Video of the Week: Phil Zwijsen's Time Chase

Click here: Phil Zwijsen's Time Chase

The European skate scene has so much incredible talent and style that often times us Americans overlook some of the gnarliest parts that come out. Luckily I saw Phil Zwijsen's latest part because it really is one of the more exhilarating parts so far this year. Super fast skating at some pretty wild spots combine for one enjoyable ride of a video part. Definitely get ready to go skate after this one.

Now I missed it last week but Nate Greenwood dropped one heck of an East Coast banger with his part in Theory's Chump Change. I never realized he was a Bang Yo Self finalist when his Stereophonic Sound part came out because the name didn't jump out at me right away. But that part certainly sealed the deal. I was a fan since then and his latest part doesn't disappoint one bit. He brings some gnarly West Coast tricks to the East and has a huge bag of tricks to do so. Adding on a fun style with the East Coast aesthetics and this part is a very big standout from the past couple weeks. 

Continuing to back the onslaught of East Coasters this year, Tony Durao had a really sick Video Check Out for Transworld and the Mountain Dew squad shredded the Big Apple with some famous skaters and spots. 

Vince Duran SURPRISED us all with his great fakie skills in his introductory part.

Sebo Walker is indeed a Turf Killer and is finally given the official Krooked welcome.

Chaz Ortiz has loads of tricks to display in his Battle Commander, including some steezy tech ones.

A unique crew goes Trippin through Europe and gathers some sick tricks in the process.

This Miami edit from Transworld captures the great spots at night that really can't be replicated anywhere else.

I'm normally not a fan of huge montages of skaters I don't know, but Vox nailed it with their Backin Texas video because the tricks and spots are simply awesome. 

Neal Wood, Danny Leon, and Max Taylor all came through as well with solid parts this week that were likely overlooked. 

NYC Courthouse Ledge #1: Kevin Phelps

Kevin Phelps came out with an epic blow up part not too long ago that really established him for good in the East Coast scene. (Tony Durao and Josh Swyers also did the same.) Hitting up loads of legendary spots, even some hefty California ones, he covers plenty of the famous NYC spots including the Courthouse. Now like I said before, I could easily be wrong about the tricks that have been done down the drop at the Courthouse, but to my knowledge there really aren't that many recorded. You would think the next tricks on somebody's list at the Courthouse would involve something like a heelflip or a hardflip or even a straight 360 flip. Enter Kevin Phelps. While first leaving his mark with a pretty tech front tail big spin flip out on the main ledge at 3:50 in his part, he follows that up with a nollie hardflip down the drop. A nollie hardflip on flat is usually entertaining to watch in a line, so doing it down one of the gnarliest drops in the East is astounding. Definitely not in the list of tricks you'd expect to see at the spot soon. And to top it all off, he closes his part out with an even crazier banger: cab flip into the bank. Again, super gnarly, a trick that stands tall alone on flatground, and not something you'd expect to see until the final days of the spot before it's [un]officially been killed. Getting 3 tricks at this iconic spot is pretty awesome in itself. Getting 3 ender-quality bangers at the NYC Courthouse is something to go down in the skateboarding history books. Thank you Kevin Phelps for coming out of nowhere and destroying these spots.

Video of the Week: Kevin Phelps

There were actually quite a few solid videos that came out this week, from the awesome team vibes and moments of the Pretty Sweet Tour, Vans release of Gilbert Crockett's part in Old Dominion to show the crusty East Coast spots, and even Ben Raemers' very fun and loose skating his Tiltmode part.
I'd also like to give an even more supporting nod to Tristan Funkhouser (aka T-Funk) with his first part for Baker Skateboards. Dude fits with Baker perfectly and already has a sick bag of man-style tricks at his age, which I respect a lot because the grom-style is not very appealing. His ender wallride is absolutely nuts, but I must say I would've killed to have seen that huge hippy jump from about 0:50 in his trailer for the part though...
Also special mention to Alain Saavedra for being welcomed to Consolidated with an extremely gnarly and just raw part. Big gaps and a really rugged style go together really well here.
And last special mention to Dustin Henry for a sweet On The Radar part for TWS. I'm a fan of anyone getting hooked up by Cliche, but it doesn't even matter because Dustin's quick feet and kickflips are very entertaining to watch.
The main video of this week goes to Kevin Phelps (above) with his part from Culture Shock. Hitting East Coast spots with West Coast tricks is really awesome to watch. It's really cool that Kevin has good pop, a lanky style that can still take some really solid impacts, a great bag of consistent tricks (that somehow kept getting larger throughout the part), and a unique take on well-known spots that lets him add memorable tricks to their histories.  Some of cool clips from the part include the smooth cab flip back disaster revert at 0:43, the front board at 1:37 mainly for the really cool look of all the red bricks at the spot, and the line at 2:17 because of the surprising half cab late back foot flip in the middle of two other really nice tricks. At 3:51, every clip becomes a banger pretty much: tailslide big flip on the NYC courthouse ledge, followed up by a nollie hardflip into that bank! Then Kevin goes to the other coast to double flip the Santa Monica triple set, which is super awesome. Then he stylishly lands a huge 50-50 drop off as well as a long noseslide big spin out on the same long ledge I remember David Gonzalez first lipsliding and then Eli Reed switch lipsliding. Later Kevin visits the huge brick double bank at 6:42 and skates it like no one else before with a giant ollie past the second bank to the flat below. And since 3 is always a lucky number, Kevin nails his third trick of the part at the NYC courthouse bank to finish things off: a ridiculous caballerial kickflip off the top shelf, somehow pulling out the switch drop and rollaway.

Favorite Video Parts #1: Jake Johnson - Mind Field

Coming from Jersey and living in Newark, I really respect the way some skaters make East Coast spots look like standard obstacles at the skatepark.  Jake Johnson filmed what seems like most of his part in the New York area, and I didn't notice anywhere the typical ledges or sets you see in California. That in and of itself makes this part extremely appealing to watch with all the grittiness and difficulty you'd expect from East Coast spots.  Combine that with Jake's raw shredding power and Alien Workshop's memorably unique editing, and out comes one of the most aesthetically pleasing displays of skateboarding I've seen.
Jake covers it all with strength and finesse, something you don't see too often with tall dudes like him.  The ride on 50-50 at 1:46 looks sketchy to begin with, but no problem for this guy to go switch apparently. Later on you'll see Jake flying through a speedy back 180 at 1:58, a classy Easy Coast trick at 2:03 (just kept on pushing through those streets), and a baller fakie heel at 2:19 at the Banks that is just unfair to have down like that.  Jake must be ready for marriage with the way he's committed to the kickflip back lip at the Black Hubbas at 2:25, which are a lot more intimidating in person that I'd imagine. Jake's switch pop is super entertaining to watch, particularly at 2:45 when he switch back 50s the bench (in a line!) and then decides to go switch over the rail at 3:38 because going over the top regular has been done too much already.  And to top it all off, Jake throws down an enormous double set wallride at 3:21 and closes everything with a huge switch one.  Man it must feel good to skate like that...