WELL IT'S TIME AGAIN FOR A NEW ONE. IF YOU HAVE READ ANY OF MY PAST BULLETINS YOU KNOW THAT SLOWLY SKATING IS BEING TAKEN OUT OF THE HANDS OF SKATERS AND GOBBLED UP BY PEOPLE IN SUITS AND SLICK SHOES. IS THIS REALLY WHERE WANT SKATING TO GO? HELL NO!!! BUT SADLY DIRECTIONS ARE SHIFTING AND IF SOMETHING IS NOT DONE SOON SKATEBOARDING COULD BE NOTHING MORE THAN OTHER CHAIN STORE JOKE. 

WHEN THE AVERAGE AMERICAN THINKS ABOUT SKATEBOARDING THEY AUTOMATICALLY THINK OD OF THE STEREO TYPICAL IMAGE, A KID ON A SKATEBOARD TEARING UP PUBLIC PROPERTY AND JUST ANOTHER WASTED YOUTH HEADED NO WHERE IN LIFE. AND THE TRULY SAD THING ABOUT THAT IS THAT THEY ARE WAY WRONG IN THAT IMAGE. MOST SKATERS ARE PEOPLE WITH INDIVIDUALITY THAT SKATE BECAUSE IT IS THEIR PASSION. SKATEBOARDING IS NOT SOMETHING THAT ANYONE CAN JUST DECIDE TO DO. IT TAKES PERSEVERANCE AND DISCIPLINE TO SKATE AND BECOME GOOD AT IT. NOW OF COURSE THERE IS ALWAYS THE PEOPLE THAT GO OUT AND BUY A BOARD, A PAIR OF SHOES A COUPLE OF TSHIRTS AND CALL THEMSELVES SKATERS. THEY ARE PEOPLE THAT JUST WANT TO FIT IN WITH A CERTAIN CROWD OF PEOPLE AND LOOK COOL. BUT YOU HAVE THAT WITH ANYTHING, SOMEONE THAT JUST POSES AS SOMETHING THEIR NOT SO THEY CAN FIT IN. SKATEBOARDING ISN'T ABOUT FITTING IN IT'S ABOUT EXPRESSING YOUR INDIVIDUALITY THROUGH SKATING. I KNOW PEOPLE THAT WILL SCRAPE TOGETHER CHANGE TO GET A NEW DECK JUST SO THEY CAN GO OUT AND SKATE BECAUSE THAT IS ALL THEY WANT TO DO.

THERE ARE SKATERS THAT WRITE MUSIC, PAINT , WRITE LITERATURE POETRY AND MANY OTHER THINGS. SKATERS HAVE KIDS, FAMILIES, WORK GOOD JOBS AND ARE JUST LIKE EVERYDAY PEOPLE. IT'S JUST THEY GET LABELED AS PUNKS, THUGS, HOOLIGANS OR TROUBLE MAKERS. THEY GET HARASSED WHEN THEY SKATE DOWN A STREET OR IN A PUBLIC PARK, I DON'T THINK I HAVE EVER SEEN SOMEONE GET HARASSED BY SOMEONE FOR JOGGING, OR PLAYING FOOTBALL AT A PARK OR THROWING A FRISBEE, OH YEAH THAT'S RIGHT THOSE ARE FINE UPSTANDING MEMBERS OF SOCIETY. YEAH WELL WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU SAW A KID SKATING AROUND IN A PARK WITH HIS FRIENDS AND STOP TO RUN OVER A DRINK A BEER FROM A COOLER ON THE SIDELINES. 


IF SKATEBOARDING IS SUCH A PROBLEMATIC THING AND IS ONLY DONE BY PUNK LOSER KIDS WHY ARE COMPANIES LIKE FOOTLOCKER WHO HAVE NOT ONE SINGLE THING TO DO WITH SKATING BUYING ONE OF THE ONLINE SKATE COMPANIES FOR $102 MILLION DOLLARS? WHY DO WE SEE SKATEBOARDING IN TARGET ADS IN, IN YELLOWPAGES ADS EVEN IN PHARMACEUTICAL ADS AND IN POPULAR SITCOMS??

PEOPLE NEED TO OPEN THEIR EYES AND SEE THAT SKATEBOARDING IS EVERYWHERE AND IS NOT GOING ANYWHERE! IT JUST NEEDS TO BE LEFT IN THE HANDS OF THE PEOPLE THAT KNOW IT, NOT SOME RICH FATCAT THAT PROBABLY CURSES SKATERS WHEN HE SEES' THEM.

ANYWAYS THINK ABOUT THIS AND TELL PEOPLE THAT YOU KNOW THAT DON'T SKATE TO TRY AND LOOK AT IT WITH MORE OF AN OPEN MIND.



BRAD SIZEMORE OWNER OF DESOTO SK8

Foot Locke r To Buy CCS For $102 Million
Hey kids, do you buy your decks and shoes from catal og giant CCS? Well, now
you'l l be buyin g them from Foot Locker. 
The huge mall based shoe store is
looking to "expand its offerings in the skate boarding apparel category" and
has agreed to buy CCS for a cool $102 million. Not exactly chump change. 

guess it will be a small price to pay in order to "help broaden its appeal
to teena ged males ". 


We've said it befor e and we'll say it again , PLEASE support your local 
privately owned skate shop. 
If and when skate board ing becomes anything less
than a target market these shops will still be there supporting the scene . 

We're guess ing the 63 year old Foot Locker CEO who makes $ 1, 500, 000 a year
couldn't care less. 

Support The Shop That Supports YOU ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 

Here is a link to the article in TransWorld
http://business.transworld.net/tag/foot-locker/

THIS FOR EVERYONE IN THE AREA THAT SKATES THE ONES WHO LOVE IT, LIVE IT, AND BREATHE IT. IF YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED THE SCENE IN THE MEMPHIS AREA IS IN A SLUMP. THINGS ARE HARD RIGHT NOW FOR EVERYONE. ONE THING THAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND IS HOW VITAL HAVING A LOCAL SKATE SHOP IS TO THE SCENE. THE THREE SHOPS IN THE AREA ALL DO THINGS TO TRY AND VITALIZE THE SCENE. WHEN YOU BUY THINGS FROM ON LINE SHOPS LIKE CCS AND ACTIVE AND ALL THE OTHER ONES THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT THE SCENE HERE OR ANYWHERE ELSE. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THAT CCS ORGANIZED AN EVENT FOR THE SKATERS IN THIS AREA. TO ALL THESE ONLINE COMPANIES YOU ARE JUST ANOTHER NUMBER OR SALE. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU NEEDED A DECK AND WERE A COUPLE OF BUCKS SHORT AND CCS LET YOU SLIDE.

LOCAL SKATE SHOPS IN ANY AREA ARE VITAL TO THE SCENE, THEY TRY TO HELP ORGANIZE EVENTS TO GET EVERYONE TOGETHER TO HAVE A GOOD TIME AND LET CITYS SEE THAT SKATING IS VIABLE SPORT AND THERE IS A NEED FOR A PARK. ONLINE COMPANIES DON'T PUT ANYTHING BACK INTO THE LOCAL SCENE. TO KEEP A SCENE MOVING FORWARD IT NEEDS LOCAL CORE SHOPS THAT TRULY CARE ABOUT THE SCENE AND THE PEOPLE INVOLVED. WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT TIMES ARE TOUGH ON EVERYONE RIGHT NOW BUT OWNING A SKATE SHOP IS NEVER GOING TO MAKE ANY OF US RICH, WE DO IT BECAUSE WE LOVE IT. IF THE SKATE SHOPS IN AREAS START TO DISAPPEAR THE SCENE IS USUALLY NOT TO FAR BEHIND. ME ,JOSH, RON & ABE ALL HAVE SKATED ALL OF OUR LIVES AND LOVE IT FOR WHAT IT IS AND WE WANT TO SEE THE SCENE GROW FOR EVERYONE. BUT TO DO THAT EVERYONE NEEDS TO DO WHATEVER THEY CAN TO KEEP IT ALIVE NO MATTER HOW BIG OR SMALL OF A CONTRIBUTION. I'M NOT TRYING TO TELL ANYONE HOW TO SPEND THIER MONEY BUT THE NEXT TIME YOU ORDER SOMETHING ONLINE STOP AND ASK YOUR SELF WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THAT ONLINE SHOP PUT SOMETHING INTO THE SCENE AROUND HERE, OR HELPED YOU OUT WHEN YOU WERE A LITTLE SHORT ON FUNDS WHEN YOU NEEDED SOMETHING, OR SLIPPED A USED DECK TO USE UNTIL YOU COULD AFFORD A NEW ONE. 

I'M JUST SAYING THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN ON ALL OF OUR MINDS BUT JUST HAVE NEVER BEEN SAID. SO REMEMBER THAT WHEN YOU SHOP AT YOUR LOCAL CORE SHOP YOU ARE PUTTING MONEY BACK INTO THE LOCAL SCENE. SO IF YOU FEEL LIKE COMMENTING ON ALL OF THIS PLEASE DO BE IT BAD OR GOOD.

SINCERELY,

BRAD SIZEMORE OWNER OF DESOTO SK8