Trip Back to Magazine

The first beer-sponsored skate team in Canada heads South for some Arizona heat and a few cold ones.

“On the last day of our trip to Arizona, the Cariboo team woke up in a battlefield—Corey Klim’s clothing torn from the previous night’s drunken shenanigans, the sounds of beer pong and wrestling still echoing off the walls. Through a haze of smoke and settling debris, Nick Moore was found barely hanging on by a thread. Somewhere in this house was the rest of the team (Sheldon Meleshinski, Mike Shulze, Kyu Tae Kim, Arte Lew, Dakota Allison), a couple of friends who’d made the trip with us (Jordan Repin and Dustin Locke) and a handful of local college girls who’d stayed the night. Somehow I had to get everyone but the girls onto a plane back to Canada in just a few hours. Problem was, the landlord who rented us the place had left me specific instructions about how the house needed to look before we left. We did what we could, but in the end, perhaps not enough. I received an email from the landlord that read: “If I knew you were a beer team, I would have never rented to you,” then finished off with, “your parents did a horrible job raising you…”

Nothing left but hangovers and bullet holes. What a place. In a way it was the American dream that led to all this madness. But those who are to blame for blockading the borders with man-eating sharks have long since faded and those who have replaced them are far too terrified to do anything about it. The perfect getaway; nothing to stop us from coming home but an imaginary line dividing this great continent. Or so you would think…

Travel is the life-blood of skateboarding. To go beyond the normal places our push takes us, in search of new spots. We use the long black highways of North America like the veins in our circulatory system with some routes taking us to new places and others bringing us right back. The road trip has become a rite of passage for skateboarders of all levels and everyone remembers their first. Even if she was a loose whore that gave you crabs.

In an ’86 Vanagon nicknamed ‘The Mule,’ I traveled with three quarters of Solitary Arts (riders Bob Lake, Jef Hartsel and co-owner Yong-Ki Chang) down from the Bay Area to Culver City, L.A. to skateboard and participate in an exhibition. For these men of the Solitary Arts, the connection to their board is one of the most important commitments in their lives. In an era when the old head-nod to another skater can be met with blank stares and attitude, Solitary Arts reminds us that it’s not just about the trick, it is how you get there that counts. At every opportunity, these seekers of stoke skated the L.A. area as if it was going to be their last session ever. For them, skateboarding is more than just a spot, more than an era; it is an activity that expresses the universal appeal of fun that we are all looking for on seven plies (or nine if you ride the Piano Pinner).

Gordon Nicholas, Quiksilver Canada and a blow-up doll cram into a van for an oversexed skate tour across the western provinces.

“Between the viking slut art, various “show me your [insert body part] signs” and 20 cases of Cariboo beer, it was clear that over the next 13 days and 10+ cities, there would be plenty debauchery from this group of young men. The stakes were high to say the least.”

When people think of Ontario and Quebec they immediately associate the two provinces with a few key things: hot summers, cold winters, and Canada’s colonial past. As the English and the French fought over Upper and Lower Canada, it’s unlikely that they ever imagined that the two distinct provinces would eventually hold some of the nation’s most populated and culturally diverse cities.

As with any tour story, it can prove difficult to really know just where to begin, what to include, and what to keep to ourselves. Texas had been a long-desired destination for myself, and having unsuccessfully attempted to make the journey a number of times, I was exuberant when the opportunity finally arose to document the Circa Canada team on their trip across lone star cowboy country. With Elliot Heintzman, our trusty team manager, leading Magnus Hanson, Will Blakley, Dustin Henry, Corey Klim, and Sheldon Meleshinski into battle, both videographer Dave Ehrenreich and myself knew we would not come home empty-handed.

It’s always nice to run away from the winter and come back to summertime for a few days, to just leave the rain and the cold behind and be welcomed by the biggest sun. So, when Jeremie Daclin proposed right before the winter to go on a skate mission to Israel, I didn’t think twice! “Lets go!” was my reply. Furthermore, Israel is one of the youngest countries in the world, but one with the most ancient history, so it was already an intense destination before we left home!

Geoff Dermer and Brian Caissie wrangled the Kitsch team for a trip to Shenzen, China.

SAMPLE:
I can honestly say that before this trip, I never actually thought I’d get a chance to skate in China. After hearing about it for ages from friends who’d been there before, and having been to Barcelona last winter, it seemed natural that Asia would be the next place we try and hit up to film for our video. Photographer Brian Cassie, Jordan Mayfield, our filmer, and myself [Geoff Dermer] agreed to get together to discuss how we could somehow pull off a similar mission. “Basically we just have to call Will [Cui], he’s the best guide ever,” was Brian’s advice. That same day I happened to run into Will at the Strathcona park, “Kitsch crew, you guys want to go to China?” he said. “Hell Yeah Bro—I’m down!” From this point I knew there would be no turning back. With some awesome help from their other sponsors, Cory Wilson and Stacy Gabriel were in too. Calgary’s Kevin Lowry has always proven to be a good guest to have on trips. Stacy suggested we bring his friend Derek [Swaim], and Max Fine was also down to get out of winter in Toronto, so that was how we rolled. Six skaters eager to get footage, our guide Will down to just hang and have a good time, Jordan to film it, and Brian Caissie to photograph it.

[ o ] NICHOLAS

LAND OF MY VICTORIA

I have a love/hate relationship with Vancouver Island. I mean, the ferry sucks, it’s always a hassle to get to from Vancouver, and you’re usually speeding just to reach the dock if you’re lucky enough to get a ride, or ballin’ enough to drive your car on (70 bucks just for the car!). But regardless of the negations surrounding getting to this place I always find the urge building to return again and again. It’s this Island vibe – the city away from the city – that catches you the first time you go and is hard to ever let go of.

[ o ] CAISSIE

GETTING OFF

wordsby sascha daley

It was Cory Wilson, Geoff Dermer and Kyle Desaulniers, with Dane Collison filming and Brian Caissie shooting photos. Kitsch was doing a trip and I thought I should tag along. I needed to get out of Vancouver, plus I always wanted to go to the place A River Runs Through It was filmed. Good movie. We met up with Victor Hernandez and his Folio boys. Victor owns Folio and was our guide and loc dog for the trip. Folio is a Montana-based skateboard company and the team rips! So we skate some spots, bro down, and get on the piss. Shit’s going good, everyone’s getting tricks and we’re all getting along great! Halfway into the trip Kyle and I are turbo pissed. Roaming the hotel one night at a stop in Bute, we stumble upon a room filled with shit for stocking the rooms. To make it short and sweet, we demolished the room and killed any last living hope of organization for the towels and those little mini shampoos. We got us kicked out – sorry, boys. But that was just the beginning…