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Email me your comments and I'll put them in the Guestbook.
Hi, GSD—I am from Dayton Ohio, and started skating around 1986 with the Squid team (CQS skate shop, Mike Hill, Pete Hannah and Paul Neidhardt). I remember the days when we would pick up Brett Martin at his house, and he had to tell his wife he was going out skating. My older friends told me that this guy was the mac, and he was.
Anyway, I never got the chance to go to Apple, but I heard about it from the guys and had a great time with the Dayton crew back in the gold old days. Then I moved to San Diego, where I had a family in 1989 and started working at G&S with Mike Hill and Sarge. I even went skating with you a few times, but you probably don't remember me. I was still a grommet back then. However, I still remember that your shape was the coolest and the photo of you doing the layback grind at the Oceanside ditch was rad. I just had to add my thoughts. Cool that you made this site.—Jim Mann, Eschborn, Germany, 12-27-04
Hey, Garry—A friend of mine named Eric Martin has a Web site called SkateTn. He has put up some photos from the Cherry Lane Ramp and MESS contests. I know some of the Apple locals are in some of the photos. Click on Photos and then Lyle Donoho's archives and MESS photos. Nashville has a new park that opened this Summer, which has been sessioned by Ray Underhill, Donny Myhre, Rodney Cassell, Jimmy O'Brien and the Atlanta crew, as well as Bruce and Brandon Martin. Brett Martin spent a weekend with me this Summer. It was great to see old friends and get to skate the new park. Let everyone know about the site. You can leave comments under the pictures. Eric has done a very good job on it, so go and check it out. Later.—Lyle Donoho, 12-12-04
Hey, Garry—The site is great. Keep up the excellent work. What happened to the Apple reunion? Anway, there was a great skater at Apple who was pretty quiet most of the time, which is why he probably didn't get much attention on the site. His Name was Shawn Scott. I think he was from Toledo, but he was at Apple most of the time. He was so smooth and could really crank the airs. A great skater!—Casey Marzetti, 12-06-04
Hi, John—We are the Wittpenns from good old Germany. Do you know from where in Germany the American Wittpenns come? Best wishes.—Belinda, Juri und Matthias, 11-16-04
GSD—Are you out there? Miss the Apple updates. Peace.—Chris Conway, 11-15-04
GSD—What's up? You probably don't remember me, but we used to work together at the convalescent home in Campbell, California (in early 1983). Mike Romero was working there, and I think he got you the job. We skated with you guys some, but me and Sean Ingram (who also worked there) were buddies and skated with Romero for years to come after you moved on. Anyway, the Apple site is great. Keep it up.—Mike Ng, 10-29-04
Hey, Garry—I was just checking out your Apple site. Very cool. Nice job with the interviews. I read a bunch of them. I'm just curious if you ever knew a guy named Doug Powell? Doug moved from Ohio to Connecticut around 1985. I lived in Massachusetts, but he lived about 10 minutes away in Connecticut. As coincidence would have it, he moved in down the street from one of my good skate buddies from high school, Steve Roche, whom you may have seen in the skate magazines and videos lately. Steve is a pool ripper living in San Diego.
Anyways, Doug and his family moved into this horse farm mansion and he built a huge vert ramp on top of the tennis court on the property. Steve and I were about 15 at the time and we'd go over and skate with Doug often (Doug was about 22 at the time, I think). He would always tell us stories about Apple Skatepark, and how great it was to ride there. He'd always say stuff like, "You think the vert is scary on this ramp? You should have seen the vert on this pool at Apple!" So, I was looking in the photo section on your site thinking I might see a picture of him. I didn't see one. Cheers.—Michael Haller, 10-11-04
A la Dave Bush / a la Bike Source, I know I indeed have an original Apple Skatepark sticker at home. What would you do with it if you had it? Plus, I used to ride my BMX bike there at the park—the same one I still have hanging in my garage at home. Scary.—Mark Farmer, 10-7-04
This has to be the greatest celebration of the golden age of skateboarding that ever existed, even better than the Dogtown doc from a few years ago.—Sean Allen, 9-24-04
Hello—What’s up, dudes? Sorry it took so long to respond, but I never checked the email on this Web site. My wife and I just moved from Alameda Island in California to Madison, Wisconsin, where we are getting ready to buy a house. It was quite the flashback to be with Kenny and Mike at the World Championship in California. They almost had me back on a board, but common sense (and the fact that I am lot bigger than I was back in Ohio) brought me to my senses. I am going to give you guys my email address so I can send you my street address and phone number. The email is xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. I am looking forward into hearing from you. Our phone number is (XXX) XXX-XXXX (home) and (XXX) XXX-XXXX (my cell). Take care and keep in touch.—Keith Eastmead, 9-19-04
Thanks, Garry, for the killer Web site. So many fond memories in such a short time. I remember going down to the warehouse with all my friends before the bowls were finished. They were all coarse and rough, but we rode them anyway. It truly was the best. Well, now I'm almost 41. I've got a good job, three awesome kids and a great wife who lets me rock my guitar and skate any time I want. Life is good. Thanks again.—Patrick Sullivan, 9-3-04
P.S. We should have some kind of reunion for all the members. Feel free to email me.
While searching the net for an old buddy (Mike Jeslowski), I came across a Web site about Apple Skatepark, where you mention his name. Do you have any info about where and what he is doing now? Mike and I started skating together in Wildwood, New Jersey when we were just babies. He was an incredible athlete and picked up the sport faster than anyone I ever knew. I was back down at the shore this week and was telling my son stories about skating (more like tall tales), and when we talked about some of the best people I knew, Mike’s name came up first and foremost. Any info you may have would be appreciated.—Fjwojnar@aol.com, 8-29-04
To whom it may concern—My brother in Detroit sent me [the link to the Apple site] out of the clear blue. I was pretty blown away by it, but at the same time, I was hurt I wasn't more prominently mentioned in the contents. After all, I was the person who brought the Roach Boyz to the contest, and the only one not so stoned that I could still skate. And to be honest, Pat Schutte, Rob Mahanes, and Mike Manich—while all part of the Roach Boys—were not original members. Oh, to be a teenager and have such adolescent needs to better those around you.
Anyway, very cool link. I can't believe these photos. I'm sure my folks still have lots of photos from Apple, Endless Summer, Skateboard USA, and others. My contact info is below. Based on the Web site mailing address, it appears we’re almost neighbors. By the way, I'm surprised there's not more on Mike Early and Mark Carpenter, true rippers of the early GSLA circuit. Thanks.—Todd A. Cadieux, 8-24-04
Hey, Garry—Hope all is well! I always check the site looking for new stuff. Contact Brentlinger and have him scan a few shots for the galleries. They’re good. Whenever you get down to South Florida, give a call, as the old school scene here is top-notch and there’s plenty to ride! Take care.—Chris Conway, 6-28-04
I stumbled upon your site. I skated Apple in the small time it was around. Here are a few pictures that I took—two of an unknown skater in the kidney pool, and the other was my gear in 1979 or so. Notice the Apple sticker on the tail of my Dogtown Shogo airbeam. I remember seeing Cab and McGill there and having my mind blown my their tricks. What a great park. The pools were pretty intimidating, but I loved the bowls and the halfpipe. Enjoy.—John Hughes, 6-27-04
Garry—(LOL) You had me scratching my head there with the Sebastian Cabot question. Then it came to me (LOL)…good old Mr. French. Too funny. I hear ya about people claiming to have photos and stories and never sending them in. I guess we do what we have to do to keep these parks’ memories alive. This is the last contact I had with Brad Bowman. He was more than happy to help with giving an interview. I'm thinking of remaking the old CHSP T-shirts and selling them on the Web site to try to take up the cost of running it. I've even got a copyright put on the logos. I'll keep you posted when they will be available. Thanks for all the kind words. Keep up the awesome work.—Brian Keith, 6-4-04
PS: I cant wait to see what you’re sending.
Hi, Garry—Your email reminded me that I need to get off my lazy ass and send you the info I talked about. It's rad about your upcoming coverage. My address is below. I can't thank you enough for your work on the Apple Web site. It has brought some of us together again, and reminded us of that sweet spot in our lives. It also helped us to realize that we are not too freakin' old to skate! Thanks.—Jeff Kasson, 6-4-04
Dude—I was one of the "others" that dreamed of doing 360s like YOU. I enjoyed strolling down your memory lane. You were the shizznit @ 15 years old. I remember you doing up to something like 12 consecutive 360's in a snap. I perfected my own little 720 followed with a squat and a rail grab (not much, but it's mine). I worked on that at Pacific/Mission Beach on the boardwalk in between catching waves on my 6 ft. thruster.
I don't know where I was when Apple kicked off, but it's always been a handy tool in my trade. And I've always got the latest notebook (not processor) slapped with stickers behind my car seat, whether it's in the cheesy S-10 or the M3 alongside my camera bag, which currently has a Nikon D-100 and a few lenses.
I'm currently found on Grapevine Lake, Texas at least four times a week, or whenever the wind kicks over 25 mph. I just made a comeback from a 16-year break from sailboarding in SLC and the Columbia River Gorge. I only did one Dead show in Ohio and the blotter from the parking lot was fake. But, I'm legally insane and a member of "the 100 Hits" club.
I'm currently dating a girl named Kelly, who's 36 with three beautiful kids from a previous marriage, and I'm 41 and ripped with a balding spot on the rear of my head. I've been hitting the propecia for the last two years and don't even know if it does anything. I've got two businesses. One, Studioebusiness, is mine, and the other I split 50/50 with a real estate guru named Marccruz.
Five years ago, I was busted on two third-count DWI's (I didn't hurt anyone), and thought I'd be traded for cigarettes in prison. That didn't happen and now I'm sober. Three years ago, I got fired as the Senior Graphic Designer at Exhibit Group and knew the grass wasn't any greener anywhere else, so I cultivated the few clients I had and kicked off my own agency that contracts experts in Dallas throughout my past 16 years as a designer / color retoucher / pre-press / photographer.
A year ago, I was hoofin’ it through Spain with a friend, and we stumbled across a shop that was playin’ Jimi Hendrix, and I thought the jewelry was hip. Turns out there's a whole clan with factories in Spain and Argentina. That's when I decided to create my own label and line of jewelry with my friend and and fellow salesman named John. Thanks for the memories.—Ken Rustin, 5-26-04
Ken—?—Garry
Here is a pic showing what I practiced at, so I could kick some ass when I went on vacation to Cherry Hill. I didn't get to go, but here's a pic or two from back in the day when I was wishin'!—Ken Owens, Texasaurus Records, 5-19-04
Thanks, Garry—I will resend the swag. Unfortunately, a great pic of me jumping the L bowl hip on my BMX bike (over Kevin Tate shooting pics) got damaged by our good friends in the post office. I forgot to mention injuries. I separated my left shoulder while skating at an all-nighter in the L bowl, which led me back to bikes after recovering. There are plenty of pics in the package of me testing those G&S Rollerball wheels that I mentioned in my interview. I look forward to seeing it posted. Thanks for keeping the park alive! It was a special time and place for a lot of people, You have captured that culture again on the site.—Michal L. Grau, 5-19-04
Garry Davis—I have just found your Apple tribute Web site. In 1979, I was a surfer from Brazil living thousands of miles away from good waves as an exchange student in Columbus, Ohio. My life there was to go to high school, take pictures with my Canon A1 (a dream gadget I could afford buying while in the U.S.) and going to Apple Skatepark to keep my bones moving. Apple was the only skatepark I visited in the U.S. I improved my skateboarding skills, but felt like a fish out of water. (I'm definitely a surfer.) I took some amazing pictures of Apple! I'm living in England now, but the pictures are in Brazil. I'll find a way to have them scanned and sent to you by email. I'm sure you'll be interested in posting these pictures to the Web site, they will add to the content and provide a better view of the pipes, pools and bowls. Thank you for the good memories! Regards.—Andre Cardoso, 5-12-04
Hi, Garry—I found some more Apple photos that I will be sending to you. While doing taxes, I found two W-2 forms from the two years that I worked there. I'll send pictures of those, too. In November 2003, I destroyed my ACL on one knee while skating at a local park. I'm on the road to recovery after knee surgery, but don't know if I'll skate vert again. It is a bummer, because I was starting to feel like 1980 again. Have you been getting Concrete Wave mag? It is great! Today's kids have it so good with so many insane parks in just about every city. Concrete Disciples just built one in Athens, and I've seen pictures. Back in the day, Apple was the holy grail. Hope all is well with you. After skating all over Ohio, Michigan and Kentucky last Summer, it was great to see guys our age still rippin and showing the kickflippers how to carve a line and pull off truly rad tricks. See ya.—Jeff Kasson, 5-2-04
Hi there—In 1985 I was an exchange student in Flagler Beach, Florida. After school, I often went to Kona Skatepark in Jacksonville. I saw Bobby Reeves there several times, rippin' the halfpipe and the bowls. Greetz from Germany—Carsten Pingel, Engineering Controlling, Johnson Controls GmbH & Co. KG Automotive Systems Group, 4-22-04
Just to let you know that I'm pretty sure Wally Hollyday built Apple and Cherry Hill. I dreamed the dream, and one day called him up, and he came out to my house here in North Carolina in late 1999 and built me a bowl. He is the god of pool building. Tony Hawk said it’s one of the best bowls he’s ever ridden. We skate it every week and dream about what Apple and Cherry Hill must have been like. Smooth as butter.—Tom Risser, 4-15-04 (Tax Day)
Alabama Skateboard Reunion—That’s right, it’s coming fast, only one month away, April 24 at Insanity Skatepark in Madison, Alabama. We’ve got boatloads of sweet prizes to give away from all of our killer sponsors, and the planning is underway for a big skate rock blowout like the good old days! Some of you have already registered, but if you haven’t, what are you waiting for? It’s not required, but it helps us, and you don’t have to pay yet if you don’t want to. You will get cheaper skate rates if you pre-register, and the T-shirts are cheaper, too! So, sign up RIGHT HERE! Spread the word! As the Big Boys would say, this is going to be FUN, FUN, FUN. Oh, and tell all the skate betties, too...and even those that don’t skate anymore. Wallflowers are welcome, too, as well as your mom and your kids! See you there.—Wyatt (aka Wighat), SkateAlabama.com, 3-26-04
Heya, Garry—Greetings, gruntings and groanings from another Wednesday morning in New York City. By way of introduction, I’ve just stumbled across your website on Apple Skatepark, and figured to bash out a quick note. As the presence of my old ID card on the site attests, I used to skate there whenever I successfully managed to talk someone into driving me up there from Cincinnati. Anyhow, it’s fucking great to see all the stuff you’ve collected and posted, and doubly fucking great to have all those memories come flooding back to me. Somewhere in my apartment, I’ve got at least one or two photos of me skating at Apple. I’ll do my best to turn them up and scan them for you to add to the archives. Anyhow, the past sure ain’t what it used to be, but I’m mighty grateful that you’ve preserved at least a bit of it online. As the saying goes, you’ve made this happy man very old. Kind regards.—Mark Rubenstein, 3-3-04
GSD—Thanks again for putting your rippin’ site together and for adding my ID—I deserve the embarrassment. I’m the same now, except bulkier, heavier and with a military haircut (ha-ha). I skated EXPN Skatepark in Atlanta last Summer with none other than my bro, Blane Lopez, an old skool ripper from Carolina. We actually had a blast and didn’t do half bad for a couple of forty year-olds! I got a lot of strange looks from parents of the grommets, but had a blast anyway. I found my old Apple T-shirt in storage with mega-holes and sleeves cut off. I am deploying next month to one of the "stans" in support of Enduring Freedom to load / unload cargo planes and continue to find Osama. I will stay up on the site as much as possible while over there. Again, thanks for bringing back Apple! Take care.—MSgt. Rich West, USAF, McChord AFB, WA, 2-10-04
Hi Garry!—I just found your website, and boy am I stoked! I used to skate Apple pretty regularly back in the day. I lived in Dayton and hung-out with all the skaters from there. I became friends with Kevin Dickman and Brett Martin and would go to Apple with them at least once a week. Brett later bought a Trans Am and I would hitch a ride with him. I was there for all the pro visits and still have a Phoenix Trucks poster signed by David Andrecht when he visited. I entered the January 1, 1981 contest, got hurt and placed 16th, as shown on the Published Citations page of your website. I loved that park and still like to look back and remember the good times and good friends I had there.
After Apple closed, my Dad got transferred to central California. Brett Martin’s parents bought him plane tickets to visit me so that he could skate all the skateparks. We stayed at my brother’s house in LA and we hit a different park every day—sometimes two per day! Marina del Rey, Big O, Paramount, Whittier…you name it, we skated it! I remember we showed up at Upland and when the owners found out that we were from Ohio, they let us skate for free! Good times!
After that, I lost contact with Brett and everyone else, but I always kept skating. I got an Electrical Engineering degree from UCSB and now live in Orlando, Florida. I go to the Vans skatepark here in town and the new city-owned skatepark a couple of times a month. I’m the same age as most of the parents who watch their kids skate!
Looking back, the best times I had skating were at Apple. Having fun on the ride over from Dayton, hanging with my friends and skating the best skatepark! I still have all the Apple memorabilia: shirts, newsletters, keychains, ID cards, etc, I have tons of pictures of Brett and all the other locals. I even have a movie that my Dad made of me at Apple skating all the pools, halfpipe and bowls. If you’re interested, I’ll try to dig them up and scan them and send them to you.
If Kevin Dickman or Brett Martin are out there, I’d sure like to hear from them! Thanks for a great website!—John Hoshstrasser, Engineering Supervisor, Systems Test Group, Adaptec, Inc. Orlando, Florida, 2-4-04
Garry—This is all I could find. It’s the cooler I would take to the Apple Skatepark.—Marc Fuentes, 1-29-04
P.S. Have a great day!
Garry—Living in Charleston, West Virginia, we would make road trips to Apple Skatepark before they closed. When I was there, Kenny Mollica was really ripping! One of the guest skaters I saw was Victor Perez. His carve grinds in the keyhole were unbelievable. You could hear the trucks grinding from the other side of the park. Another skater who was very impressive was Jamie Godfrey. His style was so smooth! Apple Skatepark was the best, and this site brings back great memories! —Marc Fuentes, Charleston, West Virginia, 1-28-04
Well, I’m in the old hometown for a few days. This is the first time I have had access to a computer for a while, so I thought I would drop you a line. I am working at ski resort in West Virginia—actually a snowboard shop. Seems snowboarding has come along a ways since the days when we would remove the trucks from our skateboards and ride down he hills of Burnett Woods (aka Burnout Woods). I went out on the slopes a couple of times, but mostly i just work.
Dude, you are requied to keep in touch so I can meet you here in Cincinnati if you decide to retrieve your stuff from your parents. Last word on Spampy is that he is in England trying to get a record deal or something. Also, are you ever going to update the info on me at the Apple Skatepark website? Keep in touch.—Mark Mounts, 1-14-04
Garry—Love the Apple website. Here is a flier from central Ohio’s first skateboard park, in Lancaster. I’ve been meaning to send it to you for quite some time. I have my old Apple ID, but as soon as I discovered your website, it went into hiding. I was skating at Louisville last Sunday with Kenny Mollica. We met-up with Jeff Kasson there. On the way home, we stopped in Florence and ran into one of the managers / skaters who worked at Apple at the end, Mike Grau. He said he’s been in contact with you. He still lives in Cincinnati and skis and mountain bikes a lot. He was suggesting an Apple reunion at Louisville in October. What do you think?—Martin Malley, 1-1-04