issue 77
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GILBERT CROCKETT
Cover: Khule Ngubane kickflip crooked grinds in Los Angeles and lands his first Session cover. Photo – Justin Crawford
ISSUE 77
CONTENTs 0 8 r e d i al 10 gab or on e 2 2 Cape tow n c r uisin g 2 6 k h u l e N g u ban e 38 tr an s fe r w i n d ow 4 0 tr omps b u r g 4 2 zan d e r gab r iel 4 4 polok wan e 46 i n d i g o s k ate camp 4 8 s pot c h eck 5 0 fiel dwor k 5 6 C loset En vy 60 I Am 6 2 C on tr i b u tor s
Alan Marola with a frontside floater out of a rough ditch in the Cape countryside. Photo – Jansen van Staden
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Photography: Pep Kim and Jonathon Mehring. © 2017 adidas AG
F R O N T S ID E BLU N T IN T HE BUSEN ITZ PRO /// N E W YO RK C IT Y
Redial
SPOTLIGHT
Words – Luke Jackson
Pravesh Manga (or ‘Po’ as he’s known by most) flips to fakie on a steep bank under a bridge in downtown Johannesburg. Photo - Carel Steenkamp
Chris nderitu front boards into the night, in Durban. Photo – Alessandro Galassi
if you frequent the Durban beachfront park or Moses Mabhida Stadium then you definitely would have seen Chris Nderitu roll, he‘s been shredding for years. Recently he’s been traveling a bit more to JHB and to CT, and hopefully more people are rightfully becoming aware of him. Chris is another guy I’ve been trying to get photos of for a while, but it’s tricky trying to get photos of someone with no links to a photographer. With all the recent proactive energy in the Durban skate scene, it’s rad to see guys like Alessandro Galassi and Daniel theron going on missions and trying to document what they can. Chris’ situation might be completely different if he had photographers around over these past few years, because he’s definitely good enough to be getting coverage.
EDITOR Luke Jackson info@sessionmag.co.za ADVERTISING Ockie Fourie info@sessionmag.co.za FOUNDER Brendan Body brendan@sessionmag.co.za
his story is probably not unlike many other talented skateboarders in Durban, or anywhere in SA really. So if you have access to a camera and you’re down for skateboarding then document your scene. Make it happen and shed some light on what goes on around you. All the skate photographers out there started out by taking a little initiative and shooting their friends, and in the end they become the people behind the scenes that bring a scene or individual to light. Developing photographers and filmers are just as important to a scene as developing skateboarders. I’m stoked we finally got Chris in the mag. Follow him on instagram, he drops some pretty dope clips - @chrisnderi2 *he’s definitely my pick for the #elementsponsorme insta contest that element SA are running at the moment.
PHOTO EDITOR Clint van der Schyf
CONTRIBUTORS 77 Alessandro Galassi
PHOTOGRAPHERS 77 Jansen van Staden, Joubert van Staden, Grant Mclachlan, Tim Moolman, Justin Crawford, Werner Lamprecht, Ntebatse Mokone, Rynardt van der Merwe, Alessandro Galassi, Mosako Chalashika, Theo Setsetse, Phenyo Kepaletswe, Rieyaad Saban, Alex Travers
PHYSICAL ADDRESS: 2nd Floor, Earlgo Building, cnr. Kloof & Park Rd, Gardens, Cape Town, 8001. PRINTERS: Novus Print Solutions
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 SNOTKLAP! 8 | sessionmag.co.za
GABORONE With Mosako Chalashika interview - Luke JAckson
Gaborone is the capital city of Botswana, our neighbour to the north. With an estimated population of less than 250 000 people it seems like quite a small city, but considering that equates to more than 10% of the total population of the country, this is their major city. I often find myself wondering whether particular African cities have any sort of skate scene. Well it may come as a surprise to you, but Gaborone does have a skate scene and it’s closer to home than you might think, situated approximately just 360KMs northwest of Johannesburg.
Mosako Chalashika
Interview – Luke Jackson
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‘Gabs’ as it’s affectionately known may be a small city, but there are a number of skateboarders living there. Most notably Mosako Chalashika and Theo Setsetse who both left Botswana to attend school in Kimberley. Mosako is now studying in Cape Town and is rolling around the streets of the city on a daily basis. He recently returned home for a few weeks and came back with a bunch of photos to shed some light on the skate scene back in Gabs. If you live in JHB or PTA, Gabs is actually closer than Durban, maybe it’s worth taking a drive up to experience something new.
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Mosako loves hardflips, and the University of Botswana campus is as good a place as any to put one down. Photo – Phenyo Kepaletswe
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How old are you, how did you first get into skateboarding and how long have you been rolling for? I just turned 22 in January and I have been skating for about 7 years now. My homie Khotso Keebine back in high school introduced me to skateboarding for the first time while I was still in Botswana. When I first saw him skate he was skating at the basketball courts during my basketball practice, at the time I was playing for the basketball team at my high school. I used to play for the National Junior team as well. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw him skate because he was also the first person I had ever seen skate in my life. I didn’t think I would see it in reality, I thought I would only see it on TV. As soon as I got my first skateboard I started missing basketball practice quite often and got kicked out off the basketball team eventually. When I started off, I used to roll mostly with my friends Khotso Keebine and Tefo Matsheka. Are there any shops that sell skate product in Gaborone, how do skateboarders get boards and shoes? There is a shop which recently opened, it’s called ‘Decked Out’ and it’s run by Freddy Motsumi and his family, they sell boards and skate shoes that the local skateboarders have access to buy. Before ‘Decked Out’ existed there was a skater owned skate shop called ‘The BW Shop’ which was run by Thabiso Gulubane, that’s where we used to get our decks and shoes from before it closed down. After that people used to travel to SA during holidays and come back with decks, shoes and hardware, and they would sell them to skaters privately.
“We have no choice, it’s either you skate street or you don’t skate at all”.
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Michael Kgatlwane pivots in the old Naledi ditches. Photo - Mosako Chalashika
Did you have any parks growing up and how big is the skate community over there? The Molapo Crossing Shopping Centre skatepark came in at a later stage, but that skatepark didn’t last for long. All the obstacles started breaking apart, they got very rusty and most of them went missing. There was no maintenance at all for the park. It’s located in the parking lot and the tar road started getting potholes and very rough as time went on. Back in the day it wouldn’t be very safe for us to be at the park because the place is located right in the middle of all the sketchy areas which have thugs. We referred to them as ‘Manyora’ (Setswana term for thugs) or ‘Blades’, they always harassed us and took our belongings, and most of the time threatened to stab us. Right now there are just three quarterpipes on a rough tar road, but only one of them has coping. We pretty much mostly skated street and we still do. The streets were basically the only place we could skate. We have no choice, it’s either you skate street or you don’t skate at all. The skate community is very small
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and we all know each other. At the moment we’re actually working with an organization called Make Life Skate Life, a 100% volunteer-run non-profit organization that works with local skateboarding communities around the world to create free of charge, community-built concrete skate parks. I contacted them through email mid last year in 2016 and they are down to build a skate park in Gaborone, all we need to do is provide them with an empty piece of land. The Gaborone City council is in charge of all the land in the entire city. We have been in contact with the city council since August last year, getting the land allocation is still in process. If all goes well we will have our first concrete skatepark in Botswana sometime soon. Do local skaters have a meet-up spot that you can roll at all the time without getting bust? We don’t really have a set place during the week but Main Mall is the place where we meet up on weekends. Tell us about Main Mall and the ditches
you guys skate quite often? Main Mall has always been amazing to us, it’s our Mecca! That’s where Botswana skateboarding started. A skate crew from The BW Shop discovered the Main Mall spot back in 2005/6. The BW Shop consisted of Thabiso ‘Maverick’ Gulubane, Biko ‘Piro’ Gulubane, Corbin Brincat, Oleyo Mokwena, Teto Mokaila, Jamal Selolwane, Adrian ‘Space Monkey’ Revaka and Laylow Brown. These are the dudes who held it down in the beginning when there were only like about 7 dudes who skated in the whole of Gaborone and absolutely no other skaters in Botswana apart from them. I’ve got mad respect for these dudes. They play a big role in the Botswana skate scene and have a huge influence on each and every skateboarder. The Main Mall is basically a parking lot with smooth ground, it only has one or two flatbar rails and sometimes a launch if we are lucky, that’s all we have. We don’t really have much. During the weekend what we do is hop onto a P3.50 (equivalent to R 4.42) kombi/taxi and end up at the bus/taxi rank, then we kick-push all
Moagi Motsumi ollies over barrier in the Gaborone CBD. Photo - Mosako Chalashika
the way to Main Mall. It’s not too from the bus/taxi rank. Main Mall is where we usually meet and skate during the weekend. Skating at Main Mall can be frustrating at times because our obstacles keep going missing, crack heads keep stealing our obstacles to go and sell the iron at the industrial places for cash, so that they can buy their Nyaope and crack. It really gets annoying because we would always replace the missing obstacles, maybe about five times a month, and the crack fiends just keep stealing them. The ditches we usually skate are so rad! That’s my favourite spot for sure. The cement ground is rough and you need to push hard. It’s not very easy to do any grinds so we have recently added some DIY touches to the ditches. Whenever it rains in Gaborone the ditches stay wet from the water flow and this can go on for about 4 days after the rain, which is very frustrating. What are the spots like in Gaborone and how much spot hunting have you guys done around the city, do you feel like there is more waiting to be discovered or is it quite small?
The spots are really rough, crusty and raw. They aren’t very easy to skate and we have to be creative with the spots we have. I enjoy skating our old spots but lately we have been discovering some proper spots within the city, especially at the University of Botswana, that place has so many spots but sometimes it can be a bust. If the security finds you skating on campus they escort you to the exit of the University to make sure that you have left. There is a little town 3 hours away from Gaborone near the South African border called Lobatse, that place has spots for days! I always see it when I pass through the town, we haven’t skated there yet but we are planning on going there very soon as a crew. That is something to really look forward to. Is it easy to skate in Gaborone, are there some decent spots or is it pretty heavy with getting bust by Police or security? It’s very unpredictable, it’s a 50/50 because some days the security guards will be very cool with us skating a spot and it also gives them a bit of entertain-
ment, but sometimes they can really be dicks about it. I discovered the amazing looking Three Dikgosi Monument online while doing some research on Gaborone, have you ever skated it or would it even be possible with the security present? We have never skated there before. Even if we tried I don’t think it would be a successful mission because that’s a very monumental sculpture. If we were caught skating there I think we would be heavily fined or even do some time haha. You were living in Kimberley for some time, how long were you there for and how did you end up going to school there? I was in Kimberley since 2011. I ended up there because I got expelled from high school in Gaborone, so my parents felt it was best to send me to Kimberley and attend boarding school, which was actually a Catholic school to clean my act up and discipline myself. That school was so strict that if you
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were caught with your hands in your pockets then you got straight detention. I had absolutely no idea that the Maloof Money Cup was going to be held in Kimberley on the same year I went there. As soon as I found out I thought that maybe staying in Kimberley wouldn’t be so bad after all. Did living in Kimberley and having access to the park help you to develop your skateboarding? Definitely! The skate plaza is really amazing and perfect for learning new tricks. Being around Mike Chinner and Warrick Delport really helped me a lot. Not only did it help me, it has helped a lot of the Kimberley locals, the likes of Siphiwe ‘Spitcho’ Kheswa, Samkay Rashol, Charles Shepherd, Brad Balie, Damian ‘D-Money’ Bramley, Blondie, Wata and the rest of the kids from the kasi. These kids have only skated for about 3 or 4 years and they are already skating like grown men. Most of them just turned 18 years old. Katlego ’Katz’ Morema & Theo Setsetse are the dudes I used to skate with during my early times in Kimberley. I also enjoyed skating with Stuart Walker, Chenai, Armand, Ernie and Dolf, they used to
come and visit Kimberley sometimes during the weekends. They all lived in Bloemfontein so they weren’t really too far. I always remember the nickname ‘Majaja’ which Armand and Ernie gave me because they never remembered my name haha, good times! Shout out to Erwin Lyon and Warrick Delport for holding down the Kumba Plaza in Mike Chinner’s absence, also Talent and Mr. Mike for always guarding the park. What then motivated you to come to Cape Town, how long have you been living here and are you studying at the moment? December 2013 was the first time I ever went to Cape Town. I came down to visit my older sister who happened to study at UCT and lived here for some time. I remember the first time I stepped into Cape Town, it was very beautiful and something completely different to me. The people were so rad and the cultures were so diverse, filled with different kinds of characters and so many beautiful women too. The skateboarding scene is also big and alive here compared to places like Gaborone and Kimberley. The skate scene played a big role in my decision
to move here. I’m currently studying Professional Photography at City Varsity and 2017 is my second year here. How often do you go back and visit Gaborone? I usually go back and visit during June/ July school holidays and the festive season holidays. When I’m back home I usually skate with Philip Makgwa, Michael Kgatlwane, Phenyo Keplateswe, Theo Setsetse and Moagi Motsumi. Theo Sean Molaodi bluntslides to fakie undercover in the CBD, avoiding the rain. Photo - Mosako Chalashika 16 | sessionmag.co.za
Moagi Motsumi with a tuck knee. Photo - Theo Setsetse
Phenyo is the dude that films all the time and he’s down to mission whenever. Do you see any change in the skate scene there over time, do you feel like it’s growing or perhaps even getting smaller with guys moving away? There was a point in time when the numbers of skateboarders were a lot and the progression was high, this was back during 2012/13. But then most
skaters started going missing and quitting one by one, but the scene slowly picked up again around 2015 and now more kids started skating again. There is some progression in the Gaborone skate scene and also the young-ins out there that are so hungry, like Kagiso Leburu, Theo Sean Molaodi, Damico Kebatile, Shammah Kario and more. Every time I go back to visit those kids always show a sign of progression, which hypes me up! There is more to
work on in the Gaborone scene and we have a long way to go, but at the end of the day I’m proud that we have gotten this far and showed some progression. RIP to one of our young skateboarders King Ramotswiri who passed away during February. We will forever remember you and you will be in our hearts always. Have you heard of (or encountered) any sort of skate scene existing any-
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Mosako Chalashika
Ben Koston grabs a boneless in the CBD. Photo - Phenyo Kepaletswe
Mosako Chalashika
Moagi Motsumi crooked grinds at the University of Botswana. Photo - Mosako Chalashika
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“There is more to work on in the Gaborone scene and we have a long way to go, but at the end of the day I’m proud that we have gotten this far and showed some progression”.
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where else in Botswana, outside of the capital? I know of a few skateboarders located in Francistown, north of Gaborone. The skaters from that town usually visit Gaborone during the holidays. Olaotse Kgosidintsi and Titus Ponatshego are skaters from Francistown who visit Gabs on the regular. What would be your hope for the future of skateboarding in Botswana? For more kids and the community to get more involved with skateboarding, for the skate scene to grow and to progress endlessly. Kids should worry less about social media and just focus on skating. I hope guys build more DIY street spots and for locals to film more full-length video parts. I hope people from different parts of the continent and the world come over to skate in Botswana on the regular. With Phenyo Kepaletswe being around behind the lens lately we have been able to stack some footage, he’s down to film whenever. Most importantly I want us to unite, I don’t want us to be segregated. I’m thankful for all the help that we have gotten from Wandile Msomi, Sam Khumalo, Will Twala and JP du Preez in the past. Wandile and Sam have always supported us from the beginning and visited Gaborone quite often. Funisu was heavily supported in Botswana, most Gaborone skateboarders used to ride Funisu boards all the time. The man who has really put us on the most is Thabiso ‘Maverick’ Gulubane, thank you for everything!
Do you see yourself making a life back home in Gabs, or are you hoping to stay in SA long term? I see myself making a life in South Africa rather than Gaborone, but honestly I’ve always wanted to go overseas and see how it is on the other side of the world. If I get the chance it would be either some parts of Europe or Canada. I’m also working towards staying in Vancouver or Montreal. Hopefully it goes well in the future. List your 5 favourite things about Botswana? My family and friends. The large amounts of cows and goats roaming freely in the city of Gaborone. Life is very cheap and affordable. Good home cooked soul food, and beef is never lacking. The wide variety of Dickies clothing we have, it’s easily accessible.
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Theo Setsetse frontside crooks at Main Mall in the CBD. Photo - Mosako Chalashika
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Anton Roux crooked grinds the beast at Civic Centre. 22 | sessionmag.co.za
Cape Town Cruising Vans Gilbert Crockett Pro 2
T-Kay Modise wallies on Table Mountain.
Photos – Jansen van Staden Vans South Africa invited a bunch of skateboarders from across Cape Town to try out the new Gilbert Crockett Pro 2 on the streets of the city. The guys spent a day cruising together, starting up on the slopes of Table Mountain and ending up at Civic Centre in the heart of downtown. Even Vans’ new JHB team rider T-Kay Modise was in town for the occasion.
“MVP on the day was most certainly Anton Roux, it’s insane to see how much he can put down in a day”. 23 | sessionmag.co.za
Anton Roux ollies off the ledge into the slopping side of St. George’s Cathedral. 24 | sessionmag.co.za
Luke Doman wallies a makeshift setup at Civic Centre.
MVP on the day was most certainly Anton Roux, it’s insane to see how much he can put down in a day. Right off the bat with a nosegrind and frontside smith on the mountain barrier, first try noseslide down the St George’s Cathedral handrail and ending off by crooked grinding the beast hubba at Civic, the first trick down it in years. The ollie into the staggered sloping embankment on the side of the Cathedral has been contemplated by many over the years, Anton stepped up and rolled away from it several times before casually bombing down St George’s Mall and continuing his destruction of every spot in his path. The Gilbert Crockett Pro 2 is now available at Baseline Skate Shop and Vans stores across SA.
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Khule Ngubane
Home and away Khule is one of the most recognized skateboarders in South Africa today, always on a mission around the country, skating some contest or doing some media event. His amazing consistency and technical ability makes him a clear standout wherever he goes. Recently Khule began travelling beyond our borders as skateboarding takes him to new places around the world, to northern parts of Africa and both coasts of the USA. We caught up with Khule to find out all about his travels and how his life on the road contrasts to being back home in Durban. Interview - Luke Jackson Photos - Justin Crawford & Grant Mclachlan.
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Khule stomps a steep noseblunt in Cape Town – Photo Grant Mclachlan. sessionmag.co.za | 27
Half cab noseslide to backside tailslide fakie. At the infamous LA courthouse ledge. Sequence – Justin Crawford.
You visited Senegal towards the end of last year. Tell us about how that came about and what you got up to while you were there? The Senegal trip was basically a Monster Energy activation, for the corporate side of the business. Like having meetings with brand managers with the aim to expose the Monster brand across the African continent. My purpose for heading there was to represent as a Monster Energy athlete. I got to do some demos there and influence the skate scene in my own special way. They have a skatepark and a skate scene in Dakar, but it isn’t as established as what we have in South Africa. I couldn’t believe the locals even knew who I was. After the demos everybody showed me so much love and wanted to take photos. They treated me like I had pro status haha. It was an experience I’ll never forget! Unfortunately there wasn’t enough 28 | sessionmag.co.za
time for me to check out the streets and with it being a one-man mission it wasn’t the safest option. I love the city of Dakar, it’s a coastal city blessed with a beautiful warm climate and the people are super friendly! I definitely want to return there with a crew and see what they have to offer when it comes to the street spots. You were on the skate road trip to Swaziland and Mozambique a couple of years ago, but other than that was Senegal the only other place you’d skated outside of SA? Growing up I always had wishful thoughts of skateboarding being able to take me places. I still think I never know where or what I’d be doing if I weren’t skating. It got me on my 1st plane flight at 15 years old and I’m blessed to have seen almost every part of South Africa. By 21 it got me a passport and then took me to Swaziland
and Mozambique. That was the 1st time I left the country. What a better way to start off exploring than in your home continent. I’m a proud African, so for me it felt like divine timing. Getting to experience the difference within African cultures and it has helped break a lot of mental filtrations and stereotypes people feed you. Like in Mozambique everybody was speaking Portuguese to me, thinking I’m a local haha. Some of them would think I’m disrespecting them, because I would look at them like, “huh?” We drove to Swaziland and Mozambique, but Senegal was my 1st long flight outside of South Africa. Ok so shortly after Senegal you finally went over to the USA for Tampa AM, tell us about your experience at the event? Tampa Am was the craziest experience of my life! It is indeed the big stage of the skateboarding world. There’s a lot of history
of SO many legendary skateboarders from all over the globe. Many started to get recognized there before superstardom in the industry. It felt really special to be in the history books of Tampa Am and getting to skate with so many homies I look up to. What was your mindset arriving in the US for the first time and going straight onto such a big stage? Tampa Am for me was a huge growth experience, mental and spiritual. I was only there for 3 days, but I almost didn’t make it into the country due to a long waiting period for my visa. I flew from Durban to Joburg, Joburg to Dubai, Dubai to Boston and Boston to Tampa. It took 30+ hours with delays. Sitting in the plane for that long and not breathing fresh air, I ended up getting a cold and I also got extremely jetlagged. Day 2 I get to Tampa and only have one practice session to check
out the skatepark, and it’s filled with 350 rippers! Everybody going hard on every obstacle, it was almost impossible to have a practice run. On day 3 I was filming for Street League, a Space Invaders edit with the Monster Energy Ams. We filmed street stuff in Tampa the whole day and by the afternoon I had to skate my contest heat. I didn’t make it to the final but I’m proud of myself for making it to the semis and the Web Cast of the contest. I was fighting my body and my own mental strengths. I was the only African there and I think a lot of people were very surprised to see how I skated. It was crazy having people like Karl Watson, Kelly Hart and Felipe Gustavo showing me love and respect. After Tampa you then moved over to California on the west coast, how long were you there and who did you stay with? After Tampa I went straight to the west
coast! I was in California for almost 3 months. I stayed with some good homies of mine. Sewa Kroetkov and TJ Rogers were the guys I lived with for the longest period. But I also stayed by myself in Venice Beach for a good month. Was skateboarding in California what you expected it to be, you often hear of crazy traffic and a lot of spots being a bust, what were your first impressions? Skateboarding in California is something that you cannot prepare for. It’s something you have to see for yourself. My experience of California is going to be different from the next person. For example, I was extremely blessed with having people around me that were more established in the industry. Where by if I came all by myself and knew nobody then I would have had a completely different experience of California. Cali is huge and so you need sessionmag.co.za | 29
Switch flip over the rail. Photo – Justin Crawford.
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a car over there. The traffic is ridiculous! You drive an average of two hours just to get to one spot that could potentially be a bust. The police in America also don’t play games. People get fines for skating and we have to jump a lot of fences haha. But it is super worth it, the spots are much better than what we skate at home. You find skatepark rails on the streets, and the ledges and stairs are so perfect. You wouldn’t find the need to skate a park, especially on the weekends. You visited some pretty famous spots like ‘the berrics’ for example, were you able to just show up and skate there, or do you have to make special arrangements? There are so many famous spots that I was blessed to put my energy into. One place that I was super duper hyped on skating was ‘the berrics’. I must say it does get tricky to session there. Nobody can just show up there and just skate. It really is like a private skatepark with a business side to it that is taken very seriously. Like for example you can’t film people there, particularly if they are busy filming a ‘Bangin’, ‘Recruit’ or a ‘Battle Commander’ edit. I was lucky enough to get along with their filmer Chase and I could pop in whenever I wanted to skate. You also skated some iconic spots like the LA Courthouse, did you find it intimidating rolling with well-known pros at all? The courthouse is an amazing place. It’s like a skatepark with ledges for days and all different sizes too. Then of course you get the famous stage, which I was super hyped to skate and make memories for myself there. Surprisingly I didn’t feel intimidated at all, chilling with so many pros at famous spots. Every day I was meeting my idols and I would get star struck for a second, but then bounce back to being myself. By being myself they seemed more hyped about me being around. A lot of dudes tend to suck up to pros, thinking it gives them pointers, yet it does the opposite. Having sessions with them also made them respect me as an individual and encourage my talent in skateboarding. Every pro I met was extremely positive and we became friends. So there was never a need to prove anything to them. Do you think that being a skateboarder from an unlikely country like South Africa helps to open doors in a place like LA, do you think people are surprised to hear where you come from when they see you skate? To be honest, I don’t think people were that surprised that I came from South Africa. America is full of people that aren’t from America, especially in California. All the dreamers of the world come for all sorts of entertainment. To try and
make it in whatever they are pursuing. People from Brazil, Mexico, Cuba and other 3rd world countries doing the same thing you are doing. But what could make you stand out to people is how you address yourself and the vibe you bring to everybody. That I feel has personally helped me get to where I am. Because when it comes to skills in LA there are hundreds of skaters on the same level as Moses, Dlamini and I. They all have a story of poverty and hardships, and all of them want the same spot as you. So I focus on my groundwork, by trying to make my presence felt over the time spent somewhere. Having God’s intervention of being in the right place at the right time and then networking as much as I can. I’m building my own image and contributing what I can bring to their skateboarding scene. And of course you need to skate very hard to show you deserve an opportunity to be there. You had some injury troubles during your US visit, what happened and how long were you out for? Within the first week of being in LA I managed to get a bad heel bruise while skating the Diamond Skate Plaza with Sewa Kroetkov. I still skated and filmed more mellow stuff just to let my body heal. As I started to get better about two weeks later at my first berrics skate session I hurt my right toe really badly on the 10-stair handrail and I couldn’t skate for a whole month. I was having the worst luck. But I went to Dr. David Sales who is a specialist in working with all the top guys in the Cali scene. He worked on getting my body repaired with laser treatment and other things over a few sessions. Every two or three days I’d go to him, I did that for three weeks. So I’d slowly get better then I’d try my luck and film or shoot pictures. It was a really hard time to stay focused with my body not responding in a way I’d like it to be. But shout out to Dr. Dave, he did miracles and was the reason that I was able to get things done. You were away for a long period of time, does the motivation to get things done diminish somewhat when being in a place for that long, or were you still hyped right up until you left? One thing that I did notice is that a lot of people might not adjust to the LA lifestyle. This is not aimed at South Africa or African skateboarders only. A lot of things do take time, especially to blow up in LA. People there roll in crews, with their own inner circle of filmers and photographers. And everything is not as it seems from the outside, as a fan looking into the industry. When you’re there you see so many amazing skateboarders that you’ve never heard of and they kill it, plus it can be intimidating. Some people also get homesick, miss family or girlfriends and get tired of trying to make it. But I also don’t feel like all of those obstacles can stop you. It just de-
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Khule Ngubane backside 180 nosegrinds in California. Photo – Justin Crawford sessionmag.co.za | 33
Crooked grind front foot flip out on one of the iconic Cali schoolyard picnic tables. Sequence – Justin Crawford.
pends on how focused you are on making it happen for yourself. Personally, right up until the day I left LA I was motivated and felt like I belonged, and it made me more focused and driven. I got to see what the industry and the people running it there look for in a person. I’m really motivated and I just turned 23. I’ve got no obligations at home, so I feel like I’m married to my career right now and I see myself out there doing shit! Tell us about shooting with Justin Crawford over there, how did you guys meet and how many missions did you guys go on together? Justin Crawford is a photographer for SLS. We met in Tampa for Street League, while working on the Space Invaders edit. We immediately clicked and we shot some pics there. Then by the time I got to LA I just hit him up. He was also excited to show
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me some spots. He works at Street League during the week so we only linked up on the weekends to shoot. We probably linked up five times I think it was. Did you document anything with any filmers at all, if so, where or when might that be coming out? I’ve got footage saved up with Dr. Purple Teeth, Dan Abadi and other homies. I’m just saving my American footage for my next video part, that I will maybe drop later on in the year. Everything has timing, but I’m working! I’ve got another Journey episode coming out too. It has street footy that I filmed recently being back in South Africa, with Grant Mclachlan. You just got back from a trip to Nigeria, what was that like and what did you get up to over there?
Going to Nigeria for the first time felt like being on a completely different planet. The city of Lagos is constantly busy and full of people, almost in a chaotic nature. There’s constant traffic on badly built roads, law and order doesn’t exist when driving there. People drive in-between lanes, literary passing each other’s cars like 10cm away, people stopping anywhere they like and people selling shit on the highway. You get cops that see you’re not locals, so they want bribe fees from our driver. We had to have a police escort because people could have kidnapped us. That place is the wild west! Every worker you come across acts extra nice to you, eventually to ask if you have something for them haha. I guess it’s due to poverty. There are a lot of people living in unimaginable circumstances. It also showed me how much we South Africans complain like spoilt brats. We truly are fortunate in our country, plus they have civil wars with their government.
Yet people here are motivated to survive. We also met some genuine people too. Like the homie Jomi who runs a local skate shop there called ‘Waffles and Cream’. He was kind enough to take us around on our off days, to show us their streets spots. Which sadly wasn’t much. Due to military people everywhere and buildings being fenced off to the point where you can’t even try or you’ll get shot. Also, they have a very new skate scene so they aren’t on as high a level of skateboarding. Homies over there just started skateboarding. It’s like South Africa was in the late 80s to early 90s skate scene. There’s no skateparks and homies are just pushing for the love. So it was cool getting to session with them and getting to show them what’s possible on a skateboard. No other skaters have come that side of the world yet. They seemed pretty motivated by the end of my trip. I don’t think any of them would make it pro, but they are definitely making a founda-
tion for the next generation to pick it up and they’ll blow up for the Nigerian scene. My main reason for going to Lagos was for the Monster Energy activations, like the previous one I did in Senegal. We had problems getting the mini ramp to our activations/demos so we ended up having a lot of free time. Then we’d hangout at the Golden Tulip Hotel and find some parties to hit up. We linked up with a Nigerian artist called Scales, homie is like mega big there with almost 950K followers on instagram. He was kind enough to also show us a lavish side of Lagos, which was truly incredible! I’d definitely go back. People in Nigeria know how to party for REAL! Have you got any prospects coming up for any more international trips and when do you think you might be back in the US? I’m heading to Barcelona this year for the Street League contest. I’m planning on
chilling in Europe for a month extra after that. Then I will be heading back to America. When you’re back home in Durban do you take downtime to just chill and rest or do you skate as much as you can there too? I love Durban. Because of this city I am who I am today. My whole family lives here so it’s home. I skate every day, even when I’m in Durban. But I don’t film or take photos when I’m home. So I’m more about seeing my family and friends. There is also partying and hangouts too. Skating here isn’t such a productive place for me anymore though. Do you have a certain crew you roll with in Durban and where is your ‘go to’ spot if you’re at home? I’m cool with all the homies in Durban. But I
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Nollie heelflip tailslide to fakie. Sequence – Justin Crawford
have a different lifestyle due to constantly travelling. So I don’t really have a specific skate crew that I roll with, because I’m hardly home. Normally I hit up my homie Claudio Ngcobo. He is such a funny person and I like to keep him around in my life. Some days when I’m home on Tuesdays or Thursdays I skate Moses Mabhida Stadium in the evening, with the OGs Andrew Morck, Ken-Rae and Frank from Ethekwini Skate Shop. To be honest though when I’m home I hangout more with my MC and DJ homies, because we all grew up together and I make music too, so I don’t just do skating 24/7. Describe the current Durban scene from your perspective, is skateboarding growing in Durban at the moment and do a lot of the people you grew up skating with still skate at all? A lot of things have disturbed the Durban 36 | sessionmag.co.za
skate scene from progressing and producing their own scene the way it used to be. Skateparks have closed down over the years. First the Revolution park, then Gateway and now even the beach park is under construction too. With no skateparks a lot of kids quit. Also, dudes that used to be on top of the Durban scene within the last 8 years that I’ve been sponsored have started to slow down and I hardly saw homies on their boards for a while. Dudes that were very talented and you’d swear they were going to go far in skateboarding. It just shows me how unpredictable life can be. But I’m sure everybody has their own reasons. Some also moved to Cape Town and are making things happen down there. There is a positive element still alive with the Cloudy Brothers. There are kids also pushing like Jamie De Villiers and his little crew of homies. Other than that a lot has changed and people don’t seem to have that ambition to film street stuff. May-
be it’s due to no filmers or photographers being around. But as an individual, I’m going to be doing some projects for Durban soon. Also with the help of Aewon Woolf, a good friend of mine who is a South African hip hop artist who used to skate. He recently bought a warehouse in Durban and it has a skatepark in it. So there are plans we are looking into at reviving the Durban skate scene in our own way. List your 5 favourite things about Durban? 1. My family and friends. 2. The warm climate. 3. The skatepark by the beach. 4. How close together everything is. 5. The nature reserves, the parties and beautiful women. You spend a lot of time in Cape Town throughout the year rolling with Grant Mclachlan, and you guys were talking about
getting a place at some point. Are you still thinking about moving down? I was planning on moving to Cape Town, but this was last year before I went to America. Grant and I figured that since we’re such a unit and we personally get along, beyond the skate stuff, that we should live together. He’s my best friend and a brother to me. But some opportunities have come into my life with the American trip that will require me to head back to California. As one of the more successful local skateboarders do you see yourself making a full career out of skateboarding, perhaps moving overseas permanently at some point, or do you just go month-to-month and take it as it comes? Personally speaking I’m the type of person who takes the initiative in being ‘hands
on’ with the direction of my career. I’m not narrow-minded enough to think of anything I’m doing as a month-to-month type of existence. Without a vision, direction or goal, how can you know what to strive for or achieve in your life? I’ve been blessed to achieve a lot of things that I once only dreamt about in the South African skate scene. From winning contests, to features, interviews, video parts and covers. But I don’t want to be repeating a lot of those things for myself. I see home as a grounding place for the person I am and my talent. But I really see myself having new experiences and pursuing my skateboarding dream in California. I definitely see myself living there and making things happen.
and never doubt yourself, there is a purpose that you’re breathing. People will always be talking about you and there’s nothing you can do about that. Life is a balance of negatives and positives, so don’t take it personally. It’s a part of the human rollercoaster experience. Skate for the love of it and everything else will follow. Depending on how much work you put in, that is what you’ll get out of life. Thank you to all those kids and homies that support me. Much love and respect!
Have you got any words of wisdom to end this thing off? Dream BIG, anything is possible through God! Whatever you do believe in yourself sessionmag.co.za | 37
transfer window Photos – Jansen van Staden
New Vans South Africa team riders Wynand Herholdt and T-Kay Modise have a ‘Welcome’ video part in the works. Check out all the best local skate videos up on our site – www.sessionmag.co.za Above: T-Kay Modise barley grinds at the Fox Street bank in downtown Johannesburg. A barley grind is a 180 switch smith, just in case you didn’t know. Right: Wynand Herholdt switch slappy front crooks in Claremont, Cape Town.
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TROMPSBURG Words - Stuart Walker Photos - Werner Lamprecht
Stuart frontside grinds for the kids.
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Rudolf Odendaal soaring an early grab air
Stuart backtails in the corner pocket.
Rudolf melon grabs to fakie.
The Occupational Therapy Department of the University of the Free State recognized skateboarding as a way of getting kids to learn ‘alternative lessons’ like generally being active, but also things like setting your own goals and achieving them, determination and social skills, etc. This project came about in conjunction with a skills transfer program, teaching people to use rammed earth tyre walls to build their own house and/or playgrounds, or whatever else they might want to build. The university first got in touch with someone else to help with what to build,
but it wouldn’t fit and would have cost too much, so I took over. I did what I could with the walls that were already built and got myself some more floating practice. I worked with two young men and two older ladies who did the tyre pounding and the concrete mixing while I did the prep and floating. This concrete project now stands at the PT Sanders School in Trompsburg, Free State. Just over an hour down the N1 from Bloemfontein.
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ZANDER GABRIEL Photos – Grant Mclachlan
Backsmith in Cape Town’s city bowl.
How old are you and where in the US are you based? I’m 26 and I live in Los Angeles, California. What made you travel all the way to South Africa to go skateboarding? I came out with my good friend Tomas Vintr from the Czech Republic to skate in the Ultimate X contest. As a skateboarder in the US, did you know anything about skateboarding here before visiting? Not too much haha. I had met some South African skaters while touring the States and Europe. I had no idea what
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the skate scene was like there though. There’s a dedicated skate culture. Definitely more going on than what I expected. After being here for a few days, what is your opinion of the level of skateboarding in South Africa?
I was there for a week, Sunday to Sunday. Ultimate X had us on a tight schedule lined up with the contest, practice and daily activities. Everyday was amazing! We got a few missions out in the streets but I’ll definitely be back to hit the streets again and all the dope spots the locals showed us.
After seeing the local shredders skate the park, it’s clear there is talent there. They obviously spend a lot of time on their boards. I was impressed to say the least.
Who did you go on missions with and what did you guys get up to during your stay?
How long did you spend in Cape Town and how much time did you get to go street skating?
Grant McLachlan would come pick up Tomas, Khule and I from the hotel and we would get the day started. Having a local and a car made things so much easier.
“I snorkeled with seals, went scuba diving with sea turtles and chilled with the penguins on the beach”.
.
Sunset front blunt in Sea Point
Grant knew all the spots and the shortcuts around town. The crew was dope and it was always fun! Khule always had the hype songs bumping and positive vibes flowing. So we were always pumped for the streets! List your five favourite things experienced in South Africa?
you
1 - First off for sure was the Ultimate X contest itself. Those guys really put on a top-notch event and they treated us like superstars. At the same time everyone was so friendly and took us in like family. I’ve met so many new friends in just a week. I’m hoping a few will come to
SoCal so that I can return the hospitality. 2 - Beyond the contest itself, the first thing we did when we got there was climb to the top of Table Mountain. It was harder than I expected but the view was worth it. 3 - I hung out with so many exotic animals in 3 days. I snorkeled with seals, went scuba diving with sea turtles and chilled with the penguins on the beach. 4 - The girls! Let’s just say I liked the girls. 5 - It sounds pretty touristy, but one morning Tomas and I took one of the tall red tour busses around the whole
mountain to see the sites and learn a bit about the culture. It definitely gave me a little more understanding of where I was. Cape Town is such an amazing city. Do you think Cape Town is a place you would recommend for a skate trip to people back home? Yes! It’s definitely on the top of the list for me. Cape Town just has something about it. It’s got spots, a good party scene and extremely hot girls. It’s beautiful and on top of all that your money goes a long way. What more could you ask for? It’s a must!
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Polokwane Words - Luke Jackson
Rynardt van der Merwe made me really laugh recently on a trip to Durban for a skate event. He said, “fuck you, South Africa doesn’t end in Gauteng” to the organisers of the event. It was tongue-in-cheek and everyone laughed, but it’s most certainly true and his point resonated with me.
Sazi Masande boardslides at a PLK skate landmark rail. Photo - Ntebatse Mokone
If we learnt anything from the Ghostbusters
Why shouldn’t there be an event like ‘Un-
tour through Mpumalanga and Limpopo
locked’ at the Polokwane Progress Tow-
back in September it’s that the northern parts
er? That spot is so epic, I would love to see
of the country that are often overlooked are
guys from around the country all session it
pretty damn epic! Most people go to the re-
together. I love to think about how there
gion for nature spots, and well they should,
are guys out there in far off cities or small
but the skate spots and small but motivated
towns rolling together and getting hyped
scenes we encountered were really dope
on skating. Often skating means so much
too! Rynardt van der Merwe is a solid spokes-
more to people in those small scenes, be-
person for his skate scene way up north.
cause they have to really work hard to
“Fuck you, South Africa doesn’t end in Gauteng”. 44 | sessionmag.co.za
Rynardt van der Merwe bluntslides. Photo - Ntebatse Mokone
pursue what they love and that gives it genuine meaning. Skaters from across the country all used to travel to Kimberley, so why not Polokwane? Some brand should step up to the plate and make it happen, I’m sure a bunch of guys from JHB, PTA, Nelspruit or DBN would make the road trip to be a part of it if they could. And yes, the flight from Cape Town would be worth it too.
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Indigo Skate Camp 2017 Indigo have announced that a skate camp is going down from 1-6 July 2017. Photos - Jansen van Staden
Dallas with a body jar in the deep at the Indigo bowl.
This was the founding concept of Indigo. Bringing youths into a rural Zulu community to learn more than skateboarding, as this is just the glue that bonds people together. Indigo Skate Camp is situated in the Valley of 1000 hills in KwaZulu-Natal, about 50 KMs or 30 minutes from Durban. Campers need only arrive in Durban and Indigo will collect you at your point of entry (airport/bus stop). Campers will sleep in comfortable beds in one of two dormitory rondavels. Indigo have hot showers and flushable toilets for the campers. Campers will have an all-inclusive skateboarding holiday. Airport pickup, food, lodging, and of course lots of fun! Campers will experience all the beauty and culture of the Isithumba village as well as head out to Durban and Pietermaritzburg on skate excursions. Indigo will take skaters
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out to a variety of different terrain and parks to expose them to as much stoke as possible. The cost for this uniquely South African skateboarding experience is R3600 per person. Note: The prices listed do not include transport to Durban. Indigo Skate Camp provides transportation from and back to your point of arrival / departure. Indigo recommend arriving in Durban by bus or by plane. Transport provided during the camp will be in a safe and modern vehicle. Experienced, mature staff will ensure your trip is enjoyable and trouble free. For more information or to book your place please contact Charl Jensel at Indigo – 084 203 2107 or charl.jensel@gmail.com
Dallas’ back smith ain’t a joke. But wait until you see the local kids rip it too! 47 | sessionmag.co.za
spot check words - luke jackson photos - tim moolman
Brandon Valjalo backtails.
If you grew up in Johannesburg then you have undoubtedly spent a decent amount of time at malls. Mall culture prevails in the city, as it does across much of South Africa’s urban landscape. After doing a bit of research online I learned that there are more than 2000 shopping malls in South Africa, putting us 6th on the list of countries with the most malls in the world. Only the US, Japan, Canada, the UK and China have more. The largest in South Africa (in terms of gross leasable area) is Gateway in Durban.
Retail space replaces public space in South Africa to a large extent, we have places to spend money, but our cities lack adequate space where one can enjoy leisure time that isn’t directly related to having to spend. Growing up as a kid in a suburb, gated community or township in Johannesburg, more often than not you have little else but malls to turn to for stimulation. And with the fear of crime, parents are more than happy to drop their kids off at the mall. But you’re not allowed to skate at the mall, so if you skate then where do you go? Well, you go to the mall anyway.
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Sandton City is the 4th largest in South Africa, ranking number 90 on the list of the world’s 100 largest malls. The mall is at the heart of South Africa’s financial hub, which over the years has developed into a major business area away from the city’s CBD, almost a second downtown if you like. An army of security guards and high fences locks central Sandton down. With huge parking garages that become abandoned overnight, there is a hell of a lot of space just sitting empty. If it’s raining, dark outside or you’re simply looking for a smooth surface to skate
then mall garages are a good place to roll. You know there’s a big likelihood that you’re going to get bust, but you try anyway. Sometimes you get lucky and find a spot where security doesn’t see you, but that is rare, the likelihood is that you’ll be lucky to get 15 minutes. When I was growing up our spot was Investec, not far from the Sandton City Mall. Investec being a major investment bank with high security is not a location you immediately think of when trying to figure out where to skate. But somehow the smooth
“Sandton City’s parking garages and rooftop parking area have been skated for decades, imagine how many run-ins with security guards that must equate to?”
Brandon front boards.
underpass that goes under the middle of their massive building was where I spent countless hours rolling in the evenings, alongside several other JHB skateboarders from the northern suburbs at the time. Curbs for manny pads and gaps, as well as the occasional small obstacle that someone might bring along, it was basic but we had a place to roll and we loved it because we didn’t have anything better. We had sessions there after midnight at times, in the middle of winter, dodging the vehicles of poor souls who were only leaving the office in the early hours.
Sandton City’s parking garages and rooftop parking area have been skated for decades, imagine how many run-ins with security guards that must equate to? The only thing close to a park in the area was the mini ramp that existed down the road at George Lea Park, but even that was quite short lived. With all the money in Sandton there has somehow never been a decent skatepark in the area, perhaps because people regard the land to be too valuable to allocate any towards recreation of that kind.
Recently the mall got a facelift of sorts, and the outside area on the corner of Sandton Drive became perfect for skateboarding. A long smooth ledge, sloping steps and yes even a short handrail. And because the area is not behind a fence or a boom, sometimes you can get lucky with a bit of time before security sees you. Brandon Valjalo is part of the new generation of skateboarders growing up in Johannesburg’s affluent gated communities, the next chapter of skateboarders trying their luck with skateboarding at this iconic old mall.
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FIELDWORK
Brendan Dyamond gaps over to backside lipslide in Pretoria. Photo – Jansen van Staden
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FIELDWORK
Yann Horowitz makes a drop of death at Bellville Velodrome, clearing the channel and bombing into the bank. Photo – Joubert van Staden.
The Bellville Velodrome is a 250-metre, multi-purpose indoor velodrome initially developed for the South African Olympic Bid, the venue hosted the World Cycling Federation Championships in 1999. It served as Cape Town’s main concert venue for ten years before being replaced by the Cape Town Stadium. Everyone from Rihanna, 50 Cent, Lil Wayne, Kanye West and Jay-Z to Metallica, Sting, Billy Joel, The Offspring, Simply Red, Westlife and more have performed there. Despite all that, this drop-in is easily the most impressive thing to ever go down there.
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Justus Kotze with a perfect catch on a backside flip along the steep side of the Bellville Velodrome. Photo – Jansen van Staden. sessionmag.co.za | 53
FIELDWORK
Justus Kotze bones a switch ollie in an empty fountain in downtown Cape Town. At least there is one upside to the drought, more spots! Photo – Joubert van Staden.
Chris Staub frontside tailslides in Johannesburg, check out the clip in Wandile Msomi’s ‘Location’ video up on our site. Photo – Jansen van Staden 54 | sessionmag.co.za
Home Skate Co Giveaway If you’re in the Cape Town area and would like to win yourself a board and shirt then simply film a line at Civic Centre, post it to Instagram and tag @homeskateco Whoever does the best line will claim the prize. www.homeskateco.co.za
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I AM
Siba Booi Words and Photos - Alessandro Galassi.
Siba takes the plunge at the ICC in Durban.
Siba is a young shredder from South Beach, Durban. He’s definitely coming up fast, from being one of the younger skaters in the 031. Siba is a productive skater who is constantly progressing and adding to his bag of tricks. He’s always down to be on the missions, whether it’s a day spent at the skatepark or a day filming in the city streets. He tackles any spot you put in front of him with consistency and an all-around good style. You can usually find Siba shredding at the North Beach Skatepark, downtown Durban City or his homie Jamie’s backyard skatepark. He maintains an energetic approach to skating hard and having fun with his homies as much as he can.
“tackles any spot you put in front of him with consistency and an all-around good style.”
60 | sessionmag.co.za
Siba front shuvs to fakie at the Thanda concrete park near Hibberdene, south of Durban.
faux pas
/ fō pä / French ‘foh pah’ (fō päz’)
noun, plural faux pas a slip or blunder in etiquette, manners, or conduct
2017
Contributor Pics Send us your pics
info@sessionmag.co.za
So we get a lot of emails from around the country with guys trying to get their photos in the mag. We can’t run everything we get, but we know there are a lot of young rippers out there who are waiting for their first opportunity to get a photo in print. Here are a few we’ve received. Send us yours to info@sessionmag.co.za and we might just select a few to go in the mag.
Liam Broek rock n rolls in PE. Photo – Rieyaad Saban
Shaun Dean no-comply pole jams in Cape Town. Photo - Alex Travers
62 | sessionmag.co.za
Luis Mateus switch front boards in Durban. Photo – Alessandro Galassi
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