[Editor's Note: The following is the first in a series regarding common modifications and the aftermarket parts industry.]
In any extreme sport there are two main components. The rider, and what they ride. It really doesnt matter what sport were talking about. From skateboarding, to bmx, to freestyle motocross, and yes, even scootering. You want whatever you are riding to be reliable, you want to be able to trust its strength and durability, and you want it to perform to the best of its abilities. To achieve this is a very long process, filled with trial and error, and lots of imagination and experimentation. When scootering first hit the scene, it was used mainly for transportation, people were content and happy with the fact that they could take their scooter, unfold it, and go outside and ride around. However, there were small but ever-expanding groups of riders all around the world that didn't just see a scooter as something to "get around on". They began to use their scooters for trick riding, whether it was in skateparks or in the streets. It quickly became obvious that riding these scooters straight out of the box, didn't exactly leave you with the perfect scooter to go out and do tricks with. So a select few riders took it into their own hands to find some ways to modify these scooters, to enhance them in their own ways that would help them perform better, and make them more durable; So they could withstand the punishment that came with trick riding.
In the early days of modding your scooter. It wasn't easy...at all. There was no one before you to tell you how to fix certain parts, or how to make something stronger or prevent a part from breaking. Riders had to be creative to find ways to enhance their scooters. One of the first problems that became apparent to riders, was the folding systems on scooters. After a while they would warp and cause your headtube to become loose, Which led to your bars shaking back and forth. This can affect a lot of things when you ride. A rider by the name of Ricky Wernicke who at that time rode with a group of guys from southern California known as the "NBS" crew is thought to be one of the first riders who came up with the idea of "Locking your folding mech". He simply took the rear B model axels, which were longer than Old A or front axels, and he put a bearing on one side of the axel, pushed it through his folding mechanism, attached another bearing on the other end of the axle, and took a bolt and tightened it together. What this did was squeeze the folding mechanism rails together, which squeezed tight on the headtube that was in the middle of the two rails, and held it tightly in place. Thus giving your scooter a more solid feel while riding.
A traditionally locked folding mechanism.
Over the course of 2000 to 2004, the only real mods people made to their scooters consisted of putting full skateboard griptape over your deck, and locking up your folding mech. Which after a while, some riders replaced the rear B model axles for bolts of similiar size from a hardware store. Most riders were riding B Model decks, they were a bit longer than Old A decks, and were higher from the ground. Which gave more clearance while riding park or street. However around the year 2003 Razor discontinued the B Model. As riders salvaged and saved what B Models they had left, and let out long sighs at the sound of there "last" B Models snapping. A new scooter was introduced from Razor, and with it, would also bring forth a new mod, that is still used by some today. Razor came out with the "New A Model" When it first came out, it looked like a B model, only smaller, and lighter, and there seemed to be a new folding system. Well it was new all right, a new piece of garbage. That folding system was a lot different than what riders were used to bolting. Infact it was made from steel, and after a while would rip right out of the deck. So Josh Toy thought up a mod. He took old B Model folding systems, cut the rails from off of the decks, and then took the folding system off of the new A models. He re drilled holes into the new A deck, so that he could install the B model folding system. Once that was done you basically had yourself a lighter version of a B model, with a folding system that could be locked up now. But Josh wasn't done just yet. The B models were the scooter of choice in the early 2000's, although it was hard to get an actual "B Model" that had a solid fork. Most of the scooters sold were "B-1's" what that means is that they were B models, but they had suspension forks, better known as forks with shocks. With B models discontinued, and snapped B decks all over, he took some of the old B-1 suspension forks and came up with an idea. He removed the shocks, and in their place he put a small piece of of metal tubing, and bolted it together. By doing this on both sides, he created a dual-legged solid fork. It was far more solid than a regular stock fork, and raised the front end of the scooter almost half an inch. He sold a select few of these to certain riders, and it was one of the first if not the first real aftermarket part to be sold from one rider to another.
A New A deck, with B model folding mechanism rails.
In these early years of scootering, riders didnt have companies to buy parts from. They didnt have a forum where they could learn what mods could be done to their scooters. They had to teach themselves, and learn the hard way. Through the year of 2004 it was much of the same. Full deck griptape, locked up foldys; that was basically all that riders did to their scooters. However in the next 2 years, Two riders in particular would change the scooter parts industry forever. One from Woodinville, Washington and the other from Carlsbad, California...
Over on the fuzion forums someone asked what a TIC rat is, the following is my response, and a response to some questions Nextsport asked.
basically, a lil scooter kid who goes to TIC everyday, and is more likely to learn backflips and briflips before learning double tailwhips. They also do wayy too many briflips and flyout tricks. Usually have day videos with really gross and sketchy riding, and terrible music. Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvZWCFbrMQM&feature=related
"are double tailwhips considered harder to learn/do than backflips and briflips? just curious. In your opinion, what is the "best" or "hardest" trick on a scooter? or is it not about tricks, but more your style of riding that's categorized as good or bad? thanks for your input." - Nextsport
no, double tailwhips are like one of the basic tricks every rider should learn. Backflips used to be a sick trick, like it would get you on Razor back in the day, but now...a plain flip, especially flyout, is something nobody wants to see.
there cannot be a "best" or "hardest" trick on scooters. the sport is ever progressing, and what was not thought possible yesterday is being thrown with a late whip, or early barspin today. These days, for a majority of people, it is about style. Pete Pachota sums it up with this comic strip: http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/2584/progression.jpg
Personally, I don't think doing "style" tricks such as tables, inverts, tuck no handers, etc, makes you stylish. Being stylish involves making what you do look natural, like you are part of the scooter. Or just making it look good.
I am also more of a trick-oriented person. I would rather see a tech grind combo (ie, matt mckeen doing 270 back board) than someone boost a turndown 6 feet out of a quarter.
Which brings me to another thing- street versus park. IMO park has been way overdone in scooter videos, rarely am i impressed by a park video nowadays. Instead, I prefer watching and riding street. Street forces you to be more creative, to look at things differently than you would in a park, where everything's just laid out for you. Street videos just tend to be more original and fun to watch. Street is what gets the respect from outsiders to the sport. If a skater sees a scooter rider do doublewhip over a pyramid, they probably wouldn't be impressed. But if he sees him do that doublewhip over a 6 set, he'll probably give the scooter rider some props.
Riders have been making suggestions, and JP is listening!
First off, all Extreme forks are now TIG welded. They also come with optional sandblasting if you want to paint the fork yourself. The Zero Offset fork has also been re-done slightly, having an ovular crown plate now, instead of a rectangular one. Since the Proto Brass Knuckles came out, Inward has made it an option to have your .083 or .120 fork delivered with a starnut already installed.
Inward's bolt set plates, which come with Inward engraved on them, can be reversed so that the text doesn't show. The plates can also be powercoated, optionally.
And finally, Inward is working on producing 125mm forks. There are prototypes currently being tested, and a final version should be released soon.
Our Australian Correspondent, Aaron Bransdon, recently went on the hunt for a bit more information on the up and coming, Australian based store, Australian Scooter Parts.
I talked to the founder, owner, and manufacturer, Ryan Keong, a young, aspiring rider trying to do something to help out progression on the Aussie front. The 16 year old Queenslander has been designing, hand-making, and testing his products over the past year and a half, but only just released his company to the Australian land, in which we’re all sure he will make an enormous difference to the scene, and the way scooters are perceived in Australia, though only time will tell. Ryan’s riding reflects his nature: his consistent, well-paced style, cleanliness and frontside spinning is much like his Business; Legitimate, quick and a bit left field.
We here at Inside Scooters hope to see a lot from this man in the future, and hope his business prospers in to something that helps the scooter world everywhere.
Intro and Interview done by Aaron Bransdon
Name: Ryan Keong
Age: 16
Lives: Redcliffe, Queensland, Australia
Time Been Riding: 2 Years.
What's your business name, and how long have you operated?
I started making parts about 18months ago just for myself and a few close mates. Then whenever we would go to the skatepark kids there would always ask about them and want to buy them so i decided i would start selling them to kids at my local. Then after seeing that there was a shortage of aftermarket products in Australia i decided to make a myspace and start selling them off there which has now turned into Australian scooter parts. Altogether though I’d say Australian scooter parts has been around for about 8 months.
It seems you have plenty of experience, and from humble beginnings. What products do you offer at the present time?
At the moment we offer two kinds of one piece bars
Team bars which are similar to Proto slayers and standards one piece bars which are just regular T shaped bars.
We also have two types of deck in the testing stage; a one piece deck, as well as a deck with a folding mechanism for those who don’t want to worry about changing headsets and such.
Similar to PROTO 'slayer' bars? Were they designed before the 'Slayers' were released?
They were designed and made before the slayers were released and there are some differences in the bars.
Awesome. Do you have any plans for a team sometime in the future? If so, what are you looking for in team members?
Yes
At the moment we are running a small competition styled entry, where Australian riders submit videos and the three current team members will judge who they think deserves to be accepted. Personally I’m looking for riders who aren’t as mainstream as most of the riders we see today id rather see a sick 180 combo in street than a flyout inward briflip or backflip. But it’s also up to what the other team members like.
Sounds good, definitely looking forward to the results of it. Are you planning anything major for the team in the future, or are they just going to be more or less the advertising around Australia?
Yeah we don’t want to have to big of a team we are only looking at having four or five riders maybe making a team video down the track, hopefully we will keep selling products.
We all hope everything runs smoothly too. Are there any new products on the planning board?
After the decks are out and going good we might experiment with forks but that will probably sometime in the distant future.
Sounds good, maybe we'll see the ASP complete scooter somewhere down the track. What first got you interested in manufacturing scooter parts?
When I first started out I wanted a more solid scooter than just stock so I looked at buying some one piece bars but the only ones available in Australia (and I don’t know if many people would remember them was old VEX bars) and I sent them an email and they never replied. My dad manages a steel fabrication shed so I asked him about it and he said he should be able to get a pair made for me for a reasonable price so he did and that’s where it all started.
Then after snapping numerous decks I decided that there must be a better alternative, and made a dodgy looking deck with a folding Mechanism. After riding that for a couple of months and it showing no signs of cracking I thought that I might be on too something so vie been trying and redesigning new decks ever since.
Wow, you've got quite a back story there. What keeps you motivated to ride, design and create?
I just enjoy designing parts and then seeing them go from a drawing to real life and being able to ride them. I get a kick out of it, also knowing that you have built half your scooter from scratch. It’s something that you wouldn’t do or get props for in any other sport.
You seem like a really legit kid, all of us at Inside Scooters hope it goes well for you. Does ASP have a website? If so could you tell us what it is? And do you have anything more you'd like to tell us about ASP?
Thanks for the time to do this interview.And yeah we do have a website www.australianscooterproducts.weebly.com/ At the moment we only ship within Australia though so, any Aussies reading this get to it and buy some products, support the sport in Australia.
After having the Micro XT for a couple weeks now, Steven and I wrote some reviews on the new scooter from Micro. _________________________________________________________
Recently, I received a Micro XT (Old style not New one) to test, ride, and review for Inside-Scooters Blog.
When you get the XT it comes in a box including all the tools you will need to assemble the scooter. Which for the record doesnt take any more than 10 minutes if you have experience working on scooters before hand. After getting it all set up the first thing I noticed was the weight of the scooter. It is quite heavy, and it is most certainly not for the "weight freaks". The steep angle of the headtube is also something that takes a while to get used to. Both of my grips did get throttle grip, however this is a problem that has been looked into already by Micro and will be fixed in the near future. The next thing I noticed while riding the XT was how smooth and solid it felt. The XT 100mm metal cores that come on the XT seem to be loved by some riders, and hated by others. Some say that they dehub too easily, others have been riding them for long periods of time with no problems at all. However they are the fastest 100mm wheels Ive rode. I adapted pretty quickly to the angle of the headtube, and the weight of the scooter, and was landing flat double tailwhips with the XT in no time. With some time, and with an easier price for US riders to work with, I can see the Old XT's popularity getting bigger in the US. Below are the Pros and Cons of the Micro XT.
Pros:
Easy to put together Solid and very Smooth Fast 100mm Metal cores Gnarly Full Deck Griptape
Cons:
Heavy Deck Steep headtube angle/Weak headtube known to crack Small grips that get "throttle grip" after time Top cup on headset seems to loosen up a bit after riding
Review done by Inside-Scooters Head Writer Steven Tongson _____________________________________________________________
After riding the XT for a few days, the throttle grip got bad enough that I was forced to put my Inward bars on. I had a lil problem with that, the forktube was too long for the fork to go all the way down, so I used a double clamp as a spacer until I used a hacksaw to cut the forktube down.
The scooter remained very solid throughout riding, the first few days. However, the headtube's top cup is actually like a double cup, I'll try to post pictures later. Anyway, the top part of this double cup gets loose, and the headset shakes, even if its tight. If you do tighten it enough so it doesn't shake, it will barely spin, which is something that, as a tech rider, you don't want.
I pretty much gave up trying a lot of whip stuff because of the weight of the deck. It definitely isn't for people used to riding light decks, and doing a lot of whips. I can riders having trouble with scooterflips too, although it can add momentum to make them easier. It really depends on the type of flip, and obstacle you're doing it on.
For tricks like hang fives, nose manuals, and sliders, this is a great scooter. The zero offset fork and high headtube angle makes nose manuals a breeze. It may take a little getting used to for hang fives, but you should adjust to the lack of folding mechanism in a day or so. The wheels have plenty urethane, so you don't have to worry about wearing down your wheels for a long time.
Pros: Fast, solid, smooth Good wheels Thick forktube Can easily exchange the stock 13 wide crossbar for longer ones Full deck griptape Thick steertube Quadruple clamp (2 double clamps) No annoying lever and clamp to hit your knee on on the bars
Cons: Heavy High headtube angle Threaded fork Steertube has 2 slits Cost (340ish USD) Unnecessarily thick brake
RECAP: If you like doing small tech tricks, involving a lot of bars and whips, this is probably not the scooter for you. The headtube angle and weight makes things harder than they should be. If you like to go big, fast, and just cruise, this would make a great scooter. However, at the price it is at right now, I don't believe it is worth it. Should the price drop, and a few changes be made, I could see this becoming a viable alternative to the Razor Pro Model.
This ramen is horrible for you. It is amazing though. However I cannot stress how bad this is for you. That is all. Eat with caution (and a strong heart).
Ingredients * 1 package of Beef Ramen * 1 teaspoon of Mayonnaise * 1 teaspoon of Horseradish * 2 dabs of Hot Sauce of your Choice * 1 tablespoon of Nacho Cheese
Boil your Ramen, then drain leaving no water. Mix in the seasoning packet, mayonaiase, horseradish, Hot Sauce and nacho cheese thoroughly, Enjoy!
Last night Bryant Walker, OG Carolina native, uploaded a ton of old school videos, from 2002-2005. Most of these you can't find anywhere else. Theres a ton of history in these, not to mention some riding that's amazing even to this day.
Heres a minivideo of Matt Pate to start things off, click the vimeo icon to get onto bryants account and see the rest of the videos.
I suck at public speaking...the riding clips are pretty much first try, pretty meh. Like I said, after I get a chance to ride it more I'll post a written review.
So I've had my yak metalcore for a few weeks now (thanks Tdadd). Here the review, as a front wheel.
First impression: whoa, they're skinny. the core looks nice, thinner than what you would see on Eaglesports but then again they are half the price of one. Putting the bearings in was easy, the little plastic sleeves let em really nicely.
Its a pretty good wheel for speed. It has 88a durometer, meaning its pretty hard and fast. But that also makes it a little slippery on wet surfaces.
This wheel is amazing for sliders, backwards and frontwards. I was never amazing at front sliders but with this wheel, it makes them really fun and easy. Same with back sliders. It hasn't chunked out or anything either.
It seems to be holding up pretty well during kicker riding. I haven't gotten to ride my kickers a whole lot, but the urethane seems decent. The bad thing about the urethane is that there isn't very much of it.
Beware of riding one on the back though, there have been a few people having the bearing sleeves break.
Pros: Fast Good for sliders Cheap (cheapest metalcore out there) Easy to get bearings in and out
Cons: Thin urethane Slippery Bearing sleeve can break
So overall, its a great front wheel. You really can't beat the value, at about 11 or 12 dollars per wheel. You can get them from a variety of dealers, including Sky High Scooters. You can find their link to the right>>>.
He does some of the highest airs in the sport throwing clicked turndowns, lookbacks, and tabletops. If you dont know that Im talking about Stan Smirnoff, you must have been living under a rock for the past 3 years. Stan was born in Russia, and later moved to the United States, where he found himself living in Tacoma, Washington. At only 10 years old he started borrowing other kids scooters and riding around. Now it must have been pure luck that he happened to move to Washington, where some of the sports top riders lived. Stan started riding more and more. He liked doing it because it was something different and when he saw other riders completely shredding, it pushed him to ride harder. When Stan came onto the scene, he faced a lot of adversity. English was not his first language, and life in America was still something he was getting used to. However when he was on his scooter it didnt matter where he came from. He might have not had the biggest bag of tricks to start out with, but he could air over hips and on quarters like he had been riding for years. He started to seperate himself from the rest of the riding community, doing barspins, inverts, turndowns, and tuck no handers over some huge gaps, and boosting them in ridiculously high airs. He was one of the first riders to start riding 20 wide bars, "20 Wide..So Yeaa". Riding wider bars only helped Stans style, and made his videos even funner to watch. It was almost like he was on a bmx bike, while riding his scooter. It comes to no surprise to know that Stan looks up to Bmxers, Chase Hawk and Mike Aitken, both guys having two of the best styles on a bike. He also looks up to fellow rider Coedie Donovan and skateboarder Bob Burnquist. These two guys are constantly pushing the limits of their sports. Something Stan also tries to do everytime he rides his scooter. Stan is a very ambitious rider, he has huge plans for the future. He wants to be the first rider to jump the Mega Ramp, and he wants to set the record for the worlds highest air on a scooter. Also being on the RAD Team with Team Manager Cory Mosbrucker, and fellow team riders, Cary Mosbrucker and Tyler Bonner, gives Stan something else to look forward to. Stan hopes to film one of the most groundbreaking video parts in the sport for the RAD Team video. Stan appreciates and likes where the sport is right now, but he also feels that it has to change. Riders have to start stepping it up, going faster and higher. Hitting bigger gaps, and develop some style to their riding, not just learn new tricks. Hopefully people listen to that, and start hitting bigger gaps, developing more style, and getting even higher on quarter pipes. Although no matter how hard they push it, It will be hard for any of them to hit the gaps that Stan hits, to have the style that Stan has, and to get as high as Stan gets.... on quarter pipes.. and well, in general.
- Steven T.
Interview done by Jordan Jasa
Name: stanislav victorovich smirnoff
Location: Tacoma Washington
Years Riding: 8
Sponsors: R.A.D., Micro, exode, sbw, and Mary Jane buds hhahaha
What year did you move to the states, and how long after that did you start riding a scooter?
i moved here in july of 2000 and thats when scooters just came out so i rode other peopless scooters cuz they cost too much and only in 2005 i got my own and started puttin in werk!!!
Was it tough learning English? Were you already fluent before you came?
yah it was pretty gay i hated it lol it took me 4 years to learn it pretty good
How often do you ride your BMX bike? Do you model your scooter riding after your BMX riding or your bike riding after your scooter riding? Or do they not have an effect on each other?
i ride my bike prolly 30% of the time and ride my scooter most of it haha but now ima ride bikes way more cuz this scooter game is wayy too easy
Does your high airing, park flowing style come naturally to you, or is it something you have to work on?
i think it comes natural because i love doing it and always seeing people flow my local park and just seeing chase hawk and aitken murder parks without warming up haha
What is the craziest place, or situation you've been in because of riding scooters?
i got chased by a drunk crackhead in downtown oregon hahahaa i was smashing through the streets and he was running atleast 28 miles an hour cuz he almost got me but i hopped this chain and manualed across the street with hella people and cars on the road lol it was super fun
Now Stan, I know jumping the megaramp is one of your biggest goals. Don't you think the people in power would rather let someone professional, trustworthy, and more responsible looking than a guy smoking weed while driving, jump the ramp? Not trying to bag on you, I'm just sayin. hahaha who ever asked this question is a moron who dosent know what riding a scooter is all about lol im gonna destroy the mega ramp and blow blunts on the bottom of the ramp with some peeps and just film it haha
What would jumping the megaramp mean to you?
more time in the air for my no handers hahahaha and biggest air on a scooter for sure on the 27ft qp
You also want to land the worlds highest air on a scooter...how would you go about doing that? Is that a serious "lets do it now!" goal or something more along the lines of, "Someday..."?
im doing it on any quarter asap hahaha but i think if i air bobs 27ft qp i can learn how to air the vert ramp at mission valley 10 feet ish? You're known for having some of the widest (if not the widest) bars in the sport (not to mention the tallest). Will there ever come a day when instead of becoming wider, they shrink a little?
--- NO!
If I were to tell you I could build you the skatepark of your dreams, but would only let you ride stock bars in it, would you take me up it? Why?
id say fuk that and move to arizona hahahahahhahaa oh wait im already doing that hahaha
When did you get sponsored by Micro, and how has that been going for you?
sometime in 06 iuno its been good i just have to wait too long for the shipping from Europe but when i went to swiss i got to choose whatever i wanted and just build a scoot and it lasted me a good while but i defiantly think they need a new manager who can run that --- proper naaaaimsaaain?
What has it meant to be on the RAD team? Its the most legit team ever lol we are all way too alike haha thats why we can kick it and ride for dayss!!!
Do you have anything special planned for the RAD DVD?
yah i will defiantly film a lot of street bangers and some creative ass lines hehe
Finish this sentence: "My name is Stan Smirnoff and I..."
Stay Higher then a vulture
Any last words?
yah people need to stop doing flyout bullshiet ass tricks and running tiny ass bars which look like your riding a fuking TOYY!!!! and just learn how to flow lol if you dont blow trees then i dont know how to explain to you how to keep it fresh haha as soon as i move to AZ ima work on going over to bobs and jumping that big thingy!
In light of recent events, C4 owner Gino Troian created a new forum for everyone as an alternative to the Scooter Resource. Check it, make an account, and start posting.
If you have a question about the site, want to suggest something to put up, or just want to yell at me for creating a blog about a kids' toy, send me an email at jordanjasa@gmail.com or tweet at me (@jordanscoots.
I especially want to hear what you guys want to see in the site, so please give me some feedback. Thanks!
