It's that time once again - Stuck In The Past 2000 is back with a banger of an episode, Wayward Origins, which takes us back to revisit the come-up of Chris Haslam, who went from unknown to a household name in essentially one year.
"Around the start of 1999, my good friend Ben told me about a guy he'd seen ripping out at the Richmond skatepark - apparently he was on a whole other level of technical ability, and Ben was adamant that I go out to see him skate in person. By the time I made a trip out there, my other friend George Faulkner had already met this new mystery ripper. I was introduced to Chris Haslam, and from that initial session it was clear that he was in a league of his own. I don't remember how it all went down, but from that day on George and I joined Chris on a mission to properly document his talents somewhere other than the River Road skatepark, and we could never have expected the level of skating we were going to witness over the course of the next few years. "
"Between 2000 and 2002, Chris filmed full parts for Skateboard Canada Video Magazine, Deca Skateboards, and my own first full length video, "VIDEO". In Vancouver, the rumors about the tricks he had done at local spots were getting out, and watching Chris shred at local parks was a treat for anyone who was lucky enough to have the chance.
On that note, one thing many people can attest to is that Chris always had time for the kids, going so far as to regularly spend the majority of his sessions playing SKATE with the local groms, or helping them learn the basics while he worked on some ridiculous new trick that no one else on earth could probably do. Hell, the only time I ever did a nollie lazer flip was in a game of SKATE with him - Chris has a way of pulling tricks out of you. His creative and unique outlook is a bit contagious when you skate with him."
"It didn't take long for the rest of the world to take notice of Chris's skills, and within a year he was already scooped up by, and skating with Daewon Song and Rodney Mullen, which says a lot. By the time his part in Deca's Second 2 None video came out, it was clear he was going to be one of the greatest skaters the world had ever seen, and in the following years he put out countless video parts full of NBD's and unbelievable skateboarding in every corner of the planet.
We've got a lot of love for Chris here in Vancouver, and it's been really nice to see him skating here in the city lots again after so many years away on the road. Re-editing all of Chris's parts into one mega remix was one of the main motivations for doing this series in the first place, so I couldn't be happier to finally present the main event of Stuck In The Past 2000! I hope you all enjoy the flashback - get ready for some of the gnarliest skating Vancouver's streets have ever seen!"
- Adam Cassidy
We're not done yet! Stuck In The Past 2000 returns in early October for one last jam with the whole family - stay tuned!
