Boxing Day Haul at Hammer Skateboard

Hammer Skateboard is, by far, my favourite independent skate shop in Toronto. Located on Queen St. E and a short bus or skate away from Ash Bridges Skate Park, their Boxing Day deals are what I look forward to every year. These Send Help decks were a must-have. One is a boat sized 9" cruiser and a regular 8.3" pop.


Another perfect find was a set of Keyframes by OJ Wheels. They make the best cruiser wheels and these will look sick with the Send Help 9er. Fun fact: Todd Bratrud did the artwork on the wheels and boards.


Signature Torey Pudwill & Kelly Hart Grizzly Grip from the sale box? Yes, sir!


My brother got in the whole "small print on the front, large print on the back" style of tee shirts and was stoked on the sale prices of these. A few Independent Trucks and Spitfire Wheels gems for a steal. If the price fits, so will the shirt.


Lastly, I grabbed the Independent Trucks collapsible cooler. Even though I'm not a drinker, it's tall enough to fit bottles and short enough to fit a lunch.

For a real Boxing Day experience, I highly suggest avoiding chain stores and shopping malls. Now sometimes I slip on my own words and spend at Whack 49 or Dummiez. However, independent retailers provide the best customer service and prices. You'll get a proper piece of mind knowing your cash isn't going to some heartless CEO and it's going to a legit business owner who cares about their customers. And as always, support your local skate shop.

Blind Skateboards x Jason Lee x Dodo Skull & Girl

Some of the latest pickups out of Blind Skateboards. The board above is a spoof they made for pro skater Jason Lee. Measuring 9.8" x 31.8", it has the old school shape with the silkscreen graphics.

Through my local skate shop Scottie's, I also grabbed this deck with some classic artwork.

Seek Skateboards x Mike Taylor

Seek Skateboards was a short-lived brand back in 2002. It instantly became one of my favourite companies and the graphics were ahead of its time. Unfortunately, they folded just a year later. I was surprised to see this Mike Taylor deck selling through LetGo and I couldn't pass on it, especially for its cheap price tag. The seller had no idea what he had. It's held up well after 15 years. Depending how things go financially, this may stay on the wall or sold for profit. But until then, I'm fully stoked to finally own a Seek board.

Powell-Peralta x Steve Caballero x Ban This Complete

Just put together this amazing looking Powell-Peralta Steve Caballero Ban This complete. Probably one of my most colourful setups with matching deck, grip and wheels. The deck measures 9.26" x 32" with classic Sean Cliver artwork. The rails are enjoi Tummy Sticks with Independent Stage 10 159 Trucks and Bones Bushings.


The grip is a combo of Jessup [black & clear] and Sentenced [purple checkerboard]. Holding it all together are 1/4 risers and 1.25" bolts by Sector Nine.


The wheels are Spitfire 58mm Classics with Bones Reds Bearings.

Grinding, Turning, Rolling & Sliding

What I love about skateboarding is the resell market. Through the right sites and sellers, you can find amazing deals on hardware at almost half the retail price while supporting the community and local businesses. I was able to scoop up a set of brand new Independent 169 Trucks for another old school complete I'm piecing together.


Along with the trucks came a set of new Tony Hawk 58mm Bones SPF Wheels with Methamphetamine Bearings [for resale if you're interested]. The Spitfire 58mm Classics came from the west side of Toronto which will be attached to this deck after it's completed.



Big thanks to a seller in Alberta for shipping a set of Santa Cruz 60mm Slime Balls Speed Wheels. Real men ride pink.


Picked up a set of Santa Cruz and enjoi rails from a few shops. I encourage you to continue supporting your local skate shop and not Whack 49 or Dummiez.

Sanction x No. 1 Cares

Grabbed a new deck off from a secondhand seller. This thing is mint! Literally. Or am I colour blind? Anyways, this is a Sanction shop board that came out a while ago. Definitely one of the best colour schemes on a skateboard. Definitely check out Sanction on the Thornhill/Toronto border and support your local skate shop.

Foo Fighters Concrete & Gold World Tour 2018

Last night, my brother, Tim, and I tripped to the Rogers Centre again for another one of the best concert experiences courtesy of Foo Fighters and their Concrete and Gold World Tour. This is the first stadium show I've attended and it did not disappoint one bit. My voice is crackling and I lost more of my hearing. But it was definitely a night to remember. Check out a few pics below.


The Beaches kickstarted the event. They really got us going and rocked the house for the early crowd.


The Struts took the stage up next. Now half, if not, 75% the crowd were all for them and they put on an amazing set. Great songs and fan interaction. I'll fully see them again the chance arises.


The grandaddy of rock and roll then took the stage. The all glorious Foo Fighters tore the dome off the stadium. Opening the show with All My Life, Learn To Fly, and my presonal favourite, The Pretender, they continued with track after track of hard hitting music, words really cannot describe the experience of their set.


We were right up against the rail beside the ramp, where frontman Dave Grohl ran up and down numerous times. Adding to the theatrics, drummer Taylor Hawkins through together a lengthy drum solo above the stage.



The highlight, in my opinion, was when Luke Spiller of The Struts sang a duet with Taylor Hawkins and the band covered Queen and David Bowie's anthem, Under Pressure. This also saw us see Dave Grohl live on drums for the first time.


Ending with Big Me, Times Like These, and Everlong, it was a performance that left me still wanting more. The crowd was amazing, the bands delivered, and this will always be a night to remember. Until next time Foo Fighters.


Can't forget the merch! Picked up some tour tees. One was purchased from the stadium, one from a vendor's gym bag. One is a little better than the other, so I'll leave the judgment up to you.

Santa Cruz x Tom Asta x Cosmic Preissue & OJ Wheels x Nora Vasconcellos

Took a trip to Hammer and I'm always surprised to see the some of the best hardgoods on sale. One of the pickups is this Santa Cruz Tom Asta pro model called the Cosmic Preissue. Measuring 9.42" x 31.88", it's a vintage/classic shape with a modern twist. You can never go wrong with a black panther and flames on a purple stain.

The second pickup was a set of OJ Wheels. These are the Nora Vasconcellos pro models, one of the few female skaters with a wheel. Measuring 55mm, they have a 101a durometer for the perfect hardness on the street or park. The full graphic can be seen here.

Support your local skate shop.

Powell-Peralta x Ban This x Steve Caballero & Vans x Half-Cab

Recently I saw a listing on eBay for a Powell-Peralta Steve Caballero Ban This reissue deck. With a little luck, I managede to win the bid at a bargain and even saved on shipping via local pickup. Measuring 9.625" x 32", the graphic was drawn by Sean Cliver. The shape looks pretty fun to ride, but I'm leaning more to hanging this on the wall. The colours really pop when seen in person.

Adding more to this post, I picked up a pair of canvas Vans Half-Cab shoes a few weeks ago. Just can't seem to get enough of Steve Caballero.

Toronto Blue Jays v. New York Mets [July 4 2018]

My brother, Tim, and I caught the Blue Jays game this past Wednesday against the New York Mets, who come around once every 3-4 years or so. It's always a blast to catch a live game once in a while, and the visitors from south of the border weren't a bad bunch either. Here are a bunch of random pics from the rest of the night.




The highlight of the series was the return of former Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista, who signed on with the team at the end of May.







Sadly, it was a losing effort for the home team [Final score: Mets 6, Blue Jays 3]. But the real winners were the good times. There'll definitely be more further on up the road.

Birdhouse Skateboards x Icon Gold x Tony Hawk

I've been on some sort of a hunt of finding, or at least, recreating my first board. Since everything from the year 2000 are extinct, I went with the latter option and picked up a Birdhouse Tony Hawk deck. Measuring 8.25" x 31.875", the graphic reminds me of the video games I'd spend countless hours playing on the Sega Dreamcast.


I was very surprised to find a pair of Fury Trucks through the letgo app. Although these are very different than my original ones, the principle still remains. The components and graphic may be different, but this is as close as it'll get to owning my original skateboard from almost 20 years ago. Keep an eye on the blog for the wheels coming very soon.

Grand Trading Warehouse Sale

Last week, Grand Trading, one of Canada's top skateboard distributors had a warehouse sale. Any time I can save on skate goods, it's a must for me to check it out. Wish I could've posted the pickups a little while ago, but it's better late than never. I also grabbed some clothing, but for now, here's the hardware.


The first decks I picked up were Quasi Skateboards decks. They have one of the best teams and heard a lot of great things about the brand. The owner also gave me a great deal if I purchased the Al Davis Genises pro model and the Proto graphic.

The second board I grabbed was an Eric Koston Numbers Edition 3 deck. He and Guy Mariano are spearheading Numbers and their graphics are a new fresh take on what's being produced. With embossed lettering and unique shapes, I'm on the fence to set this one up or hang it for display.

The last deck I bought is very unique. I've heard great things about Welcome Skateboards and was stoked to see this Ryan Lay Isobel pro model. This board is on Welcome's Stonecipher shape with an 8.625" width and squared nose and tail. Most people skate Welcome decks as cruisers, but when the time comes, it'll definitely be used for tricks [or what little tricks I can do anyways].

Interestingly enough, I met Ryan Lay [far right] at an I-Path Footwear signing back in 2009.

Much thanks to Grand Trading for also helping me saves a few bucks.
Support your local skate shop.

Philadelphia Warriors x Wilt Chamberlain [1961-62]

Posting today is a Philadelphia Warriors Wilt Chamberlain road jersey from the early 1960s. Before relocating to California, the team played their home games between Philadelphia and Hershey, PA. This post will only concentrate on the historic 1961-62 season.


This Mitchell & Ness jersey is made of polyester fabric with embroidered double layered tackle twill. Along the neck line and arm holes are red and yellow elastic material. A simple design, yet still effective. In my honest opinion, sometimes less is more.



In the 1961-62 NBA season, Wilt Chamberlain had one of the most impressive individual achievements. In an 80 game season, The Big Dipper averaged 50.4 points per game, 25.6 rebounds per game, and 48.5 minutes per game. He finished the season with 4029 total points, 2052 total rebounds, 3882 total minutes.


On 2 March 1962 in Herhsey, PA, Wilt Chamberlain performed in one of the greatest athletic performances in the history of sports. On the 76th game of the season, he scored 100 points in a single game netting 36 [out of 63] field goals and 28 [out of 32] free throws. He also gathered the usual 25 rebounds. Wilt Chamberlain would help lead the Warriors to the NBA Finals that year, but unfortunately lose the series 4-3.

"They were willing to do anything to stop me." - Wilt Chamberlain