Tag: history

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old skateboarders passing on the baton, Skatelab RIP

I read on facebook that Skatelab skate park in Simi Valley is going to be shut down.

The first thing I want to say is that I have only visited this park a few times. And during my first visit  to Skatelab I felt that unmistakable old school skatepark feeling. If you never hung out at one of the old school skateparks you wouldn’t understand. As a matter of fact I used to get the same feeling when I localized and worked at Skatopia Skatepark (in Buena Park California back in the late 1970’s). And as im writing this post I realize that the old school feeling has nothing to do with the skateboard museum or even the park itself. Interstingly I cannot really pinpoint why the place made me feel like I was in a old school skatepark. Maybe its the person or people who made that place?

Mixed feelings about Skatelabs closure

Surprisingly, I am both sad and happy that Skatelab is closing. The reasons I am sad are probably obvious. Whereas the  reason I am happy is less obvious. It has a little to do with old skateboarders passing on the baton.

Why i’m happy about the closure

So I am happy about the closure in more of a changing of the guard sense. Which is to say  (in my opinion) old skaters and old skater culture have hindered skateboarding to some level. Look around, old skate dudes run a lot of the companies and events and in my opinion it drag them down. I for one am curious to see what things new skateboarders will come up with. For me skateboard events, products and skateparks could use a fresh perspective. I believe the younger generation will find something exciting or interesting for skateboarding. So will the old skateboarding generation hand down control to the young? My guess would be no.

Skatelab is an important part of skateboarding history

In closing, to be clear I do not think that Skatelab has held back the progression of skateboarding. I mean what I say in more of a symbolic sense. And in a perfect world the place would be preserved in an even more museum like environment. But sadly old school skateboarding history like Jazz (another American invention) will probably slip into a slumber and ultimately fade away, And maybe thats the natural way of things?

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Shoot The Moon, ten years of video recordings

popular shoot the moon video clip

doesn’t really represent what the band was

This is a clip from my old band named Shoot The Moon. We wrote songs, played live and lived our lives together for 10 years. For me, this clip sort of lacks what the band was actually about. Im putting it up because it is (as of this writing) the most popular video.

And speaking of video wow did we create a lot of it. I have been spending the last month transferring all of this video to youtube. A task that has resurrected many feelings both old and new. I think my generation were some of the first to have a moving picture record of our daily lives? It was a expensive thing to have a camera back in the late 1980’s. Now with each generation of smartphone being cheaper and better, everyone will have a moving-picture-record of their life. I wonder if it will as strange for my son or daughter to see 10 years of their life so many years after they lived it?

For me, it is a bit strange to see 10 years of your life on video. I sometimes wonder if this is a good or bad thing? I really loved that experience and those days are so fun to watch. But video also reminds me of how scarce time is. And so I feel guilty about looking at life as opposed to living it.

If you want to see all the Shoot The Moon video go here https://www.youtube.com/kenhada

If you want to see the official Moon website go to www.shootthemoon.com