Concerts for Days...check out a few!

Dinosaur Jr. just the other night was amazing.  Kerry Getz bought me a beer, such a nice guy and so were all the Habitat guys that were there.  Roger Waters was a very, very good show, so glad to have finally seen him.  She Wants Revenge was a really good time, enjoyed some tasty beverages with Dakota and Tommy in the secret bar behind the stage after the show.  Depeche Mode was nastalgic to say the least, they did their jobs, but the crowd there sucked!  Just wanted to share these with you as it is a undertaking to go to some of the the larger venues and deal with the crowds.  See you at the park!

The Stork is Heading Our Way

So, here comes the stork with a special delivery for Janine and I.  This is our first child and we are interested in seeing just how this is all going to work out.  Luckily we are in a position to build out above the shop to create a safe place for Janine and the baby to hang out, so that they are still able to get out of the house from time to time.  Funny thing about the baby is that it's due date is on November 7th, the same day as this years Johnny Romoano Skate Jam here at Southside Skatepark.  So, she just came back from an appointment today and the doctor has confimed that the baby will either be born before or on our due date.  So our contingency plan is having to go into full effect to make sure the crew has enough help in the shop.  I don't plan on missing the Skate Jam, but if I am unable to make it, well then so be it.  The baby is a boy and his name is Roman Visentin...the middle name will be a book name, so stay tuned.

Nike SB "Don't Fear the Sweeper" Tour Stop Oct. 9th

Well this demo was amazing to say the least.  Skateboarders in attendance were Paul Rodriguez, Eric Koston, Wieger Van W., Elissa Steamer, Chet Childress, Cory Kennedy, Ishod Ware, Danny Supa, Lewis Marnell and Shane O'Neill.  You can expect a little something special coming from Jason Hernandez, the Nike SB filmer, on the Nike SB website shortly.  Thanks to everyone who made the trip over to the park for the event.

Rebuild 2009 Officially Complete with Tranquility Rail Replica

Looks like today was the day to finally get the Tranquility Park rail replica fabricated and mounted on the new elevated big prop, complete with modular features. It took a lot longer than we thought it would to complete the project today. We started around 10:30am and had it wrapped up and ready for the first session at 8pm. There were a couple hang ups here and there and trips to Home Depot for various supplies making things progress slowly but by the end of the day it was mission complete. If you check out the pictures you'll Southside team rider George Karvounis watching intensely, barely surviving the wait for his chance to skate the new rail. It's kids like George that we had in mind when deciding that it was the kind of feature that we felt we needed to have in the park. I know that I witnessed generations of skateboarders here in Houston skate that rail for years. Why shouldn't today's younger Houston skateboarders have that same opportunity. Sure, they do have more terrain to skate that anyone ever had and the parks just keep coming which is great. I suppose we just felt that it was really important to have the good old Houston staple still active, in any capacity, for nostalgia purposes at the very least. The session tonight was super good, we knew immediately that we had made the right choice by bringing in the Tranquility rail. I laughed when someone told me that it was a great rail, possibly even perfect. If you think about it, we already had nearly two decades of test group results to look at to show us the staying power a rail like this has. To us it was a no brainer, super simple and completely obvious. We hope that you all come check it out and give it a go, even if only for old times sake.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Well after a grueling 5 days at 12 hours a day and water problem at another facility off site, a new bid on other construction, a stuck in the mud race car, a massive scrap and trash pile at a previous job, a water clogged valve on a heavyduty truck, a collapsed and chopped up trailer, good and bad calls from home, a doctors appointment, and numerous downpours we are proud to present to you your new completely modular skatepark, enjoy. Rails can be moved back, forward, left right and the euro gap, outledge manual pad, mellow hubba and full banks can all be moved left and right as needed. The Tranquility "replica" was not completed in time for todays reopening, but will be installed at some point afterhours next week. The rail is going to be EXACTLY the rail, all measurements are the same from the footprint positioning on the set itself...we are open today and I am almost dead, I am posting some images up on the blogger link below, please check it out and remember, from now on nothing is set in stone.

Well My Ramp Crew Could Beat Your Ramp Crew's Ass in 9 Hours or Less, Day 1 Rebuild 2009!

Happy Birthday Dogboy

So just the other day Dogboy, the creator of one of the best flow bowls in Texas and most definitely the worst street course ever seen graced Galveston, Texas with his presence. Although it was his birthday he was greeted by a locked gate down on the island. Before the bolt cutters arrived people were hopping the fence left and right. There is just something ironic about the guy who spent a little over 3 months of his life to build the skatepark having to break into it to actually skate it. Not to be deterred a set of bolt cutters found there way around the lock and with a quick little snipperoo the session commenced on schedule. Not really sure why things seem to always work out this way for our local free parks here in the Greater Houston area, but they do. If you ever find yourself without a razor and in need of a grip job, don't hesitate to just rip your grip into pieces and scatter it about on your new deck, according to Dogboy it will most likely skate the same. Now in his 32nd year, Dogboy has been working on project after project all across Texas. We have him in town with the rest of the ramp crew to help us bang out a sick update to the street course here at the park. The rebuild will begin this Monday and be completed and ready to rip by Friday evening so that we can open for normal business Saturday promptly at 11am. Hope you enjoyed the street course this year, but as promised the annual update must take place to keep things bangin' here at Southside, just like it has been for the last 15 years!