Two days ago, Brian Anderson came out as gay, and he was the first male professional skateboarder to ever do so. Brian was already regarded as one of the best in skateboarding, with pro boards for Toy Machine and Girl, starting 3D Skateboards and even earning Thrasher's Skater of the Year in 1999. For the full list of accolades and praise, see what I wrote HERE for Skateboards.com, but he has fully deserved his long and meaningful career (now 18 years pro).

Brian impressed and appeased all the kids reading the magazines. He pleased all his sponsors with some of the best video clips and photos, and he delivered content to the skate nerds of multiple generations. But what's especially unique about Brian is that he did all of that while keeping his individuality alive. He was always a little different from the other skaters in the van. He was always a bit more reserved than the rest. Always friendly and easy-going, and at the same time keeping a secret.

BA won our [skaters'] hearts before there was ever a coming out, and maybe that was part of his plan. Now that such a revered figure in skateboarding has made an appearance as openly gay, I hope that it will be easier for other skateboarders to be themselves at an earlier age. Brian is 40 years old and just came out to the world, but skateboarders of the future should be able to grow and develop as human beings WHILE being honest with themselves and others, and this might be a huge step forward.

Skateboarding culture has been known to be somewhat homophobic or hetero male dominated, but so much of our world also is. This isn't the first milestone, but its near the beginning. With the correct momentum, this could be a major shift in a culture that is quickly becoming "cooler" and more influential than ever. And most of all, RESPECT to Brian Anderson (@nolimitsoldier) for being true to himself and coming out in a way that could make a large impact.

 - 7Ply Epic

Diplomacy: n. the profession, activity, or skill of managing international relations, typically by a country's representatives abroad.

Skateboarding: v. ride on a skateboard.

Blame Google for any discrepancy or disagreement with these definitions, and skateboarding will be further defined by yours truly, but there may be more than meets the eye when comparing the two on a grander scale.

Skateboarding is and always has been centered around a certain level of rebellion. The skateparks built for skateboarders, when the “sport” became popular enough for such public funding, have all been based on physical elements found in our existing world. First there were pools, which were recreated as bowls in our skateparks. Then there was street skating, imitated (both well and badly) by ledges, manual pads, rails, banks, hubbas and slappy curbs. Skating will always be roughly "against the rules," no matter how categorized and controlled it may become. However, the culture of the skaters themselves is organized in such a self-sustaining way of which others may want to take heed. Although the hierarchies of skateboarding can be very cryptic and often unspoken, they are functionally efficient and sustainable.

Diplomacy can be interpreted as the method of delegating duties to manage opportunity and/or risk, but the word is usually used in the context of international relations. Skateboarders are inherently risk-takers, and those that are active skaters know that they commonly excel at assessing that risk. By the very nature of our activity, we are forced to embrace failure and decide quickly what is worth committing to. The ultimate delegating power, if you will. There is no room for error, yet it is inevitable. The risks we take can ultimately be life-threatening, but we insist on “one more try.” It is just as much something we practice as it is something we learn and teach (granted within a relatively guarded community).

Many will negate this notion, but it is true. Skateboarding is something that comes with risk. It’s a package deal. But with the right attitude, pace and training, the risk becomes manageable and arguably, the most fun part of that deal.

When examining this through the lens of relationships, skateboarding is just as relevant in its companionship to diplomacy. Skateboarders have deep bonds, even to humans they do not yet know. They can immediately relate through the fact that they all have been working on the same skills, obsessing over the same objectives and criticizing similar trick selection and style for years. There is an automatic connection between any two skateboarders that meet anywhere in the world. Part of the origin of skateboarders (and the current state of skating) is that they are a relatively small bunch and genuinely need to look out for each other. Skaters always have and always will aid one another whenever possible. They will help you set up a board if they can. Regardless of language barrier, they will offer a floor to sleep on. They will make sure that you are taken care of, because they know that the next day, you will want to wake up and go do the same thing they want to do.

Exploration is an inherent pillar of the culture. And wherever you end up, granted there are fellow skateboarders there in your area, you will find help to keep going and keep growing with your peers.

There are skateboarders in all places of the world. Many more than you might think... Less populated or developed nooks will often have some influence of skateboarding in their communities, whether or not they have sufficient resources. This shows proof of the international influence and narrative of skateboarding. It shows the dedication that skaters have to their craft and fellow humans that seek the same. And they surely aren’t only the delinquents that so many identify them as.

Especially in a time of so much turbulence (economically, socially and environmentally), I look forward to seeing skateboarders make a difference in their greater communities and systems. And during a time of so much hate and disdain for fellow humanity, I’ll be proud to watch skateboarding create even more "homies” that truly make a difference.

Love,

 - 7Ply Epic

The barrage of information that accesses our brains daily, living in this fast-paced & action-filled world, is something that was once coveted. Now it is a skill, to cut through the noise. Those who see the issue are wise, but the ones who are successful in depleting its intake are brilliant. What used to be craved.. What may have once been a fantasy to our race’s most intelligent.. Is now a crutch of sorts. Only a hurdle to be ascended.

Now more than ever, an average twenty-something is likely checking their Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and text messages before making any further moves in any direction at all. And maybe email.. But what is really needed to return to the roots of human kind is to release from attachment to any of those things and make decisions based on desire and logic. Not FOMO on what someone else is doing. Not the “Top Five Mexican Joints in the Lower East Side.” And certainly not what the featured SnapChat stories of the day are suggesting. Only good, old-fashioned interest in hobbies, friends and current events, local or non-.

When did this shift occur? When did the wave of social pressure become more powerful than those waves we once watched in the ocean? Why is anyone even reading this blog? I am not sure, but my first suspect is the notion that we no longer have the power to do exactly what we want without affirmation from others. And the greater the affirmation, the greater the reason to do something tonight. …or tomorrow night if it takes too long to edit our next Instagram photograph. ..or if we wait for something better.

Is it not enough to live for oneself? Is it ridiculous to think that positive impulse is dead? The reach and ability to be informed has never been this impressive, but it doesn’t change that an individual’s good energy is not determined by anything we witness on a screen.

I’m guilty, as I’m running that hamster wheel each day. Trapped but periodically thinking of ways to escape. The maze gets prettier every day, but a 360 degree view will beat it at any time.

End rant.

 - 7Ply Epic

I just recently watched the new Polar Skate Co. full-length video, “I like it inside my mind. Don’t wake me this time.” There are so many reasons why the video sparked interest with myself and others; some may be predictable while others may be not so much. First, the title of this film was something I was sort of enamored with from the start. “Is that a title or an excerpt?” It was so unique and, frankly, awkward, that I had to read it thoroughly and stare at the DVD cover graphic for a few seconds longer to believe that that, in fact, was the case. Upon starting the video, it almost immediately revealed the meaning behind this sentence/title hybrid and was really quite enlightening.

“Everything is possible when we dream. Why can’t we sleep forever?"

The first part of the video’s introduction features Polar’s founder and cult skate world icon, Pontus Alv, wielding an umbrella and donning a Charlie Chaplin-esque suit coat outfit. In this, he hops through fields on green, grassy knolls and onto a lone rock in an expanse of water. Wondering what we will do next, the audience, skater or non-, is simultaneously enthused and perplexed. Eery electronic tunes blend with the visual aesthetics to create a trip and suspenseful notion of what’s to come. And at the peak of wonderment, a backside nosegrind on a large skatepark transition over a loveseat is a reminder that this is a skateboarding video. By Polar Skate Co.

One thing that’s especially entertaining about this and any other production by Pontus Alv is the complete DIY mentality of said production. In the spots chosen, in the approaches taken to the spots, in the music and editing, and in the style of the individual riders. Everything is "outside the box” in one way or another. Nothing is predictable, and that’s how skateboarding really is for so many that embrace the fringe lifestyle. Whether it be Hjalte Halberg pushing the streets of Copenhagen, Dane Brady shredding Portland, Paul Grund skating Bordeaux, or Aaron Harrington in the alleys of Manhattan, everyone brings their unique style to the greater “skateboarding” that we know and love.

The haters will call it “just no-complies & wallrides,” but the spirit of teams like this one goes further than that. They may lack 20-stair frontside flips and front blunts on kinked rails, but they make up for those deficiencies with tricks we can barely put a name to, an afterthought shifty that drew a reaction, or even a brand new type of spot that we’ve never seen conquered. Like a dream, the theme of this video is “whatever you want” in my eyes.

Don’t wake me this time. I’m dreaming. This video reminds us that anything is possible. Breaking molds means having to rebuild and make things you’ve never seen made. New beginnings in skateboarding are happening at an alarming rate, but with the right mentality, these new molds will be the best ones yet. And in ten years, skaters will be sick of “no-complies & wallrides” and will create the next new molds. Ones all their own.

Exciting times ahead with the right attitude. Get excited, not complacent.

 - 7Ply Epic