Powerfull style and perfect execution that is Linards in a nutshell. What some people don’t know is that he pretty much learned how to skate in a shed on some selfmade obstacles. That tells a lot about him and his dedication to skateboarding.
Photo by Nauris Dollins/ Screen grab by Linards
How long have you been on the board?
I have been skateboarding for about 11 years.
It is not a secret that Riga has a pretty low spot density, and the quality of the spots is far from perfect. But we are happy with what we’ve got and try to make the best out of it. The spot in question today is Mego Handrail in Pardaugava. The accessible height (it is knee-high) and decent run up made this spot one of the better known handrail spots in Riga. However, despite all positive aspects of the spot, not a lot of tricks have been done there. In this list we present some tricks by Latvian skateboarders done on Mego Handrail in chronological order. Take a look, learn about ABDs and maybe get inspired to hit that blue piece of metal.
!!!RajonTV cannot be held responsible for your potential misadventures at this spot. Skateboarding is not authorized on the territory of Mego shop, so skate at your own risk and responsibility!!!
Andrejs Pižovs – Bs Boardslide
~2006 Filmed by Andžejs Gavrišs
For some reason Mego is associated with mayonase salads, triangle sandwiches and instant noodles. Of course don’t forget about booze. We don’t know how cool Mego was in 2006, but since it is still there (more than 10 years later) we can assume it has a devoted clientele. Mego’s clients are not picky and are not interested in fancy foods. They are down for that raw and simple product just like this boardslide. Probably not the first boardslide done there, but looks cool and fast.
Arturs Bahurcevs – Fs Lip
2008 Filmed by Maksims Kalanep
The shelves at Mego are covered in yellow price tags meaning everything and nothing is on sale today. This front lip was on sale too, you can get two pairs by the price of one.
Unreal Tournament was a bit too mental this year. We were extremely lucky to have only one contestant taken away in an ambulance. There could have easily been more. Known casualties include heel bruises, scabs and broken fingers. Edgars Kalns got some smoke poisoning and Miks Grantiņš sacked a ledge. Dovydas Jucys, the only unlucky guy taken to the hospital, broke two ribs and torn a lung. He stayed in Riga hospital for a few days and had blood pumped out of his lungs. The only thing he told about it was “It’s skateboarding, it’s normal!” Well, I guess it is.
On the flip side, Unreal Tournament managed to gather a lot more people than usually. We had 60 registered contestants and maybe 10 not registered. That is a lot knowing that some friends didn’t make it that day. Also once again all three Riga skateshops participated and equally supported the event. Which is rad and correlates with the main purpose of the event: to strenghten the scene and unite skateboarders.
Lukas Matusevičius is a lit dude from Lithuania. Goes fast and does things proper and with style. We asked our go-to Lithuanian contact person – Domantas, who specialises in all things ghetto, to draw a more precise portrait of Lukas. This what Domantas had to say:
Lukas Matusevicius is ma homie since day one! He is 18 years old at the moment and it is very joyful to see him progress trough those years. This year especially I see a lot of fire in his eyes and wanting to kill every spot that he gets, I am super proud of him because not only he is a really good skater but also doing great things in Kaunas, hyping the young ones and keeping the Kaunas scene Up and going! Funny thing is that people don’t even realise how gnarly he is until they come to the spots he skate and see how much rough and sketchy it is to do something there. Lukas also keeps my internet meme game updated haha, he always sends the best jokes and memes in the chatroom and also cracks you up on every trip, it is essential to have Lukas in our skate trips, because he always keeps your positivity and hypes you up to get dat clips dawg!
photo by: @arti_photo
How long have you been skateboarding?
I have been skating for 5 years and a half maybe.
Sponsors?
I’ve been repping FULLY GHETTO since day one haha! I skate for 14Skateshop, and I’m also very thankful for CommuneDIY guy Siom!
Favorite trick?
I love doing wallies and front smiths!
Favorite thing to skate?
Curbs, hills, ledges and quarter pipes.
How did filming for R.USH HOUR go?
It was kinda hard, my legs were very sore and I was feeling sick, but although I was still motivated and hyped to skate the gtiim and enjoyed it a lot!
We plan to have atleast two more episodes, so stay tunned. Also, Unreal Tournamnet recap is coming any day now. Peace!
This week we have our Lithuanian homies representing. Originally we invited Dovydas Jucys, but, as you may have seen in our insta stories, he got hurt really bad during Unreal Tournament. He slammed in the finals of Death Race and broke two ribs. R.USH HOUR filming was obviously canceled for Dovydas, however his homies were over here too and we decided to give a chance to the upcoming young Lithuanian rippers. So this episode is with Kernius Trakymas who is the next-gen Lithuanian skater. We asked Domantas Antanavicius to introduce Kernius a bit and this is what he had to say.
Yeah, Kernius is a young gun. I think he is only 15 and I see a lot of potential on rails for him. He makes long rail grind and attacks the terrain full speed. We will see a lot from Kernius in the future. And his nickname is Mafukas. It means that he is from the mafia. It’s because he has a strong man tone in his voice and he sounds like a mafioso.
How long have you been skateboarding? I have been skateboarding for like 4 years now.
Sponsors? No sponsor now, but I should shoutout 14 skate shop, because he always helps then I need new stuff for skating!
Favorite trick? My favourite obstacles are rails and ledges.
Favorite thing to skate? Favourite trick would be feeble on a round rail. I just like how it feels then you lock in on it and also you can do it in many different variations!
How did filming for R.USH HOUR go? The filming for rush hour went pretty smooth. At first I wast a little bit stress out, but later every thing got in to place!
This month was a tough one! We hoped to see more street clips and ended up making a full Top 10 almost completely out of indoor clips. Most certain that this is the last time we see indoor clips in a top 10. However, it all depends from you guys. Give us some shit to work with. Stay safe and enjoy the early spring days.
Spoiler/ Original clips
Intro – Meelis impliying that it is time to get out of indoors.
10. Martīņš Reitups – 270 spin sllide out
9. Kristers – Bs 360
8. Meelis Erm – 5-0 flip out at Raba
7. Andrejs Poikans – baggy line at Gtiim
6. Siim Sild – heel flips ss nad regs in Tallinn
5. Niki – At Boga’s contest at the Spot center
4. Domantas – skating his local drop
3. Žygimantas Rudys – Doing his thing
2. Kaspars Gobiņš – ss tre. For some reason he couldn’t make it at Unreal
1. Armands Baumanis – blunt 360 shove on a DIY quarter at the Barix. posted on 1 of March 😀
With all that preparation for Unreal Tournament the R.USH HOUR 2019 project was put on hold, but we are back. Also this year the weather is better than ever, so it is a bit hard to keep focused on indoor filming. Despite all that we are still going to finish and go to at least 10 episodes!
The goal of this project is to show local talents and introduce them to the broader skate scene. Some of our participants do not need any introductions but other do. Well, Aksels is relatively unknown and would definitely use an introduction. For starters I can say that Aksels was skating over at Gtiims almost every time I was there during this winter. Also every time I saw him he was trying new shit or thinking of new lines. He is always excited and wants to skate hard!
How long have you been skateboarding?
I got my first Maxima board when I graduated kindergarten – so I been shredding 16 years with pauses.
Sponsors?
Me, myself and my Moma.
Favorite trick?
There is a trick invented specially for me – axel stall, I like to make combos with it, but lately I really like all kinds of grinds, grabs and other air tricks.
Favorite thing to skate?
Rails, halfpipes, flyers and the notorious streets of Riga city.
How did filming for R.USH HOUR go?
It was crazy, I was very stressful at the beginning, because I didn’t want to mess up and the day before filming I fucked up my ankle a little bit. But the filming went down kinda smooth, and RajonTV boss Ed Gaba inspired me to do some crazy stuff I couldn’t believe I can do. Much love and respect for that.
RAJONTV.COM COMING SOON: RAJONTV TOP10 March, Unreal Tournament Recap, R.USH HOUR ep. 7 and 8 with Lithuaninan homies!
Historically one of the biggest and best parts of skateboarding, apart from dressing like a skater, falling on your face and performing the act itself, was talking about skateboarding. To this day skaters all over the world sit down after a hefty sesh to spend hours on end talking about their favorite pros, why current trends suck and how it was better back in the day. Though sometimes these harmless discussions take a drastic U-turn to the ego land, where dudes elevate their personas by judging others who do not fall into their vision of what’s right, we still deeply appreciate moments when we can just talk about our favorite thing in the world.
And when you think of it, it really does feel good to be a skater after all. Especially when you have your peers to share stories with, talk and realize how much you have in common. Who would even care about how you started skating except other skaters? Yes, skaters care! Be it our friends, loose acquaintances or Nine Club’s very very very special guests, skate stories fascinate us simply because we can relate to them as we all went through more or less similar scenarios growing up.
So if you are the type of skater who likes to listen to stories (especially in the modern wrap of a podcast) you are probably going to enjoy this new local podcast by Straight Forward Skateboards (sorry friends it is only in Latvian at the moment).
Here is what Armands Baumanis, the host, had to say about it.
“Straight Forward Podcast” is a skateboarding broadcast where I invite a skateboarder to talk about life, skating and other important things. For now we are broadcasting in our native language but we have plans for foreign guests in the future. Guest picks 3 songs he wants to hear while we talk and answers my questions. We are open for ideas how to make it more interesting, also regarding guests – you are welcome to suggest a person you would like to hear on our podcast.
Next episode of the podcast is coming next week! Folow Straight Forward Skateboards on Soundcloud or Youtube not to misss
RajonTV followers may remember Siim Sild from Onko se…? and also from Project C. Siim was the author behind both of these videos. However, Siim is not as much a filmer/editor as he is a skater, and the fifth episode of R.USH HOUR will show you a glimpse of his skating. Siim represents Estonia and drove all way to Riga from Tallinn to film this clip.
How long have you been skateboarding?
I started skating in March 2004, so exactly 15 years.
Sponsors?
Vans & Surfhouse skateshop.
Favorite trick?
That’s a hard one, but it might be nollie bs heels right now, the one that got away this time .
Favorite obstacle?
Depends on how I’m feeling, some days it’s a miniramp and some other time it might just be a parking lot with some good flatground. I like to skate everything to be honest.
How did filming for R.USH HOUR go?
I didn’t know what to expect, because it was my first time skating the G-tiim park. I think it went well, I really liked the skatepark, so time flew really fast.
Two years ago I had a chance to show a bit of Riga to Dallas Rockvam and his Finish homies. I took them to my go-to tourist spot – a little bank to slappy curb. Visitors seem to appreciate that spot way more than the locals and so did this crew. Latter, on the way to the bar Dallas commented on my board saying, “This board sux!” I had a Frank board and he was obviously joking, but I didn’t get it and said something like “Ok!” I was a bit nervous to honest and only as we got to Lokal, and got some beers in the system, nervousness passed. We talked about skate vids and Dallas’ previous visit to Riga in 2010. On that trip Dallas did some really dope stuff – bs 180 on that skinny bank across the street from Boards (the spot is no longer there) and a wallride over the pit at the Teika pool ( there was a video but I can’t find it). I am sure those two above mentioned tricks were never even considered as a possibility by local skaters, for Dallas it seemed playfull and just for fun like nothing. Since then I have a huge respect for the guy and always get stocked on the new clips he puts out. Now Dallas also flows Frank boards to Fricis Štrauss and in that way inderrectly particapates in our scene too. Well, we had a little chat recently and here it is.
Hey Dallas, how are you? How are you holding up during this winter season?
Yo yo, I am doing OK.. I am home in the forest in Austria and skating 1 time a week in Linz maybe and now I found out how enjoyable snowboarding is, so I plan on doing that as much as I can afford haha.
How did you start skateboarding?
I started to mess around on this Zorlack board my brother had with no grip on it when I was like 13 but then someone stole it and I got some sporting good store board and 2 weeks later that got stolen from the front of my house. A couple of months later I got a Powell angel boy with grind kings for my birthday and its been on ever since.
How did you get sponsored?
I am from a shit hole place called Sioux city Iowa in the middle of the US. Some friends moved to California when they were 18 and they convinced me to move there to Huntington Beach and this one homie had a camera and I just skated a lot and worked at a supermarket and some Skateshop got my sponsor video he made for me and they gave it to Element rep who came in and so it began.
What was you first trip to Europe like?
First trip to Europe was to Barcelona with Element actually.. they rented an apartment for 1 month and I thought it was fuxing great.. late nights doing whatever and all day skating all these amazing spots.. I came back the next year with friends from the US and again in summer to Finland and every summer after that to Finland and eventually it was like 1 month then 2 months staying then 6 months then I just stayed.. illegally for the first 2/3 years.
Dallas Rockvam – Hippy jump/ Photo: JanFederer – ABD mag
What made you want to move here?
It was not like a conscious decision like I planned it.. just happened.. Here in most of Euro land its just different, no car is necessary and you’re not hassled by the police as much for skating and I ended up after a while meeting a girl and now its been like 9 years I kinda stayed and have a son and another kid on the way.. I enjoy this structure way better and its got some negatives but nothing crazy and I can just live and feel more free than when I am at home really.
When did you realize you wanted to start your own company?
It was also not a decision that I really knew I was going to do.. Vntiz who I skated for at the time wanted to start kinda a sister company like anti hero/real has and they wanted to get some riders over to this new one but it evolved and I thought why not just start something totally new and I volunteered to help with team/graphics and some cash and Samu from Finland also helped at first. It’s about 5 year going now and FRANK is a pain in my ass.. hard guy to work for to be honest.
You said in Free Skate Mag interview that FRANK is not a real company, is it still like that?
Yeah… it’s still fake as fuck… real ass dudes skating for it but it’s still a joke somehow.. I am not a business nor did I buy some office or do anything like that. Just make graphics and sell the boards if I can. It functions but let’s see how much longer that old bird can last.
How do you make graphics?
Well they are made in this stupid computer I am using right now after hours of drawing boring shit on paper haha.. FRANK the bird was a drawing by Samu Karvonen actually and I put it in computer. Some more graphics were made by him with me just doing some computer work and now I make most of them and sometimes the homie @zootghost has helped out. I am no artist or anything but when I had a few drinks maybe some very dumb ideas come out and it turns out to be a funny graphic.
Who is FRANK the bird?
Ah shit I kinda already answered this.. To be honest if you think about it FRANK is seen or looks like a male chicken but that is impossible so FRANK is actually a woman chick dressed as a man. Also known as a Transgenderred Chick or Cross dresser or something. I haven’t really got down there to check out the goods, but you know anything is possible these days. hahaha
What hypes you up to skate these days.
That’s a good question.. I liked this blessed video a lot actually… I enjoy a lot of skating but I am not so much a nerd as I sued to be… I really enjoy just a good session with homies and I am honestly kinda getting over caring about skating as far as me being apart of it in any way. haha
What kind of stuff do you like to skate?
To me it seems you are into lines. Fux lines really ?? haha I have never or almost never filmed a line with more than 3 tricks or 2 flip tricks in it.. hahaha. I am not that good at skating to be honest or not like this flip in or flip out shit. Last couple years I really like skating tranny and DIY shit! I really like crusty tight shit or some shitty bump.
Is there anything you miis about the states?
Mexican Food!!!! maybe my brother too and couple homies… Possibly how fucked up it is in some way too I guess.. haha. it’s a circus over there and just getting more freaky all the time. hahaha
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