Five Street Videos Every Longboarder Needs To Know

4

It’s important to know your history. With the whole “skate everything” phenomenon growing quickly and longboarding continuing its slow transformation into faster 80s street skating, I would like to direct my fellow longboard dudes’ attention toward these classic video parts from the last 30 years of mainstream skateboarding.

– – – – –

Tommy Guerrero – Future Primitive – 1985

This very early street video, filmed in the Sunset district of San Francisco, has all the elements of a SF driveway slash longboard video—sidewalk power slides, little baby ollies, basic street tricks— and was extremely innovative in its time.

FURTHER WATCHING: Bones Brigade, an Autobiography, any JSM video.

Eric Dressen – Speed Freaks – 1989

This heavily influential street video from the late 80s opens with a couple minutes of what we would call tech sliding before transitioning to very early street skating, with some high quality mini ramp action thrown in for good measure.

FURTHER WATCHING: Epic’ly Later’d – Eric Dressen, Darryl Freeman – The Monkey, any video of Mike Vallely.

John Cardiel – Sight Unseen – 2001

Power, speed, style: John Cardiel is one of the best of all time. No crazy flip-in, flip-out ledge combos here, just big airs, long grinds, and a good mix of street and transition skating that pre-dates the whole “skate everything” marketing plan. If you didn’t know, now you know.

FURTHER WATCHING: Epic’ly Later’d – John Cardiel, any Grant Taylor video.

Jason Adams – Bag Of Suck – 2006

From the early 90s until a few years ago, skateboarding was all about who could do the most complicated flip-in, flip-out ledge tricks and hit the biggest gnarliest handrails and gaps. Having fun wasn’t really the point. Then, in 2006, the Enjoi skateboards video Bag of Suck came along and dork skateboarding was cool again. I picked out the Jason Adams part because the flat ground opening line is rad and I like the the Joe Strummer soundtrack, but you should watch the whole thing. Louie Barletta’s part is awesome.

FURTHER WATCHING: Jason Adams – Label Kills, any Louie Barletta video

Brandon Westgate – New Shoe, New Part – 2011

The downhill parts of this video were filmed Sunset district of SF, where Westgate goes beast mode at full speed, skipping the slides and simply ollieing over entire driveways and blasting huge flip tricks.

FURTHER WATCHING: Epic’ly Later’d – Brandon Westgate, his part in Emerica’s Stay Gold

Now put down your computer and go skate. Doesn’t matter what. I bet you can find a painted curb real close by…

4