The San Matean

Issue date: 5/27/08 Section: Entertainment

Media Credit: Frederick Russell Nick Gray

It's 9 a.m., Monday, and the first thing that Nick Gray picks up for school, even before his backpack, is his customized NZ Longboard.

Gray is one of few CSM students who ride their skateboards from class to class everyday. Although the campus terrain is not ideal for most skaters, because of its bumps and cracks, Gray is still attempting to start the trend on campus.

"There's not much of a skate culture here," said Gray. "I want to get people boarding from each of their classes, like a real campus."

Currently, skatboarding is not prohibted on campus. "The skateboards themselves can be used as transportation around campus. However, tricks are not allowed on campus because of the risk of injury," said John Wells, chief of campus security.

When asked how he felt about skating on campus, student Cameron Mcleod, 31, said "The pathways here are really crowded. It would be the perfect way to get around a campus though, I used to skate at UC Berkeley all the time."

Since its creation in the 1950s, skateboarding has been a major cultural influence among college students. Originally called "sidewalk surfing," the extreme sport has held a stigma amongst establishments because of its more destructive elements.

However, Gray and his skating partner, Zack Heinenem, 18, say that they plan to establish a peaceful skating environment on campus.

The two have recently begun building longboards for students. The company, dubbed "NZ Longboards," work out of Heinenem's garage and "use only the best quality products, including bamboo decks," said Gray.

"We put together our first board about four months ago and people started asking us about them all the time, so we just decided to continue on with the business."

The main idea behind NZ' is "snowboarding on concrete" and the company's motto "feels like snow till ya' hit the flo" follows that idea.

- Frederick Russell

of The San Matean

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