Recap of Underground Skate Party - KCDC in LIC

Hi guys!

So yesterday, the NYC team and I went to KCDC Skate shop in Williamsburg.  We had a great, long chat with shop manager, who actually went to the same college as I did and knows a ton of my friends who run a skate brand called Bakwoodz.  That commonality allowed him to open up a ton and we did some prior research and knew that an underground skate party was being put on in LIC in an abandoned warehouse.  We mentioned we might check that out and Andrew, said KCDC shop manager, said that those were put on by KCDC and sponsored by PBR, Zoo York and Jenkem Magazine each Thursday from November until end of March when this abandoned warehouse will be torn down to create condos.  Andrew from KCDC stated that they don't really heavily promote the party because more skaters = more potential injuries/falls but the hashtag they use to capture some of the party and the tricks is @KCDCSkateShop on IG.

We took the M train out to Court Sq in Queens and walked a block and a half to the warehouse.  Its unmarked and we only knew where it was because of a few errant skaters out front.  We opened the door and there was a curtain and one security guard who checked our IDs and gave us wristbands.  The place was not heated at all, but there were 2 heatlamps.  It was frosty.  You could see your breath.  We had to sign a waiver that stated they were not responsible for our health/injuries/etc and that there was asbestos on the premises.  We signed anyhow.  When in Rome, right?  We bee lined for the free PBR and set up in the back of the warehouse along the side to watch the guys skate.  And I want to emphasize GUYS.  There was not one female in there skating.  In total, 4-5 females, including myself and one friend.  There's opportunity here, guys, for Converse to work with some lady skaters and get involved in NYC - in SO many different ways.   There was a DJ there spinning some mashups of classic 90s hip hop, WuTang and ODB and Queens finest (Nas, Pharaoh Monche, etc).  It was all hip hop though.  I have about 2 :15s videos we can share as well.  The vibe of the KCDC skate party:  People of all ages can go there and skate but in order to enjoy a frosty PBR for free, you had to be 21.  The entire lay out was "rad" as per one skater name Louie.  They CODA guys had come in and designed some of ramps and there was a entire bowl on the right side.  It was approximately 2000 square feet of riding space plus multiple obstacles.  Per another skater, named Braun, this was the best place to ride during the winter.  Both skaters agreed that no one wanted to trek out to Staten Island for an indoor skate park when this was available for free on Thursdays.

The "party" was simply for skating, the video was never shown last night as they couldn't get the cables to work, so the DJ just kept spinning jams (MacBook, not on Technics or turntables).  Out of all the skaters, only one was wearing Converse All- Stars.  After he took a break from riding, I went to talk to him.  He is 26 and his name is Jim.  I asked him why he rode in Chucks.  His answer was that he normally doesn't, usually he wears Vans because according to him they have more cushioning in footbed and more comfortable on the side of the foot, too.  Interesting.  I noticed there was a massive House of Vans logo sticker in the middle of one of the ramps.  Apparently someone who worked with Vans put it there, but according to Jim, Vans does not sponsor that party.

I noticed that there were some skaters that were riding with headphones on (Despite hip hop blaring from the corner and loud enough to ride along with).  When that skater stopped, his name "Dee", he told me that he much rather ride to metal cause it gets his blood moving and he does "better tricks" when he's jamming out.  Good to note.

The skaters were of all races, African American, Caucasian, Asian and Hispanic.  Equally balanced and a true "melting pot" a la Queens in general, if you will.  I did notice an older skater riding in what I call California style.  Relaxed and controlled, not as aggressive, almost as if Longboard was his original style.  He stopped for a bit and confirmed my hypothesis.  His name is Jarrett, from California originally, late 30s and road longboard out there for decades.  He was tattooed from neck to wrists, wore a vintage Slayer t-shirt, cropped Dickies pants, high patterned argyle socks, a beanie and brown and gold low-top Vans.  I asked him why Vans?  he said the grip and that he's always worn them and that he probably wouldn't change "Why fuck with something that works, right?" was his exact quote.  Fair enough.  I asked him what he read online or watched that inspired him to skate and he said "Nah, I skate cause its my love, I don't really care about the trends or what's up, thats not the skater way".  Point taken. (I still think MUSIC is a huge part of this culture and we'll be exploring that Friday in NYC).

The party commenced with a skate off for 15 min where the guys were trying to sync up tricks with one another or out trick each other.  It was awesome to see despite some nasty spills that made me wonder "where are your knee pads?" like a mom.

A few guys were taking some photos and film, they asked us to get in a pic so we did, said it would be used for the Jenkem Magazine site.  So keep an eye out for us!  The guys didn't ask me why I was there, but after I tagged some things on Instagram with the #KCDCskatenight hashtag, they started following me, so maybe we've made some new pals in the underground skate world from this project? Ha!

I'll add some photos in a few.