Tag: supra

It is raining, Daniel (Pannemann) and myself are standing at the Heidelberger Platz skatepark. Even though the skatepark is covered by a bridge, small streams of water seem to have consciously made their way to almost each and every obstacle.

My phone rings:

Supra’s Marketing & communications manager: “Can you talk to the cab driver and tell him where to drop us off?”

Taxi driver: “Hello, I am at the supermarket now, where should I drop them off?”

Me “On the opposite of the Carwash, I will meet you there to pick them up.”

I walk over, introduce myself, and we start to make our way to the skatepark. Jim tells me he just went to the studio where Iggy Pop recorded his album “The Idiot” together with Bowie. I tell him that after this, the plan is to have lunch at their Berlin hangout spot.

“sick skatepark!” Jim says as we arrive, and it is but it is obvious that he hasn’t seen the small water streams yet. But after some cruising, he somehow manages to find a dry spot and skates that for about 30-minutes. Afterwards, we hail a taxi and we drive over to the famous Paris Bar.

As we walk in all of us are slightly overwhelmed, the waiter guides us to our table and gives us the menu. After we order, we talk for a bit until I notice I am not recording, I ask Jim if it is okay if I start to record our conversation, he agrees and we continue our conversation.

Jim_Greco_UmbrellaDE

 

Do you still play music?

Yeah, I play guitar, make music occasionally. I’m not a musician though but I just have fun with it.

It’s good though, you’ve had a long career and its good to have other outlets as well.

Yeah, painting and filmmaking are two things that I really like too.

I really like the films, I watched them a lot.

Oh, thank you, man.

I think I rewatched them both like 10 times.

Wow.

The first one was a surprise when it came out and then the second one was like “Hey is this going to be a yearly thing?”.

I’m working on some other stuff now.

Are you still making a new one as well?

Yeah well, this next one I make is going to be for Supra it’s going to be based around my new shoe. But I’m writing a film that has very little skating in it it’s like a full-length film, then I’m working on some projects with Jason Lee. We’re going to work on a film together also Jeremy Klein is making a film and I’m going to be skating in that. I am also helping out with the death wish video, putting that together.

How is that going, cause you’re doing your own boards as well, right?

Yeah, Hammer, I do like two drops of boards a year but it is more like an artistic outlet for me. It is a platform to put films and certain boards out when I want to put certain boards out.

So its kind of like creating your own vibe I guess?

Right, it’s not about making a ton of money.

Yeah, I know, otherwise, you’d probably do something.

Yeah, I just love the company and love making short films and putting out silkscreen boards that are made in America.

They are really silk screened right?

Yeah.

Wow, is the one you were skating silk screened?

That one is a Deathwish board but it is silk screened. Yeah, sometimes I silk screen my graphics for Deathwish too. I just like how the skate and they feel, certain graphics I feel need to be silk screened, they look better.

I really like that. It’s like making something that is mass produced more personal.

Exactly. I feel like it’s more alive when it’s silk-screened it’s more real. I feel like it’s a graphic that I grew up skating. That’s how they were put on a board, more than like heat transfer.

Yeah at the same time though it’s like you putting on the graphic. Which means it’s not perfect and you actually worked on your own board.

Yeah, I don’t do them myself. But I make the artwork and brought it to the silk screener than he burns the screens and I order a hundred or a couple hundred, however many I’d like to sell.

Who makes the boards then, besides the silkscreening? I know they are made in the U.S.A which is very rare.

A factory down in Alabama actually and they’re there… actually, I think its South Carolina not Alabama, sorry.

You have your own friends that are not per say the best skaters right now or where ever but putting them next to you or with you, how it really is, it’s quite nice.

As skateboarding becomes more and more professional you see a lot more focus drifting away from being with your friends. I think with you and Jeremy Klein skating together or making a movie with Jason Lee it’s like Skateboarding being preserved.
I don’t know if many young kids know about the history.

Yeah. Now they’ve got youtube to tell them what the history is. Some of us grew up in it, with magazines and our imagination, now they have youtube and Instagram to teach them. It’s a little bit too invasive at times.

Do you tend to look at Instagram a lot?

I do. I look at Instagram every day, I’m not going to lie.

Right, you don’t have to lie (laughter). It’s normal everybody does it, even if you don’t want to you sometimes even go on Instagram.

But if I’m making new films I don’t really watch new videos that are coming out until I’m done with the films.

I know that feeling, it’s a like when we make the magazine we don’t really look at other magazines because sometimes you get the feeling of “this has been done already” and it is an unproductive feeling.

Right, and you want it to be as honest as possible, as honest as possible to your vision, without your vision being altered.
I want to keep it pure to what is my original intention is.

Yeah, that’s true. It is good maybe to stay away for that time then.

For me, that’s what I usually do. This way, if something even has some similarities to something, that’s out, I won’t be deterred from doing it because it’s a hundred percent honest.

That’s the thing, that the most important thing. Being deterred from something even if you’re initial feeling was like I need to do this it can be kind of stupid in a way. Maybe you just stay away from it then and be able to do it. Yeah, I really agree with that.

Jim_Greco_PortraitDE

 

How much influence do your friends have in the movies that you make, like Jeremy Klein for instance, I pretty sure he’s pretty opinionated for instance.

Well, everything that he’s done on a skateboard has influenced me. Just watching him, growing up watching him skate, getting to meet him at a young age skating with him. As far as my movies go I’m the one that makes all the choices and the editing, I compose the shots and do everything and its kind of my vision on how its put together.

I was thinking about the shot when you drag the Bench and I really thought that was amazing because that’s something that normally would have been cut like three times. Everything is set to be like a minute, and the fact that you were just dragging the bench, I think it was super good. It’s the same with movies it cuts out so much “reality” when you actually cut the shot.

People are in a rush sped up the process because they’re in fear of kids having a small attention span now. I want it to go against that. Show that no you can have a movie that doesn’t have to be like seven minutes long with just trick trick trick, time-lapse photography, a quick cut of a homeless person, it’s not about that and there’s a way to do it in a way that you can express your self in a way you want to and show what really goes into things.

Yeah, it’s the same I guess when you show multiple tries also the tries that you don’t make. Or not even only you but also the other people around you like more having a feeling of a session almost. Instead of alright this is a trick were in were out, this is how its been for a long time.

Because it’s not reality-based if you make the trick every time. When I went there to try the 270 to lipslide I told them it doesn’t matter if I make it or not, it is really about what is going to happen here.  In the end, I came close, I probably could have continued to go there and really do it but I don’t even carwhetherer I make it or not.

I think that’s good.

Cause that is the reality of it.

Yeah!

With the dragging of the bench, I wanted to show, that this is not a spot, that was transported here this is really how I skate this spot. It is being dragged by hand down the street in broad daylight in front of all these cars and people and that’s the whole idea behind it.

Yeah, it’s like a good feeling that people can relate with that’s not shown that.

Exactly.

That’s what I think is really good about your films, there’s a sense of time, you need to take some time to be with it. You know when I’m watching it, the scenes they go on and it forces me to stay concentrated. And the music is also quite different to a lot of other skate videos, I guess it is a movie project with skateboarding in it.

Thanks, that was a tough thing to find the music for it, it was tough.

No without you I don’t think I would’ve found the Cocteau Twins, you picked some really amazing songs by them. It was not a band that was on my radar before that.

Thanks, Jeremy introduced me to that band being young and reading interviews of Jeremy Klein talk about this band the Cocteau Twins, and me being influenced by him at a very young age. I bought some CD’s of the Cocteau Twins and I would always listen to them before I even met Jeremy just because I read about it in an interview and then he skated to them in his Birdhouse part, (his Ravers part) he skates to Iceblink Luck from the Heaven or Las Vegas album. Which is the album I chose a song for in The Year 13 film, *Cherry-Coloured Funk.

*Cocteau Twins – Cherry-Coloured Funk

Jim_Greco_ParisBar_Detail

Yeah, that song is amazing!

And then we also used it in The Way Out, Blind Dumb Deaf.

That one is amazing, such a good song to skate to, before that you have another song that more relaxed and then all of the sudden there’s a pretty big session starting, it works.

Yeah, that had a nice flow, that one worked out.

You also used, Se Telefonando*, I think the song is called?

*Mina – Se Telefonando

Yeah, Italian pop music.

Does that have to do with your roots maybe?

Yeah, I got into Mina from watching Martin Scorsese films, Scorsese is great with music I learned about a lot of bands from watching his films!

It is also not that common to have music with other languages in skateboarding there’s a lot of English music, that’s quite cool to have some non-English music. It’s also, well I don’t know how much you think of it, but its also a tool to show people what you are into, to inspire people.

(food arrives. food and sauce talk)

Back to your own skateboards how do you think of the graphics, via painting?

Yeah a lot of them will be ideas that I have in my head, paintings I make for hammers USA.
I worked on a really good new one for Deathwish that depicts the battle to stay clean or get loaded, it kind of shows what’s going on in my head.
You know and there’s a Phone on the bad thought side and a skateboard on the good thoughts side and the good thoughts are bright with light and the bad thoughts are swirling in the background in the darkness, I had a really good artist oil paint the perfect picture of this.

Wow!

Yeah, I have it on my phone, I would show you but my phones dead. But it is a special graphic, one I am really happy about, we worked very hard on it.

That’s good. Do you get excited when you are skating those boards?

Yeah, yeah.

I guess its more exciting than logo boards.

Yeah, and for another one there’s a painting of Miles Davis.

Everyone likes Miles Davis right?

I like Bitches Brew, it’s a really good one.

Yeah, you have to get into it for a bit to feel it but it’s good music to think too.

For me, it is to create, paint, skate. I often like put on random classical music records when I paint too. They are really cheap records from Amoeba, a local record store. When I hear classical music for some reason I can paint, it helps me paint.

What do you paint with? Do you paint with oil?

Oil paints, oil sticks, acrylic.

Do you have a studio or do you do it in your house?

In my house. I have a loft that’s just a rectangular loft it is an open floor with open space.

Wow, probably with good lighting?

Really good lighting.

It’s quite important. That’s nice. I think it’s always pretty important to have the studio or if it is a loft it’s still your studio, to have that quite close to where you live. So when you have the moment and you’re like okay I want to do this you can immediately go do it.

Yeah.

The spots you skate are they close to your house?

Yeah pretty much, a lot of the spots I skate are very close by, within skating distance. The brick transitions are a few blocks from my house, the curbs I skate are around my house, the bench is kinda far from the house, you got to drive its in South. But yeah downtown L.A. is like a big spot, I like to skate the city like a spot. Go and skate from spot to spot.

I noticed that change where you were not skating big spots just going and skating. More like the feeling when you’re cruising I guess, not going to something that has a name.

Yeah, it is more of an accurate picture of what skateboarding is really like. Once again wanting to show that side of it. Introduce a degree of real-time into it, in sections.

It’s nice that it is all around your house. Normally unless you have a certain thing you want to do your not going to go and drive that far, your like okay, you grab your board and have some fun.

Yeah, it’s cool. It’s definitely a blessing to live in L.A. I have all the spots around.

But you didn’t grow up there, right?

I grew up in New Haven, Connecticut. Close to New York City, an hour and a half train ride away. Lots of stuff to skate in New Haven.

Do you still go back sometimes?

I do yeah, twice a year. Yeah, fun.

I can imagine its probably quite different I mean, being from the east coast, right?

Yeah, the weathers pretty brutal. It gets pretty cold in the winter and hot in the summer. You get four months of good weather.

Do you miss that sometimes in L.A.? Seasons?

Ahh, I miss it I like fall and spring. So, I can definitely feel when there’s a change in weather between fall and spring, winter and summer. Winters never bad though for me in L.A. summers sometimes can get gnarly.

We were in New York last year in summer and I thought it was pretty intense. So humid and it is pretty…  I don’t know, if L.A. is that smelly but I would say that New York smells, it smells like hot trash!

(laughing) How long were you guys there?

Jim_Greco_Zoo

 

A week, a little bit more than a week. It was amazing.

Yeah, heading out there on the 17th for a week to film to film Keith, Shredmaster Keith, I’m going to shoot him for is part in the Deathwish video.

Ah ah, he’s on Deathwish. That’s a good pick.

Yeah, I’m want to capture him in his environment. Kinda how he skates New York like a city like a spot a city as a spot.

It is very much possible in New York because we would just run into random things you could just skate. And the city is quite good to cruise I thought it would be harder to roll through but its okay.

Yeah, a lot of fun spots.

And it just looks beautiful.

It does. Yeah. Berlin looks really good, on footage.

Yes, it is, it’s really good. It has not the same vibe but some people say it’s like New York in Europe. A lot of graffiti.

Yeah, the architecture is nice.

It changes a lot, there is a big difference between the West and the East.

Yeah, East is a little more crusty, right?

Yes, but it’s also got the more spots. It is pretty cool you can drive into random sites with fences around and most of the time they won’t bother you. Yeah, you can just find some spot or put some stuff together.

(more food arrives)

So how has the (Supra) tour been so far?

Good.

Was it three cities?

No, four.

How have you liked it so far?

Love it, I love Europe, it is great. I like Berlin a lot and I liked Paris, Brussels was a beautiful city too. A lot of stuff I liked. next year I’ll go to Italy to shoot a thing for my new Supra shoe.

I’ve never been to Italy, I want to go, you’ve probably been before right, to Italy?

One time, to Milan, but I want to go to the south.

Yeah, go to Naples?

Yeah.

Do you know where your roots in Italy stem from?

Naples.

That’s cool, I heard some good stories about the city actually.

Yeah, it’s going to be cool, shooting there.

So are the new shoes going to be dress shoe-inspired?

Yeah, similar to the one I did a while back with Vans. I tried to do this before, like thirteen years ago.

Was it the Escobar maybe?

Yeah exactly, it was my third shoe but the execution was focused more on an athletic last and now we are doing a more dress-shoe oriented last but one that’s athletic enough to work for skateboarding. Just enough. We wanted it pointier. Basically, I just wanted to be able to skate it and hang out in it and not rush to take my shoes off, because I like wearing dress shoes more than anything. I just wish I could skate in them you know.

That’s so hard though.

And I like how dress shoes are lasting. I typically wear loafers but there are too many slip-ons out there right now to do one.

Yeah, I know what you mean. It’s like slip on time somehow right now, it was gone for a moment and it has come back now.

I like skating in like leather because it protects my foot and lasts long. But the first one will be in suede, blue suede. Like Elvis.

What color is the sole?

Blue. Like all blue.

That’s sick. I think its quite cool to have tonal color shoe.

Yeah, I like that.

I’m pretty excited to see it. Have You been trying on some samples and stuff?

I squeezed my foot in a sample (size nine) but I’m an eleven. So I can’t really.

Lucky people who have a size nine foot they can try their own shoe.

I know sample size right.

As far as clothing goes, you don’t have a clothing sponsor any more right?

Nah, nothing out there I’m really hyped on, to be honest. Except for like Levi’s, Levi’s is really cool I wear the Jeans. I’m going to work with Supra on making some clothes, something special.

Special items?

Yeah, special items, they asked me to help out.

I think clothes are pretty important, they are overlooked sometimes, a lot of the skaters look the same.

I love skating in nice clothes.

Me too. It can cause problems sometimes though when you find a new shirt and slam.

Yeah, I know. Anytime I find something like a new shirt I just ruin it right away, like the fastest.

Jim_Greco_Zoo2

 

Are you still shooting on film for the next film?

I shoot on a combination of film and HD.

Do you filter everything through film then?

I chose a different process, I take the HD and make a 35mm negative print of the HD and bring that down and digitize it back in so it exists on film.

Wow, I also saw that Kodak was involved in the last one somehow?

Yeah, they were involved, they were definitely stoked. I talked to them about working together.

I’ve heard they’re a little tough with budget stuff?

They are, it’s odd.

(Jim takes a look around the bar)

I can’t believe that shot of Gazzara. Did you ever see him in Killing of a Chinese Bookie?

No, I’m going to write that down.

John Cassavetes. Did you ever see him in Husbands?

No.

Watch him in Husbands it’s unbelievable. In The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, Cosmo Vitelli (Ben Gazzara) he plays a guy that’s recruited by the mob to kill a Chinese bookie to fulfil a debt for gambling and I drew a lot of my influence from John Cassavetes, you can see a lot in Cassavetes, you’ll see a lot of similarities in Cassavetes work.

I’m going to go away from this with a whole list of movies and songs. That’s cool. I like the fact that you’ve seen a lot and know the names. It makes a difference.

Yeah man, its good to have those influences and hopefully I expose other people to them and I they can draw the same influence from it.

I’m definitely going to check it out for sure.

I’ll be in L.A. fucking going to bed waking up and going skating. Waking up and picking up my car. I’m getting my car painted right now.

You are getting your car painted.

Yes, because the paint job was so bad for so many years and it had a dent from somebody hitting it. So when I was leaving for this trip I priced how much it was going to do for paint job and bodywork, and it was going to be ten days so I was like I’ll just drop the car off the day before and when the trip is over I’ll go to sleep when I go home, wake up and take a cab down there and pick my car up. And it will look like a brand new car.

That’s smart. What color are you getting?

The original color, it’s like a blue, it’s like a blue like that (light blue). It was in The Way Out, I don’t know if you’ve seen the film. Its the car I drive. Its a 78 Cadillac, Deville, two doors. It’s beautiful, so nice.

What color Porsche would you get if you could get one?

A Porsche?

Yeah.

A brown one or navy blue.

A brown one. That’s nice, a brown colored car you don’t see that often.

No, I saw one in L.A that I like. Brown with a tan leather interior.

Would you get a new one or a classic one?

A brand new one. I like the Rolls Royce too. Wish I had a brand new one.

Did you ever drive a Rolls?

No, but I see them and they look really cool.

 

Supra’s Marketing & Communications Manager: Guys I just paid, we need to go or we are going to be late to our signing.

Ok, I think we got it anyway let’s go to the signing. Thanks for the time Jim! 

Scan 100

Text & interview by Roland Hoogwater

Photos by Daniel Pannemann

Polaroid by Jim Greco shot during his time in Berlin.

 

The newest Supra output is really nothing to sneeze at! The whole team came together and even Tom Penny has some footage. Lucien Clarke might be my favorite appearance followed by Oscar Candon who closes it out with an incredible part along the lines of go big or go home!

As a skater, you know that there are two things that you are almost constantly on the hunt for, one being new boards and the other being new shoes. Sometimes you might spend your last buck on some skateable second-hand shoes just so you can keep skating. You might not care about the shoes you are skating but you should because what you wear is a big part of your style.

A little while back Supra was kind enough to send some shoes to our office. I always like to read wear tests so we tried to find the right crew so we could do our own wear test. We decided it would be cool if two good friends, Steffen Grap and Johannes Schirrmeister worked together to test the shoe. We asked Steffen to shoot the photos and Johannes was eager to try out the shoes.

As soon as Johannes slipped on the Cuba, he started to skate them and it seems like they were ready straight out of the box. We cruised around and had fun with it, finding or creating some spots along the way. After the session, I asked Johannes what he thought of the shoe and he said basically skated and held up well and he particularly liked the special edition Crown Coalition colorway (black and yellow) and the addition of the lace (most slip-ons seemed to slip off after a little while).

supra collage 5

supra collage 3

supra collage 2

supra collage 1

From the start, Supra as always had a strong image with staple shoes like the Skytop, but they also had a very diverse squad of team riders from the get go. Supra’s shoe designs are similar to their team, very diverse. The Cuba Basically is a classic slip-on that has been tweaked by adding some little extras that improve the way the shoe’s fit. The version we tested even had an ollie patch adding to the durability of the shoe.
All in all we like what the brand is doing, they are giving international guys like Lucien Clarke and Oscar Candon the spotlight, and they also seem to support their team’s other creative outlets like Muska’s venture into the art world and Jim Greco’s “The Way Out”. We feel that Supra seems to be moving in the right direction.

Skater Johannes Schirrmeister
All Photos by Steffen Grap
Text and edit by Roland Hoogwater

The Supra team experienced the scene of Paris. As every city has its own history, they let legends like Artus De Lavillèon, Benjamin Deberndt and Stephane Larance get the chance to speak about the developments Paris had gone through and combined that with some great archived footage, as well.

Supra just released a 5 minute clip, schowing the best of Spencer Hamilton. Here’s what we thought while watching this journey all around the globe…

– Spencer smokes while doing huge SW BS Kickflips – 1:03
– Spencer has a faible for coloured wheels – 1:12
– Spencer is real ghetto… See 1:54
– Was that Jaws at 3:57?
– Where’s the play again button?

Erik Ellington is a person with a lot of interests. This fact became even more apparent while I was doing some research for this interview. Professional skateboarding can consume someone’s life, as can running a business and raising a family. Meanwhile, Erik is not afraid to take risks and trade stability for possibilities. He is definitely a role model for a lot people, including myself. He was one of the skateboarders to watch when I was growing up and still is one worth following – time for a conversation:

Hey Erik, thanks for doing this interview…
Of course! 
 
How are you? Can you tell us a bit about why you’re out in Europe? We hear you’ve got a few demos happening as well as filming for an upcoming project about the people and places that have shaped the London and Paris skate scenes?
I’m good, thanks! We’re out here promoting Lizard’s and my new [pro] shoes [on Supra], skating and just enjoying the scene. Yeah, the idea for the video project is pretty rad! It focuses on the people that influenced skating in their area more than just us doing a demo or whatever. It’s been fun to be a part of it. 

Erik_Ellington_AOTR_SF_Jeremy_Adams

With you being born in Alaska, and then moving around to Arizona, and later California, do you feel like the place where you grow up has had a big influence on you as a skater?
Yes, definitely. I was recently back in Alaska and I was looking at some spots I grew up skating, and noticing how much that shaped the type of skateboarder and person I grew into. After Alaska I moved to Arizona and met all the friends I have to this day. My local spots and the crew that I hung out with had such an impact on me. Then moving to California I feel molded the way I handled myself as a professional skateboarder and taught me about business in general. I think your surroundings totally impact every aspect of life. 

On past tours, Supra seemed to focus more on the 15-minute tour clip rather than a full length video. Do you feel there’s a difference between the tour clip and saving footage for a part or a full length video?
Both serve a purpose. I personally like the idea of working hard and putting together one project that means a lot. With the Internet, I feel it has given way to saving less [footage] and getting everything out there as it happens. On one hand, it’s cool because it immediately gets noticed and I really like the edits we create. But I definitely prefer placing a value on quality footage and saving it. 

Erik_Ellington_BS_Lateshuv_Print_Chris_Swainston
Late Shuvit

You have said in the past that getting drunk has often giving you creative ideas, how has this changed since you went sober?
What I didn’t realize at that time was that I can be just as creative sober. Most importantly, I now have the discipline to act on the ideas rather than to just talk about them. 
 
When talking about creative ideas, we would have to mention your pro model shoes. Almost all of them had a distinct look that differs from a lot of what’s out there. What are the things you look for in a shoe, and how do you balance making something that looks different but is still commercial?
Thank you. I just try and design what I like and stay true to what I find feels and looks good. You never really know what’s gonna do well. I think the most important thing is not to chase what you think is going to sell or be commercial. 

EE-Vulc-Grey
Erik Ellington Vulc

Can you tell us about your latest pro signature model, the Ellington Vulc? What’s new and what’s the inspiration behind it?
It’s inspiration comes from the Ellington cup sole and me skating in vulcanized shoes the last year or so. We basically slimmed down my original shoe and put a vulc sole on it. It gave it a totally different look and feel, and I was hyped right away when I saw the first sample. 

Did your design approach change when you moved from Emerica to Supra?
Not too much, I’ve always been very hands-on with anything that I have put my name on. I worked a bit harder behind the scenes when we started Supra. 

It seems like you’ve never been afraid to take risks when it comes to business and sponsorship, going from a steady home at Emerica to a new position at Supra as part owner, and then again with leaving Baker to start Deathwish and Bakerboys Distribution. Can you speak about what attracts you to start new businesses together with friends?
I like the idea of new things, it’s exciting and I think it creates a special kind of energy. There’s nothing better than being in business with people you respect and creating things that you like and that other people are attracted to. To me it’s very fulfilling. 

On that note, I can imagine these new ventures have opened up opportunities both on the business side and the creative side of things, so how has your day to day changed?
For a while I felt that it was overwhelming and it was hard to balance. Since I have stopped drinking, it’s opened up so much more time for me. I feel like everything in my life helps balance the others out. My skating, business, kids, friends, and traveling all lend to one another. 

What are some of the achievements you are most proud of?  
To be a part of skateboarding still and be working with my friends, making a living and traveling the world. Twenty years ago that was just a dream. 

Erik_Ellington_fs Flip_web:print_Jeremy_Adams
FS Kickflip

In the last couple of years, skating seemingly has become more international then before, with brands like Polar, Magenta, and Palace, pros are able to stay in Europe more and more instead of having to move to the States. Baker Boys has been doing US distribution for Palace for almost a year now, how did this collaboration happen?
Andrew and I have always been fans of the PWBC stuff. I got Lev’s email years ago and we started talking back and forth. Originally, I was going to ask him to help us edit the Deathwish video but we never got around to it. A few years later I was on tour with Lucien Clarke and we started talking about distribution. He mentioned it to Lev and Gareth and we figured it out shortly after that. I’m hyped to be a part of it, I feel like they fit with Bakerboys. 

In your opinion, how has the rise of new and social media affected the skate industry, and do these changes influence you as a skater and business owner?
I think it has sped things up to an unhealthy level and I feel like it has to balance itself out at some point soon. 

Moving away from the skateboarding side for a moment, how important is it for you to do things outside of skating?
For me it’s very important. Like I said earlier, there’s a balance. To have other creative outlets and interests motivates and inspires new ways of looking at things. 

Erik_Ellington_SwFS_Flip_Web_Chris_Swainston
SW FS Kickflip

In another interview you spoke about your interest in architecture. You even said that you considered going back to school and becoming an architect. Is this still something that you think about?
I think about it from time to time because I’ve always been passionate about architecture. I don’t plan on being an architect at this point so it seems like a business class or public speaking may be more of what I need. My son wants to be an architect so I’ll just live vicariously through him.  

At the same time, it seems that you have been posting pictures on Instagram where we see you building a tree house. Is this the realization of that dream? 
Ha, yeah sort of. That’s mostly just my interest in building something with my hands. I enjoy making things to use around the house. 

Thanks for the interview Erik, it’s been great catching up with you!

by Roland Hoogwater
Photos: Supra Footwear

Wenn du einen Spot findest und dir Chad Muska höchstpersönlich beim präparieren unter die Arme greift, sind die Good-Vibes auf deiner Seite und die Motivation sicherlich in bisher unbekannter Höhe. Bei diesem Ollie vom Hausdach in eine Bank konnte The Muska die nötige Anfahrtsplatte besorgen und den jungen französischen Teamkollegen Oscar Candon ordentlich anfeuern.

Wenn das SUPRA Team für zwei Wochen durch das vereinigte Königreich reist, kommen da ganz schnell ein paar Minuten exzellente Footage rum – genau genommen 15! Mit von der Partie sindNeen Williams, Kevin Romar, Lizard King, Braydon Szafranski, Chad Muska, Jim Greco, Furby, Erik Ellington, Stevie Williams, Tom Penny, Nick Tucker, Boo Johnson, Spencer Hamilton, Pat Rumney, Dee Ostrander, Keelan Dadd, Lucien Clarke und Oscar Candon, der richtig abliefert!

Er selbst bezeichnet sich als Freigeist, kennengelernt habe ich ihn als kleine Nervensäge. Doch auch kleine Kids werden irgendwann älter, und so ist es interessant zu sehen, welche Entwicklung Dani Ledermann mittlerweile hinter sich gebracht hat. Seine Art zu Skaten, „mit angeknickten Beinen“, ist seit jeher eines seiner Markenzeichen, und auch die bunten Beanies und die übergroßen Klamotten sind schon von Weitem nicht zu übersehen. Zu seinen Spezialitäten gehört es, sich alle erdenklichen Höhen und Weiten mit dem Board hinunterzuschmeißen, weswegen er am Tag unseres Interviews zwar komplett zerstört ist, dennoch hat er sich sein Lachen und das freche Grinsen bewahrt – man könnte diesen Wesenszug vielleicht als „bayrische Bierseligkeit trifft auf philippinische Frohnatur“ definieren.

Hi Dani, wie geht’s?
Whoa, wir haben so die heftigste Nacht hinter uns!

Was ging bei euch?
Wir sind gerade auf Lites-Tour in Frankreich und sind heute Morgen um 02.00 Uhr an unserem Hostel in Le Havre angekommen, das hatte allerdings geschlossen. So mussten wir mit sieben Leuten im Van pennen, Alter. Ich bin gestern auch kurz vorher noch hart geslammt und müsste eventuell eigentlich mal ins Krankenhaus, nachdem ich einen Ollie in einen ziemlich steilen Ditch gemacht habe. Ich kann mich eigentlich gar nicht bewegen, mein Rücken ist gerade komplett am Arsch.

Zu siebt im Van gepennt?
Ja, es war einfach nur noch hardcore-beschissen, Mann. Ich habe zwei Stunden gepennt, Justin Sommer z.B. gar nicht. Huppi (Martin Huppertz) hat sein Zelt einfach mitten am Hafen aufgeschlagen. Es war echt eine heftige Aktion, so unnötig. Ich glaube, das war die schlimmste Nacht meines Lebens, und ich habe auch schon seit zwanzig Stunden nichts mehr gegessen. Ich bin gerade halbtot, kaputte Hüfte, kaputtes Steißbein, nichts gegessen, komplett fertig im Kopf.

Daniel Ledermann - 360 Flip
360 Flip

Es kommt mir vor, als wärst du in letzter Zeit häufiger verletzt gewesen?
Ja, das kommt vom Moshen. Ich kann nicht stundenlang an einem Curb-Trick oder einer Line festhalten, ich muss immer gleich ballern. Entweder schön hoch oder weit, es muss auf jeden Fall etwas dabei sein, wo man richtig was spürt beim Skaten. Immer und immer wieder auf einen Curb-Trick anfahren und die ganze Zeit den Trick bailen ist irgendwie nichts für mich – lieber einfach „BOOM“: Stufen runterballern oder auf ein Rail springen, wobei auch mal was passieren kann.

Scheinbar passiert dir dann ja auch ab und zu mal was?!
Meistens passiert mir allerdings was, wenn ich mich aufwärme zum Beispiel, einfach bei Flips im Flat, wenn ich dann umknicke. Es passiert irgendwie immer bei unnötigem Scheiß.

Was skatest du denn am liebsten? Hauptsache Schmeißen?
Ja, eigentlich schon. Ich mag Airtime, aber auch Balance halten bei Wheelies und auch Rails skaten. Aber am liebsten springe ich Gaps.

Wie viele Pullover hast du schon zerschlissen?
Früher war es echt krass, da gingen echt pro Woche zwei bis drei Stück drauf. Ich hatte irgendwann gar keine Pullis und gar keine T-Shirts mehr, sondern musste immer mit den Löchern im Rücken rumlaufen – ich denke, ich habe schon so 30-35 Pullis durch. Wenn ich baile, dann rutsche ich immer auf dem Arsch aus, so passiert mir am wenigsten.

Könnte es auch daran liegen, dass deine Pullis immer extralang sind?
Auch auf jeden Fall! XL, Xtra Ledermann!

cabflip
Caballerial Kickflip

Haha! Apropos Ledermann: woher kommst du eigentlich, und wo liegen deine Wurzeln?
Meine Mum stammt von den Philippinen und mein Dad aus Rammingen in Bayern mit 1.400 Einwohnern. Er ist ein typischer Bayer, ein Bierbrauer. Aufgewachsen bin ich in Deutschland, und über den Winter war ich immer auf den Philippinen, deswegen habe ich auch erst mit acht Jahren zum ersten Mal Schnee gesehen. Auf den Philippinen bin ich auf eine deutsche Schule gegangen, wir haben sogar den Lehrer aus Bayern mitgebracht.

Ein Privatlehrer? Dann müssen deine Eltern aber gut Knete haben…
Ja, und er wohnt jetzt dort! Er ist ein Freund meines Vaters und kam immer mit zum Urlaub machen. Dort hat er dann auch unterrichtet, und nun hat er eine Frau gefunden und ist dort geblieben.

Als ich dich ca. 2006 in München auf einer Team-Titus-Demo das erste Mal gesehen habe, warst du ca. 11 Jahre alt und ziemlich frech. Du hast viel genervt und wolltest die Aufmerksamkeit von den Großen.
Haha, ja, das ist eigentlich immer noch so! Ich war schon als Junge ein kleiner Freigeist und habe nur das getan, was mir gerade so in den Kopf gekommen ist, wie ein kleines Gummibärchen, das einfach rumgehopst ist, leicht hyperaktiv. Da habe ich aber noch nicht gesplifft, da war ich noch nicht so gechilled.

Aber bunte Klamotten hattest du bereits an!
Ja, und lang waren sie auch schon!

Daniel_Ledermann_BS_Lipslide
BS Lipslide

Was wolltest du mal werden, als du klein warst?
Eigentlich wollte ich immer irgendetwas in Richtung Kampfsport machen. Als kleines Kind war ich immer voll viel draußen und bin rumgeklettert, außerdem haben wir auf den Philippinen immer Shaolin-Filme mit Jet Li und Bruce Lee geschaut. Das war mal mein Traum, da war ich aber noch wirklich ganz klein. Und seit ich acht Jahre alt bin, fahre ich Skateboard, deswegen ist Skaten mein Lifestyle. Seitdem denke ich gar nicht darüber nach, was ich in Zukunft machen werde, außer dass ich eventuell mal die Brauerei von meinem Dad übernehmen werde. Aber eigentlich habe ich nur Skaten im Kopf.

Wie alt bis du?
Gerade 19 geworden.

Gehst du noch zur Schule?
Nee, nicht mehr seit ich 16 bin. Wie gesagt, ich bin ein Freigeist, und ich war nur in der Schule, weil ich hin musste. Ich habe das mit den Lehrern geklärt, dass ich mich einfach nur reinsetze und den Stoff nebenbei mitmache. Ich hatte durch die Brauerei immer die Absicherung, im Familienbetrieb zu arbeiten, deswegen wollte ich auch nie eine Ausbildung anfangen.

Hast du da vielleicht nicht einfach den Weg des geringsten Widerstands gewählt, oder anders gefragt: Kann man das auch als Faulheit bezeichnen?
Keine Ahnung, es war einfach nie mein Ding. Als ich am allerersten Schultag eine Schultüte in die Hand gedrückt bekommen habe, wollte ich eigentlich gleich wieder wegrennen, ich wollte überhaupt nicht in die Schule rein, haha! Es war schon immer wie eine Anstalt für mich. Man geht rein und trifft Leute, die nicht wirklich Homies sind.

Aber das geht doch jedem Jugendlichen so, also keinen Bock auf Schule zu haben…
Ich habe schon immer gesehen, wo das Geld reinkommt, weil mein Dad ja selbstständig ist und ich immer gedacht habe, dass es das Beste ist. Bis er 30 Jahre alt gewesen ist, hat er nur Musik gemacht und danach erst mit dem Bierbrauen begonnen, und seitdem verdient er gutes Geld. Ich musste auch nach der Schule immer aushelfen, und momentan arbeite ich meist vormittags bei ihm.

Dann läuft es ja gerade ziemlich gechillt für dich!
Ja, voll!

Daniel Ledermann - Kickflip
Kickflip

Gibt es als Skater in Bayern oder in München öfters Ärger mit der Polizei?
Ich glaube, der gesamte Freistaat Bayern hat einfach viel zu viel Geld, und die Cops haben dafür zu wenig zu tun. Sobald sie uns Skater auf der Straße sehen, fragen die nicht, was wir da machen, sondern sagen direkt, dass wir abhauen sollen. Und wenn wir etwas dagegen sagen, werden wir sofort kontrolliert. Mein Homie Joscha wurde z.B. in der Bahn mit einem Messer bedroht und hat bei der Polizei angerufen, und als die gekommen sind, waren die Typen schon weg und die Bullen haben dann Joscha mitten auf der U-Bahnstation bis auf die Boxershorts ausgezogen, so krank sind die unterwegs! Nur weil er verdächtig nach Weed aussieht. Du kannst denen sagen, dass sie das nicht dürfen, aber die machen es einfach oder nehmen dich mit aufs Revier. Das gibt uns voll den Anreiz, standhaft gegen die Bullen zu sein, denn wir denken uns dann „Fickt euch ins Knie, Alter!“

Das Verhältnis zwischen euch und der Polizei ist also nicht gerade besonders gut.
Nein, das ist nie gut! Es gab bisher nur Stress mit den Bullen, ich habe jetzt mit 19 Jahren schon zwei Einträge wegen Weed, das gibt es wegen solchen Lappalien nirgendwo anders in Deutschland. Die sitzen am Bahnhof, halten dich auf, ziehen dich aus, finden einen Joint und es gibt direkt eine Anzeige.

Raucht ihr denn auch in der Öffentlichkeit am Spot, oder passt ihr auf?
Wir suchen immer Save-Spots, wie z.B. Gullideckel, und wenn Polizisten in Zivil ankommen, kann man den Joint in einem Loch versenken. So riecht’s halt nur, aber es gibt keine Beweise.

Wie ist denn momentan die Stimmung in Münchens Skateszene?
Harmonisch wie nie! Alle sind freundlich zueinander und jeder geht mit jedem gerne skaten. Früher gab es sehr viel Hate zwischen Titus und Goodstuff, und jetzt ist es einfach nur eine Skategemeinschaft. Wenn man hier auf einen Contest geht, ist immer gute Stimmung, die ganzen Münchener sind einfach korrekt. Eben auch durch den SHRN, Soo Hot Right Now, da gehen mittlerweile die meisten Skater hin. Früher war es echt krass mit dem Haten. Es gibt voll viele Crews wie z.B. Bottomline oder unseren Marijuth Clan, und wir treffen uns regelmäßig. Abends trinken wir dann alle immer Augustiner zusammen im Maßmannpark, skaten oder spielen Fußball.

Wie kann man sich denn einen normalen Samstags-Skatetag mit der Marijuth Gang vorstellen?
Joscha und ich würden aufstehen, einen Joint rollen, raus gehen auf den Balkon und dann irgendwas zu essen machen. Beim letzten Mal haben wir zum Frühstück zwei 400g-Steaks gegessen, weil wir so Hunger hatten. Dann rufen wir Juli Sonntag an, unseren Filmer, der ist meistens um halb zwölf schon wach. Getroffen wird sich am Maßmann-Skatepark, mitten in der Stadt, da wird noch mal einer aufgerollt und Bier getrunken auf jeden Fall. Dann gehen wir Streetskaten, pushen einfach nur rum oder fahren U- und S-Bahn, damit kommt man easy an die Spots. Abends gehen wir wieder an den Maßmann und dann wird bei Papa Lars, der wohnt gleich in der Nähe, Fußball geschaut, Looping Louie gezockt und Bier und Jägermeister getrunken.

Du magst ja bekanntlich gerne den Hardflip – was sind deine persönlichen drei „favorite Hardflips ever“?
Luan (Oliviera) hat auf jeden Fall einen krassen Hardflip, genau so wie er den über Rails oder Ledges macht muss der aussehen! Einfach zwischen 45° und 90° wieder reinholen. Den Ghettobird habe ich das erste Mal von Andrew Pott aus einem Kicker über eine Schulbank gesehen und, Alter, ich dachte nur, dass sind ja zwei Antibewegungen in einer und dann auch noch switch weiterfahren – den muss ich unbedingt lernen! Und Sewa (Kroetkov) macht die krassesten Hardflips im Flat, außerdem in alle Grinds und Wheelies rein – als ob es ein Kickflip für ihn wäre.

Ghettobird
Ghettobird

Was gibt es Neues von der Sponsorenfront? Mittlerweile fährst du ja für Supra…
Das deutsche DC-Team wurde aufgelöst und Ingo (Bremmes) macht es nicht mehr. Es wird wohl nur noch ein Europe-Team geben, keine nationalen Teams mehr. Das ist denen wohl zu blöd geworden oder die haben da kein Cash mehr für. Dadurch, dass Leo (Preisinger) mir Kr3w klargemacht hat, hatte ich dann auch den Kontakt zu Supra.

Und taugen dir die Schuhe?
Ja. Und das Image ist auf jeden Fall krass. Ansonsten bin ich voll stolz, für Favorite zu fahren, Valle Ott ist jetzt auch neu im Team, ansonsten Michel Funke, Mario Ungerer, das ist eigentlich eh schon meine Familie, alle Homies sind in einem Team.

Warum könnten deine Freunde genervt von dir sein?
Hm, weil ich echt krasse Stimmungsschwankungen habe!

Und wann freuen sich deine Freunde, dich zu sehen?
Auf jeden Fall, wenn ich nach München komme! Dann wird erst mal heftig aufgerollt und mit Augustiner angestoßen, so dass es überschwappt.

Na dann prost, vielen Dank für das Interview und eine schnelle Genesung! Noch irgendwelche Grüße?
Ich möchte mich bei euch für das Interview bedanken, bei Leo für die Bilder, beim Marijuth Clan, meiner Familie, Dad, Mum, meinen Brüdern, Joscha, Mario, Michel und großen Dank an die bayrische Polizei dafür, dass sie solche Opfer sind.

By Benni Markstein
Fotos: Leo Preisinger
BS Lipslide by Dennis Scholz

SUPRA releast den “Crown Coalition Pistol” – einen Sneaker mit khakifarbenen Wildlederupper auf vulkanisierter Sohle. An Ferse, Zunge und Innensohle findet man allerlei symbolträchtige Embleme, die an die Logos verschiedener Geheimbünde angelehnt sind. Einem Geheimbund kann nicht jeder ohne weiteres beitreten und ähnlich verhält es sich auch mit diesem Schuh: Nur die weltweit 250 offizellen SUPRA Crown Coalition Händler werden den Schuh im Sortiment haben. Haltet also die Augen ab dem 15ten März offen, wenn ihr ein limitiertes Exemplar ergattern wollt. Nach dem Video mit Lucien Clarke, stellen wir euch den Schuh im Detail vor.

)

Chad Muska (neuerdings ja mit kurzen Haaren) stellt uns in diesem ziemlich experimentellen Clip seinen neuen Signature Schuh auf Supra vor. Der mittlerweile vierte Skytop wird mit Sicherheit seine Fans finden – wahrscheinlich hauptsächlich im Hip Hop Biz. “The Skytop IV is something completely new,” so Muska. “It’s pushing footwear design into the future, it’s merging worlds, and different genres—it’s high fashion meets high performance athletic footwear. We really wanted to create a shoe that you could go skate with the homies in, then come home, put a fresh pair on, and go out at night in—one to skate, one to chill.”

Releasedate ist der 29. November.

Das Video der diesjährigen SUPRA “Slings and Hammers European Tour” ist nun via Thrasher live gegangen. In der Doku gibt es all die Dinge zu sehen, die Jim Greco, Chad Muska, Terry Kennedy und der Rest der Bande auf ihrer Reise durch die alte Welt erlebt haben.

Aus gegebenem Anlass heute mal wieder ein Spaß am Dienstag, los geht´s mit einem unserer liebsten Skatebrüder:

Willow mit neuem Wild Pussy Impact Clip für Almost.

Nick Tucker und Furby mit jeweils einer feurigen Line am beliebten Polendenkmal.

Lizard Kings neuer Schuh “The Passion” verdient Leidenschaft und die hat er in folgendem Clip für SUPRA

Paul Rodriguez genehmigt sich eine Linie in Hollywood.

Und nun zum eigentlichen Highlight: Rob Dyrdek verlost eine limitierte Box seiner Sonnebrillen Company IVI und fährt mit einem in der Fantasy Factory geparkten Ferrari davon.

Das lange Warten hat ein endlich ein Ende: Unsere neue Ausgabe #42 steht in den Startlöchern und bringt euch den Sommer zurück auf den Tisch. Mit an Bord diesmal: Das Yoshi Tanenbaum Interview mit ordentlich Bangern, der Red Bull Bomb the Line Contest an der Baustelle, ein Detroit Feature, das Supra Team und eine Anleitung für Wooden Prints. Davor, danach und dazwischen gibt es wie immer einiges zu entdecken. Also los und ab an den Kiosk – viel Spaß mit der neuesten Ausgabe aller Zeiten!