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kiyomie · 4 years ago

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Ma'am I came here to rec like a bunch of faves to you but OMG I got distracted by ur header and now I'm staring at it for like ten minutes LMAO IT'S SO PRETTY. You're so talented smh u cutie. Love it here. 🥰 now for the songs: neptune + earth (both by sleeping at last), sillhouette (aquilo), cold cold man (saint motel), breaking down (day6) and tiny little boy (rad museum). I feel like I could send more indies or more diverse songs but let's go with what I can remember for now LMAO btw ilu 🥺❤

KELLY UR ACTIVE WAIT I NEED TO POST SOMN and i knoow right i didnt make it tho my friends are just hella talented 😌 i hope im nailing that dark mobile theme, and you’re sending indies? bless you ma’am

neptune by sleeping at last

okay i love this? their voice sounds so delicate? plus that slow beat is killing me

earth by sleeping at last

this sounds much sadder than the last geez it sounds so good tho? so pleasing to the ears, so graceful

sillhouette by aquilo

just like the previous ones this sounds so beautiful i cant, lol when i’ll be preparing a break up playlist (for the future dw) and adding all these lmao

cold cold man by saint motel

fuckkkk im a sucker for indies UGH this breaks the sad song series, love the vibes in these

breaking down by day6

yep kinda not i t but the mv visuals tho? talk about gfx insp lmao, also the boys look pretty af

tiny little boy by rad museum

this is pretty different from the rest huh? the sound is kinda unique too i dont hear much of this but not complaining at all, it’ll prob grow on me eventually

#asks #todoya #also ilyt uwu #thanks for these recs they're pretty similar to my taste and im glad

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terribleco · 4 years ago

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Ghost Town

Coventry has never been a skate mecca, but fun can definitely be had on a skateboard in the city of peace and reconciliation. With that being said, over the last couple of years, some of the great spots I, and many others, grew up skating have been removed by Coventry City Council. With no plans for a new skatepark from the council, it can feel like the skate scene is constantly being slapped in the face with the number of places to skate dwindling. I spoke to some of the Cov locals about some of their favourite long gone spots, in an attempt to understand why our dead spots, no matter how innocuous, are part of skateboarding history.

Header photo by Ryan Bradley.

I grew up skating in Coventry in the early 2000's. By the time I had started skating, the spots had been skated for decades prior, but still had plenty of life left as the new boom of skaters entered the city. The spots have always had a rough and raw quality to them, but then again that was part of the charm. Banks, ledges, rails, stairs, even the odd street transition - but all of them had a common aesthetic of a city that had been rebuilt and reimagined through a brutalist lense after the second World War. The spots are decent enough to get the attention of Stereo's Carl Shipman, Darkstar's Joe Hinson, and the respective Get Lesta and Baghead crews: so it stands to reason that they are most certainly important in British skateboarding history.

Andy Clare, one of the OG Cov Street skaters, is the owner and operator of Spray Station - a graffiti shop in Coventry’s Fargo Village. He's a lifelong skateboarder in the city, having seen new spots crop up again and again. He remembers many of the spots from the 90's era, many of which were still present when I started skating, and only recently were demolished:

"Brickies was great, I grew up skating those banks and loved it there despite the terrible floor and smell of piss. The balcony spot (aka Virgin Wall rides) was fun with good flat, grindy ledges and steep banks. The marble bank/wallride behind the west orchards escalators was great, and there used to be some big square wooden benches too."

P: Gaz Taylor boosts a melon out of Brickies for his “New Blood” article in Sidewalk.

Brickies, aka The Brickworks, was my favourite spot in the world. So much so, I wrote an obituary on this very blog when it got demolished last year. For many of us who grew up in Coventry, Brickies was endless fun: lip tricks, bank tricks, raw, unforgiving ground, and the openness of a skatepark made it the perfect challenge for anyone who enjoyed riding a skateboard.

Gaz Taylor was part of the same generation of skaters as Andy, and has been skating in Coventry almost as long as I've been alive. Consistently adept at tackling the street spots in the city, he even got snapped doing a melon at Brickies in an issue of Sidewalk. Brickies wasn't his only favourite place to skate though:

"There was a flat bar outside the Belgrade theatre next to the fountain, about knee high. Perfect for learning rail tricks on. I remember it used to shoot you off the end at speed as it was slightly down hill, that was really fun. Also, the old banks at Cov and Warwickshire Hospital were really good fun, that was a very long time ago though."

Ryan Stanway was one of the first skaters I met down the Memorial Park, before Terribleco was even a thing. Despite meeting at a skatepark, he is largely a street skater, and knows the spots of Coventry better than the back of his hand. He remembers one of the most infamous stair sets in Cov:

"Pigeon Shit has to be up high in the list of spots. It was the first decent sized set of stairs I landed tricks down when I was younger. There always used to be massive session there with 20 plus people all trying stuff."

P: Moose throws a Varial Heel down at Pigeon Shit. Photo by Ryan Bradley

Pigeon Shit was a stairset in a "golden triangle" of spots in Coventry: an area surrounding the University where you couldn't walk for more than 10 seconds without encountering more skateable architecture. It was a long 4 set, merging into a 5 set as the landing was on a slight hill, and had a knee high ledge running along the right hand side. The ledge was battered from years of abuse at the hands of trucks and BMX pegs alike, but it didn't stop people like Kris Vile, Josh Walters, Ant Smith and others getting bangers on it. Josh's last trick in my vid "Batface" saw him getting a FS Tailslide Bigspin out on the ledge, and the same video saw Ralph Cooper close out his part with a switch hard flip down the stairs at Pigeon Shit. It was a proving ground for any half decent street skater in Coventry.

Ryan Bradley, a regular contributor to this blog, lives out in the Warwickshire village of Cubbington, but his real home is at the street spots in the centre of Coventry. A regular of the scene for more than 15 years, Ryan's memory of street spots is pretty similar to my own. He remembers some of the more obscure spots and lesser remembered favourites:

"The pyramid spot at the old precinct entrance, next to New Look was so tight back in the day, and got so rinsed, especially by Tony Lui. The old blue fountain with transition at Belgrade was cool from what I remember, and was pretty fun to skate around in. The double death set, with the double rail that was right next to Brickies was great too. Obviously gotta mention Brickies itself, just because so much shit has gone down there for so long. There was a road gap on the hill in between the Boy's club and Gosford Street at the University library: I remember Duffman trying to conquer that, and I’m pretty sure they filled that in."

Some of the spots Ryan brings up were incredibly gnarly and were rarely skated. The double death rail didn't see many tricks go down on it, but Stan Byrne caveman boardslid it in the 2013 Terribleco video "Concrete Jungle". The road gap at the University library was like something straight out of San Francisco - a hill bomb spot with a gap over cobbles about the width of 1 and a half cars. The only person I know to have cleared it is Tony Lui. Finally, the old precinct pyramid spot was a small, whippy bank spot, which saw plenty of quick footed lip tricks go down from Tony Lui, Harry Myers, Kyle Smith and a wallie over the whole thing by Joxa.

P: Tony Lui boosts a FS ollie out of the Pyramid Bank spot. Photo by Ryan Bradley

New spots (at the time) like the Herbert were popping up a lot, replacing old 1960's architecture. It was a reminder that the city had been evolving and changing long before some of us even considered standing on a skateboard, or even before we were born. Gaz Taylor remembers dozens of spots I had never even seen in my time skating:

"Manual pads in Whitefriar's car park were popular in the 90's. Barrack's car park had some rad free standing painted curbs, and some small banks shaped like half of a pyramid that we used to use to get air out of. There was a small rail outside the transport museum with no run up, that was good for cave man slides."

"In the late 80's there was a mini ramp in the woods in Canley next to Tesco, built by Phil Hunt. I remember it had bright orange coping on one side and bright green on the other side. The paint would stay on your trucks for a while after. Safeway's car park on Holyhead Road had some rad slick curbs and some mud gaps. That was one of the main hang out spots for skaters in the early 90's too. Grindable window ledges of the Coventry tax office building were very good fun."

P: An after dark session at the Virgin Wallrides. Photo by Ryan Bradley

This article was inspired by the demolition of the concrete benches at the Littern Tree spot - named after the pub nearby. Current skaters in the scene mourned the loss of the spot, but speaking to sources who have had an eye on the redevelopment a brand new hub of spots is planned. Old spots are great and we miss them when they're gone, but there's a lot to be said for the excitement of new architecture and the spots that are yet to be.

Nostalgia and history are powerful things, and they definitely contribute heavily to skateboarding. The cyclical trends, the feeling of skating a park you haven't been to in 10 years, and the stories people tell of what trick was done at which spot. No matter what new spots are planned for Coventry, the old spots like Brickies, Virgin Wallrides, Littern Tree and Pigeon Shit will live on through what we remember about them, and of course the footage we got along the way.

The Brooklyn Banks, Wallenberg, Hubba Hideout: These are all legendary, long gone spots that skateboarders talk about in hushed tones, but they don't compare to our own personal spots we grow up skating, and miss immensely when they are gone. I would give my left nut for the chance to skate Brickies again, without a shadow of a doubt. For every local spot that gets demolished, it takes fond memories of a whole skate scene with it. Everything is temporary, so skate your spots whilst you got 'em.

#skateboard guff

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olivereliott · 5 years ago

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Custom Bikes Of The Week: 13 October, 2019

It’s an eclectic pick this week—from a Honda Monkey chopper to a one-off Triumph prototype from the 80s. We’ve also got a subtly tweaked Yamaha XSR, a hopped-up BMW, and a classy XS650 scrambler.

Honda Monkey by Zeus Custom There’s a little bike revival happening, and it’s spilling over into the custom scene, spawning all manner of tiny creations for us to gawk over. This one’s as cute as they come; a Honda Monkey 125, that’s been transformed into some sort of miniature bobber-chopper hybrid.

It’s the work of Zeus Custom in Thailand, and despite its size, it’s packing a lot of custom touches. Zeus altered the stance drastically, by slamming the rear so much that the forks look stretched. Then they remounted the fuel tank to sit higher too.

Everything’s on point—from the Biltwell Inc. handlebars and custom solo seat, to the cheeky lettering on the fuel tank. There’s even a stubby little fender out back, and that single curved header creates a delightfully clean line. An all-black paint scheme drives the point home (Zeus even powder coated the fork legs to match).

It’s all kind of ridiculous, but in the best way possible, and it’s also something we’d love to ride. It might not be practical (or handle well), but it sure is adorable—and guaranteed to pull stares. [More]

Yamaha XSR900 by Bunker Custom Cycles Not everyone has the time or money to produce a high-end custom motorcycle. Some riders just want to start out with a rad bike, then make it even radder with simple, easy mods. Istanbul’s Bunker Custom Cycles show us one way how, with this subtly tweaked, but very sweet, XSR900.

The XSR was customized as part of Yamaha’s Yard Built program. The mandate is usually to not modify the frame in any way—but Bunker’s Uzer brothers took it one step further, taking a complete plug-and-play approach.

The biggest visual hit comes from the new fuel tank covers. They’ve been painstakingly designed and manufactured using carbon fiber, and bolt on in a matter of minutes to give the XSR a completely fresh look. Naturally, Bunker are offering them as a kit.

The rest of the Yamaha wears subtle changes and upgrades. Up front, the brothers added a stubby high-fender, new headlight brackets, and LED light internals.

Out back they ditched the bulky rear fender and light, and installed their own tail tidy, which includes an aluminum blank-off plate and an LED taillight.

An SC Project muffler, EBC floating brake rotors and Capra RD tires from (local Turkish brand) Anlas round out the package. Oh, and as we’ve come to expect from Bunker, the livery is one hundred percent on point. [More]

Yamaha XS650 by Andy Megerle Sometimes, the brief for a custom build can be delightfully simple. Andy Mergle had a couple of Hondas on the bench, when his girlfriend decided she wanted an XS650-based scrambler with old school tires and side-mounted exhausts. Simple.

Andy and his better half scoured the internet and found a 1974 XS650 with an overhauled motor. A few hours later it was on the back of Andy’s Volkswagen T3, and the next day they started stripping it down.

The subframe was cut and looped, and topped off with a slim seat. Andy tweaked the angle of the rear shocks, then shortened the front forks internally to perfect the stance. The stock fuel tank looked a bit chunky for the look he was after, so he sourced and fitted a smaller aftermarket unit.

The twin exhaust system looks as if it might have come off another bike from that period—which is exactly the look Andy was after. It is, in fact, a completely hand-made setup, from the headers to the mufflers. Other bits include a Suzuki RV50 headlight that Andy flush-mounted a Motogadget speedo into, and a Hella taillight.

Somewhere during the project, Andy and his girlfriend broke up. He kept the bike though. [More]

1981 Triumph TS8-1 Prototype Want to own an obscure slice of motorcycle history for not too much money? This one-of-a-kind Triumph prototype’s about to go on the block at Bonhams, and is expected to fetch between £8,000 and £14,000. Pocket change, given its rarity—and the fact that it only has one ‘push’ mile on the clock.

Called the TS8-1, it’s a prototype that debuted in 1981 at the Motorcycle Show in London. The prevailing sentiment is that Triumph designed it to go head-to-head with the popular tourers of the time, like the BMW R100RT.

The TS8-1 featured Triumph’s parallel-twin motor of the time, upgraded with an eight valve racing head. Ian Dyson designed the ultra-modem fairing, complete with a sharply angled Perspex windscreen, and twin rectangular headlights. The rest of the bodywork appears to be a monocoque design.

Triumph needed 50 orders to justify a limited production run of the TS8-1, but they never hit their target. Thankfully, the prototype wasn’t scrapped. Bill Crosby bought it and stuck it in the London Motorcycle Museum, where it’s been to this day… and now it could be yours. [More]

BMW R nineT Scrambler by SE Concept Bikes When Hein Gericke (yes, that Hein Gericke) bought an R nineT Scrambler and didn’t quite gel with it, he eventually handed it to his son, Björn. Björn wasn’t quite into it either—but he knew what he didn’t like, and he knew how to fix it.

It also helped that Björn was friends with Dietmar Franzen of SE Concept Bikes. (Björn’s clothing company, g-lab, had a race team that won the 2008 German Championship, and Dietmar was the team director.) The two had collaborated on custom builds before, so they decided to turn the BMW into a livelier performer.

Dietmar reworked the cylinder heads, and installed a set of one-off camshafts to improve responsiveness. The R nineT motor was remapped too, thanks to a RapidBike race module. It now pushes out 125 hp, and it does so with a silky smooth throttle response. And it has a quick-shifter, too.

Handling’s been improved as well, thanks to a new cartridge kit for the front forks, and a modified Öhlins shock at the rear.

This Scrambler’s also sporting Sato Racing rear sets, a JvB-Moto headlight, and a pair of K&N filters. There’s a smaller battery too, and the guys ditched the passenger subframe and trimmed the seat.

Final touches include Akrapovič headers, Spark mufflers and Pirelli rubber. And the new paint job (with a touch of Ferrari red) is as sharp as the boxer’s revised stance. [SE Concept]

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