ISSUE NO.8 SANTIAGO

Mathias Torres is quite possibly the most motivated skater in Chile. We filmed this part over the course of two months in the streets here in Santiago. The day he did the huge switch ollie, he said “Man I don’t want to skate today, I want to go home and drink tea and sit at my house”.

One of the most interesting things about skating in Chile is the temperature drop. You might leave the house in the morning with shorts and a tee shirt on, but if you don’t have a proper hoodie or sweatshirt, you might be fucked come night fall. The reason for this is the unique desert/mountain climate that the valley of Santiago creates.

Christian “Maluco” Elizondo is one crazy cat. From juking and jiving with security guards to throwing down banger tricks down some hefty sized spots, Maluco gets down. We caught up with him and his friends and skated the streets of Santiago.

Stavros started skating at a very young age in the center of Buenos Aires, Argentina and has not stopped since. His two older brothers were skating by the time he was five or six and the love caught him quick. He moved back to Chile and has been shredding the streets and of South America and the rest of the world for more than 25 years.

Santiago is a really big, small city. It’s big enough that you feel like you’re in a metropolis, but small enough to get around fairly quickly. There is good public transportation (bus, metro) and taxis are cheap as well if you have a group of guys. The security, on the other hand, can be a big problem. Every day, at least once, we got hassled by security.

Franz first picked up a sax because the sound reminded him of a woman’s voice. He has been playing ever since and has quickly become a house hold name for Saxophone in Chile. He plays in several different bands, teaches classes and continues to pursue his dream of taking him and his saxophone all over the world.

Everyone in Chile has a lot of different names, usually at least a first name, a middle name and a last name. Add in a couple of nicknames that you earn from your friends and a skater in Chile can have upwards of five or six names. Our featured artist happens to be named Carloco.

We took a three day road trip to the port city of Valparaiso to skate with the guys from Converse Chile. This historic city is full of culture, street art, music and downhill skate spots. The whole city is built on hills that lead down to the ocean.

Yerko shows us how to cook a traditional dish from Chile, Tomatican. It’s easy to make and fairly quick as well. It is perfect with meat or you can take it out if you prefer vegetarian. Take some time and experiment with this dish, it can be really tasty if done right.

Skating at night in Santiago is much different than the day. The center is virtually empty and all the business people have gone home for the night. There are still many guards, but it’s much easier to get stuff done once the sun has gone down.

We have spent the last two and a half months filming around the streets of Santiago, Chile; an amazing city with an interesting mix of people and neighborhoods. From El Centro to Las Condes, you have every kind of spot you could wish for. But with every big city, especially those with a strong economy, there are a lot of security guards and people to get in your way as well.