New Graphics

New board graphics designed by me for Flavour skateshop are available now.
I designed a wheel graphic too for the shops 15 year anniversary.
The designs were based on the traditional Cornish arms (but mixed up a bit) wheres the chough? not on these arms. Its a seagull sat on some chips instead...

Moving hands

anyone for stickers?

If you want some free stickers of my 'skurfboard' logo sent to you via the good old fashioned postal service, e-mail your address to: john@sketchboard.co.uk

hay bail

Tail tap

Seadog fin

Blue suit bombers!!

My attention has just been drawn to this incredible video of Patrick Rizzo and Noah Sakamoto haulin' ass like you wouldn't believe on a crazy downhill run. If the fear of speed wobble wasn't enough, they keep swapping the camera to each other and the road is still open to oncoming traffic!
Downhill videos are two a penny, but this one is a gem.
Enjoy.

Yes, it is nice in the surf. But...

(original WWII Australian recruitment poster)

Reasons to go camping

Reasons to go camping by Mathew De Abaitua.


It provides relief from the screens that surround you.
Gaze into the fire. It will change you.
It comes with low expectations, and so spares you the rage when your expectations fall short of the reality.
It is a negotiation between yourself and the environment. You can neither perfect nor control it.
It gets your children out of the house and into nature.
Nature is where children learn to take risks and where those risks have consequences, unlike computer games.
It opens you to a life with less stuff.
It puts you in a place where preparation is more important to well-being than money.
You discover the land and its moods.
You learn how to train and use fire, and so control the element required for survival.
You negotiate with your enemies; the rain, the mud, and the cold, cold ground.
You realise you are neither helpless nor in command.
It punishes greed.
It confronts you with waste.
It takes you out of domestic comfort.
It is a break from people trying to sell you stuff.

I-path is heading your way

Buy Moss a pasty when you see him.

Redgate beach

Anstey's Cove (otherwise known as Redgate beach) is one of the most breathtaking beaches I have seen in the UK, and is now completely inaccessible to the public.
Situated between Babbacombe and Torquay on the south Devon coast, it became a tourist trap for the Victorians, who incorporated the beach within an extensive coastal walk, as well as bathed in its perfect turquoise waters.
Throughout the last century development took place on the site, erecting facilities for beach goers and so on. But as recently as the last decade all but the foundations of these buildings now remain as they were destroyed, along with the wooden boardwalk from Anstey's cove.
Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust had the difficult job of declaring the beach unsafe for public use due to increased rockfall from the cliffs behind.
However, the absence of people and buildings has given the cove back to nature.
There is a definite peace there, it truly is a very special place, that for the time being at least, remains closed to anything but wildlife.

Above: picture taken 1970s (note the wooden boardwalk linking to the beach)

Above: pictures taken looking over the railings to where the boardwalk once was.

The robots have landed.

vintage fairground art

Paignton Pier

No3 'stop'

The old railway line...

...used to be here, but now its long gone, along with the old iron bridge.

wax on, wax off...

Make your own

A young grom brought this monster of a homemade set-up into the store today and earned much praise for his efforts.
Bodging together your own ride is unfortunately in these disposable times, a rarity.
The average skate kid these days wouldn't have the knowhow or initiative to put a board like this together, instead they'll just come storming in the shop with their mums credit card and demand the latest graphic by johnny dicksplash.
So if you see the young visionary out on this board getting his DIY rad on, give him a shout, because building shit is the new shit.

Desillusion Mag

Desillusion Magazine april issue.

Wood house

Deckades

April 17th is a date to add to your calender, as the beginning of the 'Deckades' skateboard exhibition at the Howies store, bristol.
The gallery consists of board graphics from across the last three decades, for this one off show running for only one month.
There will exclusively be new artwork from Jim Phillips, Pete Fowler, Geoff McFetridge, French and Kev Grey. As well as well as Jago, China Mike, Gav Strange and a host of others who have kindly donated a board each to be auctioned for UNICEF.
Miss this at your peril.

In less than a week...

...The clocks go forward, and if you've got any life left in you from working for the man, you'll get outdoors and get busy.

Cycle Zombies

I'm a big fan of the Cycle Zombies, so i'm more than stoked that they chose to post one of my scribbles up on there blog
Thanks guys.

No2

"Kapow"

No1

The evolution of musical listening pleasure

Brings us somehow to this point.

Beautiful losers

Beautiful losers film trailer from PR1ZM on Vimeo.

Henge (also)

Published here in response to Mr Smiths jawdropping picture of Stonehenge seen here.
As the pre-historic people of these isles would have said:
"well thats the scaffolding up..."

Dont miss a thing this summer.

alternative cutlery

Its all a ride...

...In whatever form, so ride something today.

Macho tail drop trailer

In the true spirit of skateboard cult movies that include 'Thrashin' and 'Gleaming the cube' that seem to come around once every decade, this years offering arrives in the form of 'Macho tail drop'. With pro appearances including Rick Mccrank and John Rattray this should be well worth a look.
Films don't always need a plot/acting do they?
Can't wait for this one...

Sketchbook ramp obsession

I found a couple of old sketchbooks that I used to scribble down ramp and transition designs when I thought of them.
They are literally cover to cover full of drawings and descriptions of ramp and pool designs from a period when I clearly could think of nothing else!
Of course much of it is utter toss that would be unskateable to anyone, but looking back through these books I've found a few gems that could work out real good.

What goes on in my head...I have no idea.
Here's a small example of what can be found on the pages within.

The Kindling family