Already Been Done Presents: Josiah Gatlyn
Words: Rob Brink Already Been Done, January 2011
Josiah Gatlyn believes in God. Deal with it.
Now that we gotten past that, let's get down to business.
One day, Josiah happened to be near Los Angeles and was lucky enough to have a friend let him into The Berrics. The rest, as they say, is history.
The end.
No really, that was about 18 months ago. And since then, a lot has happened for Josiah. Including the fact that we all know his name and have seen him ride a skateboard.
He's landed a grip of sponsors (Stereo, RVCA, Theeve, Select, Ashbury), completed a graphic design internship, started his own headwear company (Usko) with his girlfriend, worked on multi-million-dollar yachts and gone from North Carolina to Missouri to Los Angeles to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida where he's currently working, skating, being responsible and seeking the answer to one of life’s biggest mysteries: “Do Monkeys go to heaven?”
Regift: Journal Magazine
Words: Rob Brink Already Been Done, January 2011
Kevin Taylor
Put simply, in 1996, the appearance of Journal magazine got East Coast skateboarders hyped. Real hyped. Then, one more issue later, it was gone.
My fondness for Journal has always been coupled with a lack of closure because of it’s premature demise. Many share a similar sentiment for 101, Mad Circle or a favorite skater who fell off the map too soon.
Rising Stars in Action
Words: Rob Brink 944, January 2011
Progression, like time, waits for no one. If you don’t do it, someone else will beat you to it. Period.
Actions sports are no different, however, progression isn’t always about winning a medal, being number one or the money. Most times, it’s simply for the greater good—to push the envelope.
The athletes involved are intensely creative, dedicated, persistent, innovative and expressive individuals. Even in an event as high profile as the X Games or US Open, they are most likely battling themselves, not the other competitors.
Lyn-z Adams Hawkins, Kyle Loza and Brett Simpson are all in “the window” right now. It’s the age and place in their careers where they’ve accomplished more than most will ever dream. They’re at top of their game, but still rising stars and we don’t mind staring up at them. Not one bit.
Behind the Bush: A Conversation With Gino Durante
Words: Rob Brink Already Been Done, December 2010
Gino Durante used to post sponsor-me footage on my Facebook page. I never really paid much mind, not to be a dick, but because there isn’t much I can do other than forward it to a TM at Sole Tech if it's worth their time. And believe me, they are already inundated with sponsor-me tapes.
Fast forward a few months and he posts another video called “My Fucking Bush.”
I watched it, had a laugh and went on my way. Didn’t even realize it was Gino in the video. Videos of skateboarders getting harassed pop up all the time, right?
A few days later, the clip had spread like wildfire. Friends who don’t even skate were texting me and emailing me the clip, asking me if I knew Gino, since he and I are both from North Jersey.
I watched the clip a few more times and had some questions, so the only thing left to do was give Gino a call and get the story behind the year’s most infamous viral skateboarding video.
Because 2010 was the dawn of the online pro video part being a new standard in skateboarding, a few months ago we started an article on the "Top 5 online video parts of 2010" and got in touch with some of the skaters who made those parts. Then, about a week ago, the entire skate blogosphere published "Top Online Video Parts of 2010" articles ....
So we scrapped ours.
However, having already spoken with Daewon Song and Shane O'Neill and noticing that none of the other articles decided to do anything of the sort, we figured that not using their commentary would be a disservice to our readers, and sorta rude, considering the two of them made the time to speak to us. So, in no particular order, here they are:
Festivus: Damn Am Costa Mesa 2010
Words: Rob Brink The Skateboard Mag, February 2010
“Crime has increased during every recession since the late 1950s.”
—Sociologists interviewed by Reuters, October 2008.
First, it was the disappearance of Andrew Cannon’s bike.
When a dude comes up to you in a full-on penguin suit telling you his bike got stolen and he doesn’t even seem that mad, you can’t help but feel for the guy, then wonder if you’re as good at not sweating the small stuff as he is.
Poor little penguin.
Then, it was the cracked-out chef in a Santa Cruz “screaming hand” apron, who, in between grilling shifts, bullied various members of the SPoT crew into giving him free product and looted the Volcom box truck.
