At 15” in width, the El Cochino deck takes most people by surprise the first time they see it. After all, it is monstrously wide. But as you can see in this photo, it’s quite possible to do frontside airs with the El Cochino. Many years ago, boards were 5” to 7” in width. Wes Humpston and Jim Muir started tinkering with deck sizes and skateboarding wound up with 10” and 12” decks. For vert skaters in the 70’s, the wider boards were just more functional to ride. As many of you know, decks haven’t just changed in width, they have also changed in length. The resurgence of longboarding has meant not only an influx of new riders but a return by many folks who left skateboarding. Wheels have gotten quite a bit larger than the 39mm from the early 90’s. The demand for wider trucks has also increased.

In honor of george reaching this amazing milestone, we asked a number of readers for questions that they most wanted to ask George. He graciously responded. Congratulations on this achievement George. You’ve done some pretty incredible things for skateboarding. Here’s to the next thirty!

Sept-October Fish Report

Considering its Pacific coast location and latitudes south of the Equator, it is not surprising that little is seen or heard about the skateboard scene in Chile. Invisible, maybe, but Chile is no different than most places and has seen it all—from banana board to popsicle stick, from clay to urethane and the rise and fall of giant skateparks in ‘80s.

Equipment of note in  the Spring '07 issue of CW