Vague Skate Mag and RWTB ‘Swell’
Vague Skate Mag and RWTB present ‘Swell’, an edit focusing on the ever increasing amounts of concrete at the latest DIY spot built by Leeds’ finest guerrilla build enthusiasts. Leeds has a long and storied history when it comes to DIY spot builds (scroll down past the video for more on that), with various concrete playgrounds springing up and temporarily offering an alternative to the fun but dated skatepark which has long sat in Hyde Park. As the old adage goes ‘If the council are useless bastards, go out and build a skatepark yourself’ and this latest venture will hopefully stand the test of time, short sighted local governance and land hungry supermarket capitalist forces to see plenty more concrete added to the space available. With that in mind, you can gain some karma points and help fund the spot by sending some money via Paypal to the spot email, which is [email protected]. An immediate sense of being a legitimate philanthropist of heshery will be your just reward, a warm and stoke inducing feeling which you should undoubtedly put to good use, find an empty space and go build your own!
Featuring Blinky, James Foster, Lois Pendlebury, Brendan Watson, Dead Dave, Nathan Wood, Harley, Josh Rose, Chris Pope, Jordan Kaye, Lee Rozee, Martyn Hill and Dave Tyson.
Go check out a selection of photos taken over the course of the build by Reece Leung over at Vague’s website after watching!
Needleside was the first major DIY build to crop up in Leeds after I moved there, not to take anything away from the majority BMX-built Wasteland which was fairly short lived. The Joint offered up ledges, pole jams, wallride and a lengthy double sided curb as well as many a BBQ before eventually falling victim to the powers that be, whereupon The Dustbowl rose from its ashes and claimed its place as the funnest place to skate in Leeds for a good couple of years until whoever owns the land (which was never 100% established I don’t think?) decided that the land was better off with junkies rather than skateboarders. Such is life…
