Story # 29. Dan Santovin @bearpawriver Born 1971 Started Skateboarding 1987-88 Garfield Heights Strikes Again! I’ve known Dan since before I even started skating. Back when I was just a little kid with a mullet and listening to the popular heavy metal of the 80’s. Dan was one of the first people in my neighborhood that was dressing the punk rock fashion. I didn’t even know what that was at the time. By 1988 I was skating and Dan was the older Garfield skater/punker that took me under his wing. He & his older brother Dave drove me all over to skate and took me to many Cleveland punk shows. In 1989 he started the Garfield skateboard club just so we could skate the banks in the basement of the high school. In the mid 90’s he lived at and ran the D.I.Y. music venue, Speak In Tongues on Lorain ave. He booked many unknown bands that would go on to be big names like Modest Mouse and many more. After I moved to and got things rolling in California in 1998 and then @ohiodave moved in with me in 1999, we got Dan to move in with us in 2002. Soon after, Dan’s journey would accelerate. He went on to.. Team mananger for Tracker trucks, Orion Trucks, Sixteen skateboards, Neighborhood Skateboards and Stamina Clothing Worked for Vans as the first core retail marketer and grassroots events. Territory was - San Diego county, LA County, Riverside County, San Luis Obispo, Arizona, Utah, and Hawaii. Adio Footwear national retail merchandiser and marketing Sales with Tum Yeto, Stereo skateboards, Elwood and Adio Footwear Tony Hawk Foundation (Skatepark Project) - 8 fundraising events as an events manager 2 Birdhouse summer tours - east coast and west coast- onsite marketing Protec team mananger 2013 - 2019 - outdoors skills instructor for Skatewild at the Visalia YMCA Skatecamp 2021 - Skatecamp and youth camp overlord at YMCA Skatecamp I have a feeling he isn’t done contributing to the skateboarding/music subculture. He currently lives in Arizona and still leads a creative life. Anyone that knows him knows what a sweet guy he is. Always friendly, always giving. An absolute treasure straight from Turney Rd. - KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 28. Dave Smith @ohiodave Born 1973 Started Skateboarding 1987? I’ve been really excited to write this story for a long time. Dave is one of my earliest skateboard friends. The very week I started skateboarding (July 1988) Dave and his brother Sean moved from Mantua to my hometown of Garfield Hts. We met at a Garfield spot, they were riding @dogtownskate boards and they were on Team Insanity with me just days later. Dave was one of the best skaters in Garfield Hts. back then. We skated together all over Cleveland over the years. We took the RTA downtown together as kids and then went on to having many late night sessions downtown in the mid 90’s. When I moved to California in 1998 Dave was still in Cleveland, living on Fleet Ave. and working at DAN DEE Potato Chip Factory. After I got set up in California and established connections, I convinced Dave to leave Cleveland and move in with me in 1999. Life for Dave was about to change drastically from his days working at DAN DEE. He first got a job working in the warehouse at Transworld Skateboarding Magazine. After about a year of working there he got the opportunity to be the Team Manager for Tracker Trucks. And that also blended in to being the Team Manager for its affiliated brands, Orion Trucks, 16 Skateboards, Neighborhood Skateboards and Stamina Clothing. After a couple years he went on to be the Team Manager for New Deal Skateboards and Pop War Skateboards. A couple years later he moved up to be the Team Manager for Vans. We both enjoyed lots of perks together on the Vans credit card, ha! Dave then went on to be Team Manager for ipath Shoes, content creator for The Dew Tour and worked for Sessions Clothing. Dave’s skateboard journey has been incredible. From the streets of Garfield Hts. to constant traveling/touring with the biggest names in skateboarding, all around the world. Dave has probably traveled more of the world than most professional skateboarders. He’s also brought Many tours/professional skaters to Cleveland over the years. I’m so proud of this guy and I’m so glad I’ve been able to share at least a small piece of his story with you all. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

LEADING THE CHARGE! Sean Dugan @duggygonecray Born 1991 Started Skateboarding 2002 I try to do these Leading The Charge posts to shine a light on the young skaters that are pushing themselves and pushing the Cleveland terrain to new limits. I also do the Still On Fire posts to shine a light on the skaters that are on the older side but still regularly charging hard despite their age. By the way Sean skates I thought for sure he was in his early 20’s. He’s on another level. Then I find out he’s in his early 30’s! And really, historically and on a global level, 30 and over is pretty old for a skateboarder. Especially to be still charging super hard. Heck, most skaters start slowing down by their mid 20’s. But I’ve noticed that there is something going on with the Cleveland skateboard scene. There is a pretty substantial amount of skaters in their early 30’s that are really pushing things hard. That’s not typical for most skate scenes. It’s usually the late teens and early 20 some year old that are doing that. Anyways, I was thinking, should this be a Still On Fire post because of his age? I guess it doesn’t really matter. I think Sean can hold both titles. Sean’s skating does all the talking, not his age. His skill is really super human. And he is pushing our favorite spots to new levels and that’s really inspiring. Sean has been holding down the West 25th area of Cleveland his entire life. He is sponsored by @westsideskates . He is also currently working on a part for the upcoming and highly anticipated video from @derek_ironwing . So, get out there and meet Sean if you can. Watch him skate and get stoked! -KS #clevelandskateboarding

NEW! Available Now. Gary Spear/Cleveland Skateboarding T-Shirts. Don’t know who @spear3420 is ? Check the Still On Fire story written about him. Still charging the Cleveland streets regularly into his early 50’s. He’s the champ! He’s our friend! www.clevelandskateboarding.com

Happy Holidays Everyone! #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 27. Drew Dezort @drewdezort Born 1985 Started Skateboarding 1996 One of the hardest working skaters to do it on these streets. Drew grew up skating in Hudson Ohio. He really discovered his love and hunger for the culture and the exploration it brought in his early teen years. That has been his main motivation ever since. By his teen years he was already a sponsored amateur for @triadskateboards . He had already put out full parts in, quite possibly the first Akron Video, Restricted 1 & 2 and then Point Blank by @drama . When I started my company, the late @1031skates in 2006, Drew was one of the first people I called to be on my team. Six months later Drew left Ohio and was living near me and the team in Oceanside California. Everyone I took Drew around to skate with was blown away by his skill and sheer rawness he put out in his skating. He would go on to really put in the hard work. He toured the U.S.A., got full page ads in Thrasher, multiple photos in multiple magazines and put out another video part in @1031skates first video, Bleed For Me, which was distributed worldwide. He also became a team rider for Innes Clothing. All the while becoming a full time worker at Black Box Distribution. The former home of @zeroskateboards , @fallen.footwear and many other brands that @jamiethomas was involved with. To say Drew was a hard worker is an understatement. From there Drew would go on to ride for @blood_wizard . He put out more full parts, tour, get photos in the big mags and pick up more sponsors such as Vox Footwear. After that he rode for @heroinskateboards for multiple years. While he was busy putting down some of the toughest skating and getting more coverage then some pros, he was still working full time. In 2014 he started working for Baker Boys Distribution. Home of @bakerskateboards , @deathwishskateboards and more. Today Drew lives in Los Angeles and is a manager at Baker Boys Distribution. Drew’s work ethic, guts, determination, talent and his quiet head down get the job done attitude is inspiring. He still inspires me to this day and I hope some little skate rat from Hudson gets inspired too. -KS #clevelandskateboarding

www.ClevelandSkateboarding.com

Story # 26. Pat Bleil @thebaron1234 1976 - 2021 Started Skateboarding 1988 The Vans assistant TM from Mentor. Pat grew up skating in Mentor. He was a regular at Ohio Surf & Skate and a favorite of the late 80’s early 90’s east side crew. When Pat got his Buick Skylark he was able to start skating other parts of the city and that’s when the rest of us were all lucky enough to meet him and become friends. In 1995? - 1996? Pat moved to Huntington Beach California. He moved in with another older skater from Euclid, Scott Sismis. Scott had moved there years prior and became the Vans team manager. Pat worked at a movie theater and Sole Tech before Scott got him the job at Vans being his assistant, around 1998.? From there Pat would travel and skate around the world. He became friends with many of the top Vans skaters of the time. Pat and Scott are THE reason I was able to get sponsored by Vans in 1998. I was lucky enough to have toured Europe and The United States with Pat. Pat did a lot for me at Vans. He was always in my corner. I’m my eyes, he was The Team Manager or at least one of a few. Not just the assistant. Pat left Vans around 2001.? He became a motorcycle mechanic and eventually moved back to Mentor in 2006? - 2008? He then worked at Harley Davidson in Mentor. Pats last gift to us all in Cleveland Skateboarding was when he worked/helped at his cousins brand new skate shop in Painesville, @easternrevivalskates I can never write enough words to express how much he was loved and how much he is missed by so many. I can never write the perfect words to give it justice. He always had that little grin on his face. Sometimes he’d mumble something under his breath and sometimes you’d swear he might be talkin a little shit on you. It didn’t matter. He still made you feel like you just wanted to ….. dare I say…. Give him a hug. So if you’re a younger skater, newer to the community and never met Pat. Just know there was a little skate rat, just like you, just like me, just like us, that got to see more of the world in a few years and make more friends, than most do in a lifetime. All because of his love of skateboarding. -KS #clevelandskateboarding

www.clevelandskateboarding.com

www.clevelandskateboarding.com @clevelandskateboarding #clevelandskateboarding

Leading The Charge! Matt Brack @mattbrzy Born 1991 Started Skateboarding 2001 COPIUM !! If you haven’t seen or heard of the latest, amazing Cleveland Skateboarding video, Copium, then you need to follow @mattbrzy and follow the link or go straight to YouTube and check it! It’s filled with tons of heavy skating from a lot of our favorite rippers and some new ones. Matt grew up skating in Brunswick. At the age of 13-14 he found his Dads handycam and his love of filming skateboarding was born. He got his first VX at 16. In 2013 he put out his first video, Get There. In 2017 he put out his second video, Plair. And now in 2023 we get his third local video, Copium. I can’t say enough good things about this video. Great filming, great editing and of course the skating is nuts!! Seeing a whole new generation step it up on many classic Cleveland spots and crack open new ones is just really inspiring. This video is going to inspire you to skate and really take pride in all that’s good locally. Huge thank you to ALL of the skaters that worked so hard for this video. And of course a Huge thank you to Matt for taking the time, hard work and heart to give us all this gift. And that is why Matt Brack is leading the charge! -KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 25. Charlie Rockwood Road Rash Magazine @charlierockwood @roadrashyears Born 1975 Started Skateboarding 1988 Charlie grew up skating Mentor Headlands. A few backyard ramps and even fewer street spots. In the 90’s he would eventually move to Little Italy and then on to Cleveland Heights, where he would build a mini ramp in his basement. After moving to Cleveland Heights he would start skating Cleveland more and meeting more skaters from around the city. The mid 90’s kicked off a lot in Cleveland Skateboarding. Chenga World opened, The Warped Tour started and came to Cleveland and Charlie started shooting photos. With all that energy going on and Charlie being inspired by magazines like Punk Planet, Maximum Rock & Roll and the infamous skate zine out of Columbus @smellycurb , in 1995 he decided to start his own zine for Cleveland; Road Rash. He would make Road Rash Magazine from 1995 - 1999, putting out 5 issues and 1 video titled ‘The Burning River’. Charlie moved to San Francisco in December of 1999. In 2006 he worked for @lowcardmag for 4 years. In 2011 he started working for @dlxsf doing web work where he still currently works today. Thank you for putting in those long nights at Kinkos Charlie! We are all grateful for your contributions and documenting some of the Cleveland Skateboarding 90’s era. Thank You!! -KS #clevelandskateboarding P.S. Please tag anyone you know that is in these photos if they are not already tagged. Thanks!

July 9th 1991. Who was there? #clevelandskateboarding

Leading The Charge! Mike Freiberg @yungbergg Born 1995 Started Skateboarding 2000 It seems like the past decade Mike has just been on a rampage. (Pun totally intended). I first noticed Mike at least 10 years ago? He was this kid out of Mentor with an amazing transition skating ability and was always in search of bigger ramps with more vert. I sponsored him on my old companies, @1031skates and @landsharkwheels back in 2012 - 2014? After that Mike went on to ride for Z-Flex. He currently rides for @powerflexwheels and always reps his buddies shop @easternrevivalskates . Over the years Mike has been traveling around the country skating, in search of big ramps, pools and making new friends. He still enters vert contests when they pop up. He has been in many local videos such as Better Luck Next Time and Dually. He is currently filming for a new local video that will include other local Charge Leaders, @yung_jlag @dannydirtsquid and @amaninewring . That video may be out by the end of 2023. And let’s not forget, he’s one of the few that are brave enough to keep up with @fnabecker skating the Crooked River Bowl. For all these reasons and more, that’s why Mike Freiberg is Leading The Charge! Yeah Freiberg! Keep crushing it, pushing us and inspiring us all! A total Cleveland Skateboarding ripper! -KS #clevelandskateboarding

Cleveland Skateboarding t-shirts are now available. www.ClevelandSkateboarding.com OR.. Link is in bio. Keep the good times rolling. Past, Present and Future!🎈-KS #clevelandskateboarding

June 3rd 1989. A day of skating and live local punk bands at The Berea Roll And Bowl (Berea Triangle). Did I see you there? I was a tiny 14 year old skating all day and all night long. One of my favorite days in Cleveland Skateboarding history. -KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 24. Jake Schwartz @condensed_flesh Born 1990 Started Skateboarding 1998 Jake isn’t just a skater from Shaker Heights. He’s a contributor, a giver, a creator and a really nice guy. His story started off like most Cleveland skater kids. He skated around his neighborhood then started to take the RTA downtown to skate. From there he would start meeting skaters from other parts of the city. But then at the age of 15 his grandpa got him a circular saw. That would spark an interest in ramp building. He would go onto help local skaters and ramp builders @db_0380 and @chuckzilla_1 build the bowl at the former Big Happys skatepark. He would then meet The Fun Wall builders, Mikey Cuffio, Corey Rulong, Willy Kopp, John Stashick and Ricardo Reinoso. They would would get Jake into building with concrete which Jake then helped them build The Fun Wall. He went on to working for multiple different skatepark building companies, traveling around the U.S. and South America building skateparks. One of the most recent local builds that Jake has been part of is The ZU Cleveland DIY park. But the contributions don’t stop there. In 2011 Jake bought a VX Camera to start documenting local skating and punk shows. That would lead to the birth of his local video magazine series, Condensed Flesh. Condensed Flesh Video # 1 was released in 2011. Over the years Jake has put out 9 Condensed Flesh Videos and 1 print issue. Anyone that has ever made a local skate video knows that it can be a daunting task. It really is a great achievement to have made 9 over the years! Jake is currently working hard filming Condensed Flesh # 10 right now. He hopes to have it released this fall/winter. We can’t thank you enough for all of your hard work, dedication and love for the Cleveland Skateboarding community Jake. -KS #clevelandskateboarding

I got some @clevelandskateboarding stickers made to give away. So if you see me out in the wild, just ask.🎈-KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 23. Kyle Knutson @cat_barf Born 1990 Started Skateboarding 1999 Kyle was raised skating in Parma Hts and in N. Olmsted. He shared his love of skating with photography, film and art. This is a recipe bound to create something interesting. In 2009 Kyle got a job working for @tristarskates at its first location. He would work there for the next 5-6 years as he went through college. In 2014 Kyle took his love of skateboarding, photography, film and art, harnessed it all together and started his very own regional skateboard company, Colony Skateboards. What separated Colony from the now thousands of other small regional deck companies is in the Details. In an era where wood shops will make small runs of boards for almost anyone now, skate shops with their shop decks and small regional brands will typically just choose pre designed shapes and even more so pre designed concave molds from the wood shops…. Kyle was NOT having any of that. Kyle saved his money and came up with his OWN 4 different concave molds to start Colony off with, paying 1,000.00 per mold. That’s 4k just to get his custom concave’s dialed in before even one deck was made. Then he had to come up with more money to start getting decks made with his own custom shapes. Kyle also had thoughtful detail in his graphics. Having a background in art and artist friends outside of skateboarding, he would collaborate with them to come up with many of Colony’s graphics. Kyle would build a team, Shane Lindeman @lurkingoon Nic Ratiaczak @ohionic Devon Jackson @com.truise Dylan Brown @onehunnedemoji Keith Blanda @kablama Billy Walsh @eatohio Doug Nehrenz @loller_skater & Dale Busta . He would make short films, handle all production, shipping and sales. All the while having fun with his friends and keeping Colony something truly unique. He made something original in an era of skateboards made from a one size fits all approach to shapes and concave molds. It’s all in the details. Kyle did Colony from 2014 - 2020. He now lives in Austin Texas with his wife. I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of Kyle’s creativity in skateboarding. Can’t wait to see what’s next Kyle! - KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 22. Jim Sakaley @jamessakaley Born 1973 Started Skateboarding 1987 Jim was born and raised in Cleveland. He grew grew up off of W. 130th. Like most west side kids he grew up skating the usual spots like Impett, Roll and Bowl and where he learned rock and rolls… Coe Lake in Berea. His real contributions to the local scene would start in 2004 when he was working for a roofing company. He would take a trip to Eastern Skateboard Supply for their annual open house. He B.S.’d a story to them and got an account open even though he didn’t have a shop. He then got accounts with other distributors. Technically that was the start of the infamous @tristarskates as he would sell the boards out of his van. From there he got a booth at Jamie’s Flea Market and sold there until the distributors got wind that he wasn’t a real brick and mortar skate shop. They requested photo proof of his shop. With the help of local skater @lotus_larry_ ,he printed Jim a Tri Star banner and they hung it over the front of Larry’s printshop building, snapped a photo and sent it in. Genius! In 2008 Jim finally got his own building in Parma to make Tri Star an official shop. The first location was on State rd. Then he moved farther down on State rd. Then in 2014 he got the current location on Brookpark rd. Over the years Jim has brought in many touring pro’s, hosted events and contests and has brought a lot of smiles to many skaters faces. In 2019 he sold Tri Star to dedicated lifelong skater @sammys1813 and his wife Shelby. Their love and hard work continue to keep the positive legacy of @tristarskates alive. Jim is still working hard bringing joy to the local skate scene with his skate museum and indoor bowl. Many pro’s and traveling skaters make it a point to visit Jim’s bowl. It’s now become a destination spot known to skaters around the world. Jim just doesn’t stop. His energy is contagious. His love for skateboarding and his friends is obvious. He can’t stop giving and he hasn’t and he won’t. His contributions to us all over the years are immeasurable. Thanks so much for everything Jim! Your hard work, dedication and kindness is inspiring. -KS #clevelandskateboarding

Happy Holidays! #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 21. Brett Turner @_burner Born 1970 Started Skateboarding 1986 Born in Berea, raised in Berea. Brett Turners contributions to the local and global skate scene, for over three decades have been immense. He always had a toy board around since 1978 but it wasn’t until he found Great Skates in Berea in 1986 that he would get his first real pro level board. He became a local skating the Berea Commons until the city kicked them out and built them the “outdoor Berea” at Coe Lake in 1987. Him and his friends started adding curbs and other ramps to it. Around the same time he would start skating and meeting friends in an around Cleveland. Impett park being one of his favorite spots. He also, as a little kid grew up roller skating at the local roller skating rink, The Berea Roll & Bowl. In 1988 a new owner bought the Roll & Bowl and started hosting parties and having bands play. At around age 17 he approached the owner about the idea of building some skateboard ramps in the roller rink. The owner went along with the idea and some Cleveland Skateboarding history was born. Brett along with friends Dave Berry and @fastaction got to work building the first ramps. So you all that used to skate there back then or saw pro demos there can give them a big “Thank You” for that! The years went on and Brett kept charging! He went to college. Then he started traveling the country, skating, meeting new friends and eventually landing in Florida in 1997. He went on to building skateparks with RCMC, Grindline, Dreamland, & Team Pain. He has built public and private parks all around the continental U.S.A., England, Belgium and Hawaii. Features in parks that he created have even been on the cover of @thrashermag . Not too bad for an 80’s skate rat from Berea! Now in his early 50’s Brett is still charging hard! Skating and contributing anywhere he can. So many more stories to tell, so little space to type. We’ll save the rest for the podcast. Thank you so much for ALL of your contributions Brett! You’re the real deal! -KS #clevelandskateboarding

1987? #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 20. Eric Viccarone @eric_viccarone Born 1990 Started Skateboarding 2001 The Pride of Parma. Eric was born in Las Vegas. He moved to the Cleveland area when he was 3 years old. He grew up in Parma. Him and his friends would ride their bikes up to the old State Road skatepark to skate all the time. When Eric was just a teenager he started getting very productive with his skills on his skateboard. Within those teen years he had parts in Local videos, What’s Really Good, Autumn, The West Side Video, Baller Status and Windows And Doorways. Side note…. @cyril_killla also lived in Eric’s basement for a period of time when they were both teenagers. So much talent brewing under one roof. Without Eric’s knowing, an older friend and local Cleveland Skateboarding legend, Junior took Eric’s part in Windows And Doorways and sent it around to skate companies. Hoping to get Eric hooked up with a big company. One day it paid off when Eric got a call from the team manager for Alien Workshop. Eric thought it was a prank. Remember, he had no idea that Junior was doing this for him. One thing led to another and Eric moved to California when he turned 18. He got flow sponsored by Alien Workshop, Venture, Hubba and Osiris. He was working hard to make is place, skating and touring. Despite his amazing talent and dedication the skateboard industry did what the skateboard industry does. Companies were sold, team managers changed and Eric suddenly found himself back at square one. Eric moved back to Cleveland in 2011 and put out one more part in the Local video, Hot Damn. After that, he was burnt. Burnt on the roller coaster ride of hope and loss from sponsors. Eric didn’t skate for several years. UNTIL a chance encounter on a job site with our hero, @spear3420 ! Gary “put his foot down” and got Eric back out skating once again. P.S.- Thanks Gary! Eric started going out skating and having fun with Gary and friends and Eric has been back at it ripping as hard as ever. Eric is currently living in Parma, running his own business, married raising 2 daughters, still SO talented and skating and smiling all the time. You rule Viccarone! - KS #clevelandskateboarding

Leading The Charge Mac Sullivan @mac_sullivan Born 1998 Started Skateboarding 2009 Sponsors @westsideskates As we get older it’s sometimes hard to keep up with the new faces out there pushing the limits in Cleveland Skateboarding. Thankfully we have plenty of skaters of the younger generation making ripping local videos to show us all what’s currently going down in the streets. I first noticed Mac’s skating in @roseygrams video, The Sunday Rule where Mac had a ripping last part. I then saw Mac again in @braun.dv video, Dues Paid where he had the opening part, crushing it. Now Mac is currently filming for another video, @mattbrzy new video, Copium. Word on the streets is that Copium will be premiering sometime this winter. Give @mattbrzy a follow for updates on the release of Copium. Give @roseygrams a follow to get your eyes on a copy of The Sunday Rule. Give @braun.dv a follow to get your eyes on a copy of Dues Paid. And of course, give @mac_sullivan a follow for more ripping skating. And don’t forget to say hello to him when you see him out there. He’s a really nice guy. All the best Mac! Your skating is so inspiring to all of us. Keep Ripping!! -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 19. Daniel Creadon @danielcreadon @factory13skateboards Born 1971 Started Skateboarding 1983 Daniel grew up in Mentor Ohio. Finding skateboarding and punk rock as a teenager was his life changer. Just after turning 18 and with only 17 dollars in his pocket Daniel and his girlfriend found out that they had a baby on the way. As he watched his friends all go off to college he went off doing whatever it took to take care of his family. He did factory carpentry work for 4.25 per hour working 10 -12 hour days, paying rent for all 3 of them to live in someone’s attic and shop lifted baby formula. He got certified to be a welder and did 15 years as a factory welder. But when you put an artist/Skateboarder with a creative drive and work ethic in a life position like that, you’re bound to eventually see magic created. He slowly took scrap from the factory dumpster to build his first deck press as his workers laughed at him and called him “Dumpster Danny”. The joke would one day be on them. His work stations at the Factory were named 1-12. He worked tirelessly in his garage on his deck presses and molds. He would go on to give birth to his own company. He created his new “work station”, Factory 13 in 1999. He’s always made unique shaped boards, which was a hard sell for him back in the late 90’s. But eventually they started to sell. He moved to California in 2007 and with that move connections were made and the demand for his boards grew. He has made boards for @lancemountain , @christianhosoi , @streetplant , @mikevallely , @kristiansvitak , @brianjfa JFA, @mrolson , Duane Peters, @salba69 , @montanapoolservice and many more. Daniel moved back to the Cleveland area in 2022 and is now making and shipping all his boards, all around the world, straight out of Mentor Ohio. If you’re looking for a new board made with quality, heart, passion, style and LOCAL, then hit up Daniel. AND REMEMBER........ “Style cannot be mass produced” #stylecannotbemassproduced -KS #clevelandskateboarding clevelandskateboarding.com

Story # 18. Jay Croft @streetcanoe Born 1973 Started Skateboarding 1986 His resume of dedication and contributions to the culture are long. Growing up in Norton Ohio, Jay discovered skateboarding by stumbling across @thrashermag and @transworldskate at the grocery store magazine rack back in the mid 80’s. Soon after, his friend Frankie would give him his old Sims, Jeff Phillips board and turn him on to some Dead Kennedy’s, Misfits and Dead Milkmen. That would kick off Jays new life. He pioneered skateboarding in Norton then branched out to start skating Akron. Along with skateboarding Jay always had an interest in art due to his Grandfathers artistic influence. In 1999 Jay would move to California and get a job working in the warehouse at Giant skateboard distribution. By 2000 he would get the offer to draw a series of graphics for @elementskateboards . In the early 2000’s he moved back to Ohio and opened up Rubber City Rollers Skate Shop in Akron. He contributed to the local scene and hosted many events for the next 4 years till the shop closed. In 2007 Jay made a connection to land the job as the Midwest wholesale marketing coordinator for @vansskate which he still currently does. But all that info is just the tip of the iceberg. Over the years Jay has been helping to put on events. He has made many zines such as, The Truth, Poop Filled Diaper, Forward Motion, Street Canoe and more. He has drawn graphics for @elementskateboards @alienworkshop , @osirisshoes , many skate shops and more. He is also a board member for @deckaid , www.deckaid.org . When talking to Jay one thing stuck out to me. I noticed him say “You have to contribute” multiple times. Well Jay, Thank You, from all of us for Contributing! - KS #ClevelandSkateboarding Photo credits - @drabjohn - @scottykaratephoto

A post by Jim Hill, @jhillrollwithit Story # 17. Kristian Svitak @kristiansvitak Born 1975 Started Skateboarding 1988 Professional Skateboarder 1999 - Present “ I recently came across a photo of Kristian from around 1995 where he is skating a challenging spot that not many people attempted to skate in downtown Cleveland on what looks to be a not ideal day with the weather and not wearing your typical gear that was the rage at that time. I thought, well nothing changes with this guy..... but EVERYTHING changed, went full circle for the better of his career and has come back to remain the same. Kristian started skating in Garfield Heights. He soon started skating downtown Cleveland where he stepped up and took on the gnarliest spots which are still legendary to this day. He eventually got his first sponsor, @westsideskates . At this time he was working full time & stacking clips which got the attention of @laban_001 at Invisible skateboards. This landed him on Invisible as a legit sponsored Am in 1996. Many miles and demos went down during this time, gaining coverage and recognition. He then caught the attention of @lucero_rip of @blacklabelskates where he became a member of the Label and eventually turning pro in 1999. Things kicked into 5th gear during this point where the videos, magazine covers, shoe and truck sponsors all came to fruition. Some of the footage from this time is legendary. Branching out on his own to start @1031skates after seeing how it was done by some of the best saw more demos, traveling the world and paving the way for future pros and ams from around the Cleveland area. Always coming back, showing the kids the way and trying to help out however he could. Now he’s teamed up with longtime friend @mikevallely at @streetplant where the mission is the same. Skate how and what you want. Remember why you started in the first place. So this is why it’s exactly the same as in that photo. Kristian is still skating some of the most difficult spots, giving a nod to where he grew up, working hard, getting footage and being appreciative of all that skateboarding has done for him.” - Jim Hill #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 16. Roger Krebs @rogerkrebs Born 1991 Started Skateboarding 1999 Professional Skateboarder 2017 - Present The Pride of the East Side. Roger grew up living with his Mom and sister, primarily in Euclid on East 185th. When he was just 8 years old his Mom would take him to get his hair cut by the local barber. That barber just happened to be local Cleveland Skateboarding legend @gradywing_vacuum . It was there at Grady’s barber shop that Roger would see his first @thrashermag . That would be the beginning of a whole new world for him. Grady took him under his wing and would hook him up with old boards and point Roger in the right direction. At 15 years old Roger, his Mom and sister moved to Willowick. He was quickly surrounded by a solid crew of legendary older skaters such as Ryan Dunbar, @charlierockwood , @streetcreep and more. His skating and enthusiasm were moving forward fast. He would get sponsored by the infamous @mitby957tim with Ohio Surf and Skate. Then Danny Creadon would hook him up with his local brand @factory13skateboards . After that @chuckzilla_1 would hook him up with his then local brand, Boo (Board Of Ohio) Skateboards. The East Side crew has had Rogers back since his start. After graduating high school in 2009 he would eventually land in San Francisco California, where he still currently lives. It would be skating in S.F. that would change things in a big way for Roger. By chance he ran into, skated with and became friends with @snackskateboards owner, Adam Egrel. Over time it became a natural fit for Roger to become @snackskateboards newest sponsored amateur. After some time Roger then turned pro for Snack in 2017. He’s been filming parts, shooting photos, getting in the mags, traveling the world, selling boards and having the time of his life. Not too bad for a little kid from East 185th! You know all the old East Side guys are so proud of you Roger. All of @clevelandskateboarding is proud of you. If you would like to show your support of one of our own, follow @rogerkrebs and buy his pro models at and follow @snackskateboards . He has a new pro model coming out SOON! YES!! - KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 15. Cyril Jackson @cyril_killla Born 1990 Started Skateboarding 2002 Professional Skateboarder 2014 - 2019 Cyril was born in Palo Alto CA. Most of his childhood was spent growing up in Lemoore CA and Bakersfield CA before moving to Cleveland when he was 13. He and his mom first landed at E. 116th & Buckeye. They then moved to W. 85th and W. 67th & Detroit. He would grow into his skating as a teenager growing up in Cleveland. I remember coming back to visit Cleveland and all my buddies were telling me about this young kid that was really good and more importantly, really nice. We would go skate and it was obvious that Cyril was on another level at a young age. And with his kind and respectful demeanor he was sure to go far. Cyril would get a little board sponsorship by a local company, B.O.O. (Board Of Ohio) Skateboards, owned by @chuckzilla_1 . Shortly after he would ride for Cincinnati’s @instrumentskateboards . From there he rode for my former company @1031skates . I was able to start getting him ad’s in Thrasher Magazine and get him on multiple national tours. Fun fact.... His first tour was on a tour bus with Duane Peters , @billdanforthskates , @mikevallely and myself. Pretty crazy experience for a rookie amateur. In late 2012 he was contacted by @andrewreynolds of @bakerskateboards . The offer was given to Cyril that would be his game changer and one that he and the rest of us could not deny. Cyril would join the Baker team as an amateur and then turn pro for them from 2014 till 2019. He traveled the world with the best, picked up many top sponsors and made it on more pages of the history books. These days Cyril is living in Los Angeles, where he’s been since he was 19. At 31 years old he’s still skating like he is 21. Still charging hard, better then ever. I have a feeling he’s got more for the skateboard world in the near future. He’s also focusing on his music and his brand, Shout Out Everybody. If you’d like to show your support give him a follow on his Instagram. You can keep up with all of his song releases and other info there. Also checkout www.shoutouteverybody.com for his new t-shirt designs. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 14. Scott Pazelt @scottpazelt Born 1976 Started Skateboarding 1987 Professional Skateboarder 2000 - 2004 Seven Hills represent! Scott Pazelt was one of the local skaters leading The Charge all the way back in the early 90’s. I’d run into him randomly through mutual friends back when we were teenagers. We would show each other the new tricks we were both working on. Only Scott’s we’re always on another technical level. He was clearly destined to go onto big things in skateboarding. In the mid 90’s Scott got his first sponsorship by getting on the Nation Skateboards flow team. Shortly after he got on the Amateur team for New York City’s Chapman Skateboards. In 2000 Chapman Skateboards turned Scott Pro! From there Scott moved to San Diego California and started racking up the coverage in the history books. He’d travel the world and pick up sponsors such as Osiris shoes, Spitfire, Thunder, Counter Culture, Von Zipper and more. He would also have a full part in one of the most marketed skate videos ever, Osiris Shoes, The Storm. Scott would eventually end up riding pro for Maple Skateboards due to his constant skating and traveling with, his friends and Maple pro’s @chadknight and Dave Coyne. These days Scott is back in the Cleveland area, living in Strongsville . He’s kept busy as a cloud architect for Sherwin Williams in Downtown and raising his twin daughters with his wife. He still gets his skating in when he can. You may catch him at one of his weekly Hudson park sessions with his old pals and legendary Cleveland rippers, @dougradefeld , @burkamania and Dave Slivers. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

A Side Note Post. This flyer, courtesy of @judge_gregg of the Cleveland band @mutantsoldier . Anybody out there remember Suitcase Willies? Anyone have any good stories or photos to share of that shop? Also posted is the board I got from Suitcase Willies, March 1990. Thanks @judge_gregg for sharing! -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 13. Brad Staba @skatemental Born 1979 Started Skateboarding 1986 Professional Skateboarder 1997 - Present Although Brad moved away from Cleveland at 14, his roots run deep, back to his start on East 71st in Slavic Village. He got his first skateboard from Silvermans on Harvard in 1986. It was a blue banana board. He landed his first real, pro level board from @schneidersbike It was a @santacruzskateboards Slasher. He witnessed a lot of crazy stuff at a very young age in his neighborhood but now he was armed with his weapon, his skateboard. He would use that as his escape and his vehicle to overcome. Brad’s mom moved the both of them to Lakewood. That’s where he would become an Impett Park Local. He was just a little kid then but he still has a photographic memory of that spot. In the 7th grade Brad moved to my neighborhood of Garfield Heights. That’s when we became close friends and skated together everyday. I was also his baby sitter from time to time. I witnessed his talent first hand. It was a really special and rare thing to see in such a young kid. After the passing of Brad’s Grandma in 1993 he and his mom Needed a New Start. They bought one way tickets on the Amtrack to California. They would land in the San Francisco Bay Area. Before moving from Cleveland Brad had met @ronallensk8 at a demo at Ohio Surf And Skate. Ron told Brad, when he got to California to give him a call. The day Brad got to California he took Ron Allen up and called him. That would be the beginning of a whole new direction for Brads skateboarding life. Ron Allen put Brad on the Fun Skateboards flow team. From there Brad went on to ride for American Dream Inc, @foundationskateboards in 1995 and turn pro for Foundation in 1997. He then went on to be pro for @toymachine , @enjoi and Ruby before starting his own and current company @skatemental It’s been such a pleasure to watch a little Slavic Village kid overcome so much and make it to the big leagues. Brad has never forgotten his life in Cleveland. His love for the city still lives on. Thanks for being a part of our story Brad. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 12. Ja’Ovvoni Garrison @jaovvonigarrison Born 1989 Started Skateboarding 2003 A Decade of commitment. Ja’Ovvoni first started life in East Cleveland. He later moved to the Slavic Village area. It was living there at the age of 14 that he found skateboarding. He started on a generic board until his Grandma bought him his first proper deck from @westsideskates . He graduated high school at 16, got his first job at Mr. Chicken and skated downtown most nights till midnight. Shortly after he took a trip to see his aunt in Tennessee. She took notice of his love of skateboarding and asked him the question “ What do you want to do with skateboarding?”. That’s when his gears got turning. His grandmother instilled a strong work ethic in him... and get to work he did. Ja’Ovvoni drove straight back to Cleveland, called the Mayors Action Hotline and got connected with a community organizer from Slavic Village. He was determined to bring skateboarding to the kids in his neighborhood. From there he was connected with @publicsquaregroup , @vincefrantz . Ja’Ovvoni would devote the next decade of his life , 18-28, working with Vince and PSG. Ja’Ovvoni has done the leg work to find grants to help Cleveland Skateboarding. He has done lessons, lessons at Stella Walsh rec center, pop up skate events, contests, premiers and helped get the Crooked River Park built. He also went to San Jose CA to attend a neighborhood leadership conference to arm himself with more knowledge, learned the skills to be a community development organizer, ran his OWN local skateboard company , Skate RTA 2012-2017, AND he even ran for Mayor in 2017 just so he can learn from the experience. And ALL of that was to help Cleveland Skateboarding! What a resume! Everything he has done is really remarkable and a great example for us all. These days Ja’Ovvoni is focused on raising his son and getting in that skate time when he can. But I can tell by talking to him that he isn’t done yet. His gears are still turning. We can’t wait to see what’s next from you Ja’Ovvoni. Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication. Cleveland Skateboarding really is better with you. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Leading The Charge RESERVE A Zine by Mike Chinner Koroczynsky @mike_chinner Born 1989 Started Skateboarding 2000 Over the years Chinner has done a lot for skateboarding locally and internationally. From 2007-2010 he worked for SolTech driving around the country, setting up and judging the ES Games Of Skate series. He also then went on to working with the Maloof Money Cup. From 2012-2016 he lived in South Africa where he put on skateboard lessons, events and contests. Returning to Ohio in 2016 he started taking his photography more seriously and also teamed up with @publicsquaregroup . He started getting his photos published in various zines and at the same time was helping PSG with various events such as lessons and East Meets West. He’s also the guy that hosted the Skate Trivia Night. Now Chinner brings yet another gift to Cleveland Skateboarding, his new Zine, RESERVE. I cannot say enough good thing about this Zine. All the photos are professional quality. It’s printed on high quality paper. And it’s a packed 42 pages full of so many of Cleveland’s finest skaters. Nothing captures the feeling and imagination of skateboarding like a proper photograph. Chinner really put a lot of time and care into this Zine. Please, show your support to one of our own. And show your support to all of the great skaters that were lucky enough to make the pages. Own a piece of Cleveland Skateboarding history. You WILL Be Stoked! You can purchase RESERVE by contacting Chinner via Instagram or by email at.. Chinnerphoto@gmail.com (He ships as well if you’re out of the area) Thanks so much Chinner for all you’ve done and still do! Thanks for Leading The Charge and keeping Cleveland Skateboarding amped! -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

#clevelandskateboarding

Story # 11. The Kickflip seen around the world. Doug Radefeld @dougradefeld Born 1976 Started skateboarding 1988-1989 In 1997 @transworldskate photographer @kulafoto came to town to do an article on the state of Ohio. Up to that point there hadn’t been very much coverage of Cleveland skaters in any magazine. It was pretty exciting for Cleveland to get some pages in the history books. One of the skaters that threw down for the mag was a skater from 7-Hills named Doug Radefeld. Anyone that knew Doug knew that he was one of Cleveland’s best. At the time Doug had been going to school at Akron University. So Central Hower became his daily skate spot. At the time there was hardly anybody going over the chain and into the Mighty Central Hower bank. This was also the time before someone lowered the chain on top. Yes, that chain used to be just a little bit higher back then making it even harder to skate. If it wasn’t bonkers enough that Doug kickflipped over the flat gap, the chain and into the bank for the photo. He had also done it at least a couple times a few months before. No Filmer, No Photographer, that’s just how a lot of amazing skating went down back then. He would also regularly frontside 180 into the bank. So nuts! After shooting the Kickflip into the bank Doug then tried to heelflip and frontside Kickflip into the bank with no avail. BUT, can you imagine that!? Back in 1997!? You’re the man Radefeld! Doing one of the first gnarliest tricks into Central Hower all the way back in 1997 and getting it in one of THE biggest skateboard magazines in the world. And big thanks to Geoffrey Kula for taking the time to come to our city and put Our Guy and Our Spot in the Mag. Sincerely -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 10 RIOT 101 1995 - 1997 9858 Lorain rd. Cleveland Oh. That time in the 90’s when the skate punks from the 80’s had The Most hardcore record store in Cleveland. In 1995, friends @paytosh , Brandon Wagner and Joe Filak put in 2k each to start Riot 101 Records. They rented a store front and apartment above from @dwidhellion , lead singer of Cleveland’s @integrityofficial . The store was located across and just a little down the street from Schneider’s Bike Shop. You May have heard the rumors. Maybe you heard about a diy gun range in the basement? Shooting high velocity guns into a tree stump that would sometimes go through the wall and into the bathroom on the other side? Using cigarette butts for ear plugs? Maybe you heard about the fights with the local crack heads? Maybe a story of a gun being fired into the ceiling during a fight with a crackhead only to ricochet and land in the crackheads back? The shows?The party’s? I’m not here to verify these rumors true or false. Just using it to paint a picture for those that didn’t experience RIOT 101..... and to protect the innocent....or guilty. Ha! Skateboarding in the 80’s was very intertwined with punk rock. These skate punks made their vision come true. Their objective was like any good skate shop. They didn’t just order what was popular, they supported the small bands and record labels, turning the locals onto something new and something the owners believed in. It was also important to them to create a place to come together and hangout. Their basement shows were some of the best. Brandon’s TKO’s regularly played as well as many touring bands. Tons of skate punks stuffed into a small basement, filled with cigarette smoke, the stale smell of beer, amplifiers turned all the way up and no ventilation. If you were there, you were lucky to walk back up the stairs unscathed. It was a special place during a special time in Cleveland Skateboarding. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding All photos courtesy of @tinabrugnolettiphotography

Leading The Charge @northeastohioclips Author, Michael Cohill @michaelcohill Born 1998 Started Skateboarding 2010 “I started the page early in 2020 while recovering from a knee surgery. I had a lot of extra time on my hands and I had been saving clips from local videos to my phone to share with friends for a little bit already. The city based Instagram pages, like @minneapolisclips_ , were popping up and I already had a ton of clips saved on my phone so I thought it would be fun to make the page. From then on it's been all about shining light on and archiving the local scene that I looked up to as a kid and was lucky enough to eventually become a part of. I’ve been working on one project or another since I was just a kid but have been lucky enough to be a part of two local full-lengths “Mistake on the Lake” by Matt Hamlin and “Language Dispenser” by Don Hammersley. Filming for those videos were some of the most difficult and most rewarding times of my life and I feel very grateful to have been a part of them. I’ve been battling knee injuries on and off for the last couple years so these days I’m mostly behind the lens working on a new project with my friends!” Michael is a skateboarder from Akron. We thank him for the time he takes to make @northeastohioclips and shining a light on all the rippers in and around the greater Cleveland and Akron areas. Thank You Michael for keeping all of us stoked and for.. Leading The Charge! -KS Show your support and give @northeastohioclips a follow! #ClevelandSkateboarding Filming by my homies: @zachfalcione + @oweinandrewgrant Photos by: @christian.morgan_ + @garykdean

Happy Holidays! Lots of great new posts lined up for 2022. Thanks for your patience and interest in @clevelandskateboarding . I have had so many great conversations with so many #clevelandskateboarding legends while building these posts. It really has been so much fun going over stories I’ve already known and learning new ones. I try my best to take the time to get all the info and photos I can for each post. I want to give each post the attention, care and respect they deserve. Again, thank you. There has been no other skateboard scene I’ve cared about as much as the one I came from. Sincerely -KS #clevelandskateboarding

Story # 9. Chenga World In 1995 3 friends, Scott Powell @bjchenga a BMXer , JR. a skateboarder and Dave Schaefer @butchblack43 a BMXer envisioned making “a park for everyone”. Scott and Dave saved the money they earned from doing BMX shows at Sea World that summer. Joining their friend JR. they would put all of their money together and rent an old building in North Ridgeville They went to work building ramps. Before they were finished building and open for business word had spread. Pre internet and cellphone the word still hit the streets fast. Skaters started showing up. I personally remember going there to skate and having to knock on the glass doors on a Friday or Saturday around midnight. Scott or Dave would peek at us through the door and we would hope they would give us the thumbs up. Fortunately we never got turned away. We would skate till 2-3 in the morning. Skaters and bikers started showing up from all over. They were forced to open. Still uninsured and behind the landlords back they were scrambling to make everything legit. Insurance seemed impossible to get so they found a loophole. They started their own Boy Scout troop because they found out that the Boy Scouts cover bicycling and skateboarding in their insurance. So, in those early days, technically they were the heads of their scout troop and all of skaters were members of their Boy Scout troop. Yeah, Crazy!! The original location was known to skaters world wide. Their famous rhythm section was something that was never done at an indoor park prior. Skaters and pro skateboard teams came from all over to skate the infamous ramps. Over the years they have hosted countless professional skateboard demos. Some the biggest names in skateboarding have ridden their ramps. After all these years later they still offer fun for everyone at their Current Brookpark location. And since 1995, they still only charge 10 bucks for a session Sunday - Friday. If you’ve lived in the Cleveland area you’ve been very lucky to have this facility so close to home. We’re all grateful for all of the hard work and dedication by “The Chenga Boys” over all of these years. - KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Still On Fire! Gary Spear @spear3420 Born 1971 Started Skateboarding 1983 “The hardest and greatest trick in skateboarding is longevity” - Gary Spear “My favorite era is right now though. Best crew ever and so much history. We laugh the entire time. The strange thing is I feel like it's just beginning and the best is still ahead of us all.” - Gary Spear When I started to dig in on building Gary’s story, we exchanged a bunch of messages. In those messages were the two quotes from him that I posted above. They jumped right out at me. I couldn’t think of a better way to start this post off. He hit the nail on the head. Those that have been around might know of some of the skateboarding accomplishments of Gary Spear. Some may know him as the PowerHouse from the Eastside. Some may know him as one of Ohio Surf And Skates elite team riders or his once flow sponsorship by Vans, ipath and Gouge. Most will know him as one of Cleveland’s most unique, stylish skaters and the guy that’s always fun to have around. Gary’s latest accomplishment.... Longevity. If you already did the math then you know that Gary just turned 50 years old. That’s right kids, 50! Although Gary still Skates everything full Barge, I’d say he still Skates the streets the most. He’s still on the quest to find the gems in the urban sprawl. Street skating is probably the most brutal form of skating and when many start to go easy on it as they age, Gary seems to just charge at it harder. He still takes the slams if that’s what’s necessary. It’s not only a blast to skate with Gary but it’s inspiring. To see his approach, his style, determination and outlook, we can only hope to do it half as good as he does when we are 50. This is uncharted territory. This is the first time in history that skaters are still skating later in life. The group of people still pushing, ollieing, sliding and grinding in those unforgiving streets over the age of 50 is VERY small. Gary is a pioneer, he’s shining the light and showing us the way. And that’s why Gary Spear is.... STILL ON FIRE!! All Respect Due to Gary Spear. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 8. Justin Ortiz @jortizrx Born 1973 Started Skateboarding 1984 Sponsored Amateur 1990/1991 Basic skateboards and Etnies. 1991/1992 Black Label skateboards , Vans, Venture trucks, Race wheels. 1993/1994 Think skateboards. In the mid 90’s I used to work in the basement of a building in Downtown Cleveland. Somewhere between the years of 1994 and 1997 I would occasionally see this bike messenger riding around the streets. I knew who he was but I don’t think he knew who I was. That bike messenger was Justin Ortiz. He was the guy that was once sponsored, had lived in California and had photos in the mags. He was a legend to me and my buddies. Justin grew up in Cleveland Heights. His dad moved to Long Beach California in 1982. After that Justin and his brother would go to California every summer to visit their dad. Justin graduated high school in 1991. The very next day he left Ohio and moved to Costa Mesa California. Around this time he became a sponsored amateur for Basic Skateboards and Etnies. Around 1991-1992 he made the switch to be a sponsored amateur for @blacklabelskates , Vans, Venture trucks and Race wheels. Shortly after that, around 1993-1994 he started riding for Think skateboards. Back in those days of the early 90’s, being a sponsored skater seemed so unrealistic for a skater from Ohio and going to California was like going to the moon. A far away fantasy place you’d only see in videos and magazines. There was no internet and nobody knew anybody. You had to be at the right place at the right time or work really hard to make a connection to make things happen for yourself. Justin’s success with skating back then gave a lot of Cleveland skaters inspiration and hope that they too could break through the boundaries and achieve their own goals. In the spring of 1994 Justin left California and returned to Cleveland to pursue other things. If you’re lucky you can still see him around skating, hitting everything with his unique style on his unique board. Thanks for ripping Justin! Sincerely. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding P.S. Thrasher cover, August 1993, Justin is the photo in the “0”.

Leading The Charge Current Local Video, Sink Water An @easternrevivalskates full length video. Produced by Isaac Bixel @bixisinpfl Born 1994 Started skateboarding 2007 Like many skateboarders from the northeast area of Cleveland, Isaac got his first set up from @mitby957tim at Ohio Surf And Skate for his 13th birthday. From then on Isaac has been charging forward with his skateboard under his feet. He brings us all this gift of another awesome Local Cleveland Video, Sink Water. I can’t say enough of how great of a video this is. I recognize some names and some names are new to me. Weather you recognize all the names or not, you’ll be sure to know them all after this video. Everyone skated hard and left their mark. This video has a wide variety of music and skating styles, something for everyone to connect with. Thank you to Isaac and all the skaters involved for making this video happen. We all appreciate it! Be sure to give all the skaters below a follow because they are LEADING THE CHARGE!! Check the video and get hyped!! Link is in bio -KS @amaninewring @beaver_gilligan @joe.barto @nickloslevi @yung_jlag @dannydirtsquid @nickbrazee @mighty_barbarian @brently667 @corybarresi @bixisinpfl @mclean_adams_ @jerod_mulqueeny @mike_bohonek #ClevelandSkateboarding Video clip 1. Steve Kessler Video clip 2. Isaac Bixel Video clip 3. Isaac Bixel Video clip 4. Mike Bohonek Video clip 5. Amani Newring

Story # 7. Michael Larkey @larkey Born 1974 Started Skateboarding 1987 When I think of Downtown Cleveland and Akron Skateboarding one of the first faces that comes to mind is Michael Larkey. From the mid 90’s - mid 00’s , almost every night you could find him skating the streets of Downtown Cleveland. On the weekends Downtown Akron, of course starting it off at Central Hower. Michael has accomplished a lot over the years. He moved to California in 2006. In those years he was head of video and photos for ipath shoes, shot photos for Innes Clothing, Osiris Shoes and worked at DC. He left California for NYC in 2009. Living there he worked and still does work in the photography business. He has assisted on photo shoots from celebrities to two American presidents. He then returned to Cleveland in 2017 where he currently resides. BUT!....... despite all of those accomplishments, the greatest gift he gave all of us are the two Cleveland Skateboarding videos he made. Where The Fun Begins, 1999 & Focus 2001. He wasn’t the first to make a local video but there was and still is something really special about those two videos. There was a real camaraderie across the Cleveland/Akron skate scene behind those videos. Everyone skated hard for them. He felt that it was really important to showcase as much of Cleveland Skateboarding as possible. He put in hours upon hours reaching out to skaters and filming them. After all these years, those two videos that Michael made have stood the test of time. They are undeniably Cleveland Skateboarding Classics. Thanks for all of your hard work Larkey. We all appreciate it so much, so many years later. -KS Photo of video review , @transworldskate Magazine August 2000. #ClevelandSkateboarding

Still On Fire! Eric Becker @fnabecker Born 1972 Started Skateboarding 1982 We don’t just show our respect and get inspired by the current ripping young guns. We also show our respect and get inspired by the ones that have been pushing hard for the long haul, the ones that came before. We all would be so lucky to have the drive, enthusiasm, physical ability and guts to still be skating hard into our older years. Eric Becker is one of the lucky ones. He’s been living it before a lot even knew what a skateboard was and before a lot were even born. Now at the age of 49, he’s still at it and as committed as ever. You may see him barging the Cleveland bowl or seeking out the biggest ramps or deepest pools with his boom box blasting some old punk rock tunes with a huge smile on his face. He’s still on the quest despite the decades of beat downs, raising a family, work, age and real adult responsibilities and that’s why Eric Becker is .... Still On Fire! -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Leading The Charge Justin Laganson Born 1994 Started Skateboarding 1999 Sponsors @westsideskates @reformusa Anyone that has been able to skate with Justin has probably yelled out “Whoa!, What!? or Oh My God!” His talent is really something special to see in person. He’s always a blast to have at the session. Inspiring all of us and doing it all with a smile on his face. He is Leading The Charge in a serious way. Don’t believe me? Give him a follow at.... @yung_jlag -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 6. Rahkeen Gray aka, Rocky 1974 - 2020 Started skateboarding mid 1980’s? The Unicorn. Although Rocky wasn’t a regular fixture in the immediate Cleveland area, he still weaved in and out, mostly undetected. Rocky was from Kent Ohio. He left his mark on Northeast Ohio Skateboarding, from Cleveland to Akron and everything in between. I first started hearing of Rocky in 1991. I heard so many stories of him doing these amazing things on his skateboard yet I never saw the guy. I was starting to think he wasn’t real. Then one day, skating Central Hower in Akron around 1993? , Rocky rolled up. He smiled, said hello then Ollied the chain and into the bank and yelled “weeeeeee!” as he rolled down. I couldn’t believe it. At this point I had never seen or heard of anyone ollieng into that bank. It was magic. By the mid 90’s Rocky and I became close. We skated together all the time. I had never met anyone like him before. He was eccentric in an interesting way. He was an artist. The way he skated and his approach was much like Mark Gonzales. He took me to many of his secret spots. Many of these spots would later be in videos and heavily sought out. The White Snake Rail in Akron was one example. He took me to these spots to see if I would jump. In reality I was always just trying to keep up with him. There have been many stories of things people said that Rocky did. I became close enough to him to ask him about the folklore and get the truth. But sometimes I really wondered if he was telling me the truth. He was like that. If he did some amazing thing, he just may deny that he ever did it. He didn’t care if people knew how good he was. It was hard to get a photo or footage of him. It wasn’t un common for him to leave a spot if other people rolled up. He wasn’t a jerk, he just liked skating in the shadows. He wasn’t just really good for the time. He was ahead of the time. I’ve skated with the best around the world and although he never turned pro, there is no doubt in my mind that Rocky was one of best. He is the Unicorn and we miss him. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding P.S. if anyone has photos or video of Rocky, please DM me. Thanks!

#ClevelandSkateboarding

Leading The Charge Current local video, The Sunday Rule Produced by Michael Rosenburg Born 1992 Started skateboarding 2004-2005 The Sunday Rule is one of the latest local videos featuring some of Cleveland’s best skateboarders. Filmed and edited by @roseygrams this video is top notch. The filming, the editing, the skating, all professional level. So good to see a new generation ripping new spots and attacking old spots with a fresh new perspective. Skaters featured leading the charge, @bummer_hellyeah @sleep__debt @frankiewolf1 @c.leshhh @large.person Jake Smith @hewasgroovin @mac_sullivan And many more. Check it out, get inspired and go rip it up!! Link is in bio. - KS #ClevelandSkateboarding Photo 1. Dvd front cover Photo 2. Dvd back cover Photo 3. @roseygrams Photo 4. @roseygrams bs noseblunt. Photo 5. @roseygrams Photo 6. @roseygrams In action filming. Video clip, @hewasgroovin with a Very Heavy line.

Story # 5. Rich Hamila Born 1969 Started skateboarding 1978 In 1988 I started taking the RTA down Broadway to Public Square to skate. That’s when I started to meet skaters from other parts of the city. One person that I didn’t meet back then, but often heard his name spoken of, was Rich Hamila. I met guys that were older than me. I really looked up to them for their skating abilities. I thought they were The Best. But these same skaters would tell stories of someone else, Richie Hamila. It was like urban folklore. Rich was the guy that all the best guys in Cleveland loved. He skated vert and street. All the stories I heard was that he was the best. I’d hear stories of him at The Roll and Bowl or on his backyard vert ramp. His vert ramp on the near west side, sandwiched in his little backyard, attracted skaters from all over. The more people skated with him, the more the stories were told. @thelittle_rich was at the forefront of progression in Cleveland. Not just on vert but also street. This was the mid 80’s. Street skating was just in its infancy. There wasn’t much street skating to reflect on in the magazines back then. So, to be a kid in Cleveland and be pushing street skating and vert is pretty remarkable. There were no local videos back then. You were lucky if someone had a camera with a roll of film to take a picture. You had to be there to witness it as it happened or hope that someone could pass some stories your way. To this day I still hear random stories about how Richie did this or did that. His skating is still admired by so many in Cleveland. Cleveland skaters have a very distinct style, approach and attitude. I can’t help but to wonder how much of that has been subconsciously passed down from Rich, his friends and everyone wanting to skate like them starting back in the mid 80’s. I think it’s important to keep passing the stories along. I hope the stories of Rich’s skating get passed down for future generations of Cleveland skaters to hear. From all your friends you skated with, the skaters that came after and the Cleveland kid that just started skating, we show our gratitude. Thanks for crushing it Rich!! -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 4. Vince Frantz Born 1974 Started skateboarding 1987 @VinceFrantz always had a drive to do more for skateboarding. He wanted to give back and be creative somehow, someway. In 2002 he made the classic local video, Remote Control. This VHS tape featured some of the best Cleveland skaters of the time. After releasing Remote Control Vince set his sights on something bigger. Something that would really give back to skateboarders for generations to come. Vince started work on getting his hometown of Lakewood Ohio a skate park. From 2002 to 2004 Vince got a crash course in dealing with city politics. Though he didn’t start this journey alone, with help from skaters like @larkey , Andy Liedel and Stosh Burgess, Vince did become the face and the voice politicians were going to see and hear from for years to come. He learned how to organize and appeal to city mayors, council, parks and rec, design and planning and many more departments of local government. He knew the power of speaking clearly, being educated on the subject and putting on the right clothes for the city meetings. In 2005 the Lakewood skatepark was built. But Vince wasn’t done yet. In that time around 2004-2005 he started The Public Square Group. Again, many friends helped him on that journey but Vince was always our visionary. In 2009 PSG became a fully incorporated charity. Vince and crew were committed! The Mayor of Lakewood was sending other Mayors and even Mayors from Canada to meet with Vince for guidance on how they can get a park built in their city. Over the years PSG has done skate camps, put on 12 years of east meets west, got parks built in cities, bought the skate kitchen truck so they can bring a mobile skatepark to neighborhoods to raise awareness, raised 30k for the Cleveland park, raised money for diy spots and many more events. As of recently PSG just sent the city of Lakewood an 18 page proposal to expand their park. And now, even after a recent knee replacement, raising his family and being 47, Vince is skating and pushing himself as hard as ever. We can’t thank you enough Vince! - KS www.PublicSquareGroup.org #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 3. West Side Skates In 1995 Jim Hill and Brian Jules opened West Side Skates on Madison Avenue in Lakewood Ohio. @jhillrollwithit was born in 1971 and started skateboarding in 1985. @_fastaction was born in 1967 and started skateboarding in 1977. Jim and Brian were, to me, from the older generation of Cleveland skateboarders. The era of skaters that didn’t have access to video cameras and rarely even had a photo camera to document the ground they were laying down for future generations. Their abilities of their time remain mostly in passed down stories. You only got to hear the stories if you happened to be hanging around when they were told. I’ve been lucky enough to hear many of them. Stories from ripping at the Berea Roll and Bowl, Impett Park to causing mayhem at a local punk show. They also come from an era when punk rock and skateboarding went hand in hand. This was and is still obvious in the way West Side Skates presents itself. If you look close enough you can find influences from The Buzzcocks, Stiff Little Fingers and many more bands of that time, slid in and around West Sides aura. West Side has always been the shop that pulled out faces you may have not seen since the Roll And Bowl days. On any given day you may run into a Cleveland Skateboarding legend from the early to mid 80’s there. But West Side also has the ability to reach and connect with the youngest of skaters as well. I think that’s what has made West Side so special. It has always been a beacon for all skaters young and old, punk rock to hip hop, to feel like it is their home. A place where so many feel like they can identify. West Side has been very active and supportive of Cleveland Skateboarding for many years now. They have brought many professional skateboard teams to the city, sponsored events and have sponsored some of Cleveland’s best local skateboarders. To date, West Side Skates is the longest running skateboard only shop in the greater Cleveland area. We all hope that there are many, many more years of West Side success to come. -KS @westsideskates #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 2. Tim Rigby and his Mom, Janet Rigby - Ohio Surf And Skate. 1986-2011 Tim Rigby was born in 1971 and started skateboarding in 1984. When Tim was 14 he saved up some money from working at the Lake County Fair picking up trash. Around the same time his Mom, Janet lost her job as manager at a local grocery store. With some cash to burn in Tim’s pocket and some new free time for his Mom Janet, Tim asked his Mom to take him and three friends down to Surf Ohio Skates in Dayton Ohio. His Mom said yes. Tim, Mom, Dad and friends piled in Janet’s car for the 3 hour drive. It was Tim’s first time in a real skateboard shop. As Tim & friends skated the mini ramp in the back, his mom joked about opening a skate shop in Cleveland to the owner Jimmy George. Jimmy George asked her if she was serious. That turned into a 3. hour meeting between Mom and Dad Rigby and Jimmy George. 2 months later Ohio Surf And Skate was born. The Rigby’s new skate shop was first located in Painesville OH. The shop was just a 20x20 building owned by Tim’s grandparents. Tim’s Dad and uncles took four months building out the shop. Jimmy George loaded up and old Fed Ex truck and drove from Dayton to Painesville for Tim and Janet’s first delivery of inventory. Over the next 4 years rent free, thanks to Tim’s grandparents, they were able to build the business. They moved the shop to its final location in Willoughby OH in 1990. There they would help to grow the Cleveland Skateboarding scene. With his Mom’s sweet kindness to everyone and Tim’s enthusiasm they built a great community and reputation. They sponsored some of the best skateboarders in the area and probably brought out more professional skateboard teams to their parking lot than anyone else in the Cleveland area. Janet Rigby recently passed away but we can all still see her smile in Tim. Janet, Tim and Ohio Surf And Skate are cemented in Cleveland Skateboarding history. They did it great and they did for all of us. We all truly miss seeing their smiling faces behind the counter. Thank You Tim, Janet and Rigby family. You gave us all many years of happiness and inspiration. Sincerely. -KS #ClevelandSkateboarding

Story # 1. It took me awhile to figure out what would be the first post. Once I thought of Mr. Schneider it was obvious to me. The thought of it got me excited, I knew it would set the proper tone for the account. Once located at 10001 Lorain Ave, in Cleveland, Mr. Schneider ran Schneider’s Bike Shop. Mr. Schneider was so kind and welcoming to everyone. He made all of us feel special. I still meet skaters to this day that will talk about how “Mr. Schneider gave me a deal”. I learned years ago that I’m pretty sure he gave all of us deals. That’s the kind of guy he is. Mr. Schneider will always be an important part of Cleveland Skateboarding. He provided so many of us a happy place to go and so much joy as we walked out of his door with our new skateboards. Without carrying on anymore, the following words were provided by Mr. Schneider’s son, Ken. -KS “Schneider’s Bike Shop was founded on the west side of Cleveland in the late 1940’s. Ken Schneider worked there starting as a kid, and eventually bought it from his mom in the 70’s after his dad passed away. The store mostly focused on family-friendly casual bikes, and in the 80’s started to dip their toes into the growing bmx and skateboard scenes. Ken took pride in offering a big selection of skateboard decks and brands- something for kids just beginning and more serious skaters. He always liked to have new stuff and smaller Midwestern and Ohio brands, lots of stickers, t-shirts and promo giveaways. He wasn’t a skater, just a friendly guy who enjoyed b.s.’ing with the kids who came through the store. Over the years some of those kids went pro, became artists, started bands, got jobs and grew up with kids of their own. Ken was injured in a robbery in 2006 and wound down the store after that. He’s a happy retiree these days and has tons of great memories of his over 40 years at the shop.” - @schneidersbike #ClevelandSkateboarding