The idea for this trip came about while I was on a trip with Hawke Trackler to film for the “Back Like I Never Left” section we did a couple of months ago. After seeing the quality and speed of Hawke’s work, it sparked some ideas in my head. I had an amazing year in the roofing industry and had a feeling skating wouldn’t last forever, so I wanted to skate as much as possible while I could.

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Hawke and I talked for hours as we drove through California, and he spoke a lot about Colin and Matt, who I only knew as HoodPanda and Happy Tooth. It sounded like they would be a fun group to skate with, so I booked some tickets and an Airbnb through Joe, Ant Medina’s brother, in Austin. (By the way, it’s an amazing place to rent if you find yourself visiting Austin! Tell him I sent you!)

My plan was to do an old-school-style tour where a core group of skaters would travel together to different scenes to clip up, have fun, and document it. The trip was set to start in OKC, where we would meet with the BladeOK guys and possibly go to Arkansas to skate with the AMO crew for starters. Then we’d make our way down to the final destination, which was through Dallas, finishing in Jumbo territory in Austin, TX, over a 10-day period.

Brad Magnuson joined on a spur-of-the-moment decision, and we were off to meet the Ohio Gang in ATL for a connecting flight to Oklahoma City. We landed, went straight to the hotel, and started mapping out the next day! My friend Travis came to show us around, and the guys were a little turned off by the weather, but we made the best of it!

The first spot was called the “Cowboy Museum,” which had a sticky down rail. Nothing spectacular, but we were kicked out by a cowboy, which was worth mentioning! After skating in the cold, we started to realize it wasn’t going to get much warmer, and it was the same weather we’d all left behind. The decision was made to head to Dallas to stop at Carrier’s Skate Shop and meet with Fritz and Danny!

Fritz took us to some of the spots you see in the video and actually threw down while being the best tour guide in TX! We also made it to their TNS and skated with Jose, Halliman, and some others!

With Hawke’s guidance and his rigorous dedication to finding spots, and HoodPanda being the most entertaining captain who was always down to drive, this trip was bound for success! One thing I was blown away by immediately was Colin’s process for skating. I’ve always been a “take me to the spot and let’s see what happens” kind of guy. Watching Happy Tooth’s process was intriguing. It’s more like a hit list hunting trip for him. He has a book full of tricks, then he goes to the spot they decided and starts scratching them off the list. Super artistic and calculated.

Brad was a wild card. As usual, Brad was on vacation and only skated when he felt like it. But when he did, he always brought the pain on every obstacle he decided to skate.

When we got to Austin, we were treated by the Jumbo crew late in the evening at their famous DIY park, and they were waiting for us even after the sun went down. These guys are amazing, and they are all super welcoming and way too damn funny!

The next day, we skated Austin with a number of amazing people, including the Jumbo crew. The spots were some of the most unique you’ll find anywhere, and their vibe is electrifying—it’ll make your face and stomach hurt from laughing too much! Not only did a fire truck pull up at one of the spots while we were skating to perform some training protocols, but a property manager showed up and kicked us and the firefighters out! That was a first for me.

As we neared the tail end of the trip, we were all getting beat up. We each locked in a decent amount of quality clips. Hood and Happy were both working on independent sections for different projects. I, too, wanted to make “one more section” before I most likely had to take some time off to get my knee looked at (I’d been putting it off for 12–14 months).

On the 7th night of the trip, we not only came up with a name for the tour/video, but we also decided to combine everything into one project! This was the most memorable part of the trip because Hawke, HappyTooth, myself, and HoodPanda were all pumped about it. Brad wasn’t there because he had other plans, but the Core4 made the decision. The next day we skated our asses off, and on the 9th day, the bad weather followed us! It poured cold rain, making it tough to get clips. But we didn’t give up!

The entire trip was something I had wanted to do ever since I returned to skating. My way of paying homage to my past experiences. I can’t say enough about how magical the spots, the people, and the crew ended up being. The name is obviously a nod to the “Chance of Rain” crew. Besides watching everyone skate their individual strengths, the power behind having some good friends gas you up while you attempt yours is unbeatable. This project will forever have an amazing place in my heart and memory!

HoodPanda (Matt)
I do wish to give everyone a word of advice moving forward. If you have not yet had the opportunity to skate with or hang out with HoodPanda, you need to. The only thing I would advise is this: Do not get on his bad side, because the things that man is capable of on a phone are mind-blowing. If you’re lucky and he likes you, you may just have a couple of fake album or mixtape covers starring yourself. I do pray for those who cross this man.

Happy Tooth (Colin)
His middle name should be “NBD.” I compare him to Rodney Mullen because he’s a rollerblading scientist. Who else can do a switch-up from Christ Back Backslide into an Antichrist True Makio? Not me. Plus, he’s a really good dude. He’s an inspiration hearing about the health issues he skates through, and it’s no wonder to me why he’s so good. He’s the definition of dedication.

Hawke Trackler
Hawke is like no one you will ever meet. He’s in love with skating almost as much as I am, and he’s dedicated to capturing the best skating in the best quality. He’s probably one of the wittiest and funniest dudes I’ve met, and I can’t say enough about how he’s able to capture my attention with his films. In the land of 6-second attention spans, mine is worse. But every video I’ve watched of his, I’ve enjoyed. Hawke is one talented individual, and he has become a great friend of mine!

Me (Mike French)
I’m writing this while sitting in a waiting room for my results back on my X-ray, so I can get an MRI. I’m finally finding out what’s wrong with my right knee. The thought of “Is any of this worth it?” keeps running through my head as I get passed around to different departments at the hospital. Of course, my answer is, was, and always will be: Abso f******g lutely.

[The END]

Photos by Hoodpanda