Bowlrider Journal

San Diego Starlettes VS Santa Cruz Harbor Hellcats

2010-05-23T01:13:00.000-07:00

I was invited to go check out and take some pictures of our local Ladies Roller Derby team, the San Diego Starlettes as they battled with the Santa Cruz Harbor Hellcats. It was a fun event, and made me remember how much I use to love watching roller derby on tv back in the 70s...

Due to the shitty lighting I ran slow shutter speeds while panning with the riders & high iso settings which made the photos come out with a lot of noise.. over all I wasn't too happy with the photos, but it did motivate me to start experimenting more with photoshop.

I learned about the selection tool, which was really nice, as it allowed me to select the riders, and then I inversed the selections and did various lense blurs, which actually came out cool with a nice little 3d effect..

Adrian Demain & Doug Saladino Gigg'n @ Bar Pink

2010-05-20T00:57:00.000-07:00

Two Legendary Skaters Adrian Demain & Doug Saladino did a little gig @ Bar Pink in San Diego on 5.19.10. It was a nice little turn out and a relly good time with adrian throwing in a little skateboard trivia, some give aways + just watching adrian and doug having a little fun with the croud and thier music, just may be a once in a lifetime event... Doug was entered into the freestyle hall of fame and presented with a trophy. Adrian is a vault of Skateboard History and trivia.. The music was a hawaiian style.. with a little rock, and I gotta admit.. I think Adrian has a bit of an elvis thing going..

Vans Protec Pool Party 2007

2010-05-04T16:08:00.000-07:00

Just finished uploading the photos from Vans Protec Pool Party 2007. I remember most of the photos being taken during the practice sessions instead of the actual event. It was probably better this way anyways, since everyone and thier mothers, daughters, sons, nephews, neices, grandmothers, second cousins to third cousins who had a cell phone camera flooded the deck.. But I did manage to get CB, SALBA, MALBA, Bucky, Murph, Fick, and a few others.

13,527 viewed in april

2010-04-30T15:23:00.000-07:00

end of april 13,527 photos viewed & 2,752 high res. photos loaded up on bowlrider.com thanks for all the support

A lucky day with Olson & Hackett

2010-04-21T10:45:00.001-07:00

The one and only Steve Olson.

Sometimes hanging out at the park when nothing is going on and there is nothing better to do will pay off.
It was a true honor when I basically got a private session to catch Steve Olson and Dave Hackeet @ Clairemont this day. Both are legends and still going stronger than ever. What can I say about Olson but he has been a long time inspiration for me in my skateboarding days, Attitude, Style.. absolute legend.. and these days an accomplished artist.. Hackett with his awsomely stylish historic Hackett Slashs..let the pics show for themselves the dedication these two men have and their contributions in style to lay the foundation of what skateboarding should always be. Attitude, Style, Individuality

Legendary Steve Alba!!

2010-04-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

The King of Backyard Pools!!!

Yes.. another legendary Santa Cruz rider, and undeniably the king and all time ruler of back yard pool skating Steve Alba skating @ the Vans Protec Pool party.

Ive crossed paths with Steve a few times and this legend of skateboarding has always been cool with me.. I really would like the chance to get some shots at some real backyard pools..

Steve Steadham & Tony Magnusson Added to Bowlrider.com

2010-04-21T10:37:00.000-07:00

More additions: Steve Steadham & Tony Magnusson

Chris Cook on Bowlrider.com

2010-04-21T10:29:00.000-07:00

Just finished rebuilding Chris Cook & John Fudala sections. pics mainly from vans protec pool party 06

Bowlrider Legends

2010-04-20T12:23:00.000-07:00

Added two more riders to the Legends section of bowlrider.com Papo-Catalino Capiello Jr, Pat Ngoho

Catalino Capiello Jr.. aka Papo and Pat Ngoho.. If youve ever met Papo and don't just love this guy.. there is something really wrong with you.. Papo from day one has been one of the raddest guys Ive ever met, awsome personality and the most down to earth person Ive ever met.. and am glad to call him more than just an aquaintance... Papo is a true friend to those who have even just met him once.

Pat Ngoho... maaaan.. Ngoho just reeeks of style and coolness.. I really need to find more chances to shoot with Pat!!!

Bowlrider Locals

2010-04-20T12:06:00.000-07:00

Just put a nice little dent of rebuilding the locals section with additions for: Paul Pete Davidson Phil Banfield Raven Breese Richie Ricky Miranda Riley Stevens

Christian Hosoi on Bowlrider

2010-04-18T16:46:00.000-07:00

Just added the Christian Hosoi section on the bowlrider.com site. the photos are about 1 year old as of the time of this posting and pulled from clash @ clairemont III.

Since the release of Christian, I have anxiously been waiting for a chance to add him to the bowlrider site.. I woulda preferred better settings other than an event shoot.. but I will take what I can get.

If you don't know Christian Hosoi, then you don't know skateboarding.. No one can nor will ever be able to take away what Christian has brought to the world of skateboarding.

I have a lot of respect for this man, He f'd up, He Served his time honerably, And nowdays being a man of God, His contributions have moved beyond skateboarding on to much bigger and more important things in life!! What better ispiration is there?

Duane Peters Unity Tour Story

2010-04-16T09:59:00.000-07:00

If you ever want to hear a good story listen to some of the people who have hung out with Duane Peters, or better yet.. listen to the Master of Disaster himself. Duane Peters Posted this up on Facebook.. A little story about the Unity Tour and the Inspiration of for the song Unity.. check it out. it has drama, comedy and maybe even a life lesson or two.

Carmel Valley 4.13.10

2010-04-13T09:09:00.000-07:00

Rough day at the office I told Christiano that I wasn't going to be heading out today. During my ride home and hitting a sht-load of traffic was even more reason to stay home and chill out, but I didn't.

Got home still convinced I was ready to call it a day.. I sat down on the bed.. and like a mindless robot I stood back up, threw some water on my face, grabbed my camera bag and headed to Carmel Valley.

Carmel Valley 4.11.10

2010-04-11T20:51:00.000-07:00

Wow, I think Carmel Valley opened up just a little bit before my sabbatical from photography uuhhhm about 2 years ago? Whew....

It all seemed to start off with major sessions @ Coronado when I started bowlrider.com and my photography. Those sessions then moved to Clairemont and then up north to Encinitas and now It appears many of the locals are calling Carmel Valley thier current skate-spot.

This was my first time at Carmel Valley and really the first time in a good year or two that Ive crossed paths with some of these guys like Ron McCord, Chirstiano Goulart, and Adam Taylor.

Adam was out shooting with Dan Bourqui and I was trying to stay outa thier way. Dan was harnessing himself up high on a fence.. because well.. Dan was thinking outside the box to look for a uniqe shot. But any shot dan takes is true art, and He too is one of my inspirations in photography.. I love his work and style.. Also a pretty damn nice guy..

As for me.. I grabbed a few shots where I could of Adam, Ron, Christiano and another local Shaun Ross who tore that place up..

Clairemont 4.9.10

2010-04-09T21:17:00.000-07:00

Today while chatting with Evandro on Facebook, we decided to setup for another lil photo shoot @ Clairemont but San Diego Traffic had its own plans and decided to keep Evandro from making it to the park.

Luckily I caught Cory Juneau out and abou getting a mini-ramp practice session in for an up and coming event. Not wanting to let the day go to waste, I once again talked cory into getting over to the bowl to hopefully get a better shot of his smith grinds that I f'd up on during his last visit.

Clairemont 4.8.10

2010-04-08T21:23:00.000-07:00

Went out today after work to re-aquant myself with my trusty ol Canon 50d.. well it really isnt that old.. I just hardly used it since I bought it a few years ago.

Luckily a few of those old die hards who frequent Clairmont didn't let me down today. I got to shoot one of those rare occasion when Rich Lopez rides the bowl. I met Kirk & Cory Juneau for the first time. Now I had shot Cory a couple of times.. a few shots during last years Clash @ Clairemont III, and just recently at this years Clash. I thought cory was pretty f'n rad last year but didn't learn his name up until this recent meeting.

After talking with Kirk and Cory, I was able to convince Cory into breaking from his mini-ramp practices so I can get a few shots in the bowl where he threw down some fs and bs rock and rolls, board slides, tail slides, llip slide and a few smiths.

Evandro Menezes: It was really cool to run across Evandro again..I had some photos of him from the past, but nothing I was overly excited about. Due mainly to my lack of skills at the time.. not Evandros.

Well today we got to make up for it and I got some shots I think Evandro and I could be proud of.

Congrats to Austin Zito

2010-03-29T17:45:00.000-07:00

Seems my Nephew Austin took 2nd Place for best trick @ the Grind for Life street event. Unfortuanly this was a winner take all so no cash for Austin... hopefully he will do good in the up and coming Phoenix event..congrats and good luck.

Sequence by: Dan Bouqui

Grind For Life/Clash @ Clairemont IV

2010-03-28T16:29:00.000-07:00

Grind For Life/Clash @ Clairemont IV: End of the Event Steve Caballero, Andy MacDonald and Lester Kasai throwing down triples in the Bowl. Stevie said this was an historical event since it was the first time he had ever done triples in a bowl. Photo by me, Video Captured by Grant Brittain.

Clash @ Clairemont/Grind For Life

2010-03-27T21:31:00.000-07:00

I think the last time I shot was during the Clash @ Clairemont/Grind For Life III. Soon after that event I faded off into a 1 year hiatus, taking a break from the skateboard photography scene.

I caught word that Clash IV was coming around, and since Im still a sucker for a good skate event, I had to hustle to get myself a media pass. Plus the Grind For Life brings out some of the top skaters to help promote a great cause. As you can see below.. I was able to secure a pass.. and now I will let the photos do the rest of the talking
click on the Title above to see my full photo coverage of the event.

The Clash @ Clairemont/Grind for Life is run yearly for a good cause. Read the Mission Statement Below as quoted from the Grind for Life Site.

"Grind For Life, Inc was founded in 2003, by life-long skateboarder Mike Rogers, after his second battle with sarcoma cancer. Mike's tumor was located behind his right eye and nasal cavity. He endured a 17 hour surgery a cranial-facial resection with a brain-lift, removal of his eye, cheekbone, and half of the roof of his mouth and some of his teeth. He beat cancer once as a pre-teen, and again 25 years later. Mike beat the odds and is skateboarding competitive again.

WHAT WE DO
The mission of the Grind For Life organization is to provide financial assistance to cancer patients and their families when traveling long distances to doctors and hospitals. In addition, we educate and inspire these patients and families concerning cancer survival and recovery. Those who qualify may request assistance for travel and lodging expenses, meal, and personal needs. Funds for this organization will be raised by, but not limited to, hosting skateboarding events and festivals, ebay sales of donated goods, fundraiser's, Grind For life sponsors a skateboard team to perform at these events to keep the spirit of skateboarding alive.

Visions
Our ultimate goal with this organization is to have a couple of apartments near Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital in Manhattan, so people who are receiving treatment at the hospital can have their family near them. We want to be able to provide a comfortable place to stay, charge fees based on a sliding scale, provide support for those who are not accustomed to the city, and make a rough situation a little easier for those who travel long distances for treatment."

for more information please visit the Grind For Life website

Bowlrider Revamped:

2000-08-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

For the past 6 years Ive been struggling with updating and maintaining the bowlrider.com site while paying for hosting for slow and sometimes unreliable servers.

Although it was all fun and exciting during the learning period, Ive now decided to stick with what I think should be a more reliable solution w/o having to deal with those slow servers, sketchy programs and the many security risks and vulnerabilities that came along with them.

I am now using www.smugmug.com for hosting my photography. The www.bowlrider.com site has been a fairly dynamic site and updated on almost a weekly basis with my various excusions to the many skate sessions throughout socal. Since www.bowlrider.com is mainly a visual site showcasing my skateboard photography I felt that www.smugmug.com offered many nice features, such as the ability to load High Resolution picture, a Pricing system for if/when I may actually ever want to sell anything but best of all, It will offer the visitors the ability to choose and print out any of my photography on a large variety of medium (Gloss, Matt, Canvas, Cups, Calendars.. you name it, you will probably be able to print on it through the services.

I currently am rebuilding the site trying to hopefully load up a few of the best shots within each individual riders or events sections. Along with the rebuilding process, I have also started shooting again after about a 2 year hiatus.

So, I hope to see some of y'all out there again!!