RJ with an Ox-inspired air off
the seat and into the pocket.
KEN REED
etnies
The Breeze warms up the Sacto sesh
with a whalin' kickflip frontside slider
Bartie scrapes a late-night
lipslide in Donner Party cou
one had to eat each other.
Ken's traveling equip-
ment includes a smart little
gray antique suitcase.
Although he also brings the tra-
ditional duffel bag, box of skateboards,
and carry-on backpack of comfort items,
the suitcase gets to come too, perhaps as a
reminder of a simpler, more dignified
time past. Whatever its purpose, its con-
tents must not be too important, as it
often got left in the van when we checked
into hotels.
Ken also stands apart from the pack in
that he travels with a grocery bag full of
nutritious snacks. In theory, while the rest
of the team is gorging themselves on triple
pork burgers at Carl's Jr, Ken will be nib-
bling an organic carrot and reading a book
of short stories in the van-saving both per
diem money and his health. It's a good the-
ory. But what usually happened was Ken
would start out the morning with an apple
and sip of soy milk, and then give in and
end up getting an $8.99 Denny's Cornbeef
CHAD BARTIE
Chad Bartie has a prob-
lem. Namely, that the
United States is not Australia.
While it might seem obvious
simply by the sheer lack of g'days being
uttered, it's a point that seems to hit
Bartie anew, over and over, especially
during periods of performance-related
anxiety. "Fuckin' America!" he can be
heard muttering under his breath. I have
no doubt that Bartie is an extremely tal-
ented skater capable of tricks of fantastic
complexity and danger. It's not even a
matter of doubting or not doubting it-
I've seen it! However, it would seem I will
be forced to be party to the fuck-all,
America-loathing Bartie until that glori-
ous day when I climb down that gang-
plank from the bowels of a hen-like
Boeing 747 Airbus and onto Australian
Slam with the rest of the peasants. The only
other time the sack of treats came into play
was when Ken was forced to fight off his
teammates, who would descend on it to
satisfy their need for desperation snacks
after a bout of drinking. "This is a fucking
five-dollar loaf of bread!" he'd say, stuffing
it under the farther reaches of the seat. It
should be noted that he did share his spe-
cialty cereal with Rob G a couple of times,
so it's not like he's completely stingy. Ken
Reed is New Deal's newest pro.
soil the land where everyone likes Black
Sabbath and tricks are as easy to land as
Vegemite sandwiches are to gobble down.
Bartie was a good sport on the trip, con-
sidering his hatred for the Land of the
Brave. He made the best of it, lying down
in the back with his inflatable headrest
and dreaming of home, his mini-discs
plump with AC/DC. "Acka-Dacka," he
pronounces it.
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