Chris Athans

Full Loophole!

This is not our first time praising it, or those guys' output in general but finally, today, we're here: the VX full-length of the year, by Zach Chamberlin for Loophole Wheels: "NEW DOORS HAVE OPENED" is up in its entirety for everyone to stream on the sextuple V, and it's packed with unique spots, styles somehow flexible enough for those, funky maneuvers, San Francisco vibes and postmodern lines. Of course, the production itself is impeccable, truly honoring the legacy of the best, most classic S.F. videos all the while cultivating an originality of its own - because Zach. If this doesn't get you hyped for your next session or maybe twelve, then it's surely because you're missing the zines, wheels and various other goodies meant to accompany such a great piece of work, which you can check out here.

Loophole alert!

There is definitely no tippy-toeing around this sharing of all three of the segments from the brand new Loophole Wheels video "NEW DOORS HAVE OPENED" that our brethern over at Free Skate Mag have been posting throughout the week. Because the DVD just dropped (in two different versions, coming with a zine), and also because you won't need any more to understand how we're talking the full-length skate piece of the year, right here! Jameel Douglas celebrates his newfound official affiliation with Magenta via a part so impeccable it might as well qualify as a tribute to the traditional greatness of San Francisco skateboarding, tech, smooth and creative; Chris Athans, on his end, shows those hills who really decides over their rhythm, while Josh McLaughlin makes the most improbable maneuvers work. Ah and of course, Zach Chamberlin is behind the lens... What more does one need to cope a copy?

Select all players!

Eric Nguyen, whose talents - Sony VX-1000 in hand - no longer need an introduction (or if they do, then feel free to check out his past productions here), is back with "SLOPES": just short of eight minutes filmed in between his Texas home and San Francisco that honor both Select Skateshop and the Black Lives Matter movement (represented by several organizations whose respective websites are linked to in the YouTube description of the edit). There, one gets to see the usual suspects again - including Ben Havran and Kyle Cielencki to name just two out of many more, but also some of the kings of the Bay Area hills: Ben Gore, Ryan Barlow, Chris Athans and even Magenta Japanese flow rider Futoshi Tokuyama - who, from the looks of it, was really set on making the most of his S.F. vacation! Also worth mentioning: the appearance of a certain Fred Gall...

Eric's productivity being particularly upbeat, it can even exceed our workflow at LIVE sometimes - therefore we strongly encourage you to check out his YouTube channel to catch up with his recent activity - and more edits such as "CURFEW", for instance!

Cricri d'amour

Despite the cancellation of its Parisian premiere last month and, more globally, a release just on time for the current apocalypse, "HELEN" still is the new Northern Co. full-length video, handicrafted by San Francisco VX-1000 maestro Zach Chamberlin; the DVD is available here and today, we even have Chris Athans' section gracing our screens, and making us dream of this abstract, downhill kingdom of steep and rough lands the man reads between the City's lines and reigns over, it seems - all the while never missing one beat, and marking wallies of various intonations onto the streets' music sheets.

Oh, just because we can, we'll send you back to the Northern Co.'s Parisian peregrinations from a few summers back, right here!

Max's tip: "MERLOT"

Max Guyot (interviewed on the topic of his video "BROTHERHOOD" filmed in Nancy and Paris, here) most definitely knows what's up as he was the first to bring "MERLOT" to LIVE's attention - that is, two whole hours before its author could even find the time to e-mail us the link!

So, this "MERLOT" tastes like forty strong minutes of San Francisco brillance, equally brillantly collected by Ryan Flores featuring, on the other side of the lens, la crème de la crème of the modern local scene: Jameel Douglas (whose Parisian peregrinations you might remember from here) wraps up no less than a part in the pure tradition of the genre, then followed by the likes of Chris Athans, Ryan Barlow, Jesse Narvaez, Tom Farrell, James Sayres, Alex Greemann or Harry Hafner, amongst others, dotting the timeline... Even some classy visitors showed up: Léo Valls, Connor Kammerer, Jimmy Larkz or César Dubroca too are in, and that's without even counting Tobin Valverde, Kyle Cielencki (to get more familiar with here), Justin Henry, Simon Isaksson, and even renowned filmers such as Zach Chamberlin and Brett Nichols who both broke free from the record button for a minute. And then more, with Evan Collison and finally Cody Rosenthal, who completes an eventual picture that's vibrant of many a color, style and spot (all read with science, those ones).

"MERLOT" is the result of years worth of skating and filming; it is therefore only logical that its aromas feel so fine and sweet, with a punchy aftertaste to boot!

So, will you be grabbing that bottle or what?...

Luck Of The Draw

In addition to managing Lottery, Logan Matthews is a good friend of Zach Chamberlin's, which can be felt as far as in their common passion for the collection of efficient, impactful VX-1000 footage amidst a San Francisco notorious for its ups, but mostly for its downs - apparently, very much to the joy of the likes of Chris AthansBen Gore or Sean Greene, who love using this type of sloped terrain to their advantage...

All things considered, "LUCK OF THE DRAW" will definitely hit you with a taste of what a year twenty twenty version of "HILL STREET BLUES" could look like with its impeccable production, an author who's bound to instantly become one of your favorite filmers, and an overall inclination for good taste be it as far as spots, tricks, presentation and even the soundtrack are concerned, directly relying on the strengths of the most classic S.F. videos, refreshed with up-to-date actors and approaches!

For more on the personal activity of most of the stuntmen involved here, in this wheel of fortune falling downhill in the best possible way that's "LUCK OF THE DRAW", may LIVE send you back to Loophole - Zach, Ryan and Jesse Narvaez's company of urethane-hard and silk-soft goods, all screen-printed on location in the purest D.I.Y. tradition. Although, one might argue - who needs a push in a realm of hills, right?

Right?...

S.F. butter

Once again, our mates from down under over at Butter Goods demonstrate the extent of their networking skills since after a recent collaboration with DC Shoes which most notably produced this exquisite mix of Josh Roberts' filming and Josh Kalis' skating, today, they're back with another one: this time with FTC, San Francisco's most legendary skateshops that already sponsored some of the original writers of modern street skateboarding, as early as in the early nineties. We'll send you back to "Finally" for the basics, then to "Penal Code 100A" for applied physics.

In order to celebrate the launch (both online, and in-store at the S.F. and Barcelona locations) of the corresponding product, the world is granted two minutes of raw skating straight out of the downhill mecca, and from the lens of Zach Chamberlin's beloved VX-1000 (at least since the Rasa Libre videos), which is always unarguable. On the other side of the lens is quite the all-stars roser: Ben Gore crushes the spots, Ryan Barlow views them as hurdles, Roger Krebs improbably kickflip frontside wallrides and Chris Athans jumps from truck to truck.

All is right with the world!

And for an extra bonus of similar flavors, here's a reminder of the Magenta x FTC promo from a few years back, already...

Six pack!

We haven't been without introducing you to Loophole - the S.F.-based wheel company piloted by some of the best - before; and if the name of Zach Chamberlin still eludes you to this day somehow, then we strongly encourage you to do some research!

Anyway, this time, the whole roster (and what a roster, even featuring a couple of new heads) visited Seoul then Osaka, Tokyo and finally Kobe, only to bring back a twelve-minute-long piece of VX-1000 handicraft that's bound to make you mentally travel - and physically, at least as far wherever your board is resting right now.

Up North for good

Many people had been low-key awaiting a full part from Chris Athans after his first appearances in Northern Co.State FootwearFree TravelLoophole Wheels clips and a a daily feed of others in S.F., as his Instagram can attest. Well, such a wait is over as Northern Co. just dropped Chris' official "welcome" part. An up-and-comer who retains a taste for going downhill it looks like, literally, preferably (very) fast and in (very) close proximity of Zach Chamberlin, behind the VX.

No pun intended

"HI8US" is the new video confession from S.F. hills' very own Papa Smurf: Ben Gore, pro chez Magenta, world renowned for his power and flick just as much as for his sharp eye, whether behind some kind of photographic lens or not. "A video about a tripod", or so he claims; a deceptively humble description as the edit is stuffed to the brim with genius skateboarding (and the occasional stunt) authored by Brian Delatorre, Ryan Barlow, Roger Krebs, Chris Athans, Trevor Thompson, Brian Powderly, Ben himself and then a handful of more, even. All in the name of his project: Three Press, and conveying some serious Dan Wolfe vibes, but transposed to the current S.F. scene.

Free travel, bis!

Just a few weeks back, we were presenting you the first web edit for filmer Chris Thiessen and pimp John Lindsay's clothing brand: Free Travel. Well, they're back with a new production entitled "Trails", filmed over just four days in Los Angeles. The entire team (Chris Athans, Jesse Narvaez, Ryan Barlow, Mike Bloodsworth) shares the (literal) shine with a bunch of Northern Co. representatives, including a never-not-silky-smooth Jameel Douglas, and you're bound to feel the heat straight through the 3CCD prism - day and night!

S.F. alert!

We hinted to it already in this previous post about John Lindsay and Chris Thiessen's new garment-related enterprise, Free Travel; business-wise, a bunch is boomin' in the Bay Area these days with, equally, Loophole wheels, the uprising independent brand manufacturing soft and hard goods all destined to take a more downwards path - such as, in this case, zooming past the colorful landscapes of the streets of San Francisco, the nooks and crannies of which are hereby documented undergoing heavy physical inspection by trucks belonging to quite the epic team: co-founders Ryan Barlow (Magenta flow), Jesse Narvaez (Northern Co.) and filmer extraordinaire Zach Chamberlin, a solid roster already also happening to comprise flow master Jameel Douglas, quick feet kings Glen Fox and Chris Athans, and Roger Krebs. Glen's S.F. footage in "Stack Your Bread" especially makes it an instant classic (with impeccable timing as Glen also has a part in the new video Magenta video "Balade", currently premiering and just about to drop), and more generally everyone involves is featured playing their own role which is exactly why we love them for, and we'll definitely be keeping an eye on the certain progression of Loophole!

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