Skateboard Gear

Product Toss: My Set Up with Shaun Currie

A peek at Skateboard Cafe and Vans UK rider Shaun Currie's current set up

With honorary Yorkshire man, Instagram comedian and Skateboard Cafe rider Shaun Currie over in my hometown last week working on a little video project, I figured it made sense to take the opportunity to get an overview of what’s currently powering Shaun’s fast-footed skateboarding. Keep your eyes peeled for more from Mr. Currie soon and check out his Product Toss below.

Deck
Shaun is currently riding a Skateboard Café ‘Bitches Brew Directions in Music’ Korahn Gayle deck in size 8.125”.

Alongside their cheeky nods to culinary establishments, Skateboard Café have often incorporated references to jazz music in their graphical output. Previous nods to the genre include the trumpeter Lee Morgan and saxophonist Ornette Coleman adorning previous apparel and board collections. The latest in this line of homages, seen here on Kaygeezee’s pro model, is a tribute to the late, great, Miles Davis and his acclaimed 1970 album ‘Bitches Brew’. Although the album became Davis’ first gold record and has been praised for ‘rewriting the jazz rulebook’, ‘Bitches Brew’ has often invoked a controversial reception despite its imprint on the genre. The Penguin Guide to Jazz described ‘Bitches Brew’ as “One of the most remarkable creative statements of the last half century, in any artistic form” yet adds “It is also profoundly flawed, a gigantic torso of burstingly noisy music that absolutely refuses to resolve itself under any recognised guise.” Taken out of the context of music this statement seems somewhat applicable to skateboarding itself…

Nuanced visual history aside and onto the specifics; this board has a flat-to-mellow concave, which is common across the Skateboard Café range, with an equally round and steep nose and tail. However, the nose is slightly longer which allows a bit more stability for nollie tricks (and switch too, if you’re so inclined to skate your board that way).

Trucks/wheels/bearings

For the undercarriage, Shaun is riding a set of Thunder Trucks 149 Hi Lights, which provides a lighter truck thanks to the hollowed out kingpin. These trucks are a good middle ground between a standard set of polished Thunder Trucks, whilst not quite as featherweight, or expensive, as Thunder’s Hollow Light model which features a more slender baseplate alongside a hollowed out kingpin and axle.

While Shaun’s wheels are worn in way beyond their original sale diameter, what you see here are a set of Death Skateboards 55mm Wheels. With a durometer of 100A, this Death urethane is a nice balance between a wheel that grips and slides and is therefore ideal for park or street terrain and topped off with a set of trusty Bones Reds bearings.

Finally, Shaun’s footwear – as a Vans UK rider, Mr Currie is a fan of the Vans Style 112 Pro.
This particular colourway is ‘Reflecting Pond / White’ with a bit of yellow pop on the heel tab.

The Style 112 Pro takes cues from Vans’ past and present, particularly the Old Skool, whilst also bearing some resemblance to Gilbert Crockett’s first signature shoe.
The Style 112 Pro features a fairly slim silhouette with a narrower toe than the Old Skool, though by no means is it one of the pointiest shapes found across the Vans Pro range. Classic Vans detailing is present throughout, such as the faux-leather jazz stripe, ‘Off The Wall’ emblem on the tongue and red heel tab, while a padded gusseted tongue and Ultracush HD insole provide comfort and support.
The Style 112 Pro is built on top of Vans’ grippy vulcanised waffle sole and utilizes suede in all of the key contact spots. Further backed by Vans Duracap inner lining and topped off with subtle vulcanised toe cap, Vans have spared no effort here in ensuring that you get more than your money’s worth out of this well priced team model. Flick up the heel tab for a little surprise too.