Photos: Brian Gaberman
ANYTIME I HEAR WE ARE TRAVELING SOMEWHERE, I ASK AROUND TO SEE WHO’S BEEN AND WHAT THEY SKATED THERE. YOU USUALLY GET A PRETTY GOOD PICTURE OF WHAT THE PLACE IS GOING TO BE LIKE BECAUSE MOST SKATE TRIPS ARE SIMILAR. THERE’S A DEMO, THEN SIGNING, THEN SKATE, SKATE, SKATE, AND, IF YOU’RE LUCKY, YOU CAN GO SOMEWHERE THAT REPRESENTS THE COUNTRY YOU’RE IN WITH A GROUP PHOTO.
About Costa Rica: Nick Trapasso told me, “They got monkeys and toucans, bro; shit’s insane.” Appleyard said, “There’s no spots and the whole situation is pretty Third World.” I knew nothing of Costa Rica (or even Central America, for that matter), just that it was next to the equator so the concrete would be rough from the rain. I…