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Holy Crap! A must have disc for anyone even
vaguely interested in either skating or Tony Hawk! Get your skatey, get to the
shop and get this DVD right now!
Image this: You are
skating your neighbourhood park and all of a sudden this bus shows up out of
nowhere and out of it spills some of the best skaters in the world today,
headed up by Tony Hawk! That's the premise behind this disc that has been one
of the most entertaining skate discs that I've seen in a while.
The secret skatepark
tour came about by Hawk being tired of only skating publicly in a competition
format that would be swamped by kids, that due to it's very nature would allow
him and other pros to really have limited access to them. The skatepark tour
allowed these pro skaters to show up at parks unannounced and basically for a
period of time have the same amount of access that normal people would have to
the facility.
This is a fresh look at
the idea of a skate video and one that I personally love. I can say
unreservedly that I sincerely hope that this is going to be an ongoing series.
I can so easily identify with the guys who are locals at the park with the way
their jaws drop open when they realise that Hawk, Sheckler, Vallely, Margera
and co. step out the bus and destroy their local park. The sheer variety of
parks also means that you get to see how the pros change their style slightly
in order to adapt to the new environment.
Fans of skating who
know the names of skaters better keep these names on their lips as they will
become the new Tony Hawk and other legendary names that you can think of. They
are Ryan Sheckler (who I had the privilege to see skate at the 2004 Globe
World Cup in Melbourne) and another young guy Shaun White who is totally
dominating the world snowboarding scene. These kids have so much raw talent
that it is incredible to watch, and even the seasoned pros such as Vallely are
saying that they are the ones to keep an eye on. The level of tricks that
these kids perform are staggering and absolutely amaze me.
With the structure of
the secret tour being what it was, there was what I would consider to be much
more innovative skating involved as they didn't have to lug gear about and
skate to a routine as would be the case in a huge event where the pros would
do the same tricks every night and at the same time. Every park was different
with it's own idiosyncrasies that the riders has to adjust to.
Asides from the fact
that just about every favourite skater of mine was on this tour, I was
especially stoked to see that one of my all time heroes, Rodney Mullen, was on
this tour. Mullen is a bit of a recluse of sorts and really seems to
have had a bit of a problem with crowds. He's the sort of pioneer who's been
around since the old school days of the Bones Brigade and a skater whom I've
enjoyed watching for over twenty years (yes I am that old!). Mullen is the
undisputed king of flatland and tech skating and quite frankly skates at a
level that I've never seen matched.
All things said and
done, this is one disc of such quality that you will watch it again and again.
It's not like a lot of flicks that you will watch once and then stuff it up on
your bookcase. The concept is new and so packed with the world's best skaters
that you are getting some of the best value for money that you could hope for.
Some may ask, why a
perfect score for this feature. Simple. It was perfect!
Highest Recommendation!
This feature looks
absolutely great and there is nothing to complain about. Not sure of the
equipment used but there is very little in the way of faults here. All things
said and done, highly entertaining and highly watchable from start to finish.
You've got good quality audio here and
nothing that will make you turn up the volume in order to hear people talking.
Slams are distinct and enough to make you wince. Music is your standard skate
vid fare that will get you amped to grab your own board to hit the street. A
solid package.
Packed! This is a great
line up of extras and they are bound to keep you all entertained. Even the
still photos that I nearly don't bother with, were entertaining and told a
story in their own right. We got to see skate parks that weren't featured in
the main show, Tony Hawk taking time out to see fans, still shots from the
tour, it's a jam packed extras area that is awesome.
If you had to ask me my favourite extras it
would be the way too short Rodney Mullen Show, Chalmer's Cam and the temper
tantrums thrown by Kerry Getz, mixed of course with the glee that Bam Margera
had in capturing them on disc!
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Tony visits fans
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Extra Park Footage
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Chalmer's Ditch
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Chalmer's Cam
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Rodney Mullen Show
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Day Off in Wyoming
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Photo Scrapbook
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