Jason Mitchell, Seismic Nationals 2007, Hybrid Slalom.  Photo by Greg Fadell Northern California Downhill Skateboarding Association
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Skate Across America (157 Posts)
Topic Skate Across America for Lowe Syndrome
On 8/14/2003 Thea wrote in from (81.128.nnn.nnn)

Hello from Glasgow. Nick - great to see you doing something to make a difference. Hope you and the guys have a speedy and safe journey across the US of A. 'Look forward to some digital pix of the journey! Best wishes, Thea, from So You've Been Dumped.com, Glasgow Scotland. xx

 
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On 8/14/2003 couch warrior wrote in from (32.100.nnn.nnn)

keep pushin on fellas! all the sleestakers are pushing for you! being a skateboarder pushing up on the 30 year old mark, i can only look on in awe at this amazing feat. as soon as we find out when your coming through the midwestern leg (ie: illinois/indiana) some of us older kooks are gonna come push with ya for a bit. beers are on us! see ya then..

 
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On 8/13/2003 Michael wrote in from (195.92.nnn.nnn)

Duane Says: "they are actually going to stop at the radio station when they get to fort dodge

thanks for the tip !!"

So if your in Iowa, listen in!

 
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On 8/13/2003 Michael wrote in from (195.92.nnn.nnn)

Just been e-mailed by Duane Murley, afternoon presenter on KWMT AM540...interviewing the guys.
A well aimed e-mail, even those from followers out of state, or even international will get the news teams interested. Flatter them, say that Jack is bringing interest to their area from around the globe...
Here's Duane:


Also I found this article in the Sioux City Journal today:
http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2003/08/13/news/local/78d3d1e8427b739286256d8100197afa.txt

 
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On 8/13/2003 Iowa wrote in from (66.119.nnn.nnn)

Waterloo and Cedar Rapids TV Stations have been contacted.

 
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On 8/13/2003 Stan wrote in from (168.103.nnn.nnn)

SAA Site has new Itinerary and Stories and Pics.

http://www.asphaltplayground.com/lowe.html

 
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On 8/13/2003 Michael wrote in from (195.92.nnn.nnn)

Best of luck on your journey. Im so glad the BBC got on to you guys...use it your advantage..if the Beeebs interested then all the others should be too!!! Please put on a tie (I know its radio) stand up straight and use the word "dude" sparingly!


The BBC broadcasts on the 'net, go to www.bbc.com (duh!) hit hit 'radio' tab on the top there, then 'radio 5 live' you can listen live but also they archive the show for a day or so which takes a little more searching. So you all should be able to listen to it at some point. The programme is called 'Up All Night'. Broadcast nationally (to the UK)the programme pulls in stories from around the globe.

 
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On 8/12/2003 Jack and the SAA Team wrote in from (172.198.nnn.nnn)

Day 11 - Oneill, Nebraska to Sioux City, Iowa.

Great roads, but the headwind persists. We're all very tired of fighting the wind. There were some great downhill runs as we approached the Missouri River.

Josh outran the two-mile relay drop today, I failed to notice that we had not passed him when we dropped off Nick. So about 25 minutes later I turn to Scott in the sweltering van and say, "Josh never takes this long." So Scott skates a mile and a half back, no sign of Josh, then it dawns on us that we never passed Josh on the way to the drop-off. We drove forward over five miles to find them...they were not happy skaters, but they didn't give us any flack. Josh is one of the nicest, calmest and sincere young men I have ever met.

Tomorrow, it's on to Fort Dodge. These next few days will be especially tough for me. Iowa was where Jack spent some of his happiest days, lots of wonderful memories of him in this state. As I am riding along I continue to think more and more about him, remembering little things he did or said. A favorite saying of his was, "more, more," when he really liked something. It's become my mantra as I push through difficult times.

All of us are missing family and friends. I love you Maurine.

There will be articles in the Omaha and Sioux City newspapers. We will also be doing an interview on BBC radio tomorrow night at 8:45pm CST. Thanks to Michael Stride for setting this up.

Please keep spreading the word! Thanks to everyone.

Just rolling along,
Jack

 
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On 8/12/2003 JOE wrote in from (199.108.nnn.nnn)

Thanks guys for the kind words on the page. I am still comming down from the emotional drain of leaving you all out there in Boise. I did my big skater heart well to read that you all miss me. At least you don't smell like cigs anymore. Nick glad to see you are allright after your spill. I thought I took the fall for the team. Also glad to here that you are getting stronger. So you are all using on van now? Isn't it cramped? I bet it smells wonderfull in there. Yuck. The waves at Newport were nice this weekend but not as fun as skating with you all though my company was better looking (my woman) than you guys.

All my Strgenth and respect
JOE B

 
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On 8/12/2003 John Dillon, Team Fun wrote in from (151.200.nnn.nnn)

Keep on truckin, I mean, skating across America guys...we are pulling for you all! Go Jack! Go Nick!! Go Scott!!! Go Josh!!!!

 
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On 8/12/2003 Hannah wrote in from (63.102.nnn.nnn)

Okay fellas...Got in touch with my contacts @ MTV and VH1. I'm waiting to hear back and will keep you updated as to any progress on that end. Having a tougher time with the Newsweek folks...they're target audience is less in touch with the genre of sk8rs. You all are doing wicked good things out there, and you've got waves of fans. Any possibility of getting pics from the road electronically mailed to me which I could use for my pr's? Thx...and mucho peace your way...mind the truckers.

 
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On 8/11/2003 Nick wrote in from (206.222.nnn.nnn)

Day 10 - Valentine, NE to O'Neill, NE

We woke up to fog. Thick fog. Maybe 300' visibility. We were pretty spooked on the road for about an hour and a half, until it burned off. I could just imagine a semi plowing into one of us and never knowing it.

Speaking of which, a semi passed our support van while we were passing a skating Jack on the opposite shoulder. That was way too close, and I hope that's the closest we get to disaster.

We pushed into a steady headwind all day, which saps the strength and makes the push not much fun. We met up with a couple of documentary filmmakers in Ainsworth, Jack did a live radio spot, and we all did a newspaper article in O'Neill.

I am going to repeat my call for press. You guys (and women) have to be our PR people! We are out on the road, putting on the miles. We need you to let the newspapers, TV, radio, magazines, and e-media know that we are out there! Jack's phone number is on this page. The success of our mission is up to you.

- Nick
Currently Skateboarding Across America

 
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On 8/11/2003 Stubbs wrote in from (209.117.nnn.nnn)

Here's an article from the Casper Star Tribune in Wyoming. The girl that wrote the article was asking the guys questions like "Do you guys use the word dude a lot? 'Cause I want to incorporate that into my story." Here's the link:

http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2003/08/11/news/casper/cdb5eccb858ad011dd1af4452e90b1fa.txt

 
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On 8/11/2003 T dub wrote in from (65.161.nnn.nnn)

what up guys
me and my buddy just rode 2 miles with you monsters and we were wiped. The ainsworth, ne skateboarders are pullin for ya. Keep ridin!

Josh, you haul ass!

 
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On 8/11/2003 Wha??? wrote in from (66.119.nnn.nnn)

17 MPH?! That is hauling ass. I average around 9mph over 15 miles. And I am toast at the end.

When I road a bicycle cross country over almost the same route, I averaged 16 mph over 3400 miles.

You guys are maniacs.

 
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On 8/11/2003 michael brooke wrote in from (209.183.nnn.nnn)

guys,

get me a good shot of the four of you in the middle of nowhere and we'll reserve the space as the double page spread opener for next issue (nov) of Concrete Wave.

As for media maybe we can get Christiana Ananpour from CNN to do a live remote and you can witness her heavy breathing...

Seriously though, look at the visitors to this site...surely one person out there must know someone at MTV...The NY Times...CNN....NBC

Any curious smells you've encountered?

 
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On 8/11/2003 Ricky wrote in from (12.39.nnn.nnn)

Stay focused and stay strong guys. We are all rooting for you.

What equipment is wearing? Are you going though wheels and bearings?

I wish we could all take a turn for you.

 
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On 8/10/2003 Jack and the SAA Team wrote in from (172.141.nnn.nnn)

Just wanted to add a big thank you to Tod Swank of Tumyeto and skateboard.com, my wife just called and told me that Tod threw down a very large contribution to our cause!

I would like to second Nick's call for pestering media outlets. We really want to blow this trek up. Anyone with contacts with the network mornig shows or late night shows, USA Today, AOL, MSN, CNN, Sports Illustrated, Rolling Stone, MTV, People Magazine...you get the idea. Please contact them and let them know what were are doing.
Our contact #s, 805-391-9385 or 805-597-5722.

Thanks from all of us.

 
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On 8/10/2003 Nick - SAA Team wrote in from (206.222.nnn.nnn)

Day 9 - We are down to the Core 4 - Jack Smith, Scott Kam, Josh Maready, and myself. We pushed today from Chadron, Nebraska, to Valentine, Nebraska - an easy 135 miles or thereabouts. We have shed the troublesome motorhome and are now operating out of the mighty white Windstar.

Anyone that tells you that Nebraska is flat has never been on Highway 20 between the Wyoming state line and Valentine. Up and down, with the sweetest pavement you've ever skated. The people are really awesome. The towns are few and far betwee, but we are getting much love here from the local populace.

We've decided to alter our route and schedule from here on out, so the previously posted schedule is now different. We're doing this because there are very few towns out here of the size necessary to support even one motel. Once we hit eastern Nebraska, our route options open up considerably.

We have had very little cell phone and/or Internet support, so we've been unavoidably out of touch. One laptop left with our driver, Nate, who should be back in SLO by now. Finding a reliable local dial-up connection has been a chore, as well.

The Rolls Rolls/Independent/ABEC11/Biltin combination has been unbeatable on the road. The magic combination differs for each of us, but I prefer the 101mm/72a FlyWheels with Indy 169's, with less riser than stock, which gives a low deck height, which is pretty easy to push.

Getting out of the van to start pushing is always kind of a shock to the muscles for the first dozen or so pushes, then everything locks into place and I'm good to go.

We're now averaging two-mile sections, as it speeds up the turnaround process and enables us to hit about a 17mph pace, both uphill and down. I've skated sections as short as .3 mile, and as long as 7.6 miles.

Jack, Scott, and Josh are incredible. These guys are like machines, churning out the miles like nobody's business. I myself feel more fallible than the others, but I feel myself getting stronger every day.

Please use any media contacts you may have and pester these guys to cover us, as we are out of touch for hours or days at a time.

Much love and respect to Joe Beck, Jeff Reynolds, Eric Boyd, Paul Dunn, and Nate Pierce, as well as my lovely, patient, understanding, and fantastic better half Teri Green.

More later.

- Nick
Currently Skateboarding Across America

 
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On 8/10/2003 lizzie wrote in from (63.195.nnn.nnn)

Hey, Nick & Stan! Thanks for emailing. Whoaaaaaaa, your gnarly events in Idaho are behind you. I hope the skate God will pave your path across the Great Plains with ease. Jack Jr. is really getting a BIG sMILE on every M-I-L-E you're skating. U guys ROCK! LuvU4whatUrDoing.

 
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On 8/10/2003 sage spraktes wrote in from (216.128.nnn.nnn)

hey guys, this is the kid you met in arco. You guys are way too cool. I told all my friends about you guys and they were way shocked. It awesome what you guys are doing. Keep skating.
----------Sage

 
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On 8/9/2003 Scott Johnston wrote in from (66.27.nnn.nnn)

Jack annd crew your guys are incredible, I sure that it must be a advendure of a lifetime, I wish I could be there with you. I think about you every day, my prayers are with you.

God Bless

See you soon......

 
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On 8/9/2003 PD wrote in from (64.4.nnn.nnn)

Just back in from Casper, WY. It's Satuday afternoon. The pace these guys are keeping is really different than when I did "TransAmerica 84: The Skateboard Crossing for Multiple Sclerosis." Some of the other contributing factors that make this adventure MORE difficult than '84 is that the national speed limit has been raised since then -- the car whiz factor is hairy. And state budgets have tightend so the roads are not as well maintained. This is no easy task. I'm burned-out and I only skated 4 days (when I wasn't helping with logistics). More on my personal take on the trip later...

--PD

 
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On 8/9/2003 Brady wrote in from (66.21.nnn.nnn)

You guys are doing great! Lil` Jack must be smiling down upon you guys.

Any chance of some pics posted here so we on the sidelines can share the stoke?

 
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On 8/9/2003 Hamm/LCB wrote in from (66.42.nnn.nnn)

you guys RULE, keep it up!!

 
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