The freebord pro team talks to this police officer who explains the laws of the city for skateboarding and tells about his fame from other skate videos. Photo by: Leecifer

You’re skating your favorite hill when “Johnny Law” rolls up on you. It turns out someone called reporting skateboarders on “their” hill. After a lecture explaining the laws (which vary from city to city) you are issued a ticket for being a pedestrian in the roadway.

“Here’s your lift ticket,” says the police officer. Your day which was going good so far just got expensive. All the fun you were having is drowned and a damper is thrown on your day.

This ticket was issued on a road with no sidewalks, no bike lane and cyclists riding up and down the road. No one is worried about the cyclists. They are free to roam and do their thing while you are treated like a criminal. Skateboarders are unfairly singled out although a skateboard can be used for transportation as well as recreation while bicycles are used for mostly recreation.

Skateboarding has been around since the 1950′s. As the sport began to increase in popularity, its sub culture grew and law enforcement looked at these kids as punks and criminals.

Police officers, security guards and concerned citizens are constantly harassing skaters. A fun run down a hill shouldn’t turn into a lecture about the danger of the sport and how many people are killed participating in it nor should it become an issue about who owns the street. The amount of cyclists killed every year is far greater than the number of skateboarders.

A stereotype about skaters is that they run around spray-painting everything and destroying stuff, breaking into places and stealing. Sure there are criminals and punks who skateboard, but this doesn’t mean that all skateboarders fall under this category.

“Stop skating immediately” bellowed the police helicopter flying above Michael Melone (left) and Jordan Hessler (right). Photo By: Leecifer

It is a sport that requires a great deal of balance and athleticism. Most people will have a hard time standing on the board let alone riding it down hills and flipping it in controlled spins through the air.

Southern California has a thriving multimillion dollar action sports industry, yet people still want skateboarding banned in their cities. They want the streets to themselves for the few times they drive up and down each day.

We view the world differently than most people. Each city is its own playground.

“Go home” said the cop to a group of skaters ready to bomb the 50 mph rollercoaster ride. Photo by: Leecifer

Every skateboarder shares one thing in common. We have all felt the pure thrill and joy of riding around town with nothing but a piece of wood and wheels between you and the road. It is one of the best feelings in the world. The adrenaline is flowing, you can feel the wind whipping against you as your shirt flaps behind you and at that moment nothing else matters.

Skateboarding in certain areas is like being in a war zone. It is you versus everyone else. No skateboarding signs litter city streets. “You are not allowed to have fun here,” is how I read the signs. You must be ready for any situation, even the occasional pissed off parent.

The sport is rapidly growing and acceptance for it is slowly increasing. Skate parks are being built so people have designated places to go. Skateboarders are still looked at as punk kids, when in reality it is just your normal everyday person trying to enjoy their lives and the sport they choose to participate in.

What is better than a sport with no rules, where you are free to do what you want all while having fun doing it? – Leecifer

Photos by: Leecifer

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Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself. Graphic by Stephen Johnson

Cracked skulls, brain damage, and death are some of the things that can happen from not wearing a helmet, and many new or inexperienced riders still choose ride without one. Most do so following the example of several professional riders.

Professionals have an uncanny way of balancing. They know where they are in the air and it seems as if they can easily catch their falls with their hands and feet.

A large majority of those professionals have also taken major crashes resulting in various types injuries, even they aren’t invincible.

Within the past five years, we have had many of our fellow riders killed or permanently injured due to accidents involving riders not wearing helmets. Just go talk to an emergency room trauma nurse about the severity and number of injuries that could have been prevented if the victim had been wearing a helmet, it is appalling.

Watch some videos on the Internet of kids hitting their heads and you will see some pretty graphic images, you might just get scared into wearing one.

Wearing a helmet shows a sign of intelligence. It shows that you are smart enough to want to protect your brain. If younger kids see you wearing a helmet they will be more likely to wear theirs, especially if they look up to you. This means you could potentially be helping protect the lives of young riders.

I went to the skate park recently and there were a total of three of us wearing helmets, and about 15 kids not wearing helmets. About six of those kids had brought helmets, but left them on the side with their stuff while they skated. Some of them were doing some pretty fast, big tricks. It was unclear to me whether they would decide to actually put it on.

If you have ever attempted to ride a skateboard down ramps, or even your driveway for the first time, then you will know that if your balance is a little of you are in danger of flying back and hitting your head. Keeping your balance is not as easy as it looks unless you have many hours logged on board.

Most professional extreme sports athletes do not don helmets, and set extremely terrible examples for riders of all abilities, mainly young newcomers. After all, you don’t want to stand out as the new kid when you’re young. You want to be like your favorite skater and be exactly like them.

There are multitudes of skate, snowboard, BMX, and rollerblade videos with sponsored professionals not wearing helmets. In the videos they pull off tricks that are extremely difficult, making them look easy. So easy, that after watching it, an attempt might be made, leaving you to find out how difficult it actually is.

Protective gear is especially important for inexperienced riders, or people who are pushing their limits; trying something they haven’t done before.

Frankie doing the right thing

Losing your balance can easily happen with any extreme sport, and unexpected elements can come into play at any time.

It is always good to be prepared for the worst, and wearing a helmet while participating in these activities is a great way to accomplish this. After all a crash isn’t usually something you’d expect or want to happen… it just does. – Leecifer

As extreme sports addicts we also become adventurers, explorers and outdoors enthusiasts. We are always looking for a new place to shred through exploring maps, or driving aimlessly towards a shreddable looking location.

The breathtaking places our sports take us, the adventure’s we have. Told to those who were not there through pictures and video’s but epic memories which will not be forgotten are engraved into our brains. It’s engraved in that special spot reserved for the best times of our life.These memories are not forgotten and they become stories to share with your grandchildren. Yea, Grandpa used to be cool.

The search for the next biggest, most fun road is always on. We challenge you to go out and explore your town. Search through Google Earth for a road that could potentially be fun, then go shred it. The most important thing about skateboarding or whatever adrenaline fueled activity you partake in is the fact that it’s fun.

We do this because it is an escape from reality. It is our real life video games. The things we do where we don’t have to think about what we left behind in our lives, we don’t have to think about work. The peace, the serenity. We aren’t crazy like most people think. We are adventurers who take calculated risks. Life is dangerous. Go out and live life to it’s fullest.

The So Cal Represent Ride was an absolute blast. The Dethbox came down from San Francisco full of shredders and freebords. We met at Talega August 20th for a rad day of shredding.

The turnout was pretty good. There were many So Cal Freeborders who were new to the scene and the whole Edge Boardshop team came out as well as a number of other downhill skaters.

Austin “Gooner” Lin’s all business talking on his iPhone while shredding some gnar.

We all had a great time with some pretty epic crashes. Bently Anderson tried to predrift a turn on a downhill skateboard several times and gave up after he was tired of crashing. It was funny to watch the downhill skateboarders trying to freebord for their first times. Andrew Schumaker, Joe Marshall, Danny Connor, Mason McGhee and whoever else tried it. Everyone gave up after many failed attempts.

Everyone’s so happy to be at the So Cal Represent Ride

All in all it was a great day with great people. Everyone was stoked, shredding, lurking and having fun. Thanks to everyone who came out. -Leecifer

Shane Morines shredding into the big hairpin left

When you have a growing and innovative sport like freebording, gather up all the best riders in the sport and take them on a trip, epic times are to be had.

Arnaud de Bluze (green shirt) leads with Bently Anderson (blue shirt) Tom Macfarlane (black shirt) Tyler Murgo (grey shirt) Nicolas Gaillard (blue sweatshirt)

Traveling south through L.A and finding a great hill with fresh wet slurry on it was fustrating. It was time for the team to head farther south to Orange County.

Arnaud de Bluze (left) and Arnaud Blin (right) shredding down Summit

After finding some of the best hills in Southern California it was not long before the cops came to tell us to leave. They told us about a ban on hills in the city and gave us a pamphlet showing all the banned hills.

The cops came to try to stop all our fun telling us about the roads being banned

Thinking we had won after finding a hill that wasn’t on the list the Dethbox (Freebord van) crashed into a parked Mustang.

The Dethbox eats up a Mustang

It was time to move on to other hills. Heading down south to a popular road in San Clemente everyone got some shredding in without being hassled.

From right to left. Corey Lucero followed by Bently Anderson and Richie Verost shredding Talega

The trip wouldn’t be complete without a trip to the skate park. The shreddage and elbow/hip/ass carnage was exhilerating to watch.

Nicolas Gaillard does a 360 at San Clemente skatepark

After another day of shredding the team was headed back up north.

Arnaud de Bluze takes the best right hand turn Modjeska Canyon has to offer

Epic hills, cops, car crash, more cops, shredding, getting yelled at by the locals, camping, more shredding, road rash, swell bows, skate parks, and more shredding. Wouldn’t be a Freebord trip without all of this.

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Mike Hoppe has had many titles. He has been called the God of freebording and his style downhill kills it. Check out his 2010 highlight reel.

Snowboard the Streets

There’s a certain rush you get carving down a mountain on your snowboard. This feeling is unlike any other. Steen Strand, the man behind Freebording found a way to bring this feeling to the streets.

“What I realized pretty early on is that a snowboard has the ability to move sideways over the snow, and a skateboard doesn’t” said Strand.

By placing a wheel in the center of the trucks that rotates 360 degrees, Steen has created a snowboard on wheels. Linking turns, from heel to toe edge, a rider can carve down any hill at whatever speed he/she desires. The two center wheels simulate the p-techs base of a snowboard, and the four outer wheels act as the steel edges of a snowboard.

The ability to ride sideways, spin 360’s, and float into switch are what makes this ride so much different from skateboarding, and more like snowboarding.

Imagine being able to pick up your snowboard, walk to your closest hill, and snowboard it. Every hill becomes a snowboard run and lift tickets are free. Whether you are going to the death-defying road across town or the mellow hill near your home, you find good roads and bad ones.

Does catching an edge mean anything to you? Every snowboarder has caught an edge before, and the concept is no different here. It isn’t something that happens often, but being prepared with pads, gloves and a helmet isn’t a bad idea.

It is important to remember while you are riding one of these things that there are some major differences. The biggest one is the lack of soft cushiony snow beneath you, and the presence of rough asphalt.

The Dethbox crew rolled down from San Francisco for an epic weekend of riding. Filled with some of the best roads in L.A and Southern California and lots of blood and sweat. I lagged hard making this video but here it is for all of you to enjoy.

Film/Edit by Lee Eisler and Dan Shanker

Riders: Dub C Rider(John Laudin), Bently , Bob Glashan, Lee Eisler, Dan Brunner, Chipper(Nic Ruiz), Gooner(Austin Lin),

Alex McClellan, Tyler Stoehr, Damian

And Freebords version made and filmed by Bently Anderson

In this post you will learn how to make your very own slide gloves from the following materials.

• Cutting Board (stuff used in your kitchens) * Ask your moms for permission before using hers, although we prefer you use a new one for hygienic reasons.
• Gardening gloves
• Blow Torch
• Saw

Gardening Gloves and Cutting Board

Step 1: You need to cut the cutting board into the shape you want your pucks to be. Generally circles will work best when making your own slide gloves.

Max Capps using jigsaw to cut circles in cutting board

Step 2: After you have the circles cut out you want to heat up one side with a blow torch. It will turn white and then you want to stick the gardening gloves right on top. This will cause them to stick to the gardening gloves.  *Be careful it’s hot.

Max Capps using blowtorch to heat up cutting board

Step 3: You can make the pucks double layered if you want to make it last longer.

Completed slide gloves

Step 4: Shred some hills with steez and ease as you now have your very own slide gloves for around $10.

This edition of L.A. Sessions occurred when the Dethbox and crew rolled down from San Francisco for their So Cal Represent 2010 ride. Bently Anderson handled filming duty with the GoPro for a run and pumped out some awesome footage!  Here is some raw footage from the top of one of my favorite roads.

Who is that skateboard dude that snuck into the Dethbox???

Video: Bently Anderson

Riders: Dan Brunner, Bently Anderson, John Laudin (Dub C Rider),  Bob Glashan, Nic Ruiz (Chipper), Alex McClellan and Max Capps