#30 Kickflips, Punk Riffs, and Backyard Halfpipes: A Skate Chat with Lance Smith

**Beginning choppy for a second** I caught up with Lance Smith, the legend behind Clockwork Custom Skates, to reminisce about the glory days of skating and punk rock. We swapped stories about how we first got on boards, skinned our knees, and blasted the Dead Kennedys on cassette tapes (Google it, Gen Z). Lance shared how he pulled off the ultimate skater flex: acquiring a downtown halfpipe and plopping it in his backyard. Respect. We laughed about old skate spots that are now overpriced juice bars and marveled at the new breed of skaters—fearless maniacs who make our "wild" tricks look like casual warm-ups. We got nostalgic about the lifelong friendships forged through kickflips and dive bars, then hyped up the new skate park opening next year (finally, a spot where my knees can creak in public again). If you’re into skating, punk rock, or just want to hear about two old dogs barking about the good old days, this one’s for you.