Skate Station: Recent Episodes
Tristan Bernès-Lasserre Kevany
How to skateboard faster? Who is cooler: Palace or Hélas? Skate Station explains the going ons of skating and gives you tips to skate better.
Pebbles, haters and driveways can take away the shine from a session. Lucky for you, Skate Station is here to talk about that annoying stuff.
Manual labour teaches you lessons you don’t expect. One of them is how much you can mistreat your body. Once I had worked in the vines, I realized skateboarding was so soft on the body that skating harder and faster was effortless.
Skaters will have an opinion on how you should apply cream. The truth is—it doesn’t matter. What does, is whether your skin is damp or not (credit of Marieclaire.com).
At the sight of a hill, you think: “Can I bomb this?”. But have you considered, “How did this piece land become bomb-able?”. Well, look no further.
Progression can be slow. Or simply, the same for everyone. It all depends on your objectives and skate journal.
Snuffles is in bits. A flash of chino pants and scabby elbows—a skateboarder—was all it took. Why, do skateboards always make her go crazy? Mainly because skateboards don’t exists in forests. And because that board looks as juicy as a hare.
“Perseverance”, “pain tolerance”—you feel like professional skaters have all had the same experience with skateboarding. And that’s fine. Only for me, the first slam hurt as much as the fiftieth. But by fifty, I was pushing myself up asking myself “what did I do wrong?” instead of “why did this happen to me?”. That’s the biggest thing you learn, I think: responsibility.
Every skater is a bit different. But most fall into two categories: chill or not chill. It has to do with how they treat their tricks, their fellows and their skate-spot.
Want to buy from Frazman down the street, rather than PinkPeach on the net? Well you’re doing more than just giving money to one dude. You’re helping skateboarding stay fresh. Away from neon lights and yellow jackets hoping to sell another piece of plastic poop.
Raining? Put your board away and go out with your wellies. Breathe that fresher air, and feel that link with Motha Nature!
Still unsure of the best way to cope with an injury? Take it from the pros: go fitness, do some paperwork or think about skateboarding.
Where there’s a bruise, there’s a smile. And associating them could make you less scared of your next trick.
It’s not about the oil or the temperature. It’s about how many times a day, the cross-friction and the indian burns. Skater or non-skater, these tips’ll make you feel like a pro!
The hard part about injuries is waiting around — watching those friends that CAN skate and biting your tongue when they complain about the session. Maybe though, if you took out a sheet of paper and wrote down what would happen if you DID skate, your grief would be easier to stomach.
When we ask a fallen skater “You OK?” , we hope the answer is “yes”. Why? Because we’re not sure what to do if they say no. But Skate Station has got you covered with a couple things to say or do that are a bit better than “you good?”.
Don’t put off skating because you have fifteen minutes left before that rendez-vous — you might just be missing out on a cool sesh’.
You thought that the nollie flip was a “pro” trick? Good news: skaters, including you, can land it with small tweaks to their pop and stance.
“ARRRRGH!!!” he yells before the trick. His eyes are wide open and he runs up, rolls up and pops into the trick. You wish you didn’t have to watch. But you do. And he falls. But he gets back up, punching his fists in the air — he knows it’s possible. “I wish I could be as fearless as him”, you think. Well... welcome to back to Skate Station.
While your efforts stall and you question yourself, around you people are continuing with confidence — should you give up? Maybe... maybe not. Or maybe blurt it out at dinner — that thing that’s weighing you down. Or push through with grit. Or give yourself a big, juicy reward. Anything. Anything not to give up.
Pro skaters perfect their sport every day, but who does one hour a day, and who does 4 hours a day?
Resting can be hard if you love a sport. There are times, though, when you should truly kick back and put those legs up. But not any old way. Put those legs up 90 degrees for a start, and the rest we’ll see about together...
Whether you’re injured or stuck in a barn, there are some ways to help your skate progression continue.
It’s all in the title. But for most of us, it’s still a dream. Our creative, on-fire skate-sessions generally occur in the afternoon. But what if you could have that type of skate-session in the morning, and then another at five?
You’ve probably felt it once. Twice if you’re lucky. That sensation of being “in the zone”. Laser-focus. Confidence. Routine. These are the foundations of entering the zone. Music too. But how can you apply all this to your skate session?
Amigo, you want to Switch Back Tail like Tiago? It’s going to be hard. But Skate Station knows... knows that Box Jumps, bailing and a belief are what it takes, 85% of the time.
Falling sucks. We all wish we didn’t do that trick. The one that made a big dent in the session. The one you swore you’d never hurt yourself on again. Skate Station has a couple tips (including a Slam Journal) to minimize that bruise, and hopefully never have it again.
Having trouble thinking outside the norm? Maybe you realised how boring your skateboarding is? Don’t hesitate to spice things up with these two creativity boosts. Starving yourself figuratively and visualizing. It may sound boring, but I bet you will have a new trick if you try these out.
The depths from which motivation can pull us are deep. Fear and admiration are two sources of motivation. If you’re willing to try that perilous trick again, find out why thinking about your brother can help.
Being confident on a board that’s zipping along can be challenging. Luckily, slowing down — at least, psychologically — can make speeding up an option.
Don’t get swallowed up by those imposing skaters doing their huge 360-flips. Keep your sights on your board. On what you like, with these three methods.
You’re tired, but you figure you should land one last trick before leaving. Should you, really? Or should you have ended half an hour ago? It depends, on how you want to end your session...
Skateboarding isn’t all about the action. It’s also about the culture and the icons that have made it into an interesting subject that people have written about. Get yer reading glasses on: Hawk’s life and the skate-shoe industry are explained in two books that you should read.
Got bored of rolling in your street? Here are four things to spice up your session, like sexchanging everytime you leave a pavement.
If you’re hungry before a session, or craving a bite in the midst of tricks, try fruit and peanut butter. Each one has a different benefit when consumed at a specific time. Check out when.
Want to be a green skatebarder? Buy plainer decks, get Habitat, don’t do Dickies, and much more.
If you want to learn a new trick, it’s easier when you’ve got a previous, similar one that you know how to do. What’s that “previous-similar-one” which lets you build on as many new ones as posible? Hint: combination and pressure tricks.
You don’t need to be a pro to skateboard until you’re sixty. What you need are simple reminders and habits.
“I’ve been skating for forty years” they will tell you. “I’ve broken my shin and my knee”, they will grin. What is it with these people? They come back to the skateboard, setback after setback, and what seems like a mediocre level. Huh? In reality, it’s combination of elements—accessibility, freedom, culture—which makes them skate way longer than you’d expect them to. It’s an obession.
Feeling a load of crap? Look no further. Sure, skating is a hassle when you feel like the shittiest person on earth, and you’ll think about giving up at least once, but you’ll always feel better afterwards. So tune in if you want some skate-endorphines :)
Got guts? Want to feel like a god? Simple: bomb a hill. But remember the three golden rules—go up the hill, fall backwards, and wear layers.
Skateboarding is hard. It’s even harder when your street is filled with potholes and you’re at risk of being mugged. In some cases though, these factors are not handicaps—they are propellers. The board becomes a focus. A focus that replaces illegal options. A focus that could end poverty. But is it that simple?
You want to be caliente? You want to get ALL the looks in the skatepark? Do these five tricks, and you might just be the next best thing.
Two really cool skate brands. One trophy of style. Who will get it: the French “Hélas” or the UK “Palace”?
“Daaaaamn, that trick was clean!” is something we hear often in skateboarding, but that we don’t try to define. “Style” is an impression or a feeling which results from a mix of things: skaters’ fluidity, body movement, spatial area... and much more.
One of the hardest... one of the cleanest... one of the BEST skate tricks out there—el Fakie Fs Flip. All you gotta do? Flip and turn. How you gonna do it? With a lot of confidence, special foot placement and weird body movements...
Skating faster is more than just being cool. It’s a way of tricking your brain into progressing, into minimizing effort and maximing reaction time. Just, don’t fall.