ISSUE 80
FREE
ULT RACU S H™ LIT E IM PACT C USH I O NI NG AND DUR ACAP ™ DUR AB I L I T Y
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80
CONTENTS 10) FIELDWORK PHOTO FEATURE
16) EURO TRIPPING WITH BRENDAN DYAMOND
22) THE LOST CONTINENT MAURITIUS AND REUNION
32) CAPE TOWN CARNAGE
HEAVY HITTING IN THE MOTHER CITY
42) ‘THE CHAKALAKKA VIDEO’ WITH RYDER NEL
54) WEEKEND SPECIAL CONVERSE IN JOHANNESBURG
Cover: Anton Roux lipslides a previously untamed beast in Ballito, KZN. Wait until you see the footage! Photo – Jansen van Staden Contents Justus Kotze flips to fakie in a field full of canola flowers outside Cape Town. Spring has sprung. Photo – Sam Clark
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EVAN SMITH BACK SMITH
PHOTO BY ELEMENT ADVOCATE BRIAN GABERMAN #MADETOENDURE ELEMENTBRAND.COM
Redial
ALL WATCHED OVER BY MACHINES OF LOVING GRACE
Words - Luke Jackson
complained about it, because I love the access that digital technology provides. I’m more hyped on all the amazing skateboarding on instagram than just about anybody I know. It gives you direct access to all the scenes around the world that you’re into, whether they have a big following or even if they’re just niche cliques. But I also love print. My 15-year physical Session archive is frequently revisited and has a relevant lifespan in my consciousness that will far outlive the endless abyss of digital content out there. Print sits there on your shelf, a physical presence that can’t just be ‘refreshed’ for the flavour of the day.
Shaun Burger ollies over the whole ledge at Cape Town stadium, as seen in City Dwellers Vol 1, edit up on our website. Photo – Jansen van Staden.
80 issues in print documenting 15 years of South African skateboarding. Technology changes, the economy shifts, but the demand for content keeps on growing in leaps and bounds. I’ve been super inspired by South African skateboarding for most of my life. I have an embarrassing fan letter printed in Session issue 2 and I contributed to a ton of them long before I ever started officially working on the mag, most of the time for free. I wanted to be a part of the scene and I wanted to contribute whatever I could. It was always about the skateboarding, it was never about money. Session, AV and Familia Skateboards were my biggest local sources of inspiration, and I’m proud that I managed to first contribute and then play a role in running them all. I never made much money out of any of them, but that never mattered to me so much. I see younger guys demanding so much today, those who seemingly think everyone else has it so good. While it would be good to get more out, in reality you have to give a lot to be in this game, and unfortunately not many of us see any real substantial financial return. Print mags don’t play as big a role as they once did anymore, because everybody has a mobile phone or a computer, and they want daily content. So for those who run print mags it becomes more of a challenge, digital work in addition to the print production. People expecting more, but there isn’t any more money. As a skate nerd myself, I’ve never
ADVERTISING Ockie Fourie
PHOTOGRAPHERS 80 Sam Clark, Grant Mclachlan, Jansen van Staden, Mooki Mooks, Mosako Chalashika, Pieter Retief, Rieyaad Saban, Joubert van Staden, Phoenix Jurgens, Hartmut Martin, Rynardt van der Merwe, Mike Chinner, Rafal Wojnowski, Sam McGuire
FOUNDER Brendan Body
CONTRIBUTORS 80 Mike Chinner
EDITOR Luke Jackson info@sessionmag.co.za PHOTO EDITOR Clint van der Schyf
We don’t want print to end, but you have to be realistic about what is possible in your scene. A free mag can only exist with considerable brand support to pay for it. Unfortunately, you need money to make things happen. With many brands seriously waning on the skate front locally, digital has to be the way we go. It’s by no means the end of Session, we’ll continue to document local skateboarding. The local scene is booming in terms of the number of people out rolling, progressing and documenting each other, whether on instagram, facebook or youtube. We all have the little machines in our pockets. They give us a platform and an immediate voice. On a more positive note, by not printing and not sending couriers around the country to deliver, hopefully we have a more positive impact on the natural environment. The little machines are our connection to each other now. Web video is the way things have gone. Look at Thrasher with amazing series like Atlantic Drift and GX1000, or even locally with Wasted and Veg in JHB, Cloudy Bros in Durban, KBS in PE, PLK in Polokwane or our new series ‘City Dwellers’, as well as longer projects like #BLDS, the 20sk8 video, Jozi Days and Session videos like ‘Jiggle Clips‘. The brands that are pushing skateboarding by doing trips, events and putting out videos are the ones that are going to excel. Perhaps some day skateboarders in the future might not see any relevance in print at all, which is rather sad. Print mag or not, skateboarding is not going anywhere and neither are we. Thanks to all of you for supporting this print project over the years. Unfortunately the machines have taken over, see you on the web…and out on the streets! PHYSICAL ADDRESS: 2nd Floor, Earlgo Building, cnr. Kloof & Park Rd, Gardens, Cape Town, 8001. PRINTERS: Tandym Print
SKATEBOARDER OWNED AND OPERATED SINCE 2002.
MAIL US - INFO@SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA @SESSIONSKATEMAG
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SESSION SKATEBOARDING MAGAZINE IS PUBLISHED INDEPENDENTLY 6 TIMES A YEAR. SESSION WILL WELCOME ALL LETTERS, E-MAILS AND PHOTOS. WE WILL REVIEW THE CONTRIBUTION AND ASSESS WHETHER OR NOT IT CAN BE USED AS PRINT OR ONLINE CONTENT. THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS MAGAZINE ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF THE MAGAZINE, ITS OWNERS OR ITS MANAGEMENT. SESSION SKATEBOARDING MAGAZINE IS THE COPYRIGHT OF SESSION MAGAZINE CC. ANY DUPLICATION OF THIS MAGAZINE, FOR ANY MEDIA OR SALE ACTIVITY, WILL RESULT IN LEGAL ACTION AND A BELVILLE BRIEFCASE IN YOUR FACE!
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FIELDWORK
Mark Stoutjesdyk frontside rock n rolls a PE DIY spot. Photo – Rieyaad Saban
Wynand Herholdt fakie front crooks in Sea Point, Cape Town. Photo – Phoenix Jurgens.
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13-year-old Shamiel Waggie crooked grinds at Cape Town’s Iziko Museum. He’s going to be a beast! Photo – Mosako Chalashika
Chenai front 180s over a rail in Fish Hoek on the cape peninsula. Photo – Phoenix Jurgens SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 11
Juan Smit front feebles a lucky barrier spot created by the builders on a Cape Town construction site. Photo – Sam Clark
Chris Nderitu backside 180 heelflips the Woodhead road gap in Cape Town. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
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FIELDWORK
Chappies crooks Sam’s industrial DIY ledge in Cape Town. Photo – Sam Clark
Ighsaan Murphy 360 flips into a back street bank in PE. Photo – Rieyaad Saban
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Sazi Nzanya backtails in Polokwane. Photo – Rynardt van der Merwe
Dylan Rossouw backsmiths a walled off old ramp in PE. Photo – Sam Clark
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FIELDWORK
Josh Chisholm front 5-0s in Barcelona, Spain. Photo – Joubert van Staden
Shaun Burger feebles and pops over in Pretoria. Photo – Hartmut Martin SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 15
EURO TRIPPING WITH BRENDAN DYAMOND Interview – Mike Chinner
L
et’s get the boring stuff out of the way first and foremost. What prompted your 3.5 month long Euro trip? How did you approach it, where did you go, and what did you set out to accomplish?
Same old story, this trip was a dream since I was a laaitie, you know how it goes, I was always inspired by European skateboarding, so once I got a job I saved and did the damn ting. I approached the trip with little expectations and a general idea of the route I wanted to travel, which led to me visiting 10 different countries. I pretty much went out there to experience it, get inspired, shoot photos, skate and live! The plan was always to end up in Copenhagen and then see what would happen, and luckily during CPH we made the plan to travel together for the next couple weeks. How does growing up in Johannesburg or South Africa in general give one an advantage when navigating Europe, or any foreign country for that matter? I’ve got good situational awareness most of the time thanks to SA, but it’s hard to switch that off as well. Being from SA is also a pretty easy way to have a conversation with somebody you don’t know, people are interested in South Africa, or confused...”aren’t you supposed to be black?”
“I PRETTY MUCH WENT OUT THERE TO EXPERIENCE IT, GET INSPIRED, SHOOT PHOTOS, SKATE AND LIVE!”
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Frontside bluntslide in Copenhagen, Denmark. Photo – Rafal Wojnowski SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 17
180 to switch crook in Hamburg, Germany. Photo – Mike Chinner
What was it like filming with Ryder and the rest of the Vé.G crew in Scandinavia? Fuck, it was so fun, I love all those dudes! I went from travelling one man and visiting friends around Europe to basically going on a trip with my friends in Europe, and that just so happened to include CPH Open. It was like being at a giant theme park... for skateboarding... spots everywhere, shit-talking and beers flowing. If you want a glimpse at what it was like then be sure to check out Ryder’s edit ‘DATSIT’... Also listen to E-40 - Choices. Give us your best story from CPH Open? When I remember, I’ll let you know... but riding bikes around with the choms = endless good times! Explain Christiania to someone who has never been there? It’s a fucking gem, it’s like an Amsterdam coffee shop except it’s a whole town. Tell people about how we snuck into the Mac Demarco concert in Prague and how easy it was?
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Ah haha dude, one of the best nights of my life, the law of attraction is real, we really manifested that shit! We got to Prague on Friday and met up with Pinkhard, I think it was you who said Mac Demarco was playing on that Sunday, but tickets were sold out and we were like “fuck it, we’re getting in!” The whole weekend carried on like this...”so we’re going on Sunday?... Yeah we gettin’ it”. Sunday came and we were pretty beat from skating so we just chilled out in a park, drank gin, hired a paddleboat and played Mac Demarco on my phone. The time came and we went to the venue, pretty mellow place, kinda like Goodluck bar in Jozi, the wristbands were all white with “Meetfactory” printed on them, so I improvised. I grabbed a 2L Coke bottle and tore off the label, the back of the label is all white, so we made wristbands out of that, we had our boards which was another challenge considering we already had ‘wristbands’. We were just standing around trying not to draw attention to ourselves, planning our next move, when Pinkhard eventually just says, “fuck it” and we just rushed the door. Before the door man stopped us, we asked in our South African/American accents “where can we put our boards?”, the door man looked mad confused trying to understand what we just asked, but some lady working there was like “in the cloakroom inside”, haha we just said thanks and walked straight past the
Backside disaster in Hamburg, Germany. Photo – Mike Chinner
door man, homie was still confused! I think he tried to stop you but you just kept walking and didn’t look back, I might have just made it sound like it wasn’t easy, but it was real easy, haha!
it helps if you look like you don’t understand what’s going on. In Germany you and I probably spent 5€ on public transport for, what was it… 3 weeks?
If someone had the chance to party with Russian pornstars, should they do it? If so, what precautions must be taken?
What was it like to see and link with South African friends all over Europe? There was quite a strong SA presence abroad.
Haha! Make sure Chinner is there in case you get spiked...Also, trust your instincts.
There was a strong presence at CPH Open for sure because everyone was there and so many dudes travelled up from SA to be there, but when everyone went back home the presence spread thin cause dudes are staying in so many different countries. London probably has the biggest SA presence for sure with homies like Evan Binge and the ‘Riders of the Zol’, who are Justin Biddle, Shaun Witherup and Tristan Rudman, they all represent SA thick! There are South Africans everywhere though, it was amazing to see them and I’m grateful as fuck that I got to stay with all the homies that I did. South Africans are amazing hosts over there, and I think they love having someone to speak South African to haha. Thanks to everybody for the amazing hospitality and to Biddle for coming through when I cut my head open!
How easy is it to get free public transportation in Europe? In particular, I’d like you to touch on the art of bike borrowing in Copenhagen… Copenhagen has public bikes everywhere... I mean if it’s not locked it’s public, right? In Scandinavia I think I borrowed 6 bikes! Shit works over there and people really follow the rules, so buses, trains and trams are quite easy depending on where you are. It’s different all over though, places like Barca, Paris and London you have to jump a turnstile for the metro so it’s kind of risky, they tried to fine me 35€ in Paris. We figured out a system in Malmö to get a bus anywhere, you just rock up to the bus with a bus card and ask if you can top-up the card on the bus (which you can’t) and the driver will just look at you and ask where you’re going and probably let you on,
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Kickflip in Hamburg, Germany. Photo – Mike Chinner
What are some positives and negatives of living with Khulu for 5 days? How easy is it to forget how good he is at skating? The man was in his element in Berlin, and he was a surprisingly good host, he cooked up a couple meals, showed us around and kept us on our toes haha. I know one negative for you was arguing with him for 30 minutes about why you didn’t want to drink a beer, that’s one thing with Khulu, you can’t argue with him. Ay but Khulu is a beast on a board, when he’s not losing it on the first day of CPH. What else is there for young people in Germany to do other than drink? Talk more about the späti life. There’s not much else to do in Germany,
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depending on where you are, Hamburg and Berlin have more sights to see and places to visit for free, where as Cologne only really has the Dom. I mean that’s all we did in Germany - skate, drink and check out some thrift stores occasionally. For those who don’t know, a späti is a corner store that has benches outside, so you can buy 1,20€ beers and drink them outside, kinda like a shebeen except they’re everywhere. We went to like 2 bars in Berlin? The rest of the time we were at the späti. Talk about how Hamburg expectations and why?
exceeded
our
Every place that I went to exceeded my expectations, but I think I’ve got a lot to say about Hamburg and it was a lot cheaper than
Frontside pivot to fakie in London, England. Photo – Rafal Wojnowski
“IT WAS LIKE BEING AT A GIANT THEME PARK... FOR SKATEBOARDING... SPOTS EVERYWHERE, SHIT-TALKING AND BEERS FLOWING”
Photo – Mike Chinner
Scandinavia. We were only supposed to stay 2 days or something and ended up staying for the week. I think it was the first day there, we linked with Dylan Vaughn and had drinks at Jupi bar, where you can pay whatever you want for drinks. The second day Tabo Löchelt came from Münster for 2 days just because we were there, that chom is more South African than most South Africans. The best part about Hamburg was the falafel haha, the homie who we stayed with, Maze, has a list of falafel spots in Hamburg, and the No.1 spot is called Kimo, 3,50€ and it was poes good! I think we had breakfast there with Dylan on our last day and watched this old man blasting classical music from a speaker at 10am. He was playing air violin, taking shots of Jaeger and smoking cigarettes, haha killing it! The next song came on and it was ‘Regulate’
by Warren G and Nate Dogg, straight gangsta shit and the old man knew every lyric, I remember you couldn’t handle it, too funny! Umm, I also cracked my ribs in Hamburg. In general, give the people a few hacks to save money when traveling Europe? Budget per day and spend less than that. Eat falafel. Buy groceries and cook at home. Fuck Airbnb. Get a Turkcell SIM. Recycle your beers for €. Use Flixbus. Skate everywhere. Cheap beer tastes better.
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THE LOST CONTINENT MAURITIUS AND REUNION Words – Luke Jackson Photos – Sam McGuire
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I
t’s a cliché to say something is a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience, but for me this one really was. Patrik Wallner and his Visual Traveling skate videos were a huge inspiration for me growing up. Skate trips to more exotic locations seem so out of reach for a skateboarder growing up in South Africa, so you really appreciate them if they happen. I was hyped to have the opportunity to guide Patrik, Sam McGuire and a crew of international skaters around Cape Town for a week in December 2015. We kept in contact over the following months, but I never thought we’d connect again so soon. In August 2016 on the day I arrived in Malmo, Sweden I randomly get an email from Sam asking me if I have any ideas for another skate trip in Africa somewhere. Then, purely by chance I run into Patrik the next day in Copenhagen. I had some ideas, but I never thought I’d actually get to go with. It was meant to be. Mauritius was the first place I ever went to outside of South Africa’s borders, I knew it was beautiful, but also that no major skate trips had gone there. My great Grandmother was from there and my mother still has some distant family connections on the island. It’s a fascinating small African country in the Indian Ocean. Nearby is the French overseas territory of Reunion, a volcanic island that is strangely the only part of the EU that South Africans can travel to without a visa, except for Ireland.
“I NEVER IMAGINED I WOULD BE LUCKY ENOUGH DO A TWOWEEK SKATE TRIP TO THESE INDIAN OCEAN ISLANDS, LET ALONE WITH SAM, PATRIK AND AN AMAZING CREW OF INTERNATIONAL RIPPERS” Barney Page back smiths inside a tourist market in Grand Baie, Mauritius.
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Remy Taveira backside 50-50 transfers into a busy roadway just north of Port Louis, Mauritius.
I
TJ Rogers switch backtails in St.Leu, Reunion.
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first flew over Reunion at night on my way to Mauritius as a kid, and saw the glow of the volcano which was pointed out by the pilot, ever since then I’ve been fascinated by the place. We’ve seen some talented skaters from Reunion in SA at KDC and stuff I’d seen online from the island looked promising. However, I never imagined I would be lucky enough do a two-week skate trip to these Indian Ocean islands, let alone with Sam, Patrik and an amazing crew of international rippers. Sam (USA), Patrik (Hungarian living in Thailand) and I planned for several months, agreeing to go in late November 2016. Our skate crew consisted of Red Bull riders Barney Page (UK) and TJ Rogers (Canada) who were joined by Remy Taveira (France)
most to skate within Port Louis’ urban area. The people are pretty friendly, so bust factor didn’t prove to be too difficult once we found a potential spot. Mauritius is home to a wide cultural variety of people, most notably people descending from the Indian subcontinent who make up the majority of the population. So even though you’re in Africa, it feels more like India. It’s the only African country where Hinduism is the predominant religion. Other notable groups are Creole people (African descent or mixed race), people of Chinese descent and having been colonized by both the French and the British, a portion of the population is of European descent. Our French mate Remy couldn’t understand all that much of the local French Creole, which is the most widely spoken language, but luckily we got by just fine speaking English. We spent countless hours throughout the week exploring almost the entire island in our small Malaysian hatchback rentals. A big challenge was that most spots we found were alongside the busy roadways that are bustling with cars and motorbikes, and we had our share of pretty close shaves. Most notably when Barney’s legs very briefly went under a moving car at one busy spot, but luckily we all walked away unharmed. Make sure you have a traffic spotter! At one spot a kind policeman even halted traffic every
“A BIG CHALLENGE WAS THAT MOST SPOTS WE FOUND WERE ALONGSIDE THE BUSY ROADWAYS THAT ARE BUSTLING WITH CARS AND MOTORBIKES, AND WE HAD OUR SHARE OF PRETTY CLOSE SHAVES” and local ripper Yann Horowitz. Although never having met him, Sam was super hyped to have Yann on the trip from the outset of planning, so it’s good to see a local guy building a reputation beyond our borders.
MAURITIUS
M
auritius is well known in South Africa as a tropical beach holiday destination, but the majority of people who visit tend to spend all their time within a resort complex. We went there to do the opposite, to explore the more urbanized areas and small beach villages for skate spots. We stayed just north of the capital Port Louis and definitely found the
time Remy tried a trick. People out there were definitely down for skating. We also managed to venture to one of the most epic swimming beaches in the world at Le Morne in the south of the island, twice! There are not many places where you can lie on beach hammocks setup in calm, crystal clear and warm turquoise shallows. We also had a session at a concrete park that we found just inland from Grand Baie, in the north. Not the greatest park, but good to see that skateboarding is everywhere! The island is also famous for its iconic extinct flightless bird, the Dodo. They are referenced all over the place. With beautiful beaches, friendly locals and generally good value for money if you avoid the tourist traps, I’d definitely recommend making a mission to this epic island.
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Yann Horowitz backtails in an empty fountain in the central Company Gardens of Port Louis, Mauritius. 26 | SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA
THE LOST CONTINENT
Yann Horowitz ollies to fakie on a giant sculpture depicting shackles in Saint-Paul, Reunion. At first we didn’t want to skate it out of respect, as it’s a slave memorial. But our local skate guides whose ancestry descends from slaves told us they wanted us to ride it, and tell its story.
TJ Rogers front 180s in Grand Baie, Mauritius.
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REUNION
R
eunion Island is only about a 35-minute flight from Mauritius, but it’s a different world altogether. Everything and everyone is full on French, they vote in the French elections and if you fly there from the French mainland it’s counted as a domestic flight. They drive on the other side of the road and because they use the euro it’s more expensive for South Africans. The whole island is basically a volcano rising out of the ocean, with urban development mainly around the edges along the coast. They even have sections of highway on support columns out in the water, where the sides are too steep to build a road. Despite being a remote island, traffic is intense! We spent a few nights on the west side in Saint-Gilles, a touristy area popular with French holidaymakers from the mainland. We also spent a few nights in the north, in Reunion’s capital Saint-Denis, where there is a massive free concrete park, called Le Krater. I’m pretty sure the park is the largest in the Africa region, with a plethora of bowls, perfect tranny and tons of ledges, rails and stairs. Certainly the best I’ve visited. It’s the hub of skating in the capital and it’s easy to see why, anyone would be hyped to have that park, let alone on a remote island. The other significant scene on the island is based in the south at Saint Pierre, they have a small concrete park but the guys there most certainly rip and mission to a lot of street spots. The locals really are damn good at skateboarding, and kindly led us to a bunch of spots. One night a bunch of locals even came to our hotel and drove us up into the hills somewhere in the northeast, to the home of a very supportive skate family who run a distro from their house and who have an extensive private mini ramp setup on their estate. Tons of locals pulled in and we were treated to some serious ripping and a free dinner.
“THE WHOLE ISLAND IS BASICALLY A VOLCANO RISING OUT OF THE OCEAN, WITH URBAN DEVELOPMENT MAINLY AROUND THE EDGES ALONG THE COAST”
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Barney Page with a crook transfer outside the front entrance of the Quatre Bornes Municipal Council building in Mauritius. No bust! SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 29
THE LOST CONTINENT
Yann Horowitz front smith roll-in, in Pamplemousses, Mauritius.
I wouldn’t be able to find that place again as it was way up there in the hills. It’s amazing how just being a skateboarder gets you into the strangest situations, even on remote islands. Interestingly, most of the spots we found and skated in Reunion were not in the capital, but in the coastal towns along the west coast, SaintPaul was actually where we skated the most. Reunion was once famous for its good surf and even featured on the world surfing tour. But after a spate of recent shark attacks and a number of deaths, paranoia has taken over. They even warn you about sharks over the intercom on the plane when you land. All the beaches have warning signs up and apparently surfers
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even get fined by the police, but locals told us many still go surfing illegally. The shark fear has meant their tourism industry has taken a knock. We found some solid step-up ledges on the beachfront in Saint-Leu, once the surf hub of the island, only now there is nobody in the water and surf stores have sadly been closing their doors. Despite the shark fear people do still swim at protected beaches, some at lagoons or some even have nets. We decided to go swimming at the beach on our last day and after hanging out for a couple hours a concerned local ran over and explained we were at a very dangerous spot where a
“MAURITIA, A LOST CONTINENT THAT SUNK INTO THE SEA”
Remy Taveira wallrides into some back alley crust at the university in St.Denis, Reunion.
Barney Page jams up and over an old canon in Saint-Paul, Reunion.
landscape of lava fields for about 4-5 hours. Not many people know about Reunion, but it’s definitely an interesting place to visit, from black volcanic beaches to huge waterfalls and an active volcano, it doesn’t get more exotic. local surfer had recently been killed. I guess ignorance is bliss when you’re a tourist haha. The island also has a ton of amazing waterfalls and freshwater swimming spots, so even though the beaches are largely restricted, there are plenty of beautiful paces to swim. I guess Reunion is more of an adventure tourism destination for hikers now. We drove way up through steep valleys to reach Piton de la Fournaise (Peak of the Furnace). The volcano is still very active and last erupted just a few months before our visit. Luckily the hiking trail was open during our visit and we managed an epic walk right to the top to witness steam rising from the base of the crater, the hike goes through an alien volcanic
Despite Mauritius being an African country and Reunion being an overseas territory of a European country, new information about these islands on the eastern side of Africa came to light in the media shortly after our trip. New research revealed that land underneath these islands once formed part of Mauritia, a lost continent that sunk into the sea. Look out for Patrik’s ‘The Lost Continent’ series coming soon on the Red Bull skate site. A massive thanks to Sam McGuire for making this whole experience possible. He held it down from beginning to end and made sure we all had the best time possible. I’ll be eternally grateful for this one.
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Alex Williams hurricanes at UCT. Photo – Grant Mclachlan 32 | SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA
CAPE TOWN CARNAGE HEAVY HITTING IN THE MOTHER CITY
Alex Williams frontside crook in Sea Point. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
Alex Williams wallride. Photo – Grant Mclachlan SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 33
Alex Williams frontside feeble grind. Full power! Photo – Grant Mclachlan 34 | SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA
Alex Williams frontside bluntslide. Photo – Grant Mclachlan SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 35
CAPE TOWN CARNAGE
Alex Williams backside smith. Photo – Grant Mclachlan
Anton Roux gap to nosebonk. Photo – Jansen van Staden
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Anton Roux crooked grind in Durbanville. Photo – Sam Clark
Anton Roux ollies off a roof into a crusty bank, in Gardens. Photo – Sam Clark
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Cameron Julies backside 50-50s in Bo-Kaap. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
Cameron Julies front board in Woodstock. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
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Thariq Makuyi front board outside Parliament. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
Thariq Makuyi frontside smiths in Newlands. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
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CAPE TOWN CARNAGE
Thariq Makuyi switch frontside noseslides downtown. Photo – Mosako Chalashika
Ethan Cairns frontside 180 nosegrinds, back to regular. Photo – Grant Mclachlan
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You best believe Shaun Witherup ignored the sign and lit one up after this ollie deep in Cape Town Harbour. Photo - Sam Clark SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 41
‘THE CHAKALAKKA VIDEO’ WITH RYDER NEL Interview – Luke Jackson
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You guys just completed a week-long trip to PE to film for the video, tell us about your PE mission? Port Elizabeth was real good to us. We had a solid crew consisting of Pieter Retief, Sam Clark, Justus Kotze, Joubert van Staden, Yann Horowitz and Dlamini Dlamini. The locals were down on showing us spots and there’s not too much of a big nightlife out there so we were focused on getting the job done. We didn’t stack a lot of clips but we’re not filming a tour video, we’re filming a full-length, so quality over quantity and that’s exactly what we got. Who was MVP on tour? Slam Clark. Dude had a cold one and one sparked up at all times. Nah I’m going to go with Pieter. He organized the accommodation, drove around like a champ, had the skottel braai going down at the spots and got an ender that he got worked for. How does PE compare to Cape Town for spots? PE definitely has some gems out there and the bust factor doesn’t seem to be that high. I’ve been struggling a little bit filming in Cape Town. We’re not gifted with a whole lot of spots and security is tight.
Justus Kotze frontisde wallrides into a PE hill bomb. Photo – Sam Clark
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“SO WHEN BRAAIING WITH THE HOMIES A CAN OF EXTRA HOT CHAKALAKA IS ALWAYS THE 1ST ITEM. IT IS ALWAYS A STAPLE WHEN WE’RE BROKE, WHICH SKATERS OFTEN ARE. I’VE ALWAYS LIKED THE NAME CHAKALAKA. I ADDED THE EXTRA ‘K’ TO MAKE IT ‘LAKKA’, JUST FOR A LAUGH”
Did you travel to any other cities to film for this? I didn’t travel as much as I would of liked but you will see spots from around the country. There will be some clips from England and France too. How long have you been working on this video for? I started filming for Chaka and getting ideas at the end of 2016. I’m quite happy with what I’ve got while only filming for a year and a bit. Who has parts, and how did you decide who you would film parts with? Justus, Yann, Pieter and Dlams all have parts. I’ve known Dlams and Yann forever cause we’re all from DBN, and who wouldn’t want to film a part with those dudes? They are 2 of SA’s best. Pieter joined the roster because he’s such a character on every sesh and you never know what to expect. One sec he’s slappying some curbs, the next he’s grinding down the 11-stair hubba in the back yard. Justus was always someone I knew of, but never really skated with. I was blown away at how consistent the dude is. Every time we go filming you know you’re gonna be capturing something once you get home. He’s gonna have a rad part for sure. I think the mix is well rounded - tech, hammers, creative and tranny. Explain the name Chakalakka? When thinking of a name I wanted something proudly South African. Being from Durban, you know we love the spice. So when braaiing with the homies a can of extra hot chakalaka is always the 1st item. It is always a staple when we’re broke, which skaters often are. I’ve always liked the name chakalaka. I added the extra ‘k’ to make it ‘lakka’, just for a laugh.
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At one point your fisheye got smashed, and this delayed filming for a bit. What happened and how did you manage to overcome this hurdle? A whole bunch of the VeG squad made it out to Copenhagen for the Open. I was filming Mike Chinner at that famous spot, Charlotte Ammundsens Plads. He got the line but wanted to end with a flatground trick. He went for a noseblunt, popped out and his board shot out like a missile, straight onto the lens. The lens broke straight off and starting rolling (glass down) on the B-ball court. The camera was also showing some crazy colours. I’ve been flat broke for the last 2 months. Those MK1 lenses ain’t cheap but
Yann Horowitz boosts up to 50 stall and pulls it back in to fakie at a PE skate landmark. Thanks to a motorbike tow-in! Photo – Pieter Retief
I ordered the glass from Texas through that VX1000market page off instagram.
Is this your last video with the VX, are you planning on switching to HD at any point?
Filming with a VX can have its complications. Did you lose any footage from dodgy tapes?
I’m still down on the VX. I’m gonna try keep it going for as long as possible. The weight of the camera, the zoom, the sound, that warm gold colour you get and the MK1 lens is so wide it’s like you’re never close enough. I think the only other 2 people filming VX in the country are Levi and Wandile. It’s good to have both VX and HD in skateboarding. I will be forced to make the step up to HD because I think they stopped making MiniDV tapes.
Every now and then you gonna get glitches from the tapes. I don’t mind them as long as they’re not over the tricks. I haven’t had too much bad luck with them, but my friend Jonas from Norway got this deal where he bought like 20 tapes for like R100, but they had been recorded over once. He filmed 2 tapes worth of banging clips with Dlams only for the tapes to play back all black. Got some re-filming to do!
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‘THE CHAKALAKKA VIDEO’
Justus Kotze 50-50s somebody’s fence in Cape Town city bowl. Photo – Sam Clark
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Joubert van Staden with a kickflip transfer in a PE ditch. Photo – Sam Clark
“PE DEFINITELY HAS SOME GEMS OUT THERE AND THE BUST FACTOR DOESN’T SEEM TO BE THAT HIGH”
Dlamini Dlamini frontside 180 heelflips on a wavy PE sidewalk. Photo – Sam Clark
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Justus Kotze plants a frontside tree stall. Photo – Sam Clark SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 49
‘THE CHAKALAKKA VIDEO’
Yann Horowitz sails from bump-to-bump in Sea Point, Cape Town. Avoiding the metal rods of death. Photo – Sam Clark
Pieter Retief with an awkwardly quick manual at the famous PE double set. Photo – Sam Clark
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Dlamini Dlamini crooked grinds to PE hill bomb. Photo – Sam Clark
Pieter Retief with a quick nosebonk to Cape Town hill bomb. Photo - Sam Clark
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Justus Kotze goes the distance with a nosegrind on the inside of a very tall ledge in downtown Cape Town. Photo – Sam Clark
Yann Horowitz crooked grinds to fakie on a PE rooftop. Photo – Pieter Retief
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Dlamini Dlamini 360 flips to fakie. Yep, also in PE! Photo – Sam Clark
Other than this video you also film quite a bit for Familia, you even went on a trip to Lyon with the guys, and you filmed a lot of Yann’s new Familia part in CT. How much footage have you saved for Chakalakka vs giving footage to Familia, and how do you decide what footage goes into each project?
are too many skate videos that can say they have that. Big shout out to Adrian Day and Daniel Holland. When can we expect to see this video, got any plans for premieres or anything like that?
Familia has always been my favorite South African skateboard company. So I’ve always given Gav Morgan first picks. But you’re definitely going to see footage from Loucas, Steph, Shaun and maybe I’ll even treat you guys to some Gav footage.
If all goes to plan this is the last month to film for this video. You know how it goes though. Then I’ve just got to sit down and edit. I’m going to do a premiere in Cape Town and Joburg, and if I’ve got the time I want to do one in my hometown of Durban. I’ll keep you guys posted on venues.
If you could film a part with any South African who didn’t manage to get a part in this, who would it be and why?
Have you got any funny stories of things you encountered while out on the streets filming for this one?
Simon Stipcich for sure! In my opinion he is the most naturally gifted skateboarder this country has ever seen.
Every time we go to the Sea Point promenade there’s this old demented man that comes to try and bust us. He is the only dude that has a problem on the whole street. Every time he busts us it’s something special. Whether it being him taking out his dick on his balcony, trying to ‘Johnny Clegg kick’ Dlamini or the fact that he knows each and every security guard by name. Even the cops don’t rock up when he phones them. You will check him in Dlams’ part. It’s going to be worth the wait.
DIY videos take a lot of time, effort and money. Did you get any support for the project, if so, from whom? I’ve got 2 companies helping me out. Baseline Skate Shop and the bar I work for, Yours Truly. Stoked to have a bar sponsor! I don’t think there
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WEEKEND SPECIAL CONVERSE IN JOHANNESBURG WORDS – LUKE / PHOTOS - MOOKI
When Session started back in 2002, Museum Africa in Newtown was the most popular skate spot in downtown JHB on weekends. In the first few issues of the mag there were tons of photos on all the different obstacles, and plenty of footage documented there in issues of AV and in the old Session VCDs. The spot has a lot of skate history. When Converse sponsored the skate jam at Sportscene’s Capsule Fest in September, it was the perfect opportunity to have a ‘15 Years of Session’ JHB skate jam at the iconic old spot. Converse hooked up a stack of sneakers, R5000 in cash to give away for tricks during the jam, and a few extra obstacles were added to the location to provide more options on the day. A picnic table replaced the old bin at the classic bin gap, there were some ramps for tranny options and even a Veg Squad race challenge to make sure everyone was in on the day’s activities. The larger bin gap and the handrail alongside finished it all off. Joburg skateboarders came out in numbers and bangers went down all day! A whole heap of NBDs meant that the cash was well earned. Thanks to Converse for making it happen.
Sam Khumalo backside 180.
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Kyle Trusky nollie heelflip.
Taylor Sturgess crooked grind.
Theo Setsetse frontside ollie.
Kyle Kheswa frontside boardslide. SESSIONMAG.CO.ZA | 55
CLOSET ENVY
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