Video of the Week: Walker Ryan VX Footage

With limited internet access at the moment, this will be a short post. Even though I'd love to make tons of comments one of my favorite skaters right here, I will let his recently posted VX footage show you his really one of a kind skills on a skateboard as well as his enlightening personality. I will mention how I find it awesome that as soon as he throws his board in frustration in one clip he cringes instantly worried that it will hit the doors of the building. It shows how great of a guy Walker really is. And that bump to bar switch backside flip is probably the best one I've ever seen!

Dudes with Nicknames #1: Willow (Christoph Wildgrube)

Christoph Wildgrube is definitely not an easy name for implementation into the skate industry, so it's a good thing that Willow's school teacher saw the resemblance to Willow Ufgood from the movie and started one of the best nicknames in skateboarding. It's comfortable (dare I say "fun") to say and has worked well with Almost's board graphics. Willow is definitely well recognized in the industry, especially for being European, and his nickname is a sure aid to that.
Willow is definitely one of my favorites for his wonderful fliptricks and style.  He's put out quite a good deal of good footage and video parts over the past few years around his leaving Flip, getting on Almost, and turning pro. So to highlight him, check out his going pro part above (Willow's World) as well as his 5-Incher part, which has possibly my favorite skate video song of all time. It's cool that you can notice an exchange of kickflips from 5-Incher to heelflips in Willow's World for some particular spots, or at least an overall shift of those main tricks and their variations. Willow's definitely got one of the most appealing flicks for his tricks so it's always enjoyable to watch these two parts of his, as well as Willow's other full parts and commercials that he has put out.

Dudes with Nicknames #2: Frecks (Sean Stewart)

Now Frecks is still somewhat ambiguous to me because I really haven't seen much from him other than his Radio Television part (above) and a few mentions here and there over the years in magazines and online.  I have no clue where or when he deviated away from Sean Stewart and became Frecks, but either way, if it weren't for the brief Check In article in Transworld (September 2013 I believe) about Frecks I would have never remembered of him. Through that I finally found out his original name and because he's kept that nickname strong while staying somewhat off the radar, Sean Stewart will not likely be mentioned much if at all down the road.
All I know about Frecks is that he fits with Slave perfectly as he just thrashes around on his board, coupling a rugged yet graceful style with a crazed demeanor of just going for it.  Working in old school tricks with the "standard" ones of today, Frecks attacks a lot of different spots with fun-to-watch moves. The part above is definitely worth watching as a whole just for that all out ripping vibe.

Dudes with Nicknames #3: Lizard King (Mike Plumb)

Continuing the trend of great nicknames from the Deathwish squad, Mike Plumb (AKA Lizard King) is up next.  From what I've gathered the origin of the name is like this: Lizard was skating at a park back in the day and one of his favorite skaters at the time,"Pumpkin King", came up to him randomly and called him Lizard, the Lizard King. The name's stuck ever since, and when I say stuck I really mean it.  The only time Mike Plumb comes out is when Lizard's being interviewed and is forced to give up his original name. I'm assuming the Lizard part came from his ability to ride on walls and on obstacles most people shouldn't be able to. Just take a look at the May 2009 issue of Transworld for a prime example.
Lizard does stay true to him name quite often in his video parts, coming up with some pretty hairy ideas for whatever spots he comes to.  Just look at the very first trick in his shared part with Theotis in Baker has a Deathwish, as well as a couple sketchy wallie tricks from 0:30. Then there's his Real Street part (above) from this past year along with his Deathwish video part which both have more of the crazy use of spots with Lizard's abilities to handle anything sketchy with a passion-filled eagerness and ease.

Dudes with Nicknames #4: Furby (Ramiro Salcedo)

I'm not sure how Furby got his nickname, but it is definitely clear that Ramiro Salcedo has been retired as a name. Never have I heard Furby be referenced by any other name than Furby, and with its catchiness it's bound to last him the rest of his career. (Does Deathwish have nickname prerequisites?)
Now Furby has got one of the illest styles in skateboarding: with all of his many fliptricks he's got the perfect pop and flick, and somehow manages to stomp his tricks down while still looking like he's bouncing on the clouds with light feet.  Not to mention he looks like a straight G in whatever he does. He's got his 180 fliptricks in any stance or direction on lock and never fails to put out really great footage. While his latest Deathwish video part was instantly my favorite from the video, his skills and consistency are really shown in his 420 part (above) which was filmed in less than 20 days! Also worthy mentioning this part from Supra where Furby once again goes off with stylish tricks.

Dudes with Nicknames #5: Moose (Luis de los Reyes)

From what I've read and heard, as Moose was coming up he would always paint a different animal on his griptape. At a skatepark when some pros were around, they saw him ripping and wanted to get his attention so they shouted out "Moose!", since that happened to be the animal on his griptape at the time.  Ever since, that name has stuck and has basically erased Luis's original name for the skate industry. I'd say that he is a prime example of how a solid nickname can really stick and take over for a skater.
Now I don't need to delve in at all into how awesome Moose is as a skater, and I am beyond stoked that he is FINALLY pro now. (Just copped his new pro model from Deathwish!) I still love watching his Recruit part at the Berrics (above) and if you haven't seen his part in the Deathwish video, get on that ASAP.
And finally, watch this whole video, but just make sure to witness the stunning perfection at 3:51. That is all.

Next Week: Dudes with Nicknames

Skateboarding terminology naturally accommodates shortening words and names to make the lingo more efficient. It's a lot faster and easier to say "kick back tail" instead of "kickflip backside tailslide", and both are easily recognized.  Same goes for a lot of skaters' names. "P-Rod" is snappier and flows better than saying the full "Paul Rodriguez", eliminating unnecessary syllables.  You got The Chief, The Boss, The Mutt, etc. And then ones like Slash, Jaws, or Spanky. All nicknames that easily point to the full name of the skaters we watch so much. However, all of these are just nicknames, used on occasion (maybe even frequently for a couple) for the efficiency in speech. Even so, the full names of these guys are synonymous with their nicknames, if not used more. This week I'm going to look at a group of guys (and some of their skating) whose full original names are on the verge of disappearing completely in the skate industry. It's at this point when you know you have a good nickname.