Expand Quote
Expand Quote
Expand Quote
Expand Quote
Yeah let's not get it twisted. It's always the US. This coming from a Euro guy from Copenhagen, Denmark. The British scene has had a good run the last couple of years with the likes of the riders from Palace and Isle for example, but it's more of a niche scene. But all in all the US has cities that are more influential then whole countries when it comes to skateboarding. LA, SF, NYC, Philly etc.
Nah I used to think California was the holy grail but after visiting there a few times then living here in France with free health care loads of holidays and great scenes I won't change it for the world..
ha. California was the holy grail for me too, but staying there for around 5 months in the 90's just made me realize all the good shit France has to offer. Even though I loved my time in San Diego, I appreciated parisian architecture so much more after that mall/condo lot/gas station landscape, for instance....
Still does not change the fact the US continue to set the standard in skating. I find Americans tend to be more gung-ho and all-in about shit...Like 100% into it. Plus the us is real big, no other country has that many skaters.
well Vincent Milou is from Seignosse or somewhere around there, that's around 1000 km from Paris, so we come from kinda different shitholes sorry. anyways what's your problem with him, simple xenophobia? He rips and seems to have a good head on his shoulders.
Honestly I have no idea which is worse between this thread and the Are Shove-Its/Big Spins Flip Tricks? thread (no offense to their respective OP's), but I'm inclined to say this one, because the flip trick one is innocent whereas looking at skateboarding through the prism of countries but out of genuine cultural interest is toxic, delusional and only means as much energy devoted to not looking at the right thing. It's toxic because it only perpetuates stereotypes that do not belong on a skateboard as universal tool or language (resulting in mostly harmless jokes but also the occasional bout of more or less low-key xenophobia), delusional because people have kept going back and forth in between countries and continents ever since that became practical and affordable (and rightfully so, by essence skateboarding encourages exploration and connection); and, also because money blurs the whole game anyway, what will dictate whether or not the common skateboarder/consumer has even heard of a scene in the first place out of another thousand isn't just its raw skate talent (which is undeniable most everywhere since it's inherent to people), but also profit, considering its historically established industry presence and general economical potential.
If one really is interested by skateboarding then the skateboarding will matter before the country, but also indirectly open that potential window of curiosity and interest about the rest of the world within people and usually at a crucial developmental stage, which is a true positive. When the country seems to matter before the skateboarding though, then that usually means the person you're hearing regrettably has never used skating to expand their own boundaries and/or has something for sale somewhere.
But there's so much to be said about how the masses consume skateboarding (as a consequence to how it's been being branded to them), still thinking in terms of exoticism in 2022 where every local video from wack to amazing but more relatable than ads is on the Internet regardless of the 'shithole' it was made in, or where fanzines and small-time publications are visible everywhere on Instagram and yet some insist on complaining about the state of the press whilst renewing their Thrasher subscriptions as that shirt isn't going to flip itself. The excesses of skate tourism and general cultural pillage could write their own book by themselves too. But it's actually easy to keep the most positive outlook on skating possible by focusing all the good stuff scenes worldwide produce, indiscriminatorily. Which seems natural to me and so a bit crazy that it would actually mean undergoing some mental restructuring of their approach to some.
(Least we forget to remark that out of the two parties represented thus far, none seems to want Vincent Milou)
Topic: Which country has the best skating right now? (Read 3252 times)