When We Was Rad: Skateboard History from UK Vintage Magazine

This was still a long way before the era of skateboard shops in prime locations. At this point it was still a few dedicated pioneers who kept us all supplied. They supplied much more than just equipment: shops were the real focal point for many local scenes in a time when ramps and parks were still very hard to find.

Good solid skating. 1991 was a wonderful time, when street skating really was starting to come together. Although my vision of skateboarding was formed on ramps and skateparks in the dark ages, the street explosion of the early nineties was a wonderful time for me.

Years skating: 2 years Where from: Hackney Skate with: Curtis McCann, Tony Luckhurst, Si, and my little brother, Isaac Where: South Bank mostly and around my area — there are a few good spots here, but sometimes you get a bit of trouble from people Current set-up: At the moment I’m riding a Powell Franky Hill, Independent trucks and Real wheels. It’s fully rad: the Real Wheels are small and light and the Powell board’s really sturdy with a good pop on them, and it feels really comfortable beneath my feet Favourite board in the past: A New Deal Andrew Morrison with Indys and Spitfires Working on: Front foot Ollie impossibles, backside lipslides on benches and stuff — I can do them on curbs, but I’m trying to progress onto higher things — and a lot of push-it, fiddly tricks on flatland Rate: Tony Luckhurst, Curtis, Rudy Johnson Music: Fully — Jungle Brothers, Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul Food: Yeah! Taco Bell! Rad! Favourite skate video: At the moment the H Street bootleg Plans: If a sponsor comes, it comes, but I’m not really bothered about that at the moment. Just skate as much as possible, finish school and then hopefully skating will play an even bigger part in my life. Travel: The first comp I went to in Scotland, I came fourth and that was OK. Hopefully I’m going to the Eindhoven contest and I do want to travel so much. It’s fun, meeting all the new people. It’s one of the bits about skating that I enjoy the most. Why’s skating important to you: The satisfaction of learning a new trick and making it, and when I’ve done a trick, hearing somebody go “Rad” — that makes me feel good. What could improve skating most for you: A lot of people say there are too many little grommets around, but we were all grommets at one stage… What frustrates me most in skating is not making simple tricks — little tricks that I would be able to do if I was by myself every single go. Last words: If I didn’t mention somebody who I’m really good friends with, I’d just like to say ‘Hello’ and ‘keep on skating’ and also “Hi, Mum and Dad”

Winstan Whitter went on to make the best film on British skateboarding I have ever seen. Here he is in an Intro from 1991. The year highlights one of the most impressive aspects of his work: Rollin Through the Decades gets the spirit of the earlier decades exactly right even though they are before Winstan’s time. It’s a remarkably professional bit of research and film making. There were relatively few people involved in skating in the dark ages and it was a different world from the one in which skateboarding has gone mainstream. Winstan tracked those people down and let them talk. He gave the subject space and he didn’t reinterpret what was said. Very rare.
Anyway, this is what Winstan had to say in 1991:

Years skating: 3 years Where do you live: Hackney Where do you normally skate: South Bank Rate: Hensley, Jason Lee, Curtis and Sam Who do you normally skate with: Sam, and everyone at the South Bank Is it true that there’s an attitude problem at the South Bank: A bit — sometimes people talk about you behind your back. All these rumours get spread around Favourite video: Not the New H Street Video Music: Anything really — the music from skate videos Food: Anything Sponsors: Life Current set-up: Life Ron Allen, Indys and H Street Revolution wheels Tricks you’re working on: 540° tail-grabs, frontside 360° tail-grabs… Favourite trick that you do: 360° Ollie tail grabs Newest trick: 360° One-foots to fakie — I learnt those at Uxbridge Do you skate ramp a lot: I haven’t skated ramp for months, but I just got back into them. I’m going to get into vert this summer as well Raddest thing seen (live): Gonz doing a 180° 50/50 down Shell Centre Travel: I want to go to Münster this summer, quite a lot of us are going Have you ever invented a trick in your head: I made up frontside Ollie shove-its before I’d seen other people doing them If you had to shoot someone, who would it be: I’ll have to pass on that one Favourite sweet: Maltesers If you had your own board, what would it be shaped like: It would have a big nose, a roundish tail, a bit of a pointed nose and pretty straight rails Do you think they’ll ever get rid of the skaters at the South Bank: I don’t think they will. I heard they were going to put the slabs back where they’ve dug them up, because of people walking through with stiletto heels. They’ll leave the bars there though. Worst slam: I’ve never broken anything and I’m quite stoked with that. My worst slam was on a lipslide on a grind bar and I landed on my back with my fingers underneath and bent them right back and sprained them. I tweak my ankles a lot, like on nose-bumps when you go to do it and your foot slips off Are there any places which have gone that you really miss: South Bank! The banks: how good was the hip? And the atmosphere. That’s what I’d like to get back again.

If you haven’t seen the film, please go over to the Rollin Through the Decades official site and take a look. Buy a DVD while you’re there.

Why do I feel odd writing about this page in the knowledge that Jagger reads (and contributes to) this blog? It wouldn’t have seemed odd publishing the page itself in the first place and of course we assumed that he would read it. I think this is another example of the way the nature of on-line publishing is fundamentally different. The link between writer and reader is two-way and I start to feel self-conscious.
So here’s what we said then:

Years skating: 5 years Home: Codsall, near Wolverhampton Where: Aston Banks, and any nice wide mini ramp like Bury Who with: Benny, Zippy, Tom and all my friends from round the country when I see them Current set-up: Real Blank-blank, Indys and Street Razors Working on: Backside Ollie nose-blunts, doing things longer and faster Is going fast important to you: Yeah… Favourite tricks: Backside Smith flappies (number one street trick) and nose-bump grinds as well. If you had to shoot someone, who would it be: Cliff Richard Favourite sweet: I can’t think, I like loads, put everything Does skateboarding help you pull: No Video: Don’t ask me that What would you like to be asked: I don’t know…. Music? Alright: A lot of music, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Junior, some Hip-hop, funk stuff — Funkadelic and Parliament Funniest thing that’s happened recently: Me and Benny were going up the escalators at the station and this bloke standing in front of us kept farting Travel: I go all round the country and this year I’m going to Europe for a month Favourite skaters: Mark Gonzales, number one, Steve Claar, Davy Philip and Tom (the Curb King of Birmingham) Do you look up to people: I look up to anyone who stands over six feet tall One thing which would make skating better for you: A nice indoor wide mini ramp in Birmingham Dislikes: I hate it when you go somewhere and you’re trying to be nice to people and they treat you like you’re being freaky. Or you go somewhere and you’re not talking so they think you’ve got an attitude, so they don’t talk and you think they’ve got an attitude Anything to say to the nation: No, not really: leave me alone.

I met loads of great people through skateboarding. Jagger is one of them.

I glazed over when I saw this kind of thing back then. Now I wonder about it. Even here there’s stuff going on: two skateboard shops in Banbury? Spice of Life in Southend? What’s the story behind this kind of thing?