Why should you give a hoot about this today? Well, he got off his backside and opened doors for himself and many others. Maybe that will inspire you to think that you could do the same today or at least get you thinking that if you have positive energy you will at least pull that tre flip you been working on in the next line you are planning to film. You can do what ever you want and enjoy working for a living if you apply enough to the dream and want it enough.

Richard Branson played a small part in inspiring us to start this very mag. One day back in 1995, Branson was traveling into London via Sutton where we all grew up skating. He pulled his car over, walked through the doors of our local pub, joined a bunch of skateboarders at the pool table, got the beers in and started potting spots and stripes with everyone. He was full of energy and presented himself with that beaming smile on his face. You can imagine the instant euphoria of such a random situation but essentially, that day, his billionaire status changed, and he was one of us.

His passion and drive seem to be never-ending, so we hope that one day maybe he will appreciate the skateboarding scene that has been built by so many hard working people in this country. Maybe he could have a role to play and help us to fulfill a dream we have, which is to keep people motivated, bring people together and excite this generation and welcome the next. Only time will tell, but for now, get hyped on the fact that Branson’s garden has the remains of a mini ramp in it. It may not be the Mega Ramp, it may not have seen a session in time, but this is a reminder that skateboarding reaches far beyond the unexpected.

Jart Skateboards pro Bastien Salabanzi discusses before his trip to the Street League comp in Kansas City.

John Rattray is getting more coverage worldwide than ever before right now and deservedly so. This week he shows you how to do a trick called the Riverdance. Dumb trick indeed but this is one of the funniest clips you will see this week. Amazed he could keep a straight face!

Danny Way’s ‘Waiting For Lightning‘ film has been screening worldwide over the last month with the DC team dropping demos wherever possible. Danny Way, Josh Kalis, Matt Miller, Wes Kremer, Chad Dickson, Micky Papa, Sascha Daley and Paul Trep hit the road for the Vancouver leg and left a demo for the locals that was documented below.

Click here to watch Danny Way discuss the movie from the London screening and the reactions from UK skateboarders who were there.

Whilst his trial is ongoing, Derby scene locals are planning a run of memorial pro decks as a fitting tribute to Ash who loved skating. 50 decks will be made once the orders arrive with all monies going towards a fund for another memorial that will be decided as a tree/bench/plaque tribute.

Get involved if you are local by ordering a deck from this facebook page and take good care out there. Ash Finlay RIP.

Jart Skateboards have dropped a trailer for their 3rd full length video ‘All You Need’ today that will be out in the public domain soon. Watch this trailer by Jesús Gómez featuring Bastien Salabanzi, Steve King, Ivan Rivardo, Cian Eades, and many more. It looks likely that this video will be one to watch out for on this evidence. Click play for wobs.

Fletcher has some freshly filmed mini ramp footage here alongside Ben Raybourne which should whet your appetite.

Some offucts from the full length that is being taped together by Elliot Tebbs right now has hit the web. Enjoy this footage of Lloyd Mcleggon, Harry Squires, Will Golding, Craig Smedley, Dale Starkie and Liam Palmer in Barcelona as a teaser of what’s to come.

Following the awful news of Adam Yauch aka MCA from the Beastie Boys passing this month, MSK / Heavy Artillery Crew‘s Aroe from Brighton has recreated the 1986 “Licensed to Ill” album cover as a fitting Rest In Peace tribute. The piece is 12ft high, 64ft long and ‘kin amazing. Take it in.

Speaking to people who knew him well this week within the music industry, Yauch was known as the Beastie Boy who would always ask if you were OK, would always enquire if you needed anything and would always include you in his plans. We almost convinced the band to play a secret show at Bay 66 Skatepark around the launch of the “To The 5 Boroughs” album but they chose to play the ICA instead. With all the wishes in the world behind our proposals it didn’t happen but it was a pleasure to have just appreciated what this band have delivered us over the years and that’s enough for me.

MCA will be sorely missed by us all here at Crossfire. Our love goes out to all family and friends. RIP.

Photo: AVK/Datachump

Listen to this tribute mixtape by Eclectic Method.

The annual carve up in Varraze, Italy went down last this weekend with great mini ramp skating and live sets from both Crossfire faves Turbo Negro and Doom Tree. Brits were abroad for the ride and took home some cash home from the mini ramp jam. Ross McGouran, Jake Collins, Kris Vile and Rob Smith all made it into the top six. Watch the footage.

BEST TRICK RESULTS:

1st Martin Pek – Nollie Crooks + Nollie bigger spin
2nd Nassim Guammaz – NS Blunt 50-50
3rd Kris Vile – Lipslide bs180 big spin flip

MINIRAMP RESULTS:
1. Alain Goikotxea
2. Alessandro Sorgente
3. Ross McGouran
4. Jake Collins
5. Kris Vile
6. Rob Smith

The new back piece and driveway will be replaced with a massive raised section with added extras. The front of the section will be a eight-set of stairs with huge hubbers either side, with banks either side of them. One bank features a rail, the other has a gap in it. On top there’ll be two eleven foot wide quarter pipes and a six foot roll in in the middle.

Pro results:

1. Pedro Barros
2. Rune Glifberg
3. Bucky Lasek

Masters results:

1. Steve Caballero
2. Tony Hawk
3. Lance Mountain

This weekend’s pro tec pool party in the US is gearing up to be another classic. Tony Hawk and Chris Miller talk about the old days of skating the infamous pool, plus Hawk discusses his son Riley quitting Birdhouse for Baker and his fondness for Heath Kirchart.

In other related Wight Trash news, Greg Nowik’s cock board is still happening and the company are said to be issuing a limited run of 10 cock shaped boards too.

More surreal video madness has been released this week from Jesse James who proves you can flip in clown feet. Scroll down this page for a bizarre new edit titled ‘Fingerings and other things’ and visit www.wight-trash.com for more.

The Tunbridge Wells scene have a fresh edit online this week at The Garden, where they spend most of their days. Santiago Pilgrim filmed and grafted on the edit.

John Rattray’s creativity has once again grabbed our attention this week with a play on shadows. This wonderful footage needs to be seen.

If you have not seen their Future Nature film featuring their upcoming ams then get amongst it this week.

London skateboarders may not know of Graham John Baker by name but there’s a good chance that they would have seen him at every skateboard event that has ever been promoted in London. Graham also knows his skateparks and if it’s dry out there, you know he will be heading out to skate somewhere to jam with the locals and share knowledge of what wheels, trucks and decks people are riding.

Graham has had a long term problem with Asperger’s syndrome, a condition that that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction. This has never deterred Graham from getting on his deck and meeting other skaters every week so what a pleasure it was today to find that Will Robson-Scott has filmed him in London at his favourite skate shop Slam City, and traced back some of his first ever memories, skating at St.Albans over 25 years back and being in the crowd of Northampton’s most legendary historic events in the 1980′s.

Watch this video feature today and take in Graham’s life and wise words. If you see him out there on your travels, say hello, as you will not find a nicer skateboarder to chat to out there.

The Osaka based BPR crew member has some serious skills here from the fastest feet you will see this week. Don’t miss this.

Russell Houghten’s amazing Transworld Cinematograper Project is b-rolled today from the Predatory Bird’s John Rattray. Watch some behind the scenes footage from his work here.

As workers around the world celebrated Labour Day (May 1st) with a well-deserved day-off or a good old riot in the streets depending on your current national economy and austerity plan, Element Skateboards paid homage to their hardworking team of amateur skaters by releasing for a 24hr period only Future Nature. Staying true to their environmental roots, Element decided to build this video around the idea of a David Attenborough wildlife show. They replaced Sir David with Blueprint Skateboards’ chief Paul Shier and invented an entire plethora of pig-latin names for their riders e.g. Accelerus Impossibilus or Gracefullius Awkardus, the tone is set for 37 minutes of top-knotch skateboarding.

With Cole Matthews, Mark Stewart and Ricky Bedenbaugh behind the cameras and Kirk Dianda directing, the Element amateurs give it their best in a bid to become tomorrow’s professionals. Julian Davidson opens the show and demonstrates his love of long rails. Despite the majority of the tricks involving flat metal bars, Julian does find time to kickflip up a hefty set of stairs too. I’ll skip straight to the last skater Nick Garcia here because I honestly thought I was watching Julian again. Rails aside, Nick takes his transition skills and applies them to banks and walls. Nick’s switch noseblunts are a treat and his ollie manual down a bank is worthy of Mosher status.

Back to the order of things, Boo Johnson and Madars Apse have the next couple of parts and each of them is dope. Boo has a very easy-on-the-eyes style that leaves you wishing the editors had put more lines in his section. The handicap ramp ollie to frontside 360 line is an example of Boo’s smooth operation. Madars on the other hand is the round peg in a square hole. He fits the happy blond-haired wholesome image that Element pushes, but he skates like someone brought up on Mark Gonzales and Eastern Exposure tapes. Trading big pop and sun bleached school yards for powerslides and wallie jams, Madars is obviously a Euro in a land of Yanks.

Speaking of Euros, the European Element team get some shine sharing a flow section with their American counterparts. Trent McClung and Nassim Guammaz serve as bookends to a solid section where the highlights include Chase Webb stepping on Nyjah Huston’s coat tails and Tom Schaar getting dizzy with the world’s first 1080°. Not bad for a montage section.

The last amateur to feature in this video is Evan Smith. I leave him till last because I doubt he’s going to stay amateur for very long and will soon join the professional ranks for Element or dare I say it, Habitat? Long droopy hair? Check. Travelling man? Check. Guitar strings? Check. Handsome skating? Check. Evan has been producing some stellar skating recently (c.f. Transworld Cinematographer) and this new section is full of unseen top rate footage that means he’s been putting in the work. Highlights include Evan’s fakie 5-0 variations in various Californian ditches and his Iberian wallie combos.

Some people might find the nature documentary theme of this video annoying but I believe Element wanted to stay true to their game and have a bit of fun at the same time. My personal preference would have seen Skateboard wrangler Bob Sanderson hired to lurk behind bushes and pounce on a few of the riders as they rolled away from afterblack hammers. The 24hr window posting might be a scheme to limit pirate copies hitting the net, but nothing stays offline for long nowadays. Look out for Future Nature on iTunes soon.

Ralph Lloyd-Davis

Dutchman Rob Maatman takes Edit of the Week with this amazing footage for Emerica Europe edited by Henry Edward-Woods. Enjoy this!

Matt Hensley is featured this week in a video interview online. The Flogging Molly accordion player and one of the most inspirational skateboarders of all time looks back on his pro skate career and why he walked away from it in this first of two webisodes.

Unless you’ve had your head firmly stuck in the sand, or gone feral in a cave in Bora Bora, OFF! cannot have failed to register on your radar. I believe the story goes that a recording session by the Circle Jerks went to the wall and singer Keith Morris subsequently hooked up with producer Dimitri Coats or something like that, but whatever, the partnership drafted in Steven McDonald from Red Kross, powerhouse skin beater Mario Rubalcaba (lotsa bands) and OFF! was born.

We should be truly grateful, because they’ve gotten Keith back hollering like the Hermosa banshee of oh-so-many years ago, recalling the guy who rallied against the fenced-in, white picket dystopia of Southern California in, first Black Flag, and then the aforementioned CJ’s. Lesser men mighta taken the easy way out and just been happy to continually rewind past glories, but what’s got so many folk stoked on OFF! It’s all new music, new songs. Sure, it’s a sound that trawls back to the source, but delivers it in 2012 sounding fresh, urgent and totally alive.

A buncha roasting 7”s acted as a precursor to OFF!’s capabilities and now this 16 song album has landed (and you better believe it) it’s a totally blasting 17 minutes of raging Hardcore powered by absolutely shredding music. Keith’s all pissed and sarcastic, getting shit off his chest, spitting out 60 second anecdotes about times spent hanging on a wire in distant days (“inside the Masque, with the Alley Cats”) He’s also throwing in candid observations about his fellow citizens in the land of the free… “Teach them to shoot before they can read, sprinkling glass on their Happy Meals”…. cutting!

Seriously, this is an essential album, easily destined to make up a chunk of many folks summer soundtracks and only the most po-faced and blinkered members of the hiperatti will fail to recognise its awesomeness. Oh, and did you know that they shred live too? Thanksfully they will be back in the UK in June. You really need to see them. Get in there and get vaporized!

Pete Craven

Jesse James and Chris ‘Avi’ Atherton are back with a new psychedelic skate edit stuffed full of magic, mystery and Worzel Gummidge. It’s not often you see people skating a park with a cheesecake in your hand so watch this latest edit to find out what flavour Avi has. If you remember their last video mash up titled Wightmare then you will have a better idea of what’s coming next.

Press play for the most bizarre skateboard edit you will see this month.

Fos FM is still pumping the airwaves across the pond in California. Mark has Nike’s latest recruit Alex Olson in as guest for his radio show this month and he also has a new Evil Eye deck out on Heroin. Watch this clip made with Rogie that is inspired by the film, The Ring and look out for it in your local SOS.

The documentary that can only be explained as ‘epic’, takes you through Danny Way’s history as a child, growing up and skateboarding throughout turbulent family times in Vista, California. It’s a fairly emotional ride, telling a story of the loss, pain, progression, hunger and the ultimate satisfaction of being able to give so much back to skateboarding. The film features the build up to the Great Wall of China jump, the rise of H-Street and Plan B with many guests and close friends and family that include managers Darryl Franklin and Ray Ibe, Way’s mother, Mary, Christian Hosoi, Mike Blabac, Rodney Mullen, Ken Block, Colin McKay, Tony Hawk, Bod Boyle, Steve Douglas and many, many more who share their thoughts on the rise and rise of the most legendary skateboarder of all time.

Scroll down past the gallery of screengrabs from the movie for our exclusive video interview with Danny, ‘WFL’ Bret Johnston and reactions from the UK rabble that left the cinema in awe. Look out for the full DC video that is said to have the creme of the Hawaiian session footage from Danny’s dream home that he spoke to us about in our last interview with him back in 2004.

To share this video on Facebook, just paste this link http://bcove.me/cgc0d5ar into your status and it will embed.

Before you jump the gun and think that the park is being knocked down and rebuilt though, it doesn’t seem to be the case. A shoe brand looks to be behind fixing the cracks and adding some welcome features this summer, so watch this space to see if and when this gets done. This image below says it will re-open in May but the weather over the last few weeks may be stopping the work. Who knows. This post has been written solely on the basis of viewing this image, so we do not know for sure if this has even come to fruition or how much work will go into it. Time will tell though but if this is happening, well done to all involved.

Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments below and if you have stories of skating this park over the years, share them with us and send them in.

Also, take in this hand drawn Smell of Death flyer (found on MAS) that was made for a jam at Kennington’s banks. These events were arranged by the pipe-smoking US punk, Steve Wiltshire back in the 80′s when skateboarding was owned by skateboarders. These events single-handedly inspired Crossfire to launch and roll out events for the London skate scene. Take in the DIY aspect and weep.

I really enjoyed watching this work by Charles Lanceplaine. Hopefully you got this far and don’t have your Western blinkers on. Click play to watch Cyres Wong, Jay Meador, Dan Leung, Keng Qu, Alex Hwang and Blackie.