. Much to their surprise. "No Tresspassing"
signs are posted, and they are greeted by the
owner of the long forgotten land. His words: "Get
out." The situation is explained to him and his
answer is: "It's not just me; it's the city. Talk to
them." We talk to the city. Their words: "Talk to
the owner; he'll be back soon." We wall but he
never shows, so we proceed to skate anyway.
The day ends with a late night street skate and
bonfire party at the Unfair.
Saturday, November 29, 1986. Still no word
from the owner. The weather is too beautiful not
to skate. The session ends with a sticker toss and
distribution of prizes. Everyone splits to Mike's
half-pipe for a session until dark. All the skaters
then jam to a heavily over-dressed cocktail par-
ty where we all looked kinda out of place. Once
again the day ends at the Unfair with another late
night bonfire party.
Since Friday when the owner told us to leave,
no one has talked to him. He may show on Mon-
day, tell us to take our ramps, get out and not
come back. He may never show up again. But
each day we realize that our skategrounds are
a bit closer to death. For the last two days we
have skated as one should-for the fun of it.
The first ramps that we put at the Unfair were
nothing more than wood scraps and concrete
blocks. Then the existing railing was used to lean
more ramps on. Later, as the Unfair became
more permanent, the skate architecture became
more intricate and precise. Older ramps were
rebuilt and the skate structures were made
stronger and better than before. The final
scenario included several quarter-pipes varying
in height from 3 to 9 feet, a tent, a snowplow, two
curbs, speed drops, and a banked carving wall.
These ramps were built over a period of time.
We have bought some paint and nails ourselves,
but all the plywood was aquired by other means.
Some of the ramps were made to be portable and
have been used by T.H.C. in demos throughout
the city. Others are a bit more permanent, and
when the bulldozers appear over the hill, they will
take more time to move.
Just as the Unfair must one day die, so skating
must also decline and die. The cancer of
organization which has twice before helped to
kill skating has once again been detected in the
form of certain rule-setting associations.
Although the mass skating trend must soon fade,
a few dedicated artists will continue to practice
their medium of expression. This can only result
in the eventual rebirth of skating for the masses.
Such it is with the Unfair. Although the rule-
makers have found our last refuge and death is
near, we know it can only be followed by a rebirth.
A new and improved Unfair.
THC is not a club or a team. It is an attitude.
There'is no doubt about who has this attitude and
who doesn't. The difference isn't just owning a
skate, wearing skate clothing or being sponsor-
ed by a company. It is a way of living. Those who
have attained this frame of mind may be from dif
ferent backgrounds, views, or sides of town, but
they have something in common. An attitude.
The Unfair is the playground of T.H.C. It was
built as a place to escape to and skate. Not only
have we established this site, but a code of ethics
and responsibility has been attached to our skate
haven. We will have nothing to do with graffiti or
BMX. Vagrants are no longer allowed. This at-
titude of responsibility and caring for the place
we skate is one reason various authorities have
not cracked down on us. As we have done, so
may others. No one will do it for you. It must be
done on your own. The only thing that will keep
skating alive to the skaters themselves. Not the
organizations, not the companies, not the
magazines, but the skaters themselves.
Aftermath
Monday, December 2, 1986, 2:20 pm: The
bulldozers have arrived.
Tuesday, December 3, 1986, 4:32 am: The Un-
fair is gone. Dead forever. After a long bonfire
session, all the ramps were moved to skaters
yards Death comes quickly and without warning
Thanks to all who made the Unfair a reality:
Batmite, J. Cab, Bar, McPeek, Doug Walker,
Trey McReynolds, David Justice, David "Corn-
head" Owens, and a special thanks to Todd
"Bonehead" Townsend for buying the beer and
helping us move the ramps in a hurry.
Batmite, Doug Walker, Robert Taylor and Jay Cabler
launch and land over the Unfair's main ramp.