Ben Raybourn: Young Man With an Old Soul

If you haven't been skateboarding for two or three decades like most of the people running skate companies and writing about skateboarding, I want to fill you in on some history. This dude Neil Blender was pro back when I first started skating in the late 80's and early 90's. He seemed to already be at legendary status even back then. If you talk to the old guys in skateboarding about graphics, his Coffee Cup board on G&S will almost certainly come up.

Neil had a unique style in skateboarding and was the first person I thought of the first time I saw Ben Raybourn skate. Ben was definitely paying attention to his skateboard history, too. His trick selection included some of the moves Neil was known for like laying on the ground with your board in a pogo position and rolling like you're on fire. You would only know that if you studied really old skate videos. Ben knows and his skating shows. It's been a pleasure watching him go from that young ass kid imitating his idols from before he was born to the grown man ripping the trannies today. Thrasher has 90 seconds of raw from Ben here.