The Baker 3 Premiere and After-Party In Hollywood Article at Skatepark of Tampa

The Baker 3 Premiere and After-Party In Hollywood

Posted on Thursday, August 11, 2005 by Rob

The Baker 3 Premiere and After-Party In Hollywood
Too Many Words and Photos by Rob Meronek

Chillin’ in the back all by my lonesome
No longer solo, the joint is full and burning
Right after the show, the world’s biggest cool guy convention gathered outside in front of the theater. I saw Mike Carroll, Eric Koston, the full Baker crew, Chad Muska, Atiba, and more. I felt like a full paparazzi nerd, but oh well, whatever
Terry Kennedy with that Mike Jones smile, Theo Hand, and Dustin Dollin. Look, TK is throwin’ out my nanu nanu steez
Theo Hand with some nice love handles. I just met Theo at this party and after talking to him for a few minutes, I can tell he loves (not likes, loves) skateboarding and everything that comes with it as much as I do
Punkers were few and far between at this party, but this dude here was fully reppin’
While all that partying is going down on the back patio, the same crew of chicks is still holding it down on the dance floor
I feel so rock star getting to meet Daniel Shimizu and Olly Todd. Daniel and I even shared some oriental jokes about me rolling around with the camera
Thrasher photographer Shelby in the middle with Kurtis Colamonico on the left. I don’t know who the sharp dressed man is
This girl nurturing a WASTED Matt Milligan is from Tampa. I remember seeing her out while in Tampa, but damn, it’s another person whose name I can’t remember. She manages the club that the party was at – Cinescape or something like that. UPDATE: Her name is Jen
Thanks Robin for picking me out of the crowd and getting me into the place
The Snow White bar is where I’ve been going all week since they have the giant beers. This is my new bartending and actress in the making friend, Emily. When I called her out on being the classic Hollywood server/actor case, she replied, “No, I can really act.” She was completely confident that she was going to make it big time. I hope I don’t see you behind the bar next year, Emily
Matt Milligan is WASTED. He’s with someone else whose name I should know but can’t remember
Matt Milligan is WASTED. Did I already write that? So yeah, he’s wasted. Check out them long-ass Freddy Kruger fingers about to slash me up in my dreams
Matt Sharkey (right) from Consolidated and my new friend whose name I already forgot. Damn, I suck with names. That’s lame. UPDATE: Sharkey is with Ashton Maxfield, PR guy for Etnies
Leo Romero was hanging out outside with his crew while I left. Check the close up on that tat
Jim used to work at Dwindle, now he’s with Ezekiel
This mom whose kid is getting a Chad Muska autograph complained to me about Andrew Reynolds not being too nice to her. I tried to defend him like, “He’s probably super busy and/or over hounded.” She’s like, “No, he sucks.” Bitch, Andrew Reynolds does not suck
Matt Milligan and Jeff Lenoce know how to have a good time
Everyone holding up their bands. All I had to hold up was a camera
Drunk asshole (literally and figuratively) crawling through the seats during the video
Girl, you’re supposed to look down when I put the camera on the floor. I think this is Ellington’s chick. She was ruling the dance floor all night
I don’t know this guy, but I like him. He was getting super loose in the place
Dude looks important so I put his picture on the website, plus he's next to a hot chick
The dance floor was just starting to get going when I got there. Jeff Lenoce, is that your girl’s cleavage that made it into the shot? Sorry man, I’m not looking, I swear. Ok, well maybe just for a second
I love the trippy party photos
Posted up with my Florida homies – Matt Milligan, some dude I met but can’t remember his name, and Jeff Lenoce
See Dustin Dollin and Spanky in the mix? That’s Big Black at the door there. I was almost certain I wasn’t getting in
Check those photography skills. That's Erik Ellington doing a big spin front board down that hubba. Oh yeah, and in the foreground is Hunter Muraira (Nike Team Manager) and Bryan Herman rocking the “X” and double fisting it
Another sick skate photo – I believe that’s Andrew Reynolds fakie flipping some stairs. In the foreground is Angel from KR3W, Remy Stratton from Volcom, and that dude with the hat on is talking to Beagle the filmer
I’m not friends with Braydon Szafranski, so to get a photo, I just lurk up on someone else’s photo ops. I think that’s Patrick O’Dell with him. Go check out Epicly Later’d, a damn good website
Part of the scene on the most popular part of the party – the back where you could smoke and drink. Baker 3 was also playing the entire time
Theo Hand, who doesn't like having his photo taken, me self promoting, Terry Kennedy, Angel from KR3W who I didn't realize was there until I looked at all the photos I took (thanks to the booze), and Remy Stratton from Volcom holding it down super lurk nasty at the Baker 3 After-Party
Oooh, Robin from Baker on her knees. Chill, dude. She's just begging us to come to the Baker 3 Premiere on Wednesday

I’m not the most outgoing person in the world, so rolling up to the Baker 3 Premiere solo was kind of weird. I have a lot of friends there, but I’m not that guy that just lurks up in your posse trying to hold it down out of nowhere. When I showed up with no wristband, I started to get a little worried when everyone was holding up theirs at the door. Luckily, Robin Fleming from Baker saw me standing there and dragged me in. I was one of the first ones in the theater and watched it quickly fill up while I took my back seat in the corner just like high school.

If you don’t want to know what’s in the video before you watch it, you can stop reading here.

Skateboard celebrity after skateboard celebrity rolled in and the video was on. Illegal substances were fully ablaze by the time the intro was over and Erik Ellington’s part started. He did a backside big spin down the Carlsbad gap. I’m definitely a fan of Greg Lutzka, but when Erik Ellington does a frontside 270 to switch front board, it simply just looks better than anyone else, including Greg, who owns that trick and now is doing it to switch front blunt as you saw in the extremist contest last weekend.

Next up is Jeff Lenoce, which reminds me that I need to update my Andre Nikatina, which Jeff used again for his part. He got the biggest cheers from the audience as his part started. He did a nollie heel down Chapin gap in Tampa with Josh Stewart getting filmer-background-props and a super-butters nollie inward heel out of a nose manual on the courthouse stage. UPDATE: That was a fakie inward heel. The nose manual was switch. Whoa. How did Ryan Clements’ assistants end up scoring so much coverage in skateboarding? The Chapin gap was named that long before SPoT employee Chapin Atchison started working here as Ryan’s assistant, but still, that’s the second Clem assistant with a little bit of skate fame. First was former employee Afro-Jim who has been digitally rendered and says a few things in the Tony Hawk video games. Afro-Jim is now stand-up comedy champ, winning contests and opening up for comedians that perform at the local Improv.

By this point I had to take a raging piss and it was a little hard to concentrate. Some of this stuff is probably wrong because I wasn’t sober. So you kids that are bigger skate nerds than me, go easy when you call me out in the comments. I forget the order but here’s some random stuff I remember:

  • Dustin Dollin – bar shot to 50-50 down a rail out of the bar. High five to my fellow functioning alcoholic. His kickflip backside 50-50 down a long round rail was amazing.
  • Was it Terry Kennedy that nollie heel flipped Carlsbad gap? I’m pretty sure it was. His part closes with “Welcome Home Terry.” The Baker family seems as tight as ours here at SPoT. UPDATE: the nollie heel flipper is new Baker am Antwuan Dixon. Sorry to commit the politically incorrect no-no of getting my black people mixed up.
  • Bryan Herman did a frontside nosegrind stale fish grab down Hollywood 16. His part closed with a gigantic nollie inward heel down Barcelona 4. Bryan got the last part and fully deserved it.
  • Did you think Andrew Reynolds’ closer would be something like frontside flipping the rail at Hollywood 16? Nope, that was his opener. He also did a nollie cab down Carlsbad gap and a full cab down Wilshire 15. I was feeling the trippy filming in some of his part.
  • You can see footage of a lot of Jim Greco’s recent mag coverage, including the gap to front board on the flat rail from the cover of The Skateboard Mag. He also frontside flipped Wilshire 15.
  • Ali Boulala had like 10 tricks in the friends' section. Eric Koston is also in there.
  • Beagle the filmer was ripping at the end in the friends' section.
  • Andrew Reynolds’ editing of the video was clean, simple, and super good. I like it not over-artsy like that.
  • The video had plenty of drugs and rock and roll, but they left out the sex. They put sex first in the “sex, drugs, and rock and roll” saying for a reason. Let’s see some upskirt shots or something for Baker 4. I can help you guys out with that if needed.
  • The people blazing illegal substances next to me asked the security guard if he wanted to hit it when he walked in. He was like, “Nah, I’m straight.” Yep, it was super loose like that in there. Big Black was also one of the security guards.
  • I got stuck in the “you’re not cool guy enough to come in here” line for the After-Party, but when Robin spotted me, she hooked it up yet again and pulled me in, after which I had a fantastic time as you can see in the photos. Thanks for making me feel important, Robin.
  • I know I left a lot out, but this is way too long already. We’ll have Baker 3 available for sale in the shop and online as soon as it’s out. Support your local shop first, unless they’re assholes like one of the shops I visited in LA. I skate and I was made to feel like I don’t even belong in their skate shop. I hope no one who comes through our doors gets vibed like that, and if you do, please let me know. We'll put whoever did it in the Snack Bar sauna for a month or something.
Rob



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