Clockwise from top left: A
Arizonan water is mostly snowmelt from the
Rockies, swept south by the mighty Colorado River, and diverted
to the state by an elaborate series of dams and canals. Andrew
Ramirez's ollie over this Grand Canyon at TCC, serves as a
metaphor for mankind's triumph over nature but also as a warn-
ing about the dangers inherent in such a technological leap.
The American West, in a purely nationalistic context, is the
embodiment of physical youth. Arizona's dry climate has arrested
the aging process of the state's infrastructure, lending it to
superb, erosion-free street skating. Adam Beltz's nosegrind
embodies the youthful vigor that this state not only represents,
but actually imparts to the modern pioneers who choose to live
there. This is why so many old people live in Arizona
In the wild and early days of Arizona,
marauding bandits who were apprehend-
ed awaited trial in small adobe jails such
as this. Today, skateboarders are the new
devil's seed of the wild west, but, due to
advances in human rights, they are not
locked up in mud jails. They are merely
ticketed by fat cops.
It was originally reported that America,
for all intents and purposes, ended at the
Colorado River. Early explorers declared it
impassable and so the American
West remained unsettled by the
white man for many more years.
But, as the nation grew so did its
needs. Eyes turned once again to
the far west and the rest is histo-
ry. When Adam Meyer chose to
50-50 this bar in downtown
Tucson he unwittingly re-enacted
the dangers faced by the first
hardy folk to venture into this
unknown land.