Jedi Grind Tricks: August 2010 By Scooter Newell While in college I refused to schedule my life around television shows and decided to use my television only as a monitor for my VHS player. I’m holding to my promise of being largely TV-free. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve logged plenty of hours as a kid watching “Family Ties,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “The Young Ones,” “The Smurfs,” “Moonlighting,” “The Honeymooners,”... [Read more...]
Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
Jedi Grind Tricks: July ‘10 • Scooter Newell • Happy would be the word that best describes the summer months of the skateboard world. This month and last month there was just so much going on in local skateboarding that I’m not even sure where to begin. But in neighborhood news: Eastwood, Cocoa Beach, and Graffiti all had a FREE skate day in recognition of “Go Skateboarding Day” this past June 21. Florida legend and streetstyle pioneer Chuck Dinkins made an appearance at... [Read more...]
Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
CJ Dixon Summer is here! I remember the last summer before the turn of the century. A new skate park had opened in Merritt Island and I was tasked with creating a summer skateboard camp. I never went to a skate camp as a young skater. In fact, back then there were no skateboard camps offered, or at least none in Brevard County. Like most young Cocoa Beach groms, I went to the City Recreation Center’s version of summer camp. We’d start in the morning playing basketball, volleyball or some... [Read more...]
Scooter Newell
Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
Jedi Grind Tricks: May ’10 • Scooter Newell • sk8scooter@gmail.com ~ I’ve been spending a lot of time at my local skate park lately — pulling some shifts behind the counter, cleaning the shop, working on skateboards, changing bearings, informing new guests about our park, and hanging out with the skaters who’ve been there since it opened. If you know me, you know that I love the “skate park vibe.” This is a place where we can hang out, practice our beloved... [Read more...]
Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
JEDI GRIND TRICKS By Scooter Newell With the advent of our modern day super computers and personal digital assistants, anyone can be their own realty show star. You log online to one of the mytwitface pages and inform the “viewers” of your show with the latest “news” like the shameless self promoters we are, skateboarders included. However, when it comes down to it, the real coverage still comes from our industry magazines. One of our own beachside residents, Timmy Knuth, is currently featured... [Read more...]
Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
Sometimes I just have to sit back and laugh at myself. I mean it. I can seriously laugh at so many aspects of my life. From my looks and my goofy skate style to so many other things I do. Like when I stay up until the wee hours when I know I have a long day ahead of me the next morning. Or when I start a load of laundry only to forget about it until a day or two later and end up having to rewash the load again because of that brain burning odor. For some reason I never learn. Anyway, on to something... [Read more...]
By: Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
JEDI GRIND TRICKS By Scooter Newell If there’s any one thing that’s important to skateboarding it’s the local skate scene. Not the skateboard companies. Not the shoe companies. Not the X-games. Not the videos. Not even the newest magazine ads or articles (except, of course, this one). What we’re talking about here are the individuals who make up your skate scene. The skaters — from the rippers and the old guys, to the girls and beginners — the park operators,... [Read more...]
By: Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
Back in the day, Janus, some ancient god of beginnings and guardian of doors and entrances was the coolest guy around on New Year’s Eve in ancient Rome. I guess these ancients believed that Janus, who had two faces, could see backward and forward at the same time, and on December 31st they imagined Janus looking back at the old year and forward to the new one. So traditions began — giving gifts of branches, fruit, nuts, coins, etc. … Eventually, a couple of thousand years later, that led... [Read more...]
By: Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
Regardless of how much of a Grinch I try to be, I eventually get swept up in the holiday buzz. Sometimes the pressure of gift giving can be a bit overwhelming, so usually I pass when it comes to participating in the holiday shopping rat marathon. Of course, I’m not a total scrooge; I do end up trying to get something going in the spirit of the mass-marketed holiday. Even though I gripe about how we get over-bombarded with pressure to spend money and shop, I still love the holiday season almost... [Read more...]
By: Scooter Newell
Article Category: Jedi Grind Tricks
So, believe it or not, I got an email about five hours after last month’s Resident went live online regarding my October article. It was from Katie at the Dew Tour who was kind enough to hook me up with media credentials so I could be one of a million vulturesque paparazzi trying to feed their families on the freshest road-kill of the century: “Action Sports.” Anyway I was excited that Katie went out of her way to get me a media pass because both Timmy Knuth and Adam Taylor were... [Read more...]
