G&S NSA Amateur
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SLATEDAL
Finals Team
Congradulations
Mark Roach
Texas
Michigan
Bill Tocco
G&S
TATEBOR
Virginia
Mike Conroy
David Neilson
Texas
Gordon & Smith 7081 Consolidated Wy. San Diego, CA 92121-2604
(619) 549-2690
Texas
Bryan Pennington
Blackha
ASK
TT
With Rick Blackhart
SLIP AGE
THE DOCTOR
What can be done about keeping
kneepads from slipping off your knee and
exposing your bare, virgin, silky smooth skin
to harsh plywood, asphalt, cement and
gravel (gravel is the ouchiest)? This
kneepad slippage syndrome happens to me
a lot. I also have another problem. I recently
broke five kingpins in a month. This is get-
ting wearisome and bummish. Is it because
I ride my trucks real tight? Is it from bad
landings? What's the deal?
Sean Barney
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Try using an under-pad such as a
basketball kneepad or athletic pad. They
stay on better but don't have the pro-
tection of a skate pad. With both, if one
slips off, you'll still have the other. As for
your kingpins, yes, you're riding them too
tight, which in turn makes any landing
a bad landing. Loosen up, bro!
WHEEL LAME
I have this throbbing problem, and you
must reply. It seems there's this guy who
miraculously got his own column in a skate
mag and, instead of giving friendly advice
to the kids who keep his paychecks flowing
he keeps throwing out these holier-than-
thou sarcastic skate sermons. Comprende?
It really sucks. You printed my letter in the
June 87 issue and proceeded to be a real
dick. You told me to leave the spacers in
the wheels next time I buy some, but some
of us can't afford to buy bearings each time
we replace a wheel and usually end up swit-
ching our bearings or even borrowing a set.
I also left out something on my letter that
was the main reason that got me to write
it in the first place. The wheel that ripped
off the core was in fact the only wheel on
the board that did have a spacer. (I swear,
no kidding) This is what made me so
curious. Now what do you say?
Troy White
Abilene, Texas
Am I twisting your arm to read this
article? Am I kicking you in the nuts until
you write? No, I don't think so. Could it
possibly be that what I say is true and
that lame people just don't realize how
lame they really are? You act as though
I'm supposed to come up with some
miracle cure for your bad wheel selec-
tion. Bottom line is you still have to buy
I
new wheels. Try changing to another kind
of wheel, and if it happens again, then
maybe your riding style has to be
changed or a letter to the manufacturer
is in order. The reason I do this article and
the reason I get paid for it is because I
say what I want. If you don't like it, don't
read it. If you want nice pretty answers,
then read Ann Landers.
GRIP ART
You said you wanted some creative ideas
and letters. Well, here is a great idea: Mark
Gonzales was one of the first to paint pen
graffiti onto his griptape. It soon became one
of the biggest trends in skating. Well, those
who have tried it have found it isn't so easy
to do. I think people just aren't as talented
as Mark and can't handle painting. I came
up with an easier and better way. Buy some
Crayola colored chalk, chalk up that art on
your tape and then just wet it down with hair
spray. It dries in about 45 minutes and just
skate on it. If it gets wet and comes off, no
problem-create a whole new set of
pictures. Well, there you have it.
what it is. Too much skating. The way I
deal with it is to stop. That's right, stop
skating. Watch your friends skate for a
few days. Soon you'll become stoked and
energized on skating again. When and if
you do this, make sure that when you
start skating again you go slow. Work
your way back into it slowly, or you'll find
yourself on the ground in a big way.
BIGOTRY
I'm a twelve-year-old skater, and I got my
board about eight months ago. After I got
mine, all my friends got boards too, which
is great because now we all go skating
together, but in these last few months we've
become the most harassed kids in school.
The teachers yell at us for the clothes we
wear (they think skulls and crossbones are
a symbol of death), they throw away our
Thrashers, and they say skaters are a
menace to society. Even the cops made us
tear down our street ramp. They've out-
lawed skating in a lot of the cities around
here, and mine's probably next. My one
question is: why?
Pissed Off Skater
Elgin, IL
Because skating is skating. It's the bad
guy, a disgusting sport, an unruly activity
that society has decided to blame any
and everything on. If something happens
involving skaters, then automatically we
are at fault. That's the way it is. I think
it will be many years before skating is
accepted in the public's eyes. Besides,
that's why skaters skate. It's a way of tell-
ing everyone that this is what I do, and
if you don't like it, then piss off. If it was
Ben accepted, it wouldn't be skating. It's kind
of like why a lot of people hate John
McEnroe (a tennis pro). He doesn't play
tennis the way they think it should be
played-clean and gentlemanly. He'd be
a good skater, image-wise.
Farmington Hills, MI
Hey, great idea. Even the chalk and hair
spray method takes a little talent, but it's
definitely easier than the Gonzales pen
method of tape art. Thanks for the letter.
STOKELESS
I
Doc, you have to help me. Lately I've had
this problem of not being inspired. It's like
want to do my tricks, but I don't have the
energy. In many cases I've taken heavy
beefs because of this problem. How can
get inspired? I don't think it's having a bad
day because this problem is fairly con-
sistent. I've tried videos and skating with a
group of good skaters, but I still feel lame.
It's not that I'm not improving, it's just that
lately it takes a lot of energy that I don't have
because of being uninspired. I've even tried
vitamins. Don't get me wrong; I skate for fun
and do have fun 60% of the time, but I still
need that 40%. What I need is a dose of
energy and inspiration that will make me
tear harder. Please help me 'cause I'm fall-
ing into a spiraling vortex of lameness.
Pablo Fuster
Bronxville, NY.
I know exactly what you mean. I think
every skater goes through this at least
once. Skate burnout, I call it. And that's
LEFTOVERS
I have a solution to the problem of leftover
grip tape. First take out magic markers, then
cut different shapes out of the grip tape.
Next, draw some designs like bones or your
name or anything you want, then stick 'em
somewhere like your board, ramp, post,
mailbox, head, etc. Then have FUN!!!
James (Gumby) Bunoan
Unreal Skater
Long Beach, CA
Hey, good idea. Looks kinda funky on
the board, though. But it's your board,
so who cares, right? I still prefer to stick
my leftovers inside the garbage pail.
Blackhaft
Wear an Ask The Doc T-shirt to your
next M.D. check-up and let him know you
care. Just send $10.25 (postage and
handling included) to: Ask the Doctor T-
shirt, c/o THRASHER, P.O. Box 884570,
San Francisco, CA 94188-4570.