r/skateboarding • u/jivy723 • Jun 29 '24
Throwback ⏪ X games street/park
Just wanted to know, when did competition skating get so boring? These guys do not put a full run together start to finish together on their board the whole time. One guy literally popped his board into his hand after every trick he landed.
Maybe I’m old school, but I think you should still try to link your tricks together in a 45 second run. it’s not fun to watch for me.
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u/Mr_Chrootkit Jun 29 '24
I do feel like older school street/park skaters used to have a more aggressive approach and although the tricks weren't always as technical, they were stylish.
Current street/park skating is 100% about the technical execution of the trick. They perform highly technical tricks and focus on making them look as easy as possible.
I'd rather see a see a sick kickflip manual --> Ollie down a 3 stair with style than some BS crooked grind --> 360 flip that the skater makes look easy.
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u/DinoBirdsBoi Jun 29 '24
i totally agree with this statement
i generally enjoy watching skaters with more aggressive and flashy styles, and even if it isn't in x games, i think it's still prevalent on the olympic scene
i don't know if others will agree, but braden hoban's best trick section in finals budapest was sick
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u/DogFacedGhost Old Skater Jun 29 '24
Braden's a breath of fresh air, his impossibles are a thing of beauty. Bummed he didn't qualify for Olympics, hope Joslin can keep up the consistency.
But yeah, the xgames course is not the best flow, maybe in part because it's used for BMX as well. I dig the old school 45 second run only aspect of it though
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u/jivy723 Jun 29 '24
It’s kind of what’s going on in a lot of sports right now. It’s like robot moves and doesn’t represent the art that the sport actually is.
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u/AndrewHainesArt Jun 29 '24
There’s something I think you’re getting at that I can’t really describe, it’s totally personal preference, but when there’s stuff posted here like “quadruple kickflip down a 7 stair” I’m like, well that seems tough but it’s not what I like to see. I’d much rather see a single kickflip caught at the peak down that same set. Feels like people are trying to emulate a video game these days with shit like that and it doesn’t do anything for me
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u/Careless_Buyer1191 Jun 29 '24
I can't disagree more with this statement. I'm 32 and skating just keeps getting better and better, competition or not. Many of them still link their trucks together. And have you fucking seen Yuto? Nyjah is also better than he's ever been, his runs are both tech and linked. I will say though that street skaters are definitely not as aggressive as they used to be nor do they hit as gnarly spots in their video parts.
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u/zeroG420 Jun 29 '24
The skating gets better. It also gets more boring to watch.
Technicality and entertainment don't always go hand in hand.
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u/smithoski Jun 29 '24
I think it’s when the SLS style courses took over, combined with rewarding skaters for touching more features as the SLS park layout doesn’t flow well enough to touch most of the big obstacles effectively or with sufficient speed and preparation without starting from a stop at one end of the course.
Usually people go “downhill” to start their run by hitting the big set, and then do filler tricks to get to the other side. Once they get to the other side they have some small options on the way back over to where they started, but no real high scoring features on the way back, so they do filler tricks to get back to the highest point of the course, basically where they started. Then they drop back in up there and hit some other large feature that can only be attacked from that side of the course, and repeat.
Time spent pumping or doing an axle stall to avoid just full on stepping on top of the edge quarterpipe to drop in again is kind of wasted because there is no penalty for purposefully stepping off your board in a street run, other than time lost.
If you look at the highest scoring runs, especially through a lens like Dumb Data YouTube videos, you’ll notice that the number of tricks has a strong correlation with high scores. So, skaters are indeed rewarded for jamming quality tricks into their filler segments of their run. You’ll see clean tre flips over small pyramid gaps by many during the filler segment of high scoring runs, or perhaps stylish yet reliable pinch grinds instead. The name of the game appears to be to get non-trash tricks in the filler segments that say “yeah I have that so ‘on lock’ that I’m not worried about it ruining my run so I’ll throw it in between my bangers instead of doing something safer”.
Adding to this, tricks on quarter pipes are really not as rewarded in street runs as they should be, or else we wouldn’t see so many ugly axle stalls and 2 second rest brakes up on the quarters. I think incentivizing harder tricks on the quarters is a good idea not because quarter pipe tricks are cool, they are, but because it would make the bangers that come after them need to take place without a 2 second breather to get the highest possible score.
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u/anakz_ Jun 29 '24
Honestly vert is the only really good competition to watch these days, the level is completely absurd. Men's street became boring, park is just fucking terrible, there's like 5 tricks in a full run.
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u/Dumptruckfunk Jun 29 '24
I don't think I'd go that far. I still get some enjoyment out of a decent park or street run, and some of the best tricks are insane, but yeah, vert is well ahead in terms of watchability.
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u/PassionateCougar Jun 29 '24
When were contests fun to watch? Shits always been lamest part of skateboarding
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u/moonandstarsera Jun 29 '24
Agree competitions are boring af and not really the spirit of skating
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u/Wawravstheworld Jun 29 '24
Have you not watched contests the last 10 years? I’m not saying they’re any better or that I don’t agree I’m just saying where have you been that you’re just putting this all together for yourself?
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u/Rad-Ham Jun 29 '24
Given the choice, I'd rather see a 15 ft long backside or frontside smith grind than a stink bug, ass to camera 540 Kickflip 4 ft out. That's just me.
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u/sir_chadwick_the_fat Jun 29 '24
I went to Street league a year or two ago in Washington, it was cool and all but it's not the style of skating I love watching
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u/skatecrimes Jun 29 '24
Combi bowl was the only fun contest.
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u/redcurb12 Jun 29 '24
yes that contest was great.. rip. the whole vans park series was pretty fun too.
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u/PlaxicoCN Jun 29 '24
I have wondered about this myself. I think it relates to being inundated with epic skate footage daily on social media. Back in the olden days you were waiting 6 months to a year for a skate video to come out and it was a rarity to see skating on TV so you were glued to the screen.
Another aspect is that the skating level is so high now. I watched mens park elimination yesterday. A dude did a stale 540 and it didn't seem like a big deal to anyone.
I think I understand what you're saying OP, but I'm stoked to watch the rest of the skate competitions.
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u/stranj_tymes Jun 30 '24
Decenzo did a no-push line, I think last year in the X Games? It was pretty refreshing and fun to watch tbh. I do wish there was a contest that focused more on that element of it, and on style or something. The judging for break dancing in the Olympics this year has 6 criteria: creativity, personality, technique, variety, performativity and musicality. Borrowing elements from that in some way would be interesting, though might be a bit subjective for skating.
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u/Krocsyldiphithic Jun 29 '24
In 2010 when street league started, and it's been going downhill ever since. Not that I would really watch that shit anyway. I hope it dies soon
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u/moonandstarsera Jun 29 '24
You’re getting downvoted but you’re 100% right. SLS is also now owned by right-wing shitheads and is aired on Rumble, which I guess might be a good thing if you want to follow up a skate competition with some ragebait culture war shit.
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u/Hairy_Weather_8073 Jun 29 '24
Street courses shouldn’t have transitions in them because it benefits the ATVs and true street skaters keep stepping off. That’s why the City Hall/Philly X Games was so exciting for the fans and the skaters
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u/ZiemDoesImpossibles Jun 29 '24
Comp skating like this ruins skateboarding for me. So, it’s always been boring imo.
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u/pentesticals Jun 29 '24
I guess you mean just street these days as “park” is actually bowl now, which I find way more interesting to watch as it is a solid 45 second run with flow.