Doug Smith – G&S Footage (1990)

Free spirit.

I’ll always remember Doug Smith as having that crazy short part in Powell Peralta’s Public Domain skating some strangle concrete bumps south of the border in Tijuana, Mexico, to the sounds of a hyped up Skate Master Tate. It was fun and original. However, my real appreciation for Doug Smith came a couple of years later when he featured in G&S Footage.

Watching Doug skate at full speed every which way on a spine ramp – regardless of whether someone else had dropped in already – was pretty awesome. As a kid getting to grips with dropping in and mastering a simple rock fakie, seeing Doug blast huge method airs over the spine of lipslide the full length of the coping commanded my respect and admiration.

There’s a certain maturity to Doug’s skating albeit recklessly fast. The brief snippets of him riding his motorbike without a helmet as the camera man holds on for dear life reflects his steadfast belief in himself and his abilities. If you want to see what real freedom on a skateboard looks like, check out Doug Smith.