Glen Jones Interview - Skate Photographer Interview

Interview with Glen Jones, Photographer. |  by Sebastião Belfort Cerqueira

Swamp Ramps in Mississippi, punk rock in Minnesota, Glen Jones’ camera has been along for the ride since the early 80s. Now he’s in Portugal and he’s starting up an elementary school. Go sign your kids up.

Before we get into skate photography, which I know you do because you like it, would you let us know what you do for a living?

I’m a school teacher. I’m in Lisbon right now starting a new school. I’m an elementary Montessori school teacher. I’ve been doing that for about twenty-five years now.

Montessori is a teaching method, right?

It is a teaching method. It’s a very empowering teaching method for kids, it looks at the individual versus, you know, trying to teach the masses. It’s an educational approach that jibes really well with how I think teachers should teach. When I look back to all the great teachers I had growing up they all had these mannerisms and these ways of really looking at me as a person and not just another pupil. With Montessori that kind of mindset is ingrained in the approaches. I could talk on and on, do a whole interview about why I chose this as my field of work but it is a really good fit. I’m also trained as an archeologist, I was going down the route of being a professor and I found out I enjoyed working with children more than publishing and all that. I love digging in the dirt, I do it every time I can, I enjoy the fieldwork but I wasn’t cut out for the harsh reality of academia. I prefer my academia working with and inspiring young people. So, yeah, that’s that... now, skateboarding!

Yeah, let’s get into it. Of course the first question is: when did you start?

This all goes hand in hand with the photography. I had a skateboard as a young kid, around seven or eight, in the seventies when they were in the same shelf with the yo-yos and other toys. I had a drugstore board and I cruised around my driveway and the whole block. The eighties rolled by and I had a BMX bike and one day, probably about 81-82, a friend of mine said “You have to see this ramp where these guys are riding.” I went there and I was blown away. In this little town I grew up in, in Mississippi, Ocean Springs, not too far from New Orleans, there was this brilliant vert half-pipe and a couple of guys who were kingpins in the scene and who were really good. They were also the coolest guys ever, Dana Buck and Lindsey Kuhn. They are still in the skateboard world [Kuhn owns Conspiracy Skateboards]. So of course the next day I was showing up with my skinny seventies board and kind of getting laughed at, because they had the big pig boards, but I jumped right in, me and a few buddies. We were just inspired, so we got the bigger boards, put up with the razzing and became a part of that crew. We had a kind of Deep South Gulf Coast skater network in the eighties, going from New Orleans to St. Petersburg, Florida. Skateboarding was kind of dead and it was all backyard vert ramps. We had a really strong community and part of that was doing zines and shooting photos, so that’s where the camera came in.

I liked to play around with a camera when I was little. I had this cheap little 35mm and after my dad saw that I had real interest he gave me his Nikon F, which was a really well-made camera, and I still have it, I still use it. Then, my oldest sister was a photo journalist and for my thirteenth birthday she brought me her old darkroom. My birthday gift was her setting it up and teaching me how to use it. All that came together at the right time, when we were all skating and I wanted to document it. I love photography. I can’t draw very well but I can shoot photos and it’s always been an output, so I have documentation of everything, from seeing my friends’ crusty little punk rock bands to going to skate contests, writing for zines and shooting for zines, plus the road trips that we all took. I got to be known as the guy with the camera. I still have all these negative files and covid has allowed me some time to start scanning more of them.

When I grew up all the cool kids’ films were set in the fifties but now I realize the eighties have become this sort of mythical era for punk rock and skateboarding and people want to see these things. My girlfriend says I ought to write a book and get a real website going instead of just facebook or instagram. That’s something I look forward to doing but I don’t want to keep looking back, that’s for sure. Right now, I love supporting Trucks and Fins because they help get me around to these spots, to meet other skaters, and I’m pleased to take photos and try to help out in documenting skateparks, it’s a cool thing. I always bring my camera when we ride, I skate for half the time and take photos for half the time, probably more photography if I’m having an off session.

  • "In this little town I grew up in, in Mississippi, Ocean Springs, not too far from New Orleans, there was this brilliant vert half-pipe and a couple of guys who were kingpins in the scene and who were really good.
  • SEE PROFILE
Do you still have a darkroom set up?

Right now I have my changing bag and my development tanks and I scan the negatives. It’s a hybrid work form. I would like to get to a point where I could have a darkroom again because I do miss watching the images appear on the paper. But, you know, photography is such a thing... I do have my artsy side and I love capturing a good visual. But I guess if I had a style it would be not having one, I just like documenting everything. I haven’t had much instruction, mostly self-taught and my sister. When I was in high school I took a night class at a community college and was taught by an old, crusty photo journalist from Mobile, Alabama. He was chain-smoking I think even in the darkroom and was a crotchety old bastard but he was really good about his technique, he was all about the mechanics of it, really practical.

I’ve done a few shows with my work. The most fun I’ve had with that was just before moving to Portugal a year and a half ago, in an upstairs gallery above my friend’s skate shop back in Minneapolis. I’d been shooting all these images for years so I did a show with about one hundred and sixty prints but it was all meant to be left there. I gave instructions to the owner of the shop to keep the show up for a month and then give the photos to all the guys that were in those shots. That was my “thank you, Minnesota and skateboarding”. I had all these images and I just wanted to give back to a scene that was so good to me.

I’m getting really curious to see your older stuff. Because the photos you have on Trucks and Fins and on your instagram account struck me as being different from the usual skate photos. I don’t know if you’ve read the little essay I wrote on one of your photos, but I feel like there’s many where the skatepark is empty or maybe there’s someone riding but they’re not the focus of the picture at all, you get this overview where you can see the whole setting. I was wondering if that had anything to do with that joy of searching for and finding a new spot? 

Well, of course. I’d also say that stepping back and putting a skatepark or a scene into a larger perspective might be a more recent thing I’m doing. And I wasn’t really aware of that until you pointed it out but it has to do with that visual thrill of exploration and trying to put it into a context. It’s cool to be able to look at a park and be able to go “so that’s where it sits”. Instead of that one skater, that one rad trick, maybe as we get older we get a little bit more introspective and we see the bigger connection. But also being in Portugal, with the ocean right here, I’m sure that’s affecting the light. When I’m out I’m always noticing the colours and the light. So whenever I see that and I’m skating I always try to step back and be like “whoa, look at these trees in the background and the way it all ties together and everything.” Also, I’ve never had a super wide lens, so I’d have to lurk back a bit for fear of cropping limbs off or something and that might have had an effect on it. I think also for Trucks and Fins I tend to do that a bit more, but skateparks are amazing architectural features with all the lines and the curves and just trying to play around with that is fun.

I was planning on asking you whether seeing pictures in skate mags had had any influence on you wanting to take pictures or whether it had more to do with just wanting to document stuff. I get it from your story that it was mostly the documenting side of it.

Goodness, I had a little 110 Kodak camera in the seventies. I loved to just sneak around and take shots of my friends when they weren’t looking, you know, like playing spy. Later it was probably skateboarding and wanting to document that. And also wanting to fit in with the skateboarding crew. I was a bit younger and so I wanted a good reason to be around. Of course even after I got over these insecurities and I was skating with them I’d still always have a camera with me. I had a friend that used to laugh at me at shows and he’d say “yeah, next to the band, the guy with the camera is the next interesting person.” I was never able to play that up to my advantage.

Right now I’m really anxious to be able to go out and get lost in all of Portugal’s nooks and crannies, and to the eastern part of the country where it’s drier and rolling, and of course if there’s a bowl or a half-pipe or some place to skate I’ll shoot that as well.

There’s this writer called Elijah Wald, he has some really good books on the blues and on rock n’ roll. On one of them he says that he used to go to these dances when he was a kid and the guys who could dance always got all the girls. And so, as he couldn’t dance, he learned to play the guitar, which made him the next interesting guy. It’s kind of the same thing.

Of course, who doesn’t want to feel cool like “oh, I’m documenting this”. But now being older I’m just happy I did it. I just scanned some old band shots this past weekend and I had some of Babes in Toyland. And I know Lori [Barbero] and all of them and they love it when I post old shots. It’s good that we have those memories and it’s different, because that’s what everyone has now with their phones and everything. Doing it back then it was a little more select, maybe a little more special. I don’t know what’s going to happen to this generation when they’re my age and they have so much from their past to look at. It’s good to look back but also to keep going forward. There are some things I love about digital, it doesn’t seem as enduring. It gets done and stored into a digital file that could very well disappear, where film to me has this real physical permanence. So when I do go out and take skate shots today, I take my film camera with me but I wait ‘til the session is really happening, then I go back to my old film skills, where I just want to get two or three really good shots. I’m not a film-only elitist at all, I know what I like and I enjoy shooting both. Right now I’m really anxious to be able to go out and get lost in all of Portugal’s nooks and crannies, and to the eastern part of the country where it’s drier and rolling, and of course if there’s a bowl or a half-pipe or some place to skate I’ll shoot that as well.

It’s a good excuse to get around, right? You plan a roadtrip to go skate and have fun and you get to see the rest of it.

Yeah, it’s a little harder now, when you get older, but it was really the calling card back then, when skateboarding wasn’t as massive. You would roadtrip and connect, you’d get a hold of people and crash on couches and skate their ramps or bowls. I’d say every third weekend we’d go somewhere else just to meet up with friends and do that. Today it’s a little harder, not just because I’m older, but because back then you had such a small scene that you were really excited to meet another skater. I went to visit my sister in Minneapolis in 1983. I was at a mall and had my “Skate and Destroy” Thrasher t-shirt and this kid came up to me and asked me if I was skater then looked down and checked my shoes to kind of make sure. He was like “we got a half-pipe down the road” and gave me his number because he knew from my accent I was from out of town. He did exactly the same things we were doing down south. He had a skatezine and a backyard vert ramp, you know, the whole eighties skate kit you had back then, but it opened a door and I met people at that session the next day that I’m still friends with now. Today I don’t know if it’s as easy to make these connections, but it’s still exciting and vibrant. I go to the park down here in Estoril [Parque das Gerações] and despite some of the park design issues and the maintenance or whatever, it’s a really vibrant scene. You see whole families there watching and skating and it’s very different from when I grew up, where if you were a skater you might as well be an alien. Of course we also liked that because it made us rebels but I like that it’s now being seen as a viable thing to do. There’s the downside that it gets marketed more but I’ll take the good with the bad. I also really like to see so many girls riding because for so long, skateboarding was such a boys’ club. When you get a bunch of teenage boys together talking smack, it’s sometimes not the most respectful atmosphere, so it’s good that there’s this balancing factor coming forward.

When I started skating back in 99-2000, I never got deep enough into the skate scene where I got to travel and meet other skaters, but I know some people in Portugal have similar stories to yours. Still, to European eyes, there’s something about America being the place where it really happened, so there’s this sort of authenticity about your story that fascinates me, it’s like I’m watching the Nine Club.

The funny thing is I came from a really small town that was not tied into the scene but we had some guys that lived there that had been around. And we were about five, six hours from Texas, that really influenced southern skateboarding. I don’t know if you remember Zorlac Skateboards, Craig Johnson, John Gibson, but these guys would drop by our town whenever they went off towards the East coast. There was a small scene but when you showed up to other people’s ramps sometimes you’d see these pros you saw in the magazines, like Monty Nolder or John Gibson, and you learned really quickly they were skateboarders just like you, they were accessible. So some of my favourite memories have to do with befriending some of these pros and getting to go on roadtrips with them. We did feel cool but, still, I wouldn’t sell Portugal or Europe short. Even when the magazines were coming out back in the day, we’d read Transworld and they’d always seem to have some freestylist from Iceland, there was always some ditchy-looking skatepark in England. And we knew of the Swedish [Eurocana] skate camp where the Mctwist was figured out on one of the first big transition ramps. Then Spain too. I had a friend from the States who moved to Barcelona and that’s all he could talk about – street skating in Barcelona in the early 2000’s, how everyone was showing up there to ride. So, you know, I’d say Europe is a player, it might not get in the limelight but the stories are there, and I’m sure Portugal stories are there too. I bet there are some guys around that can really tell what it was like. Because I come from Mississippi in what we called a backwater scene there was safety in numbers, we all hung out together in a tight community and I can only imagine Portugal has a similar story. As it wasn’t that mainstream I’m sure the people who did it were probably more dedicated, so, yeah, find those people, I want to hear those stories.

I do have my artsy side and I love capturing a good visual. But I guess if I had a style it would be not having one, I just like documenting everything.

Yeah, it’s true, I’ve recently interviewed the skatepark builder João Sales and he sort of told me a similar story to yours, set here in Portugal. Speaking of skateparks, I’d like to go into your punk rock photography, but first I have to ask you about this skatepark you shot. It’s the weirdest skatepark I’ve seen, it’s fascinating and it just looks unskateable. Do you remember the Samora Correia skatepark?

Oh that one! It is unskateable. I don’t know if [T&F co-founder] Haroun told you my idea: in doing this tour we found some skateparks that are completely unskateable and that is the top one. What we need to do is have a Triple Crown Event over a couple of weekends, invite all the skaters over to ride these bad skateparks, and that one would be the crown jewel. Whoever designed that skatepark had no idea, no clue, and if you can do anything on it, you’re a great skater.

It really is amazing. I’m thinking Salvador Dali designed it. Because you get to recognize the features that you’d think naturally belong in a skatepark, like rails and stairs, but they’re all in the wrong places. It’s a surrealist skatepark.

I thought it was meant to be ironic. We just sat there for fifteen minutes looking at all the lines that could never happen. It was funny, but it’s also a sad commentary. Obviously that town had good intentions, I don’t want to be insulting nor mock people, but maybe next time they could talk with some skateboarders first. That park is so humorously wrong that you kind of have to go there just to get a good laugh. Yeah, I think it would be hilarious to throw a contest there to see what anyone could do. It would be fun, and it would also bring attention to better skatepark design. Any more questions?

Yeah, I’d like to get into the rock n’ roll part now. I saw some gear shots on your instagram page. Are you in a band?

Oh man, I used to be in a lot of bands. Once again, back in the eighties that was part of the whole skatepunk kit. You either got a bass or a guitar, I happened to be handed a bass. That was part of the image, I guess. In 1985 I was in a little punk rock band called Spastic Fury. I played with other things off and on, throughout the nineties, and I think my last gig with any sort of semblance of a group was about five years ago. I still play, I have a studio right here, with my amps and my instruments. Music for me is like a model train, I do it for my enjoyment and if I can pull it together and play something out live and people like it, great. One thing that excites me is that there are some really great musicians in Portugal. I’ve been following Tó Trips and I got to see the Dead Combo on what was going to be one of their last tours and then I saw his new band [Club Makumba]. His solo stuff – I love the dusty guitar, I love what he’s doing with all the variations... it’s Iberian, there’s some spaghetti western in there but there’s also a Portuguese sound. And then his new project, that drummer, wow, there’s something like these old Portuguese colonies sounds creeping in, these polyrhythms... it’s an interesting melting pot. So, yeah, I do look forward to meeting some musicians and throw some ideas around.

I was lucky to have some great musicians back home that I played with over the years. Those music scenes in the eighties and nineties were much like the skate scene, there was a community there. Again, with the camera I could have a foot in the door and then they’d find out I played bass as well and the next thing you know I got set up in a band or two. I probably have as much music stuff and band shots from that era as I do skateboarding.

I was lucky to have some great musicians back home that I played with over the years. Those music scenes in the eighties and nineties were much like the skate scene, there was a community there.

Did you get to shoot any bands you really really liked?

Oh yeah... I mean, who didn’t love Fugazi? I caught their first tour camera in hand. But the funny thing is, when I first moved to Minnesota, after high school, I was living in this punk rock house and bands were always crashing on our couch. Once there was a band coming from California and they were having a hard time getting a gig in town. They ended up playing in my friends Chad and Josh’s basement for about twenty of us, and that was Green Day. And that’s actually where the singer met his future wife Adrienne. She was this cool, punk rock... well, goddess, if you will. Small world, her brother is Steve Nesser, the old Birdhouse pro, and that’s how close these scenes are. Lots of overlap.

But yeah, I do have some band shots like that. I’m trying to think of bands I like... I’ve got a couple of good, crusty shots of Mark E. Smith in one of his many reincarnations of The Fall. Phenomenal... There’s a club in Minneapolis called the 7th Street entry, it’s an institution, and there’s a corner next to the stage where there’s a little bit of brick sticking out and you can stand on that with your heels and lean up against one of the bass monitors in the ceiling and kind of wedge yourself in there. For about three or four years when I was first living there and going to shows religiously, that was my corner and so I have many shots from that tight corner, looking out at bands.

So yeah, I guess I love music too. And maybe if I did one thing, I could catch up and actually finish one thing. Of course my main work has been my profession, which is teaching. The skateboarding I love, I still do, not as much as I’d like to. The bass playing I enjoy, I plug in about every other day, occasionally I write my own melodies and songs. And yes there’s the photography. Maybe if I quit three of those and just focus on one I could finish something. I’m sure when the time comes and I kick the bucket I’m gonna have fifty unfinished projects and that’ll be my epitaph “almost got it done but...”

I’m sure that won’t happen. But it’s a cheery note to wrap this up on. Is there anything you’d like to add?

I covered a lot of ground, thank you for the opportunity, because I haven’t talked about this stuff in a long time. But I’m happy to share and if after seeing my photos you have any more questions, just let me know.

Thanks, Glen.

By Sebastião Belfort Cerqueira

I like skateboarding as a hobby, not a job

William Montgomery rides particularly good. Or better: Big Chicken shreds, already with a signature. He’s just seven years old but has already visited more than 75 skateparks from coast to coast in the United States of America, during his school holidays. “It’s fun to roll quietly through airports”, he says, never forgetting the most important thing: skateboarding is for fun. Meet this very special Trucks and Fins’ skatepark hunter. So, William, first tell us about your nickname: why ‘big chicken’, what’s the story behind it? My dad got a Big Chicken Beer sticker from henhouse brewery in Santa Rosa, and I put it on my helmet, and we decided it should be the name for my Instagram account.   Explain a bit more about the drawing on your helmet. Who made it? It is a Nutcase helmet with a bunch of travel and skate stickers on it that I have collected. You have visited about seventy-five parks. How did you manage your time with school stuff and other activities? Exploring the Bay Area on weekends (we have a lot of spots) and taking my board with me on holidays. Fun to roll quietly through airports. Can you choose the best skatepark from all these seventy-five? No, but I really liked Vans Huntington Beach, Woodward Tahoe, Fremont, Cookeville and Potrero.  In the last couple of months, you have travelled from coast to coast. Was that all planned? How did you program your tour? I just go wherever my mom plans (we like to travel) and then my dad helps me go to skateparks while there :) When did you start to skate? Tell us a bit of your personal story, and about your dreams regarding skateboarding. I started in April 2020. I saw my friend Jack’s skateboard and wanted one, so my parents got a penny board for me, and I used it at Shredders Skate Camp. Big thanks to Chris there for encouraging me.  He said I was good and my dad’s friend Mark gave me a bigger board. Reese Forbes then taught me to go fast and the guys at Potrero help me. I like skateboarding as a hobby, not a job.   Considering we are a community-focused directory, tell us how important are skatepark hunters like you for the people around the world who like to find new spots to ride and new places to discover.  My dad likes Trucks and Fins, especially when we travel to new places like Portugal, so we don’t travel to a boring one. I like to see parks to ride before going, so I can imagine what I can do there. Instagram Big Chicken

Read More

My top 3 skateparks in the world - by Pro Skater Dora Varella

So what are the favourite parks of famous, professional skaters? We reached out to one of the best skaters in the international circuit to ask for her top 3 skateparks in the world, outside of her native country, Brazil. USA, Norway, and Dubai are the hotpots on the map. 3 bucket list skate travel destinations by Brazilian pro skater Dora Varella. If you are a top Brazilian skater, it means you are one of the best in the world. The ‘Brazilian storm’ is no longer a slogan just for surfers, because boys, girls, men and women born in this great country are dominating the skateboarding scene thanks to a unique soul and an expansional energy. Dora Varella is a Brazilian skater who is currently killing it, with her skating and contagious vibe. At the age of 21, she’s on top10 World Skate ranking. She has recently won the STU Park in Brazil (the Brazilian circuit) in Criciúma, and the qualification to Paris-2024 is one of her main goals. Dora Varella by Júlio Defeton Dora finished 7th in park competition in Tokyo-2020 Olympics. She was this close to reach the podium, but there was another trophy that she and the other finalists won: a fair play award for the empathy toward Japanese Misugo Okamoto, raising her on their shoulders after she failed an important manoeuvre that could get her a medal. She started to cry immediately, but thanks to this natural and spontaneous collective attitude the tears were gone and Misugu started to smile again. This is the kind of image that makes skateboarding different from other sports. And that’s why we find on Dora Varella’s official website this headline - that can summarize the spirit of something that is much more than a sport: “Skateboarding has taught me many lessons: cheering for others doesn’t stop you from winning; treating all people with respect despite the differences transforms your own existence; if you fall, get up, like in everything else in life”. Dora Varella by Eduardo Brás Millions of skaters fall and get up again like her, and many of them are always looking for new spots outside their cities, countries and even continents. Like Dora, too. With eleven years of skateboarding experience and being a professional since 2017, this pro skater from São Paulo was asked by Trucks and Fins to choose her top 3 skateparks in the world, outside Brazil, that could inspire users around the globe. She kindly said yes. So these are ‘Dora Varella’s top 3 skateparks in the world’: XDubai skatepark A 3,200 m2 facility in Dubai, the largest in the United Arabe Emirates. Set on a beachfront location, it’s good for beginners and professionals. Definitely a must-go spot. Visit XDubai skatepark Oslo Skatehaal indoor skatepark A 2,300m2 indoor skatepark with a 840m2 outdoor area in Voldsløkka, Oslo, capital of Norway. Ordered by the local City Hall, it features a full-size vert, the kind of challenge for someone who has already dropped Bob Burnquist’s ramp in California. Visit Oslo skatehaal California Training Facility Located in California, USA. It’s a high-performance centre developed specifically for skateboarding, incubating future world champions. But is has room for amateurs, throughout special programs designed to teach everyone who dares to get their feet on a skateboard. Visit California Training Facility skatepark Dora Varella by Anderson Tuca Take the advice. Valeu, Dora! See all the skateparks in the world Instagram Dora Varella

Read More

The Mystery of the Belmonte Bowl in Portugal

Skateboarding in Portugal Quandary in the Quarry - The Mystery of the Belmonte Bowl.  It’s a kidney shaped bowl, wrapped around a half-pipe that leads to a fullpipe ending in a cradle BELMONTE SKATEPARK The village of Belmonte (population: ca. 3500) lies towards the northeastern part of Portugal. It’s head of a rural municipality where you can find about 54 people per square kilometre and where they’re highly likely to be advanced in years, as the ratio of elderly to young people is close to 3:1. Towards the northeastern part of the village, not far from the local Intermarché supermarket, there’s a small residential neighbourhood facing an abandoned quarry. Inside this quarry sits one of the biggest skate bowls in the world.   It’s a kidney shaped bowl, wrapped around a half-pipe that leads to a fullpipe ending in a cradle. The pictures should help make this clearer. It’s close to 4 metres deep and has almost a full metre of vert all around. There are oververt extensions over a metre tall. It’s a beast of a thing, especially when you consider the standards of skateboarding and skateparks in Portugal. Anyone that sees it immediately asks himself “What the hell is this doing here?” And it seems to me to be a fair, reasonable question. Anyway, when faced with a Portuguese skate-related mystery, there’s always one thing you can do, and that’s call up Luís Paulo. This dude was the first Portuguese skater ever to get sponsored, one of the few to have met Tony Hawk and the only one to have done an aerial over him, so he’s been in the game for a bit and knows his shit. I thank him for giving us the lowdown on this one. Apparently the whole idea came from the Belmonte Municipality. They are close to Serra da Estrela, the only ski resort in Portugal, where there’s also quite a bit of downhill biking and hang gliding going on in the summer, so they figured a skatepark would attract some of that crowd and get some more visitors to come to the village. Not a bad intuition other skateparks in Portugal See all SKATEPARKS However, as it often happens, they didn’t consult any skateboarders before diving into the project. At the time, the largest skatepark in the world had just been built in Shanghai (SMP Skatepark – it’s since been surpassed by the one in Guangzhou) and the architects hired to do the job in Belmonte decided to take inspiration from one of its sections. They did an impressive job: the bowl is nicely tucked inside the quarry walls, the transition is good and the full pipe and cradle look amazing. The only problem is that vert skaters in Portugal are thin on the ground. They did build a street section above the bowl, but unfortunately they didn’t study this subject as well as the transition bit, and it’s just unskateable. As it is, the Belmonte Skatepark, which was inaugurated in April of 2011, is about to celebrate its tenth anniversary with a still pristine coping. We have seen examples of what can go down at that bowl when the right people find it, but they’ve been few and far between. In 2012, Jake Phelps and the Thrasher crew (P-Stone, Rhino) came by and brought Peter Hewitt, Pedro Barros, and Grant Taylor for some serious ripping. One year later the Carve Wicked team (Sam Pulley, Alex Perelson, Sam Beckett, Rob Smith, etc.) also dropped some hammers. But the place can take it. In fact, it’s begging for it. If you’re into big walls, start planning that trip and type this into your GPS.

Read More

10 best skateparks in Spain - Discover what spots are bucket list travel destinations

How do you define the best 10 skateparks in a country? It's definitely not an easy task to choose only 10 out of a total of 1071 skateparks we currently have found in Spain. The last couple of years I have been travelling quite a bit around Spain, mapping out spots for Trucks and Fins and in total I was able to visit and take photos of 425 skateparks. "So what are my top 10 spots in Spain" people ask me regularly. Making a top 10 list, I guess, also depends a bit if you have a preference for street or transition skateboarding. In my case, I like my bowls... So, here they go. Mar Bella skatepark Located next to the C. A. Canaletes Sant Martí sports centrum in Barcelona you'll find our first bucket list spot: Mar Bella skatepark. The skatepark is made up of a bowl, an enormous snake run and small street area.  Visit Mar Bella skatepark Camas skatepark Another spot I personally think deserves a spot on the top 10 is Camas skatepark near Sevilla, built in 2019 and designed by Daniel Yabar. Camas skatepark is a large concrete skatepark featuring a bowl and a street area packed with obstacles and lines.  Visit Camas skatepark Torrejón de Ardoz skatepark Torrejón de Ardoz skatepark is a 1400 square meter concrete park, featuring a bowl and large street area, built and designed by ZUT skateparks in 2008. The skate park is located next to a large and extensive pumptrack.  Visit Torrejon de Ardoz skatepark Cullera skatepark South of Valencia is another transition focused park I really enjoyed with a 5 star vibe: Cullera skatepark, built by Copinramps in 2019. Fun park to cruise along, with some unic obstacles, but difficult to skate when it's crowded.  Visit Cullera skatepark Guineueta Canyelles Skatepark  Another spot you can't miss in Spain, is Guineueta Canyelles skatepark in Barcelona. The skatepark was built by IOSkateparks and Ramps and Vulcanoskateparks and features three bowls, a long snake run, and a street area.  Visit Guineueta Canyelles skatepark Nepal skatepark If you like transition and want to see some local rippers in action, then make sure to head over to Extremadura Park in Madrid. Nepal skatepark in Alcobendas, designed by Daniel Yabar, is one of the most historic skateparks in Spain. It is known amongst locals as “Nepal” because of the extreme cold in the winter and views of the mountains near Madrid. Visit Nepal skatepark Tres Cantos skatepark Tres Cantos skatepark is a 1000 square meter gem built by ZUT skateparks in 2018. The park features a concrete skatepark and an asphalt pumptrack.  Visit Tres Cantos skatepark Ruben Alcantara Malaga skatepark Ruben Alcantara Malaga skatepark is a 10,000 square meters sports facility for BMX, Skate, Roller and Scooter. The skatepark features a worldwide famous bowl designed by the two-time world champion Rider Rubén Alcántara, a halfpipe, miniramp, a street plaza, concrete pumptrack and a BMX dirt track with three lines. Visit Ruben Alcantara skatepark La Kantera Skatepark La Kantera is Spain's most inconic skatepark, aka Algorta park, built in 1987, thanks to the initiative of a group of local surfers and skaters. In the beginning legends like Txus Domínguez, Alain Goikoetxea, Ivan Fano, Afonso Fernandez etc turned La Kantera into the Mecca of skate in Spain, inspiring the following generations of skaters. 35 years later the park is still a worldwide reference for its radical and creative approach to skateboarding. Visit La Kantera skatepark Ramputene DIY skatepark In the Basque country, in Donostia San Sebastian, located under a bridge overpass you have Ramputene DIY skatepark that definitely deserves a place in the top 10 ten because of all the love and work put into this spot. Don't forget to support the local cause and keep it clean. Visit Ramputene DIY skatepark See all skateparks in Spain

Read More

A skateboard is the best thing you can take with you on travel adventures

Trucks and Fins welcomes Bros Around The Globe who will share with us their inspiring travel adventures. In their first blog you will get a comprehensive perspective on how traveling and skateboarding share the same ‘mantra’: freedom and connecting people. So simple. So pure. So healthy. If you’ve stumped upon this, chances are you’re thinking about bringing your skateboard with you on your next trip. And if you haven’t thought about packing it, you should, because you’ll probably regret it if you don’t. As a skater, a skateboard is the best thing you can take with you on a travel adventure, besides well, your skate shoes, of course. Whether you’re heading out to the next town over or abroad to a new country when you take your board with you, the possibilities are endless, and Trucks and Fins can navigate the skate along the way or even help find a place to stay.  Though it may feel awkward to carry and seem like extra weight at first, the benefits of bringing your skateboard will soon reveal themselves in more ways than one. Between waiting for buses, taxis, trains, and all the downtime that travel provides, your board is sure to keep you occupied when you're not seeking out new skate spots or exploring a new city on four wheels. With a board in tow, you have the ability to get from point A to point B, all while expressing the creative outlet we call skateboarding. As you hit the streets to take in the new sights, sounds, and smells, the pure joy from kicking, pushing, and rolling in a foreign place is a feeling second to none.  “Skaters respect other skaters no matter where they may find themselves in the world and there’s a special connection in a shared passion and lifestyle” Besides skating legendary spots, parks, and plazas, you’ll quickly learn your skate doubles as a universal language for making new friends. Not to mention it helps you navigate language barriers and tap into skating’s tight-knit subculture. Skaters respect other skaters no matter where they may find themselves in the world and there’s a special connection in a shared passion and lifestyle. Skating knows no boundaries, no borders, nor skin colour because every skater knows how much, blood, sweat, tears, and time goes into the learning process. When you meet other skaters, there’s an unspoken bond that brings high fives and high vibes in whatever corner of the globe you may find yourself in.  Skating can be a tool to clear one’s mind, let off steam, challenge yourself, be present, and rediscover the learning process. Besides helping you get around, it’s a useful tool to have when traveling long-term and can be all the above and more. You may even inspire others to get on a board or help a groom cruise for the first time. Each skate mission will give you a glimpse into the local skate culture and diversity of skaters worldwide. You’ll meet new friends, skate legendary spots you can only dream of, and make memories to last you a lifetime. All made possible by a wooden toy and the desire to ride.  “Becoming friends with locals is always a powerful travel experience, leaving you with the feeling that you were fully immersed and a part of the city” When you arrive at a new destination, just show up at the local, and you’ll be in the neighbourhood crew before you know it. Young or old, beginner or professional, skateparks serve as places for people of different backgrounds to interact with each other. When you’re on the road, stopping by the skatepark or DIY spot is one of the best ways to take in the vibe of a unique place and meet new people. No matter where you are in the world, skaters are gonna skate. Becoming friends with locals is always a powerful travel experience, leaving you with the feeling that you were fully immersed and a part of the city, town, or village you were visiting. On your journey, you can’t forget to make a stop to support the local skate shop. Around the world, skate shops serve as a catalyst for developing and sustaining the local skate community. It's a place to gather and chop it up to gain some insight into what you should really see and do in a new place. When traveling, the best advice is always from people who actually live there. A skate shop is the root of a city’s skate culture, and it brings people together. Skate shops are much more than a storefront, they support real people and put their money back into the local skate scene. Skate shops around the world always have a welcoming atmosphere that illustrates just how vibrant the skate community is. “Travel and skating are all about freedom, creativity, and thinking outside the box. When you combine the two, you’ll experience the best of both worlds” Traveling with a board taught me how skateboarding and traveling are similar in many ways. Through both, you must be present and only concentrate on the now. Skateboarding, like traveling, has always taught me about patience, persistence, never giving up, and mental toughness. Both prepare you to adjust when a mistake arises and to keep trying when something doesn't go your way. They teach you to adapt when things don't go correctly and push you out of your comfort zone to try new things. On the road or on your board, there’s a humbling feeling when you fail or fall down, leaving you to get back up and do it again through sheer determination.  Freedom, creativity, and individuality are values of skateboard culture. There is no question that skaters are unrelentingly dedicated to the progress of the sport and welcome anyone who has the courage to get on board. The skate community is built on mutual respect. Instead of one-upping each other, skaters continually encourage each other and embrace their differences, something ever so prevalent when you travel the world with your board. Travel and skating are all about freedom, creativity, and thinking outside the box. When you combine the two, you’ll experience the best of both worlds.  So when it comes to packing for that next trip, make sure you leave enough room to bring your board. Your skateboard will take you to places you could only dream of and give you memorable experiences that will stay with you long after your adventure is concluded. With 85 million skaters around the world, you’ll be sure to find your tribe when you travel, and all you’ll need is your board.  Website Bros around the Globe Instagram Bros around the globe

Read More

The New Milharado skatepark in Portugal is almost ready

FRESH Wasteland concrete in Mafra, Portugal. We reached out to João Sales of Wasteland Skateparks to find out more.  Introduce us to the park - tell us its name, where it is, what kind of park will it be (more street-oriented, just a bowl, a plaza...), its approximate dimensions, if it's already open to the public, that sort of stuff. The initial idea was to build a bowl in the Parque Desportivo Municipal de Mafra sports complex. The project was handed out to a random architect, but the measurements were all wrong and the plan was a bit of a mess. That's when we were contacted to do a budget for the project. We told the city hall that we know the local skater community well. Building a huge bowl in that area would be a mistake, because we have build a flow bowl nearby in Venda do Pinheiro. The boys in the area need some street obstacles there too. So, later the contractor asked us to build a different thing. We made a lot of different proposals and the city hall kept on shrinking the area, until they accepted the final project. There is still no date for the official opening, but it's going to be soon, somewhere in August! The concrete is ready, but the park around it still needs it final touches. So hold your horses for a couple more days. Is there any feature that you're particularly happy with, that came out really nice or is really fun to skate? We kind of feel sorry about the space and feel frustrated because all the decisions made did not evolve the skater community in the Mafra area. Anyway, we were able to turn a small park into a fun little set of good quality concrete.  Any dream trick or link you'd like to see go down in any of the park's features or areas? We hope to see happy faces at the park. Hopefully the park will provide an area were local kids can progress. That would be a "dream trick" for us. Visit Mafra Skatepark Visit Wasteland Skateparks

Read More

SIGN-UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER

Join the Trucks and Fins community and receive exclusive news, giveaways, access to subscribers-only
-contests, discounts from our partners and much more directly from us!

Advertisment

Testimonials

Sponsored By

Cookie Policy

This website uses cookies or similar technologies, to enhance your browsing experience and provide personalized recommendations. By continuing to use our website, you agree to our Privacy Policy.