About a week ago, I went Redcar to skate. It was a good session; I haven't been in ages, so I needed it, and there were quite a few good skaters there, which was fun to watch.
The next day I watched this snowboarding DVD, Homies Episode 2.0, or something, it came free with Whitelines magazine. It had a lot of urban snowboarding in it, which to me, just didn't seem any good.
I've never been a big fan of the urban scene, but there have been some video parts from time to time that I've enjoyed, a couple of Absinthe sections spring to mind. It's normally stuff with a good tune, good riding style that's been well shot.
But more and more I'm seeing urban tricks that I think are pretty lame. Ledges and drops where the rider doesn't even "ride out" - they kinda just stop. And there are loads of 270s and 3s coming off rails, when the rail isn't really big enough for it to look good. A lot of these tricks don't seem to have much style.
Don't get me wrong, there are some urban tricks/sections in films that look great, obviously take a lot of skill and almost always, a lot of balls. And when done well, they can add a different, pleasing dimension to a film.
But a lot of it has been done before, seen before, and now, it's clearly a discipline in it's own right. To me, it seems like there's too much of it.
So I was just thinking, "I'd rather ride a skateboard than do that". After all, that's what a skateboard was designed for. And the crazy thing is, all the riders in this film were excellent skaters. There was even a load of good footage of them on skateboards, which to me, was more enjoyable to watch than the urban snowboard sections...
I like to watch riders going through the park, hitting rails and boxes with effortless style. Frontside boards, smooth presses, and it all flows. When it comes to rails, that's what I like. And in an urban environment, there are some killer rails that work for me. It's gnarly, but they stomp it. The scene looks good. The photo looks good. Nice. But don't overdo it. I'm not interested in dropping off a garage just because it can be done.
What's your take?
9 comments:
100% with you on this. The drop-and-stop stuff does nothing for me.
I pretty much agree with you completely.
I watched that movie the other day as well.
There were a couple of sectioned I really enjoyed, but they were the off-piste/powder shredding sections. Some nice fast downhilling always gets my vote over park sections - let alone the urban stuff which doesn't usually excite me.
As you say, Absinthe have done some cool urban sections. Have you seen Neverland?
Not yet, but I really want to! Have you seen it? Any good?
The only movies i like are the ones displaying full lines, top -> bottom of the hill. I never liked the 1 trick only scenes.
I agree somewhat. I have seen some pretty lame urban tricks, where my first reaction was "what was the point of that". However I have also seen some really gnarly and creative urban tricks that blow my mind.
Now-a-days it's all about pushing the limits, which ends up in kids doing more ridiculous drop and stop stuff because it's risky and unique. While it may not be very practical, its still ballsy.
I'd much rather watch some sweet powder sessions or park runs on video as well, but lets face it, hitting a kinked hand rail at a 45 degree angle is not easy, so i respect those that are daring enough to go for it.. and in the end boredom and a tow-rope are probably the cause of most this madness!
Haha, I like both taking photo of urban scene and skating.
I think there is nothing wrong with taking advantage of what you have around you. Sometimes you just can't get to the mountain so you have to get creative in your back yard.
Hey Patty,
I'd say that's fair enough - definitely nothing wrong with making the most of the surroundings you have, I mean, look at the dry slopes in the uk!
I also agree with Dan, that the tricks are difficult, ballsy, and do deserve respect.
But still, I'd rather see more top to bottom lines and/or smooth jibbing :)
Thanks for commenting guys - an interesting topic!
Gav
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