Brian Aragon: Rolling back into the X-Games?

So Brian Aragon has used his connections to get rollerblading back at the X-Games this weekend... Sort of.

Aragon and some of skatings finest, including Broskow, Julio, Bah and more... will be putting on skate demos on Saturday and Sunday during competions at X-Games 17. This may be rollerbladings foot back in the X-Games door, but I for one am not holding my breath.

You can read all about it on Be-Mag, and check out this interview they did with Aragon on a beach in CA.

Brian Aragon: Rolling back into the X-Games? from Be-Mag on Vimeo.

Epic Fail = Dislocated/Fractured Elbow

Friday started off like any other day. I woke up, went to work, and then headed out to the park.

I decided to go to Beverly and mess around with topsides on the long bench. Things were going good until another roller showed up. I was pumped to finally have someone to skate with, so the pace of the session started to pick up.

After a few solid gaps over the box/stairs I went for a simple Mizou across and down the flat rail on the funbox… here is where things went horribly wrong.







As I made the transition to the down-rail, my feet came off and I started to split the rail. To save my junk from being crushed, I leaned forward and braced to hit the pavement (something I have done many times). I must have locked my arm up before I hit the ground though, because on contact with the cement I heard a loud *POP*.

Rolling over on my side, I brought my left hand to my right elbow and could feel the bone sticking out of place, but luckily not through the skin.









An ambulance was called, and I had to talk the EMT out of cutting off my MIndgame tee by telling him it was a collector’s item. After a painful, bumpy ride to Beverly Hospital, I sat in an ER bed for an hour before they found the time to pump me full of pain-killers. They were nice enough to send in the X-ray tech to move my arm around first though, which I thought was nice of them…

After another hour had passed, and another round of x-rays had been taken, the doctor came in to tell me that I had a dislocated elbow, as well as a fracture to the head of my Radius. They then let me wait for another hour before they came back to set my arm.

Luckily they gave me some super-drugs for the setting and I didn’t feel a thing. Another hour and another set of x-rays later they finally discharged me, but not before I had to go back into Triage to clean up the blood that was dripping down my arm from the IV site.

In the 15 years I have been skating, this is by far the worst injury I’ve had. It will keep me out of the game for a few weeks for sure.

MFTBRAND (Japan): Last Week At ASPO

I was just introduced to MFTBRAND, a skating company and crew out of Japan. These dudes, and a couple girls, tear it up in the Far East and deserve to be recognized for their talent.

The crew consists of Eiji Sakihara, Haruki Dozen, Mana Dozen, Seiki Matsuo, Haruka Suenaga, Kazuho Kumazawa, Chihiro Azuma, Yuto Goto, Yuta Yori, Masaaki Takahara, Teppei Imaoka, Yoshiki Kimura, Katsuhiko Sagata, Koichi Iguchi and Soichiro Kanashima.

Here is their most recent video.


MFTBRAND 2011.07.14 Clip of the last week at ASPO from MFTBRAND on Vimeo.

"It’s regrettable but, Action Sports Park Okayama (called ASPO) where this clip is filmed at, has closed out on the end of June by the policy of Okayama City. For 10 years, from 2001 to 2011, ASPO is liked by a lot of skaters. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to ASPO."

For more from MFTBRAND check out MFTBRAND.com and their Vimeo channel, or just check back here as we continue to bring you the best of the best from around the world.

More From Chris-Haffey.com

Oldies Ep. 2 from chrishaffeydotcom on Vimeo.


Training from chrishaffeydotcom on Vimeo.

COMP: Too Dumb to Give Up 2011 (OHIO)

Woodville skatepark, Toledo Ohio, Sunday August 7th. Come destroy the skatepark all day long!

Competition for all types of skaters. No 1st, 2nd, or 3rd; instead we are looking for: Best Overall Skater, Most Consistent, Most Creative Skater, Biggest Hammer Thrower, and Best Trick. Rollerbladers in the area have come and gone, we don't have the biggest scene, but we will keep rolling. Too Dumb to Give Up? Perhaps. Too hardcore to quit!

The park is open for us all day, August 7th. Noon to 9pm, so come any time after noon. $15 to enter the comp, which starts at 4pm. $10 to just skate all day. No helmets required, just a waiver.

All profit goes straight to the winners! Aggressive Mall was cool and sent us some sick clothing/accessories for prizes, so those will be given out in addition to the cash. Most of the cash is going to Best Overall Skater, and Best Trick. The rest will go to the remaining 3 winners.

Check us out on Facebook. Info, park pics, and more: http://www.skatetoledo.com/toodumbtogiveup/
Google map to Woodville Skatepark, it's back in the strip mall next to Goodwill.
Thanks for checkin us out, peace,
Andy Boren

Josh Letona LSTAR edit

Now that this seems to be Negative grind month here on Skate Sessions, I will drop this little video on you.

This edit of Josh Letona from 2009 showcases the Negatives in every way shape and form. There are even a couple citric tricks to make this completely out of order.

Recon Missions: Boston Ledges

So things finally fell into place for a Boston session. I’ve been trying to get into town all summer, but work and other commitments had limited me to short after work skates at my local parks.


My friend Kevin Connbarney called me on Saturday though and got me in on a Sunday session in the Bean with himself, Brandon Waring, Justin Riley and Justin Gates… a seriously legit group of dudes to roll with.

I jumped in my car just after 2 and made the trip over the Tobin into Boston, and after cruising the North End for 15-20 minutes I found a spot and geared up for the day. I don’t like rolling with a bag so I strapped on my boots, filled my pockets with wax, a skate tool, and my cell, grabbed my water bottle and was on my way.

Kev, B, and Riley took the Blue Line from Wonderland, so I skated over and met them at the Government Center subway station at City Hall Plaza. After they made a quick pit stop in the Dunks, and Kevin changed into his pants right there on the sidewalk, we were off to our first spot of the day.

We initially headed out with no real plan, but I told the guys about a plaza on Long Wharf where I had seen a bunch of waxed ledges, so we started towards the ocean. First, we stopped at a C-ledge that is a actually a monument in front of Joe’s American Bar & Grill. This spot is ok, but the ground is bumpy and covered in leaves so we made a quick exit from there and heading back to my spot.

The plaza at the end of Long Wharf is all brick and cobbles, but the ledges are all waxed up pretty good, but could benefit from more use to smooth them down. We hung out here for a bit with Kev (AO-Acid), Riley (AO-Neg-Mistrial) and myself (Mizou-360) throwing a few tricks before we all decided to get back on the move.

From there, things went south fast for us, as we skated to the Greenway, the Bank of America building, and another spot in the financial district to find that all the ledges had been capped. It seems like Boston business have spent lots of money in the past few years to make nearly everything unskateable. But we didn’t let this stop us, so we continued to search for spots.

Our next stop was back at City Hall Plaza, where we went to meet up with Justin Gates, who I used to roll with back in the glory days of skating (ie, like 10 years ago…). It was good to see him and we all had a little fun on the stair-drop ledges there but once again got fed up with the brick and cobble run-ups and landings so we moved on.

Next we made a stop at some classic Boston ledges, the Courthouse ledges. Just a block from the Boston Garden, these ledges at the Courthouse are long and the perfect height. They are waxed up and smooth from years of use, but once again the run-up just wasn’t agreeing with us; so after a short session here we followed B to our final spot of the day.

We took a long skate down by the Charles and past the public pools to a nice sunny walkway right on the river. This was by far the best spot of the day (we should have come here first!), as the ground was flat pavement and the spot has six cement benches that are perfectly waxed and smoothed.

Everyone started throwing down here. We were getting a great flow going, weaving and grinding in and around all kinds of dumb pedestrians who just couldn’t understand to get out of our way. It was a classic session. I can’t wait to do it all again sometime soon, and I’ll try to remember to get pictures next time as well.

How to Clean and Grease Your Bearings (by Tyler Schmidt)

Written by Tyler Schmidt (Vortes on AMall)

What You Need -
1. Glass Jar
2. Carburetor Cleaner
3. Synthetic Grease (I used Mobil 1)

4. Something with a very fine point like an exacto knife

5. Napkin/Towel

For the glass jar, i just got an old pickle jar. DO NOT use a plastic container or the carburetor cleaner will eat away at it. I went to Advance auto parts and got the cheapest can of carburetor cleaner I could find. The synthetic grease is normally for wheel bearings, you can get them as cheap as $2 or so. I went with the Mobil 1 version, not sure if there is a difference. You will also need something with a fine point to remove the shields, and a napkin or a towel to dry the bearings.

Start by removing all of the bearing shields. Try to dig the tool into the edge of the bearing shield and pry up, be careful, these are easy to damage. I left the bearing retainers on while cleaning. Once that is done, put the bearings in the jar and spray the carburetor cleaner into the jar. (Do this part outside; there can be a lot of fumes.) I usually spray enough to cover all the bearings. Then shake for about a minute. Shake for more if you feel the need, but carburetor cleaner is strong stuff, a minute should be good for pretty much any set.

Now you need to dry the bearings off. Open the jar and take them out. Tap them on the napkin to get the carburetor cleaner out faster. Let them dry for a couple of minutes. Once they are dry, try spinning them to see if they spin freely. If they still do not spin freely after cleaning them, they probably are not usable. If they do spin well, and are completely dry, you can move onto greasing them up.

To grease up the bearings, you need something to apply the grease. I used the same tool I used to remove the bearing shields. Use a little less than a pea size amount of grease per bearings, but do not apply it all at once. Use the tool to apply a tiny bit to each ball bearing and then roll it around and work the grease into the bearing until you can’t see the large chunks anymore. Once all the grease has worked its way around, you can pop the bearing shield back in and your bearings are ready to go.



Bearings with Grease Applied



Bearings with Grease Worked In



 If you want more information on cleaning and greasing your bearings, check out this How-To from Bones Bearings.

Chris-Haffey.com and Pros Playing B.L.A.D.E.

Chris Haffey has just launched an official website, where he will be posting videos and what-not about him, his friends, and his past/present/future in rollerblading.

Check it out at http://www.chris-haffey.com/ and watch his first round of video post, which include a welcome video, a collection of his oldies clips and an amazing game of B.L.A.D.E. between Haffey and Brian Aragon that has become and instant classic.


Welcome! from chrishaffeydotcom on Vimeo.

Oldies Ep. 1 from chrishaffeydotcom on Vimeo.

B.L.A.D.E. Aragon from chrishaffeydotcom on Vimeo.

Franky Morales: Still at the Top of the Game

Franky Morales used to be one of my brother and my favorite skaters, but I hadn't heard/seen anything from him in a while. But finally, here are two recent videos showcasing just how good Franky still is.

A Couple Games of H.O.R.S.E.

With the release of Chris-Haffey.com (more coming soon), and his new B.L.A.D.E. segments, a lot of buzz is flying around about pro games of SKATE.

Here are two that I found online, and I will be sure to share more with you as they surface.


H.O.R.S.E. battle Adil Farhouni VS Adrien Anne from adrien anne on Vimeo.


H.O.R.S.E the game, Julien Cudot vs Adrien Clairaz from The Confrérie on Vimeo.

Skate Sessions: volume two

Skate Sessions: volume two from Nate Snow on Vimeo.

AMALL How To: Breaking In Your Grooves

JBWonton05 Review: USD Carbon CO Frame (Edit)

Here's another well done product review from our friend out on the West Coast, Justin Winton. Here he looks at some Carbons set-up on CO frames.

WRS Event: We Are One Skatepark (by remzridr1)

remzridr1

So finally our new indoor skatepark in Midvale, Utah is opening and they are hosting a WRS event there on July 16th. It is sort of a late notice but if you can make it out here you'll surely have a good time.


If interested, keep up with the Utah Blade Scene group and We Are One Skatepark on Facebook for updates.
 

 

Soul Plate Comparison Chart

Just wanted to share this with you guys. I got it on AMall from a guy who go it on be-mag...

Recon Mission: Burleson TX (by Drew McCoy)

We're proud to bring you a submission from down in Texas, written by Drew McCoy (SkatesInDenim on AMall and YouTube).

The spot is Chisenhall Park

It's located at 500 Chisen Park Place: Burleson, TX 76078

No security, no signs, no cops, no old people yelling at you, nothing. It's clean, well lit 24/7 and the gates are open 95% of the time. It's a totally safe place to skate, I've never been kicked out. Lucky for me, it's 10 minutes from my house.

First off, it's got a nice shady pavilion with 8 plastic picnic tables. They slide great with or without wax.

Handrails with a slight decline. They're about 16 feet long.

7 set with a nearly perfect run up and landing.

Right by the stairs, there are 2 working water fountains!

More rails. A 10 footer and a 20 footer

There are a couple of flaws to these rails, however.

The first rail's run up has a crack. You can easily roll over it but it gives you a little jolt. The second rail's run up is perfect but there's only about 3-4 feet of concrete in the landing before you hit grass. The grass actually rolls very well, though.

There's this long ledge that most of the skateboarders around here really like. It's fun to goof off on but bladers can't grind it because the side is jagged. Finally, there are huge blocks laying everywhere. They're not grindable but the tops are smooth enough to cess slide with some wax.

Now for some skate pics

Rocket 180

Top porn cess

Backslide

Attempting to get artsy

Neg mak

Quick fish cess

Sweaty

That's all, folks!

Thanks Drew!

Just a Couple of Negative Mistrials...

"Just a Couple of AO-Negative Mistrials..." is more than an understatement. These two shots are sick!

The first comes from Rollin In Redford on AMall. Zero Spin Negative Mistrial-Arron

The next one was posted by erickearney on the boards. AO Negative Mistrial, clearly.

This is one of my all time favorite grinds to see. And these two shots are perfect example why. Nicely done gentlemen. Keep up the good work.

Downloads of the Month: July

This month Skate Sessions is taking it back to where skating began with Hoax 1 'An Inline Crime' (AVI . M4V . TPB)

All of you young skaters out there should watch this film to understand what skating progressed from. Everyone should see Arlo and Edwards back in the day.

Along with that awesome video, you can also grab up a pretty complete collection of Slipknot tunes. I always enjoy some hardcore, adreneline pumping songs when out doing gaps and larger grinds.

Hope you guys are enjoying these downloads. Show your support by signing up to follow the blog here.

Rian Arnold - Xsjado Am Edit (by Dom West)

Finally I want to leave you guys with this edit of Xsjado Am Rian Arnold, brought to you by Dom West (the man behind the now epic Aussie rolling film Vine St.).

Fashion sense aside, this kids got loads of skating style and this extremely well put together edit features that.


Rian Arnold - Xsjado from Dom West on Vimeo.

AChosen Few, Stuttgart Street Comp and Cyril Daniel – Hurricane Topsoul (by Urbanmovez)

Here are a couple videos from the AChosen Few, Stuttgart Street Comp. The first is an edit of the comp itself, while the second focuses on Cyril Daniel's Hurricane Topsoul that ended the event with a bang. Both videos were posted to Vimeo by Urbanmovez.


Achosen Few Streetcomp. Stuttgart (Germany) from urbanmovez on Vimeo.

Achosen Few: Sickest last trick ever!!! from urbanmovez on Vimeo.

Stephane Mosselmans: Kappelkerk (Belgium)

So I've been surfing around RollerNews the last few days of my vacation and I've come across a few awesome videos that I had to get on here to share with those of you who don't regular that site.

First are these clips of Stephane Mosselmans: Kappelkerk (Belgium). Check him out dominating this ledge.

Park Profiles: Hickings Lane, England (by Richard Odams)

Skate Sessions is keeping it international with its first of two Enlgand skatepark profiles by Richard Odams.

Hickings Lane Skate Park (Broxtowe Borough Council) is at Hickings Lane, Stapleford, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England.

It contains six quater pipes (two 4ft, two 5ft, and two 6ft); three on either side of the lot.

Next to each other, in the middle of the lot, is a 6ft high wooden box, which sits between the 6ft quarters and a 12ft long metal box, which sits between the 5ft quarters with a round metal rail (about 1-1½ ft high), running the length on the outside. Between these boxes is a small flat kicker, ramped on both sides, which sits between the 4ft quarters.

To the side of the metal box are two 6ft long rails, one round and one square.

This seems like a solid park, with good set-ups and both air and grind obstacles. I know if I’m ever over in Nottinghamshire I’ll have to stop by for a session.

Set-Up of the Month: Custom Salomons

This months set-up comes from BMW381TI on SkateSetup.com, where I found this classic pair of Salomon STI's amped up with some TRS 1stGen souls/inserts and a fresh pair or Mook frames.

I fell in love with this custom right away, except for the fact that he had to destroy the boots by toe-cutting them to get them to fit. Other than that, these might be my favorite Salos I have ever seen... wish I saw this back in the day when I had about three pairs of them kicking around my house.

UPDATE: Taig Khris Sets New World Record for Distance

New World record: the longest jump on rollerblade (29m, 95 feet). After seven falls Taig Khris also did a frontflip.
The event is getting a lot of responses from both sides over on RollerNews.com get into the conversation here.


M6 mobile Mega Jump 2011 - Taïg Khris Sacré... by M6_mobile

Taig Khris: Mega Jump 2011 (by Paris Tv)

This has been taken from Paris.fr and translated into English... so I appologize for the grammar. If you would like to read the original article you can find it here.

"A new record for Taig Khris?

On July 2, live from the Sacred Heart, Taig Khris attempt a new record, the long jump in roller from the top of Montmartre. Objective: To beat the record held by Danny Way, a jump of 24 meters in skateboarding, crossing the threshold of 29 meters. More than a record, a leap panorama over the rooftops of Paris.

With a ramp extended throughout the Butte Montmartre, it will start to offer the public a new record high in excitement. He will fly from the top of the hill, before performing a jump in the air over 29 meters and landed on a second ramp and finish his jump safely.

Taïg Khris : le saut de l'ange à Montmartre! by mairiedeparis
Taig Khris: the swan dive in Montmartre! by mairiedeparis

To attend the jump:
The surge of Taig Khris takes place July 2 at 18:30, from the Sacre Coeur (18th)
Throughout the day, the public can also attend many sporting performance.
The event can be followed at home live on channel W9.

Last year was the Eiffel Tower ...

It was Saturday, May 29, 2010: before hundreds of fans packed into the Champ de Mars, Taig Khris broke the world record jump with a drop of 12.5 m. From a platform located at the first floor of the Tower, 40 m above the ground, he ran shortly after 18H. The first attempt failed. The second was greeted by large crowds who come to admire this athlete of the extreme age of 34."


12,5 mètres en chute libre depuis la Tour Eiffel by mairiedeparis

Valo JJ Lights Sold Out Before Release

Jared Cahill Drop Kink Videos

Mad props to Jared Cahill for these tricks, we had to share it with the rest of you. Cahill is a roller out of Gloucester, MA and posts on YouTube as decptionrolla.

This kid has skills, and balls to go with it. I wouldn't try a drop kink this big, and he threw down on two different ones with ease.

Check him out and support the scene up here on Boston's North Shore.

AMall has the best Fourth of July Deals!

The guys over at AMall are hooking it up for the Fourth! You have to check out all of these amazing deals!

"Fourth of July is just a couple days away and we are here to help you get the best bang for your buck on some crucial items here at aMALL. We will keep this e-blast short and simple so you can get to "kicking it like old tymes" and celebrating the 4th ASAP.




Check out the latest and greatest from AMALL on our blog at AGRSVEML.com

To see all of the newest products, check out the new products category here.

[Two for one AM hat deal] - USE COUPON CODE 241AMHAT

Nothing beats a 2 for 1 deal, especially a 2 for 1 aMALL hat deal! Add any two AM brand hats to your order and enter '241amhat' into the coupon code box to instantly save $29.95 (thus getting 1 of them for free). Limited to 2 hats per order, coupon expires July 5th, 2011.

[Save 25% on ALL bearings] - USE COUPON CODE BRNGZ

Bearings are one of the most underrated upgrades you can do to your skates. Nothing beats a fresh set (usually coupled with a new set of wheels) and unless you somehow already get them for free, nothing beats this deal on them. Save 25% on all bearings (until July 5th, 2011) with coupon code BRNGZ.

[$1 Valo frames] - USE COUPON CODE VFRM

If you've ever skated the Valo frames, then you know they are a great frame for the price (normally $16.95) Well this weekend you can get this great frame for only $1 a set. Seriously, $1...Limit of 2 pairs per order, offer expires July 5th 2011

[25% off on all Helmets] - Use coupon code HELMET

Keeping it safe and the price low, 25% lower that is... This is a deal you shouldn't pass up, whether you are in the market for a new helmet or not, so take advantage of this generous discount on ALL helmets until July 5th 2011.

[Skates Necklaces]

One of our best selling new items is the Skates necklace. Hand made by Mike Affatato and finely detailed all the way down to the axles. Availabl in nickel & lead free gunmetal and silver pewter. Both are linked up with high quality stainless steel chains. Check them out!

[All new Eulogy wheels + new pros!]

Eulogy has slowly been releasing their new wheel line over the past couple of weeks adding 2 of the best bladers in the game to their roster - Erik Bailey & Chris Haffey who both have pro wheels available now, along with a new Soichiro wheel and remakes of the Dalnas, Rowe & Paz

[New Razors Cult street (RED)]

One of the best skates available for intermediate and price conscious skaters alike. The Cult street features a solid and extremely durable boot design with the souls and backlside combo to match. These skates are able to handle all that you can throw at them and they are plenty comfortable and ready to hit the street (or park) right out of the box for only $129.00 - You can shake a stick at that all day long, but you can't beat them!

That's going to wrap up this official aMall e-blast, as we have some of our own blasting to do around here. As always we thank you for your continued support throughout the years. Having said that, be safe this weekend and don't do anything we wouldn't.

Any questions or comments just hit reply.

Your Friends @ Aggressivemall.com"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Coupons ARE stackable, so get w/e you want homies!

Sean Knight - SHOP-TASK Edit

A sick video from Xsjado roller Sean Knight.

"This a collection of tricks I filmed while skating on my own in Calgary, Alberta. All these tricks except for one were filmed using a tripod and a Kodak Playsport camera.

I didn't want the edit to be boring and stagnant, so I added motion to each clip to make the footage more enjoyable to watch. The quality took a hit due to the extra editing but that was expected all along.

Enjoy!"


Sean Knight - SHOP-TASK from sean knight on Vimeo.

Music: The Glitch Mob - Drive It Like You Stole It

XSJADO, THE CONFERENCE, ACHOSEN-FEW, SHOP-TASK

No Sleep Feat. Sneaky, Brian Aragon, Jeph Howerd, and Steven Tat

Razors Video Filmed/Edited by Phillip Long

Featuring: Sneaky, Brian Aragon, Jeph Howerd and Steven Tat.

Sick skating from the boys at Razors, and a little glimpse of what the good life of professional booting is all about.

Enjoy!