Author Topic: Origins of focusing a board  (Read 2555 times)

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Pappy Jones

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Origins of focusing a board
« on: February 05, 2021, 01:11:45 PM »
Figured this has already been a topic but couldn't find anything. Was listening to Danny Renaud's Bunt interview and he talks about how confused he was the first time he heard someone talk about focusing a board, and how he still doesn't know where that term came from. I've always wondered this but it's been a fleeting thought.

Is it as simple as focusing your weight in the middle? Or was it Thomas Focus, the first one to stomp his shit. Anyone know the origins of this term? Should I just focus?

Alan

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #1 on: February 05, 2021, 01:14:51 PM »
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMLtpMO_XSc

17:37

It's been discussed in a few interviews but I can't remember which ones, arrrggghhh.... Sorry.
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WarmUpZone

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #2 on: February 05, 2021, 01:25:44 PM »
Mike Daher's brother, George, invented it.

Mike talks about it in his Chromeball interview:

Quote
But the million-dollar question here is: did George invent “the focus”?  A lot of people point to him as the true originator. And is it true that it’s a Karate Kid reference?

Yes, George did invent the focus but no, it’s not a Karate Kid reference.  It’s actually from Bruce Lee.

“Focus power. Use your mental focus power.”

I still remember the night so perfectly. I was sitting on my bed when George comes home from skating and his board is broken. With it being broken in the middle like that, I asked him if it had gotten run over by a car.

“No, I just stomped it.”

It was funny because he wasn’t even mad or frustrated. Nothing like that. “I just stomped it. I don’t like this board.”

I honestly didn’t believe him. There’s no way he just did it like that. I happened to have my board in my room at the time so I told him to do mine. He lays it down and snaps it first try.

It became a joke after that. All of my friends would come by and they wouldn’t believe it either so he’d focus their boards, too. Then they’d get all bummed and he’d give them another board.

Good man.

But Mike V thought it was so insane. He ended up telling Gonz and everybody about it when he went out to the West Coast. Word spread pretty quickly but evidently, nobody out there could do it. They’d all try and end up bouncing their foot off their boards, almost breaking their ankles.

So when George and I finally go back out to Cali, we’re hanging out with Mark at this contest in Santa Monica and Mark wants to see it. George snaps his board first-try barefoot and Mark just starts tripping.

Two months later, George flies back out to the World warehouse with Mike V when Jeremy Klein and Ron Chatman come up like, “Is this the dude? The focus? We heard about it! Let us see it!”

George shows them the focus and they love it. They start setting up all of these complete boards just so George can focus them. Lining them up in a row and George stomps them all without even taking a step in-between. Just one after the other, walking through them. They were amazed.

A couple months later, Rubbish Heap comes out and the focus was sold like it was their thing. George never got any credit for it. Mike V once brought it up in an interview for Thrasher years later but that was it.

https://chromeballincident.blogspot.com/2013/11/post-script-mike-daher.html
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Alan

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #3 on: February 05, 2021, 01:27:13 PM »
Yes! That's what I was thinking of.
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ChuckRamone

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #4 on: February 05, 2021, 01:33:04 PM »
Yeah, it definitely reminds me of mentally focusing in martial arts to break some boards, bricks, ice or whatever with your body.

Pappy Jones

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #5 on: February 05, 2021, 01:53:40 PM »
Mike Daher's brother, George, invented it.

Mike talks about it in his Chromeball interview:

Quote
Expand Quote
But the million-dollar question here is: did George invent “the focus”?  A lot of people point to him as the true originator. And is it true that it’s a Karate Kid reference?

Yes, George did invent the focus but no, it’s not a Karate Kid reference.  It’s actually from Bruce Lee.

“Focus power. Use your mental focus power.”

I still remember the night so perfectly. I was sitting on my bed when George comes home from skating and his board is broken. With it being broken in the middle like that, I asked him if it had gotten run over by a car.

“No, I just stomped it.”

It was funny because he wasn’t even mad or frustrated. Nothing like that. “I just stomped it. I don’t like this board.”

I honestly didn’t believe him. There’s no way he just did it like that. I happened to have my board in my room at the time so I told him to do mine. He lays it down and snaps it first try.

It became a joke after that. All of my friends would come by and they wouldn’t believe it either so he’d focus their boards, too. Then they’d get all bummed and he’d give them another board.

Good man.

But Mike V thought it was so insane. He ended up telling Gonz and everybody about it when he went out to the West Coast. Word spread pretty quickly but evidently, nobody out there could do it. They’d all try and end up bouncing their foot off their boards, almost breaking their ankles.

So when George and I finally go back out to Cali, we’re hanging out with Mark at this contest in Santa Monica and Mark wants to see it. George snaps his board first-try barefoot and Mark just starts tripping.

Two months later, George flies back out to the World warehouse with Mike V when Jeremy Klein and Ron Chatman come up like, “Is this the dude? The focus? We heard about it! Let us see it!”

George shows them the focus and they love it. They start setting up all of these complete boards just so George can focus them. Lining them up in a row and George stomps them all without even taking a step in-between. Just one after the other, walking through them. They were amazed.

A couple months later, Rubbish Heap comes out and the focus was sold like it was their thing. George never got any credit for it. Mike V once brought it up in an interview for Thrasher years later but that was it.
[close]

https://chromeballincident.blogspot.com/2013/11/post-script-mike-daher.html
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sometimeperhaps

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #6 on: February 05, 2021, 01:56:23 PM »
That origin story is hilarious. A bunch of dudes in a warehouse watching someone focus boards in a row.

I still remember the first board I focused. There was nothing wrong with it. I was skating a three stair and thought why not, the pros do it. RIP element Siamese deck.

OMSK

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #7 on: February 05, 2021, 02:40:46 PM »
even though I hate myself after doing it, sometimes ya gotta exorcise those demons.

SneakySecrets

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #8 on: February 05, 2021, 10:26:18 PM »
We’ve been focusing shit as a species way before this George Daher character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmX7K8noikE&feature=share
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cky enthusiast

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #9 on: February 06, 2021, 05:03:46 AM »
mankind focused the planet

ok boomer

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #10 on: February 06, 2021, 06:41:45 AM »
I focused a cracked Plan B Rick Howard in 1992, still mad at myself about it

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #11 on: February 07, 2021, 08:12:59 AM »
I focused a cracked Plan B Rick Howard in 1992, still mad at myself about it

JordanBrambleberry

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #12 on: February 07, 2021, 10:52:26 AM »
Now this is a great SLAP thread. Thanks for taking the time to post some neat information about skateboarding culture and history. I really enjoyed reading this stuff and learned some facts.

Croquet temper

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #13 on: February 07, 2021, 01:12:31 PM »
If you focus your board instead of giving it away to an impoverished, starving, systematically disenfranchised youth, you are worse than Hitler, and shall be spat upon with utter disdain.

*throws board in ocean*

Eric Dolphy

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #14 on: February 07, 2021, 07:31:40 PM »
If you focus your board instead of giving it away to an impoverished, starving, systematically disenfranchised youth, you are worse than Hitler, and shall be spat upon with utter disdain.

*throws board in ocean*
Hard agree. Have never focused a board for this reason

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #15 on: February 07, 2021, 09:42:24 PM »
Always thought it was some shit Rocco came up with to move more product.

Mcidraque

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #16 on: February 08, 2021, 04:52:36 AM »
We’ve been focusing shit as a species way before this George Daher character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmX7K8noikE&feature=share
good point. wise example

radcunt

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #17 on: February 08, 2021, 05:26:53 AM »
Always thought it was some shit Rocco came up with to move more product.

Yeah same. Didnt know the origin but definitely heard he encouraged his riders to do it in Rubbish Heap to sell more boards.

Prostate Exam

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #18 on: February 08, 2021, 05:50:22 AM »
And Kerry Getz made a sport out of it


Alan

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #19 on: February 08, 2021, 05:56:13 AM »
If you focus your board instead of giving it away to an impoverished, starving, systematically disenfranchised youth, you are worse than Hitler, and shall be spat upon with utter disdain.

*throws board in ocean*

This is such pathetic edgelord shit. Perhaps you'd be better off somewhere else.
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TheLurper

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Re: Origins of focusing a board
« Reply #20 on: February 08, 2021, 09:13:50 PM »
I hope get Olympic level focusing like this in 2021.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SqUF4UJDbo

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