To make it as a pro skater, you have to be a little bit fanatical. You spend hours perfecting a craft that deals with so much nuance and lots of hyper-fine details in order to make it in skating, which means the odds you are like that about something else in life are pretty high. That’s why we decided to launch this series and find out what other things skaters secretly fan out on.
Today, we’re taking a look at Eli Reed. Truthfully, we were a little surprised when we heard that a white guy from Massachusetts was so deep into dancehall culture, but Eli is truly in it and committed. He’s visited Jamaica and immersed himself in the local scene, attends and throws dancehall parties in New York, and has made friends with lots of credible dancehall figures who happily vouch for his authenticity.
We met up with Eli at his place in Manhattan to learn about how he got into dancehall in the first place, then headed to Prospect Park in Brooklyn to watch him work on some dance moves, and finally followed him to his late night party at Pianos in Manhattan.
Let us know if you know any other skaters with secret hobbies that you want us to feature in the comments below, or if you hate this segment, tell us to burn the hard drive that houses these video files instead.
Related Posts
Comments
Popular
-
WHAT’S IT LIKE RUNNING AN INDOOR SKATEPARK IN 2024?
Three owners weigh in on the biggest challenges of running an indoor skatepark and offer insights on everything from finances to masonite boogers.
-
LOCALS: FRANK THE MAGICIAN
Meet Frank, a magician and dedicated maintainer of the sandy, trash-accumulating Venice Beach Skatepark.
-
A CHAT WITH LUDVIG HAKANSSON, THE OLDEST SOUL IN SKATEBOARDING
The man loves to read Nietzche, skates in some expensive vintage gear, and paints in his own neoclassical-meets-abstract-expressionist style.
-
JOHN GARDNER ON STEPPING AWAY FROM PRO SKATING AND HIS NEXT CHAPTER
"I’m sure I could have kept my career going for a while, and it was tempting to do that because I was making really good money, but I felt strongly I needed to do something else."
-
THE STORY BEHIND TAIL DEVIL, THE FORGOTTEN MILLENNIAL SKATE TOY
Sparks + skateboards is a no-brainer. So why did this toy go away? We talked with the inventor to find out.
June 8, 2023 12:32 am
I mean, yeah I deal drugs. Now.. I know what you’re all thinking. Is my shit stepped on? I asked Eli personally. His response?
“Nah mon! It fresha den da marnin snow! What da bumba clat wrong wid em?!”
June 8, 2023 6:39 am
“Tooth Decay?
Use Crest…”
yeah, real underground.
Nicely swerved mentioning all the misogyny and homophobia of dancehall too.
June 8, 2023 8:42 am
Scientology with Berra
June 8, 2023 11:10 am
Modeling with Ben Nordberg
Weightlifting with Brandon Biebel
Tennis with Steve Brandi would be awesome!
Gotta be some local NYC skaters who go surf too