UC Davis Ivy Gap

A video posted by @skateboardinghighfives on Sep 24, 2015 at 9:12pm PDT

While I'm keeping track of the Tricks Over the J-Kwon Ledge and Transworld has done some ABD Archives already, I feel like now is a great time to start a trick archive for the UC Davis Ivy Gap. (I may no longer be keeping the "High Five" format, but so be it.) So while I'm fairly sure I haven't missed any tricks done down this monster of a gap, comment if you see otherwise!

1. Jamie Thomas - ollie (around 1999)

The skate nerd in me is upset that I can't find the original video that this clip was in! But regardless, who else than the Chief would be better to open the gates to skating such a legendary gap. Jamie Thomas was the first to skate so many new gaps and rails beyond imagination at his time. To him, this was probably just another big ollie at a campus with other sweet spots. To us, it was the start of yet another landmark in skateboarding. 

2. Corey Duffel - frontside 180 (Osiris - Feed the Need, 2007)

Corey Duffel is a mad man, putting out some of the fastest skating and gnarliest stunts. His Feed the Need part from '07 is a staple in skateboarding and what better way to close out the crazy part than stepping up the possibilities at what was called the "Jamie Thomas" gap with a frontside 180. 

3. Devin Appelo - tuck knee grab (Transworld - And Now, 2008)

Devin Appelo made a name (at least in my mind) for hucking himself off some insane rooftops and down some deadly gaps. He really abided by the Hesh Law and in comparison was like what Jaws is today. Contributing to his repertoire of drops was this beautiful tuck knee from the friends section of And Now, with the grab being held longer than seemed "safe". 

4. Schuyler Ricketts - backside 180 (Transworld - Hallelujah, 2010)

This gap was solidified in my memory after Devin's tuck knee, so by the time I saw some random dude add the scary backside 180 in the middle of a Transworld video's friends section, like Devin, I was wondering if the gap was going to be "just another big gap". Nope. Still one epic monster. Schuyler's name shall be added to the books for this trick because it is hands down *ahem* one gnarly 180. Also check out some of his attempts for the trick.

5. Ryan Decenzo - switch frontside 180 (Transworld - Hallelujah, 2010)

Ryan Decenzo has added plenty of epic tricks to some well-known spots over his years: a nollie down El Toro and the kickflip crooked grind down the Stanford hubba to precede his UC Davis trick to name a couple. Chalk up another huge trick in his incredible Hallelujah part: a switch frontside 180 that only Ryan's compressible body could handle. It's funny that it just happens to be the second trick down the gap in one video, but stealing the thunder without a doubt.

Not only that, but Ryan attempted one heck of a frontside kickflip down the gap as well. Goodness gracious that would've been unbelievable! Who's going to be the first with two tricks down the gap...?

6. Andrew Reynolds - kickflip (Emerica - Stay Gold, 2010)

Released in the same year as Decenzo's switch 180 and Ricketts' back 180, Andrew Reynold's kickflip is as iconic as Bachinsky's down El Toro, if not more so. Being the first actual fliptrick down the gap (in either case) crosses a line too exciting to capture in words. Capping off one of my favorite video parts of all time, Reynolds legendary status as The Boss is reinforced 10-fold with this ender. Now the frontside flip battle royale between Decenzo and Reynolds would be very, very interesting indeed.

7. Chris Joslin - 360 kickflip (Plan B - True, 2014)

Chris Joslin had one heck of an "intro" to the Plan B team. I won't even begin to describe the level of awe I was left in after watching his True part, just to cap off an already ridiculous year. And what better way to close out his lengthy and gnarly part than 360 kickflip down the gap (with angles from Trevor and Felipe). After his Ground Control part and monumental Rincon trick, there was no doubt Chris was a legend in the making. From what I've heard so far about his couple tricks down Wallenberg, Chris has no intention of slowing down. That linked Rolling Stone interview actually shows how strategic he is about contributing to skateboarding's history through tricks like this, but it'd be best to leave it with his words: "Let's just say that the Davis gap was an appetizer for the future."


UPDATE: It was bound to happen, but add Jaws' kickflip melon to the list (from an ETN production). Tommy Gunz, we wanna see that frontside flip!

Tricks Over J-Kwon Ledge

CJ Tambornino, no comply.

As the era of the LOVE Park plaza has transitioned into that of J-Kwon's, one can say that just like every make down LOVE's fountain gap, every trick done over the long ledge at J-Kwon instantly adds to the spot's history. And Josh Kalis is once again at the center of all the action. J-Kwon's ledge is special because there aren't a huge number of spots recognized for individual flatground tricks done. The picnic bench comes to mind (TWS has already archived its historic ABDs), but it can be considered more of a prop. Pier 7 offers a couple more memorable options, as Marcus McBride perfectly demonstrates, though the manny pad technically has a drop - thus not exactly flatground - and I think the last actual flatground ledge in the part is no longer around. Regardless, J-Kwon's ledge is easily recognized and provides a sizable challenge to those that think they have their fliptricks down. (Luan, if you're reading this [it's too late], please skate this spot.)

It's been quite a while since the last post, but the timing could not be any better. I've been wanting to catalog the tricks done over the long ledge at J-Kwon for a while. So when Nick Tucker shocked the web with his turning pro part for Primitive, not only did he DEMOLISH the LA courthouse ledge, but he startled everyone with 3 sick NBDs over J-Kwon's ledge. Getting one new trick is remarkable enough, but 3 back to back to back tricks was simply thrilling. This already got me thinking about the blog post, but the cherry on top was when Walker Ryan and Kelly Hart astonished me with their J-Kwon additions today. Walker's already one of my favorite skaters, and the switch backside flip is probably my favorite trick to see done (because of guys like Walker), so the combo is too good. Couple that with my personal favorite trick to do (fakie 360 flip) done by a master of that trick and I am completely flipping out in excitement from this short video.
(And soon after Matt Gottwig almost ollied over the whole super long ledge too!)

Now to the rest of the catalog of tricks chronologically (for the most part):

1. The "Basics"

The first trick done over the J-Kwon ledge to my knowledge comes as a pleasant, but easily unnoticed, surprise from the Boss himself. We already know his kickflip is one of the best ever, so it's fitting for him to casually open up his Bake and Destroy part in 2012 with a kickflip over the ledge, to start out a line of course (0:10).

Diego Najera was seriously placed on the radar when he was welcomed to Ammo a couple years ago. Besides incredible switch skating and trouble flipping the Hollywood 12, Diego nails a solid line at J-Kwon, speedily setting up for a buttery switch heel down the stairs by frontside 180ing over the whole ledge (1:34).

While Brett Sube's trick (or pair of tricks) is the most basic on flatground, it's possibly the most impressive of all of these cataloged entries so far. Huge double ollies over the extra-high ledges document his impressive pop and control to close out his part in Gracias Skateboarding. (Also note that Alex Olson ollies over one of these extra-high ledges in a line in Pretty Sweet.)

2. 360 Flip - Jordan Trahan

A video posted by Josh Kalis (@dgkalis) on May 4, 2014 at 9:17pm PDTh

 The first trick that really put this spot on the map. Jordan Trahan's unearthly pop and one-of-a-kind miraculous 360 flip, captured by OG 360 flip master Mr. Kalis himself, is a thing a pure beauty.

3. Switch Frontside Kickflip - Carlos Iqui

A video posted by Josh Kalis (@dgkalis) on Jun 1, 2014 at 8:54pm PDT

Leave it to a Brazilian to pop much earlier than necessary and fly insanely far over the whole ledge. Quite a few tricks come to mind before a switch fs flip to try at this spot, but Carlos Iqui once again proves his technical wizardry is no joke. UPDATE (6/2/15): Carlos apparently has decided to one-up himself by doing this trick again in a pretty heavy line.

4. Caballerial - Abbas Glass

I've honestly never heard of Abbas Glass before, but I'll never forget his name after this. This caballerial was executed perfectly, with bonus steeze. NOTE: The original video seems to have been taken down, so here's a separate link to substitute.

5. No Comply - Bobby De Keyzer

Now I was pretty blown away when I saw the photo of CJ Tambornino (above) no complying over the ledge. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any footage surface of his trick. But another technician in Bobby De Keyzer released a shockingly awesome part for DC not too long ago. What better way to start off a part than arguably one of the best lines in recent memory, including that wonderfully enormous no comply (4:10). Mad props!


UPDATES:
I basically would like to keep an ABD Archives of this JKWON ledge spot, much like Transworld is doing. However, I'm going to keep it strictly for tricks done over the ledges because the entire spot itself is definitely blown out. Please comment any tricks that I may have missed!

A video posted by THRASHER MAGAZINE (@thrashermag) on Jun 8, 2015 at 7:59pm PDT

6/9/15 - Kelly Hart, contributor of his great fakie 360 flip over the ledge, filmed the homie Myquel Haddox adding TWO new tricks to the spot's history for eS! Another name I won't be forgetting now after the beautiful half-cab kickflip and fakie big flip.
6/18/15 - Myquel just isn't stopping! Chalk up another one over the J-Kwon block: frontside heelflip. Hope a video comes soon!
7/22/15 - This dude is unreal. Myquel adds one more trick to the list: switch heelflip. He could probably put out a full part soon of just these J-Kwon block tricks...
8/28/15 - I definitely missed this the first time around. Not exactly sure when Furby switch back heeled the ledge, but it can be found in the Supra commercial in the sponsors menu in TWS' Outliers. Unfortunately I could not find a video or picture online so you'll just have to check it out in Outliers for yourself!
9/24/15 - Sabotage 4 was released on DVD on 9/11 and after receiving my package and peeping the video, I was psyched. Not only is Philly footage the best, but parts from Ishod, Suciu, Kalis, and Walker Ryan all got me super amped as well. Amidst the hour long video was a nice little gem from J-Kwon frequenter MATT GOTWIG (see above). While Myquel may have had a picture of his front heel, Matt to my knowledge was the first to release a video of his FRONT HEEL over the J-Kwon block in all its beauty. Cop the full length to see it featured in Brian Douglas's part!
10/8/15 - And of course, a 5 trick fix over the ledge for Myquel. Only a matter of time. Wow!

A video posted by Myquel Haddox (@quel615) on Oct 7, 2015 at 8:05pm PDT

12/25/15 - Cyril Jackson has had a super productive rookie year and capped it off with a solid Deathlens part featuring a tight late shove over the J-Kwon Ledge! Check the full line at 1:18 for the awesomeness.
1/3/16 - Even with Walker getting the trick first (most likely), Matt Gotwig shows again that he's a J-Kwon local by switch backside flipping the block in his Aguora Lifestyle part.
4/29/16 - Quel is back at it! Now getting into the awkwardly gnarly tricks: fakie varial flipping the block in style.
1/14/17 - Like many others in DGK's new "Saved" video, Adrian Del Campo gets his AM intro to the team and comes correct with a solid switch front heel over the block, even if Nick Tucker did it first.
7/9/17 - Never took this one into account back from 2013: Yuri Facchini with a proper heelflip to start a line and his Damn good Blind part!

UNM Spot #1: Center of the Universe Gap

Center of the Universe Gap, exit pathway

The Center of the Universe is a decently traversed area by most UNM campus travelers. It's a simple design that's aesthetically pleasing and a nice little tunnel for anyone walking or riding bikes on through. Now if you're riding a skateboard, there's a giant grate right in the intersection of the structure that I'm pretty sure only longboard wheels can roll over. The chimney-like part of this structure allows light to shine right on down to this grate, highlighting the exact gap for skaters to fly over. One day while cruising around the campus, I was lucky enough to run into not only Clive Dixon and Clint Walker (and homies) from the Fully Torqued RV Tour but also some of the Emerica crew: Jon Miner, Spanky, Jerry, and The Boss himself. I was fortunate enough to witness Reynolds skate this gap and realized on the spot exactly why he got his nickname. Without spoiling the trick (just wait for Made Chapter 2!), he took 2 or 3 tries to land one and after checking the footage with Miner, landed another one just for perfection in another easy 2 tries. Handled only like The Boss could. Let's just say I was too stoked for words.

Now apart from Andrew's trick here, and some of that day's crew just ollieing over the gap for fun, I've only really seen one other trick at this spot while randomly browsing Instagram. Major props to the dude for the sick last-minute-before-darkness hardflip!

The spot itself has plenty of room to run-up, at least in one direction. (It was really awesome watching Reynolds start running with his board in his right hand and then throw down regular and take a few pushes. But no more details!) You can start by the scenic Duck Pond on campus, get a running start, and still have time for a few more solid pushes before entering the structure. You can also see the brick tiles that line the exit pathway; this is not worth trying to push on because you need as much speed and leg energy as you can get for this lengthy gap. And going in the other direction does not offer much of a runway either, though it may be feasible.

                                     

The run-up surface itself is quite perfect really. Nothing at all to worry about there.

Now to the gap.  The next two photos should hopefully show the length of the grate, compared to the length of my board (32"). It's always bigger in person too but this one's still quite a doozy in pictures. Like I said earlier, you need a lot of speed to clear this.

Another cool thing about this gap is that it's visible on Google Maps pretty clearly! The plus-shape of the structure isn't too hard to find, though just in case I pinned it here on the map. And what's even better is that it's right next to two other sick UNM spots too!

Video of Last Week: Lucas Puig and Stephen Khou in Something Sinister

Last week was one of the craziest weeks in terms of video parts released online, so I apologize for the late posting (almost a week late) but I finally got a concise and really gnarly group of videos of the week.

Top honors goes to one of my top favorites: Lucas Puig. His shared part in Something Sinister was the perfect display of nonchalant, stylish technical skating that you'd want in any video. There's a reason why Lucas is one of my favorites, and it's not the first name. It's the fact that he, in my opinion, has the illest style out there and makes all these ledge tricks look so good. I think the leaves caught in his trucks at 1:48 (on a switch front tail heelflip out to switch nonetheless) pretty much sum up the demeanor of how he filmed this part. Stephen Khou killed it too with some pretty tight tricks, but my boy Lucas shut it down! I can't wait till my DVD of the full video comes in.

I would love to write a paragraph for every one of these following videos because they were all that great, but I'll keep it short:

Walker Ryan - A Far Walk From Home - video parts from my two top favorites in one week!? too good to be true! Oh and pairing Walker with Patrik Wallner is a match made in heaven.
Primitive Skateboards - Paul Rodriguez, Nick Tucker, and Carlos Ribeiro team up in one of the heaviest announcements in a while, and based on the jaw-droppers in this intro video, things are going to get heavy.
Karsten Kleppan - Lakai Welcomes this Norwegian with an absolutely shredtastic video part full of super fast skating at a bunch of sick street spots.
Jay Meador - Something Sinister - Jay oozes style (a common thread in Something Sinister it seems) and makes this part a blast to watch.
Jaws - Happy Medium 3 - Just when you think Jaws needs to ice bath for about a year, he ups the ante once again in both skating tranny and deadly drops.
Andrew Reynolds - Varial Heel Hollywood High - The persistence and determination needed for this trick is beyond anything most of us could imagine, but leave it up to The Boss to not accept anything but perfection.
GX1000 - Moving Violation - This will no doubt make you want to go skate in the streets right now and just cause shenanigans with your homies.
Brick City Street Styles - Living in Newark right now, I had no idea how much I was really missing out on until this great all-Newark video came out.

Best Music for a Part #2: Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros

When you look at the number of skate videos that have used songs by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros (who I will call ESTMZ for short here) on Skatevideosite.com, the long list is quite stunning. But there's a reason for the madness (pun intended as Kenny Hoyle will explain) because ESTMZ simply produces great music for skate videos. Mixing qualities that make videos memorable and epic at the same time, the music makes you feel happy while watching the skating but excited too for the trick progression throughout the part.
If I remember correctly, the first time I heard ESTMZ was the heavily-used-in-skate-video song "40 Day Dream" through Addie Fridy's Mag Minute. The part came out a good 3/4 years ago I think but The Skateboard Mag re-released it this year. What caught me off guard was just how many bangers Addie kept coming out with, even in the quieter verse of the song. The slo-mo's near the end of his Mag Minute matched the hype from the good-feeling refrain and the double-take on his nutty ender goes hand-in-hand with the double-take on the final words: "Ohhh oh, I could die". (What's crazy to me is that while this part is pretty old by now, for these day's terms, it's still super gnarly. I'm surprised Addie is just now coming up on flow with Expedition.)
My second experience with "40 Day Dream" was through RVK's Younited Nations entry to the Berrics a few years back. But the defining video part for this song would be Kenny Hoyle's turning pro part in Expedition's Madness. The introduction as Rob Welsh leaves Kenny in the dirt to shovel out his first pro model is ideal: short enough that you don't start begging for the skating to be back, funny with the solid acting from the Expedition crew, and meaningful enough to the unleashing of the new pro. Kenny's few stomps on the dirt patch covering his board cue the fade in of the music, which slowly amplifies to Kenny's opening line of buttery ledge tricks. The first "Ahhh-ah!" at about 1:38 is timed out perfectly with Kenny's line in that clip: a sick flick on a nollie tre and a cruising no comply together build up with the music and then unleash with a huge frontside half cab flip at full energy. The held out "yeahh" at 3:55 on the varial heel across the long Chinese street gap works really well. But probably my favorite clip is right after when Kenny switch heelflips into a manual and the music momentarily is silent, suspending the suspense perfectly only to have Kenny switch 360 flip out! That culmination of excitement was too awesome so that every one of Kenny's following bangers is just made that much better. The quick cut to black after his ender and the short cut off on the music also leave that stunned feel as to what just went down.
ESTMZ's radio-popular song "Home" was featured in Lakai's Am I Am feature, with Vincent Alvarez, Riley Hawk, Raven Tershy, and Daniel Espinoza. The song was the last song used and goodness did it do a great job of closing out the video. The skating by these four dudes was heavy (enough to have 3 of them be pro by now, and arguably Riley should be as well) and "Home" created that really epic feeling with every trick going down.
Walker Ryan skated to ESTMZ's "I Don't Wanna Pray" in Organika's Grow With Us. The very beginning seemed rather quiet, but as soon as the upbeat tempo starts, you just want to start snapping your fingers along with it. It helps that Walker keeps it playful with his first few clips: 180ing into a bus after landing his grind and cruising along a sick DIY bank spot and even skating some tree branches. Walker's positive attitude shows through his skating and this song could not fit better to bring that out. The whole part takes his great skating and leaves you feeling impressed and happy at the same time. When the song quiets down again at about 2:58, it highlights all of his pretty crazy manny tricks. It brings in feelings of amazement that all work up to Walker's insane switch backside flip over the bump to bar ender. Satisfaction completely guaranteed by the experience.
Lastly, with one of the most epic video parts in recent memory, Andrew Reynolds skating to ESTMZ's "Om Nashi Me" in Stay Gold (see above). The introduction fills you with pure joy: visually Reynolds skating around his backyard and playing with his daughter is complemented by the song's cheerful introductory chords. So as soon as the music builds up from the intro and Reynolds frontside half cab flips Carlsbad, you know the part's going to be magical. The song provides that really epic video feel as all the tricks are going down. After he nollie noseslides a gnarly rail at about 3:08 and gets the elated high five from Herman, the music calms down a tad. At this point, while watching Stay Gold with my friend for the first time, we literally remained speechless with our eyes glued to the screen watching legendary spot after legendary spot be crushed. The music matched the compilation of tricks in a way that left me with feelings of pure awe. And when Reynolds kickflips the UC Davis gap at the end, the final melodies from "Om Nashi Me" make the kickflip feel like the battle has been won and celebration is in order. Exactly how an epic video part should conclude.

Best Music for a Part #5: John Lennon

John Lennon has some very laid back music, ideal when it comes to certain styles in skateboarding.
Take Madars Apse in DC's Where EU At? above for instance. Madars easily has one of the best styles in the game with his natural lankiness that translates into very fluid-looking tricks. He oozes creativity and a sense of having fun while he skates, which matches up perfectly with Lennon's "Oh Yoko!" I especially like the part where the harmonica comes in around 2:50 right as Madars nails an enormous ollie into a bank from one of our dreams. It's also pretty cool how a quick cloud/skyline clip is shown with "in the middle of the clouds" at 2:07 and Madars pops up bobbing his head right on with the beat. The entire part, from Madars style to Lennon's cheerful song, is really feel-good; it's inevitable to start smiling when this part is playing.
John Lennon also has "Watching the Wheels" in Nick Trapasso's part in And Now. It's hard to think of any skater more laid back than Nick, so pairing this super chill song with his lazy yet gnarly skating is a soothing combination. "People say I'm lazy...dreaming my life away" appears to be a very accurate outside view of Nick. It's like the song was recorded specifically for this part. The 3 drum beats right around 3:26 with the surge in the music and the slow-mo'd switch frontside 360 add just the right amount of hype even with all the calming vibes from the part, as oxymoronic as that sounds. And the last few clips or so are as if Nick's listening to John saying "...just have to-oo let it go-oo", stomping down some serious bangers without even trying.
John Lennon's laid back music fits right with Madars' and Nick's easy styles, but it also works very well with The Boss in his part in Baker has a Deathwish, as Reynolds casually drops hammers to "Whatever Gets You Through the Night". Lennon's count-up at the start (of the song anyway, after the initial Baker hijinx clips) sets up Reynolds for his bolts fakie flip to kick off the happy music. At the first chime in of "whatever gets you through the night", Reynolds switch tres to switch manual at nighttime with the spot lit up from nearby lampposts it seems. For a trick I haven't seem much from Reynolds, he literally does whatever gets him through the night. The rest of the part feels very jolly as you watch The Boss demonstrate his master flick. And it's also pretty cool that at 3:16 I believe Lennon says "STOP!" but it sounds way to close to "STOMP!" to be a coincidence. Because Reynolds most certainly stomped that nollie inward heel (not to mention popping it unnecessarily high) down that set.

Favorite Video Parts #2: Andrew Reynolds - Stay Gold

Emerica knows how to make me smile.  Just starting off with the sound of running water mixed with "Om Nashi Me" from E.S. and the Magnetic Zeros provides that soothing feeling, which is only amplified by Andrew enjoying time with his daughter while cruising around his backyard park.  It's the same happiness displayed here in the intro that you later feel with every trick as Reynolds somehow defies the laws of aging and effortlessly crushes skateboarding's largest and most historical gaps.  When a part starts with a frontside half cab flip down Carlsbad (later followed by a switch back heel down it as well at 2:19), you're instantly hooked and understand exactly why he's The Boss.  I could probably write about every clip with how perfectly it contributes to this epic part as a whole. (Don't worry, I won't.)  But Reynolds comes through with the ideal balance of heelflip tricks with his iconic [frontside] kickflips, super solid lines that show his powerful style and pop, and the nice array of handrail/ledge/gap tricks we all love him for.  For some specifics, the nollie inward heel (to close a line nonetheless) at 1:27 and the fakie tre down the same gap are two of my favorite tricks in this part for the way Reynolds flicks and catches both.  When the music changes at 3:13, I felt a definitive change in the part where everything that follows was nothing short of an absolute banger. This was a hard statement to make considering all that has already happened, but when I watched this for the first time with my friend Steve, we just sat in silence awestruck at every clip to come for the rest of the part. Getting two clips at a few of these spots, Reynolds hits the big ones: Wallenberg, the ATL 5 block, Bercy 5, Hollywood High 16, UC Davis Ivy Gap.  Every single trick here is utter perfection. But you wouldn't expect anything less from The Boss.