Powell Peralta’s Caballero Chinese Dragon

This feature is about the most innovative, subversive, original, and artsy graphics in skateboarding. Highlighting new and current decks on the market but also going back in the great catalog that many legendary skaters and companies have put out since the underground debuts of this highly marginalized sport.

Powell Peralta’s Caballero Chinese Dragon

With the reunion of George Powell and Stacy Peralta, reforming as Powell Classics and Re-Issueing decks of the Bones Brigade era, old-school skateboard buffs have been flooded with every deck possible in every thinkable color.
Choosing one was not that hard since my favorite rider of this team was with no doubt Steve Caballero. A pioneer of so many vertical tricks and an inspiration for pool skating. As a warm up I often watch videos of Caballero in the pool just to get me pumped enough.

Sadly, I never owned a Cab deck and despite the cool Chinese dragon graphics I’m not that much of a fan of decks with no concave. This choice is only based on the graphic that is still considered as legendary and that inspire respect amongst skaters. What is more corny than a dragon on anything? With the name Caballero it changes everything and impose a legacy of old-school grandeur.

This is a reissue of the classic deck in a dark green that could only match huge round wheels.

Deck of the Week: Anti Hero's Flaming Skate

This feature is about the most innovative, subversive, original, and artsy graphics in skateboarding. Highlighting new and current decks on the market but also going back in the great catalog that many legendary skaters and companies have put out since the underground debuts of this highly marginalized sport.
 

This week, featured is the Flaming Skate design bearing the classic Thrasher magazine font. Anti Hero skateboards has been linked with the magazine since the debut of Anti Hero in 1995. Julien Stranger, founder of the brand, was influenced by Jim Thiebaud (pro skater) and Jake Phelps, editor in chief at Thrasher, to found a new company and help skateboarding to get back to its core roots.

This deck is quite simple but holds the spirit of skateboarding that wants to keep its origins close and its friends closer. The magazine is like the bible to skateboarders. This font represents respect, heritage, and true skateboarding.

This is why this quite simple board graphic deserves mention here.

 

Deck of the Week – Santa Cruz’s Gallos by Jason Jessee

This feature is about the most innovative, subversive, original, and artsy graphics in skateboarding. Highlighting new and current decks on the market but also going back in the great catalog that many legendary skaters and companies have put out since the underground debuts of this highly marginalized sport.

For the first time on Le Mot du Cinephiliaque, the new feature consisting of presenting one deck that I want to display and write about.

This week, I’m bringing you my pool deck that I’ve been skating with since this spring; the Santa Cruz Gallos by Jason Jessee. It features a 8.6X32 inches shape with a wheelbase of 15 inches and a proper nose.
Coming from Santa Cruz, one of the most iconic skateboard company, the wide shape is perfect for pool skating or cruising around.

This is a nice compromise between the old shaped decks of the 1980’s and the thin popsicle decks of the 1990’s.

Featuring a violent rooster with blood red and dark grey tones, this is a deck that wants to be destroy by its owner.

Far from being a classic deck, this recent release by Santa Cruz was almost forgotten because many re-issue decks were populating the market at the time it came out. This is however a great deck that I mounted on Independent trucks (139), Bones wheels (58mm), and Amphetamine Ceramic bearings.

What is your perfect pool deck? Did you ever watched the documentary on Jason Jessee Pray for Me: The Jason Jessee Film? If yes, please share if it is worth it I haven’t watched it yet.