Category: Skateboarding

8.12” x 32”

Everyone has a preference in life, one of my best friends loves the big booties, he sees them girls with the Shaken Stevens backsides and he busts a nut on the spot. I on the other hand couldn’t differ more in this situation, I can honestly say I’ve never ridden anything bigger than an 8, that’s a good size for me and hell, I like them agile and built for speed!

This board landed on my lap and I was like, only an asshole passes up on a free ass! As I’ve never had more than 8 inches under me, I was a little bit anxious about getting to grips with a board of this size, but I immediately took the beast out of the wrapper and set it up for a good grinding.

Deluxe boards are amongst the finest presses in the world, if you don’t know that, then well, your loss I guess! The symmetry on the nose and tail are very similar, slightly higher and longer nose as you’d expect, but not much. Due to the width of the cheeks, it doesn’t really feel heavily concaved and even though it took me a little while to adjust to the size, it’s seriously been a good ride for me, one of the best I’ve ever had…no shit!

TNT rolls bowls, hills, streets and occasionally even drives a taxi, so you know this board handles all terrain, especially if he’s got something to say about it! It’s got a tight butt on the bottom too and if you can’t do them, backside lipslides cum good on this ass!

2P
Crawl…Walk…Skate

First off, yes I know this looks like a Ged Wells Insane graphic from the 90s but I haven’t got a clue what he is up to these days. What I do know though is that Lucero’s Black Label is established and has always had super solid wood and great videos. This particular gem is no different. Lucero hasn’t ever compromised on quality, whether it is the team or the product, so let’s discuss whether this recent rig fits the bill.

This deck is a little heavier that my usual rides, could be to do with the “gimmick free” construction though. It also has a huge tail, admittedly it took me a moment to get my usual height, but gave me extra drift instead – which admittedly I had been missing for a while so it made up for it perfectly. The concave is on the deeper side, similar to a recent Santa Cruz deck I had but after my feet got used to it I was shiftying away happily once again and enjoying the ride.

After a few skates this deck has hardly worn at all, which is a testament to the simple high quality maple construction. The cruiser feel and hard wood makes it feel like a more serious ride overall. Even snapping disasters feels like a more manly affair, no twinkle-toe lip tricks for me on this plank, strictly frontside 5.0’s and nose grab disasters in my bag.

I reckon Black Label cater well for their core followers and I think I owe this all-terrain punisher some concrete affection. Get yourself a Crutch.

8/10
Phil Procter

People, you know it’s freezing out there right now so let’s start the first of this year’s winter product reviews.

I have just received this bad boy from one of the leading clothing manufacturers out there at the moment, Element. I’m not gonna lie to you, this is one warm hoody, but damn, you wont need anything else all winter if own one of these, seriously. I’m thinking of training up a couple of huskies and heading North for the winter, it’s the warmest piece of clothing I’ve ever owned and I’m really stoked on it. It’s stretchy and comfortable, thick and snug, but the thing I like best is the simpleness of its flawless design and the welt snap pockets on the front is a super nice touch.

This will get me through another British winter in style and I can’t imagine it will set you back heaps of British quids. They’ve got lines in their ranges, don’t be fooled by brands with hype, these guys do a great job with skate fashion and you don’t have to break the bank to own a nice piece of clothing, so why not check out their Winter collection as you might just like it. look out for more Element gear here over the next week.

2P
Skate…Crawl…Walk