Our globe-skatin' man on the move brings you a look at one of Puerto Rico's stoke-fest longboarding events...
Guajataca Downhill 2012: Pirates Still Do it Better
Last year, Silverfish Longboarding brought you the rundown on a little town in Puerto Rico, names Quebradillas. A few centuries back, it was a popular place for pirates. Now, it's something of a skateboarders' paradise, and every year we come here, we love every minute of it.
Thursday/Friday
Instead of staying at Hotel Guajataca, we opted for Parador Vistamar, which is a sweet hotel situated right next to the race course, and it has beautiful views as well
Quebradillas is home to the Guajataca Downhill race event, an event that is now up and running for it's sixth year. It started really low key, and things finally blew up around 2009, with approximately 1,200 spectators in the crash corner. In 2010, that number doubled, in in 2011 over 3,000 spectators were present, and an estimated total of 15,000-20,000 spectators were in attendance for 2012!
Racers loaded up into whatever transportation they could find early Thursday, to get some practice runs in before racing commenced on Saturday
Just north of South Beach, Surfside, Florida gets a taste of the next best initiative in alternative transportation. Jonathan Strauss, the founding board member of the International Distance Skateboard Association (IDSA)and long distance skateboard pro, Andy Andras (winner of the 24hr ultra skate in 2011) lead a group of children and adults alike in a discussion about safety and maintenance in skateboarding; followed by a police escorted skate around the neighbourhood. This gathering was the kick off to a monthly skateboard clinic in the town of Surfside.
The already tight knit town really took a liking to both Jonathan and Andy’s passion for establishing a skateboard community and are stoked to participate in this green initiative. Because long boarding is such an accessible sport, even some of the adults who came only to chaperone their children jumped on board to skate the streets. "This was great quality bonding time with my son," said skate clinic attendee, Mr. Chiampesan. Mrs. Krasner, a proud mother of 2 young skaters who at the beginning of the clinic boasted about only being able to ride a Razor, was instantly converted to a longboard enthusiast after witnessing the ease of a longboard’s smooth ride.
What attracted her most was not only the simplicity in learning how to ride the board, but also the forethought in how useful it could be for both fitness and commuting. Over 30 people attended this clinic including the town mayor Daniel Dietch. The IDSA strives to build community around skateboarding worldwide and will continue to make events similar to this one around the country. The skate racing season kicks off in Miami on March 15th with a mile and 3 mile races at The Fair. Follow the schedule online at www.USADSA.org and www.TheIDSA.org
Freshpaved Magazine celebrated the release of their third issue on January 13th, 2012 with a party and fundraiser hosted at Uncle Funkys Board Shop in New York City.
From left to right, Noel Korman, Jimmy Soladay, Theseus Williams, Adam Crigler, and Jeff Gaites (owner of Uncle Funkys)
This morning me and my crew woke up thinking we were getting an early start to our day and wham! I show up and see the race has already began. I jumped out of the car, grabbed my camera and started the race half way through the park. As lame as it was that I could not compete; it was an awesome skate and a beautiful day! The weather was amazing and everyone had a great BBQ on the beach while they told one another there race experience. The turn out was huge, people were there of all ages and from all over, Sonoma, Santa Cruz, LA, you name it. I met Dane and Adam S from the loaded crew with there new fancy downhill boards and it was awesome. Gear prizes provided for by Purple Skunk and someone was filming from wheelbase magazine. All in all a wonderful day, stoked for next year! Check out the picture below and the video for the race results.
Come to San Francisco for a race through Golden Gate Park, on 1/28/2012. This is an event for every one of every skill level and their grandmothers. Dodge iBlivious joggers, swerve ‘n’ curve ‘round the resident crackheads and push past the buffalos down to the BBQ at da beach. Invite your friends; this event is for the community. Prize giveaways for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place!
Start Location: Conservatory drive East and John F. Kennedy drive. Map.
Meet Time and Location: At 11:30 am gather in the back of peacock meadow/dahlia gardens which just north of Conservatory drive east and John F. Kennedy drive.
Racers loaded up into whatever transportation they could find early Thursday, to get some practice runs in before racing commenced on Saturday
