Martin Ramos and the Culture of Skateboarding

[Metro Jacksonville]

Martin Ramos and the Culture of Skateboarding

MetroJacksonville.com team members spent a day at Kona learning about the private park and skateboarding as a whole.  Kona skate park owner Martin Ramos gives his perspective on the aggressive sport's culture.

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2012-jun-martin-ramos-and-the-culture-of-skateboarding

[MelMel]

Examples of skateboarding weaving in to music is also apparent in music videos.  For example, this video by King City revolves mostly around the Birmingham trio skating. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATxs0N_DFTw


http://cache2.artprintimages.com/LRG/10/1061/QJML000Z.jpg

Another actor familiar with skate culture is Jason Lee.  Ex-skateboarder turned actor who has appeared in hit television show My Name is Earl, and movies like Almost Famous, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Dogma, Mallrats and Clerks 2.

Lee was first a professional skater who co-started "Stereo Sounds Clothing" and "Stereo Skateboards" and then switched to acting. http://www.stereosoundagency.com/

Here, he is featured landing tricks in Sonic Youth's music video "100%"
http://www.spike.com/video-clips/417ze2/sonic-youth-corporate-ghost-videos-1990-2002-100




Director Spike Jonze, a one-time skater himself, also gravitates toward the scene when filming.  In addition to Lee, he has filmed some of the episodes and the films of MTV show Jackass, starring skaters Johnny Knoxville and Bam Margera (among others.)

These are just a few examples of the mix of skateboarding in pop culture.  Can anyone else recall a musician-turned-skater or any other instance where they've seen other aspects of the sport mixed in to other forms of media?

[Jason]

There are likely tons of famous people that have roots in extreme sports (such as skateboarding).  I'm one of them! 

I took skateboarding lessons at Stone Edge in Daytona (owned by Kona) as a wee lad and have skated Kona on a board and blades.  Not to mention the thousands of waves I've shredded with my 6'-2" Ron Jon custom big gun.

Pretty much anyone in a punk rock band is also a skater or surfer or both...

I'm sure everyone has heard of Jack Johnson... he is/was a skater and was a pro surfer.

[MelMel]

Interesting you say so, Jason!  What got you interested in skating/surfing?

Are there any punk rock bands you can think of that influenced you most during those days?

[avs]

Haven't heard 100% in years - thanks for posting!  Awesome song

[Jason]

Well when you grow up a block and a half from the ocean in Daytona Beach, you pretty much have no choice to surf and or skate.      You had to have a tan, long hair, strong shoulders, and permanantly attached board shorts just to fit in. 

I didn't skate a whole lot and wasn't very good.  I stuck to my longboard which was great to cruise to the beach ramp to check the surf every morning.  If the waves were good I was in the water, if not I found some trouble to get into   

I listened to just about anything in those days.  As far as punk rock is concerned some of my faves were Sonic Youth, MXPX, Bad Religion, Offspring, Blink 182, Unwritten Law, Sublime, Social D, NoFX.... etc.

[MelMel]

Avs, glad to find another Sonic Youth lover out there!  They are great.

And Jason, it seems surfing and skating are somehow always linked with each other.  Though they are different in many ways, perhaps they're biggest similarity is that they are alternative sports -- stuff that you can't join a team on in school or anything.  Maybe that's what makes the sport become such a part of their life, because they have to have complete motivation to keep it developing themselves.