Skate Update: Mullen, Moto and Miles out West!

The latest instalment of Feeling Scene – the series from the Ben Raemers Foundation exploring provincial skate scenes across the UK – has just dropped, and it's a belter. Showcasing the realities of skateboarding in the more parochial corners of this island, we're treated to a glimpse of the skateboarders of Cornwall and the spots they call home.

Chatting with local legends like the Smith twins, Adam Moss and Sidewalk photog Leo Sharp, as well as northern transplants like Eddie Belvedere and neighbouring talent in the form of Exeter's Barney Page, the series not only delves into the realities of everyday skateboarding on the south-western peninsula, but also shines a light on the history of one of the UK's most cut-off communities.

With archive footage and coverage of the Foundation's jam at Truro, the 17-minute film serves as a wonderfully curated foray into Cornwall and the skaters that hold the scene down. It's also giving full-on tourist board, as a Cornwall trip is now firmly at the forefront of our minds!

Vert parts are a bit of an odd one. Whilst no doubt impressive, especially when crafted by those at the zenith of the medium's progression, they tend to appeal more to armchair fans than those of us who skate more days on than off.

BUT, whilst they can stand on their own merit as entertaining insights into a vertical world most of us will never understand, they can also serve as excellent inspiration that transcends genres and may well spark an idea in you that you're simply not going to find in a Storied Skateboarding Insta clip about Bryan Herman's (amazing) hardflips.

Take this part from Moto Shibata for Mob Grip: like you, we're never going to float a 10ft-high backside air, but a backsmith to fakie on a mini? That's a bit of us. And, just like the American X-Games viewer with their supersize soda and no idea which way the trucks go round, watching a front-foot impossible frontside lien will always be mind-blowing. Especially when it's followed by a switch one, back to back!

Storied Skateboarding has, over recent years, filled the void left by the legendary On Video series of the early 00s, showcasing the very best of our shared history without ever suggesting that better times have passed.

And this week, to celebrate the 60th birthday of the godfather of it all, Mr Rodney Mullen, they've dropped seven minutes of celebratory statements from the great and the good of skateboarding royalty, letting the Floridian freestyler know just how important he is to all of us.

With archive footage and tributes that could, in the wrong hands, easily veer into sycophancy, it instead offers an introduction to the most influential skater of all time for those of you who don't know, or a fond trip down memory lane for those who do. And, once you've watched it, seek out the On Video retrospective (Winter 2002) – it really is one of the best things you'll ever see!