In the midst of struggling to trying to write a novel about skateboarding the author Kyle Beachy decided simply to write about a person he admired: Andrew Reynolds. He saw Reynolds as someone who possessed an uncanny cultural presence with the ability to unify skateboarding opinion not only through respect but, importantly, the acknowledgement than no-one would argue the frontside flip is not Andrew Reynolds’ trick. However, in the wake of Emerica's 'Stay Gold', Beachy also saw Reynolds as as perfect model of an adult that a skateboarder could achieve. Adulthood being “A crisis that you also, if you persist long enough at this most fun thing, will have to confront,” writes Beachy in his essay, ‘A Very Large Puzzle: On Andrew Reynolds’. The piece published by Jenkem Magazine in 2012 would become a foundational text (and inform the title) of what became his second novel, 'The Most Fun Thing: Dispatches From A Skateboard Life'. Published in 2020 by Grand Central, the book is a collection of Beachy’s writings on skateboarding spanning throughout the 2010s. On today’s show, Beachy discusses writing that formative essay on Andrew Reynolds and who The Boss is today.
Hosted, edited and produced by Farran Golding
Timestamps and show notes:
00:00 Introduction to the episode and Kyle Beachy
1:27 Kyle’s history with Andrew Reynolds
2:10 Kyle’s studies, journalism, career and first novel
3:20 Kyle’s second novel and early skate articles
3:50 ‘A Very Large Puzzle: On Andrew Reynolds’
5:00 Interlude: Stella Reynolds
5:15 Sports Writing vs Skate Writing
6:45 Reynolds of the 2010s
7:26 Kyle’s History with Emerica
8:15 Stay Gold
9:08 Being moved by skateboarding
9:47 Skateboarding journalism in the early 2010s
11:12 Writing the Reynolds essay
12:36 Age and thoughtfulness
14:55 Heath Kirchart
17:05 'The Most Fun Thing'
20:37 Rooting for Reynolds
22:21 Revisiting Reynolds
24:43 Baker Has A Wholesomeness
26:02 'BHADW2' fundraiser
29:09 Outro
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30:00
The Civic Center of New York City Skateboarding with Ian Browning
The Lower East Side Skatepark ("L.E.S.") set a precedent for skatepark construction across the boroughs of New York City after it opened on Go Skateboarding Day 2012. Describing it as the "civic centre" of NYC's skate scene, journalist Ian Browning explored how it came to be and where skateparks sit within the ecosystem of New York's municipality, in a Quartersnacks story that coincided with the tenth anniversary of L.E.S. published in 2022. On our first Skate Bylines podcast, Ian shared how the story came together and we explored how New York's significance to skate culture grew exponentially over the past decade.
Hosted and edited by Farran Golding
Photography by Christian Kerr
Timestamps and show notes:
00:00 Welcome to Skate Bylines
00:46 Introduction to the episode
2:20 First visits to L.E.S. Skatepark
3:56 The opening and significance of L.E.S. Skatepark
5:24 The original incarnation of the L.E.S. Skatepark
6:45 What makes a good skatepark?
7:55 Interlude: Gangs of New York
8:24 History of the L.E.S. neighbourhood
9:40 Ian’s story and the differences between parks and spots
11:58 Learning etiquette through environment
12:55 The geography of New York’s historic skateboarding hubs
15:00 New York’s increased significance
17:54 Park space in New York City
19:42 Communicating with the Parks Department
21:45 "A series of Hail Mary's"
22:11 Ian and Quartersnacks
23:26 Pitching the story
24:28 J. Jonah Jameson, pt. i
24:47 The editorial process
25:30 J. Jonah Jameson, pt. ii
25:43 Journalism school and skateboarding journalism
26:39 Finding the through line
29:57 Outro
New Zealand