Mini Video 94 – Bushcraft

Skating Photos, Skating Videos


Feeling inspired after making “Blue Building”, I set out to recapture that feeling. For the first video of 2022 I used the same Hi-8 cam I used in the late 90s, fisheye screwed on with step-up ring, and fully auto settings.  Just turn on the camera and go –  caveman style – focus, exposure, shutter speed, and white balance don’t exist in this beautiful world.  

I must admit that the camera did have some downfalls in the harsh Wisconsin winter conditions.  It was in the teens Fahrenheit for some of this, so batteries had to be kept warm in pockets or they’d last approximately four minutes.  All weapons have their weaknesses.

Skating by: Max Murphy, Vince Stranc, Josh Ellis, Bradford Bishop, Sean Hanley, Drew Rickaby, Payne Counihan, Gabe Chan, and Nick Mistele.

The Sony TRV-120. 450x digital zoom. (up to) 12 hours battery life. “Nightshot” 0 Lux. A glorious weapon.

“Bushcraft” production stills by Bradford Bishop:

Max Murphy – Lower Level Wall Plant
Vince Stranc – Wall to Grabber
Josh Ellis – Wallride Fakie
James Brick, up close w/ nightvision. During the day. Think about it.
Drew Rickaby – Backside Kickflip
Sean Hanley – Nollie Backside Kickflip
Vince Stranc – Wallie
Vince Stranc – Wallie Boardslide
Max Murphy – 50-50 Hippie Jump
Max Murphy – Frontside Bluntslide
Payne Counihan – Boardslide
Sean and Drew, Bushcraft Legends

Rewind: Mini Video 01

Skating Videos

Originally posted November 22, 1999. The one that started it all! Big news.

This is a reasonably accurate recreation made using the raw footage. I was too lazy to make a perfect copy of the excellent(?) typography employed in the original video.

Trivia: This wasn’t actually called “Mini Video 01” at the time. How could I know? The file is called “ben vance promo.mpg”.

The original web clip is 320×240 and the frame rate was lowered to 20 fps. The file size was less than one meg.

At the time, it would’ve taken the viewer around 10-15 minutes to download the clip onto their computer. From there they could load it up into their video player of choice. That is, if they remembered where they saved the file on their computer. There was no such thing as a web based video clip player.

A screenshot of some late 90s tech tips. There was a lot more effort involved in this whole thing.
And of course, a quick comparison of how bad the image quality was back then.
Hi! From the 90s.
Enhance! The PC where this video was edited. It was probably something like a pentium 125, and it probably had both Roller Coaster Tycoon and Doom installed.
Enhance! The fuel that kept me fired up for those long editing sessions to make 10 second long videos.

Rewind – Mini Video 44 – Wouldn’t You?

Rewind, Skating Videos

Originally posted June 23, 2008.

“I think uh skate uh boarding is awesome…”, this is it, the big one! My favorite Mini Video I ever made. A lot to take into consideration. First Max Murphy appearance. Stemper had just moved to California, and faxed in a couple of lines. How did we facilitate this file transfer back then? Good question. “It was probably difficult” is the answer. Chad Benson guest spot! I’m not sure how he only ended up with one clip, because he’s never not doing tricks, but there he is! Pizzy on the Pizzy Bank, showing us what it’s all about. Russ in his ceremonial Beezing Shooz. Finally, Jeffrey. I wasn’t even there on that session, but apparently Jeffrey wanted to bang everyone! “That wuz goooood…”!

Period appropriate images to begin below…

Max Murphy – Boardslide. This is the very first photo I ever shot of Max. This is/was at his alma mater and thus holds a special place in his heart. In Latin “alma mater” literally means “nourishing mother”. How lovely.
Wonk! Not just any Wonk, but a Wonk on a log.
Danny Stemper – Frontside Bluntslide. Why wasn’t it filmed? I wish I knew. Also featured in the illustrious Stuck Magazine.
Uncle Will.
Pat Forster – Crooked Grind
Danny Stemper – Frontside Ollie
Pat Forster – Backside Kickflips on his namesake skatespot.
Two friends enjoy a margarita after skating a Pizzy Bank together. Divine.
Pat Forster – Nosegrind Bonk. Destroy the Machines. At a glance it would appear that they were preparing to tear this spot down, but fourteen years later it still stands. I think perhaps even after a global thermonuclear war Dodge City might still stand.
Wonk!
A lot to take in here, but surely I whipped Pizzy’s ass in tennis shortly after this was taken. The bike was Gabe’s childhood Dyno Compe, which I finally returned to him shortly after the pandemic began. I hope he’s been practicing his cherry pickers.
Max Murphy – Frontside 180.
And the flash stand used to create the above photograph. I love when you spot a Sunpak 555 in an old movie or tv show. Most likely to be used by a crime scene photographer in a police procedural.
Max Murphy – Nosegrind Transfer
Pizz in a du, filming Max Tailslide. I got him that du-rag at a gas station because I was worried his head was going to get sun burned.
Max Murphy – Tailslide. Notice lil Pizz in his du back there, just poppin’ out and peekin’. I guess that means he in fact did not film this tailslide.
Tj Bohach – Backside Over Crook. Do people still argue if the over crook exists? I hope so.

I must apologize, for I’m really running out of stuff to say in these posts.

Wiskate Music

Skating Videos

Music has always been important to the wiskate.com “vibe/brand”. For over 20 years I’ve painstakingly (read: spent 2.6 seconds) chosen what I thought was the most appropriate track to express the feelings at hand/mise en scene of the clip/video.

Above is 100 songs I’ve used in both full length videos and in Mini Videos starting with Mini Video 25 from 2003, until Mini Video 93 from 2021.

Enjoy!?

The Selector

World Industries, 5/28/00

Skating Videos

Ryan Kenreich, Chad Timtim, and Carlos De Andrade. Carlos went insane!

A re-imaging of some earlier wiskate content. As a point of reference, this is what the “demos” page on wiskate looked like 20+ years ago:

Blue Building

Skating Videos

Blue Building. My Hi8 tapes that span a time frame of roughly 1998-2000. I tried to not reuse the “famous” clips that I’ve dredged up and posted in various places in the past. I hope you catch a vibe. A lot of it is awful in my favorite way. The best times with my high school skate crew. A lot of feelings involved.

The titular Blue Building was a structure at Heiderich Greenhouses. My friend Mark grew up there, and the greenhouse business was out back from his house. Whenever winter hit, we always had a place to skate.

Features Josh Ellis, Mark Heiderich, Pat Gaynor, Ben Vance, Boban, and more.

Ben Vance – Ollie in the Blue Building
Greg Lutzka – Blunstlide in the Blue Building

Rewind: Mini Video 43 – GC

Rewind, Skating Videos

“Mega ramp this!!!” The 43rd document. Originally posted April 10, 2008.

It appears to feature footage from both the fall of 2007 into spring 2008. Nothing much from the winter in between. I don’t think we were such gluttons for cold air punishment back then. Instead, to pass the winter, we spent our time playing Rock Band on the Xbox 360, texting on flip phones (T9 Mode), wondering what was going to happen on “Breaking Bad”, and probably other various mid to late 2000s activities.

Spoiler alert! The last trick in the video, Danny Stemper, Pole Jam into the street. This was kind of a spot for a second. It still exists. No one skates it, obviously.
Pat Forster, frontside board pole jam. This is the same pole that’s still in Estabrook. The longest running “permanent” obstacle, I believe. Although it is slightly steeper now. Didn’t film this, wish I did.
Saw the band Witchcraft from Sweden. Dude kept tonguing his guitar neck. Sick move, underutilized. Pizzy definitely had me “hold this beer” at one point, which I immediately drank all of. Sorry Pizz, still owe you a beer.
Gabe, plus the crew. Looking as fine as can be. I feel like this should be offered as a stock photo. Imagine all of the products that could be advertised with this image.
Sledding, it’s sort of like skating. Danny goes hard.
There’s Something About Billy. Cream City just turned 16 years old yesterday, by the way.
Clearly all of the skating during this winter took place indoors. Danny blasts a big kickflip fakie on the old mini ramp. Beautiful.
February, 2008. The state of Estabrook.
Saw Dillinger 4, met this pink gorilla.
After traveling to all of the local skate shops to deliver copies of Beez 1-3 on DVD, Russ needed to hold Pizz like a young baby boy. “Sometimes you just have to pick him up”.
Wonk, before the big thaw.
A classic ass pivot to fakie by Pizz at the Pizzy Bank. As of late the bank was more of a cube. Lately it’s again back to triangle form. But now there’s more crap to hit your head on. Another spot gone. How much more can we take?
Pizz catches gabe in the act of a “Pooner Boy Chainer”.
“The Ghetto is a must on the sesh, man”. DRI tape, red curb.
I’d like to think that this is a behind the scenes photo of me filming Document 43.
Gabe and Stemp piled out. Rock Band drums cast aside. A night to remember?
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