Skating the 'mean' streets

Christchurch clip goes viral on YouTube



CHARLIE GATES

Last updated 05:00 08/04/2011

 

Christchurch has been turned into a huge skate park by February's earthquake.

A YouTube video showing Christchurch skaters leaping cracks and cordon tape, falling headfirst into holes, jumping over rubble-strewn cars, and turning piles of silt and street signs into makeshift jumps has become a viral hit.

Film-maker and skater Adrian "Stunts" Anker-Payne said he was "overwhelmed" by the international reaction to his video.

The clip, which was uploaded on Wednesday, had attracted more than 13,000 hits by yesterday afternoon.

"I uploaded it yesterday morning and had a fair idea it would do quite well, but I had no idea of the hype it would be getting," he said.

"I am getting 10 emails a minute. People from America and famous skaters have responded to it as well. It is all a bit overwhelming at the moment."

Anker-Payne said he had been making skate videos in Christchurch for six years, so it was only natural to film the city's new skating attractions.

He said the quake had destroyed favoured street-skating spots, but created many more.

"A lot of the awesome skate spots in the city have gone, but it's exciting because every street in Christchurch is potentially skateable now," he said.

"They look fun on film, but they are quite rough to skate. I don't think I have seen anyone do anything like this in the world.

"More than half the spots in the film have been fixed now, so they are gone. Some of the new ones may stay for a while and some might stay forever."

The video also features Christchurch skater Tom Clarke taking a tumble headfirst into a deep crack on Fitzgerald Ave.

"He had a dead leg, or body, for a while, but he was OK," Anker-Payne said.

Christchurch skater Jack Woodrow, who also features in the film, said they were scared of falling into the cracks.

"Tom hit a stone and just fell headfirst. He wasn't hurt, but he got out pretty quick. We were all real scared, because you don't want to be in a hole when there is an aftershock," Woodrow said.

"After the earthquake we noticed our skating spots had changed and there were new bumps in the ground. The surface was kind of rough, but we made do. You have to watch out for gravel and dust."

Woodrow said the quake had created some interesting street-skating spots.

"The city was minced up. We had to be quick to get them on film, because some of the roads have been fixed now.

"It was really mean to skate on, but it had some cool jumps and stuff."

The video won international attention after it was posted on website Slap Magazine, the largest online skating forum.

- The Press