2022 - A Thank You From CSC

Christmas is a time for giving and all that so we thought we'd give you the gift of remembrance by leading you on a trip down memory lane and taking a look at all the fun stuff we've managed to get up to this year. 

Well, that's another year under the belt and it's gotta be the most successful of the 2020s yet - but I guess it couldn't have been much worse than the first two. From smashing cans in Mallorca (quite literally in PJ's case) to working with the council: we've had our many fingers in many, many pies this year so it's definitely not going to be easy to round it all up. Before we get to all that though, as always we want to say a massive thank you to everyone who's shopped with us this year, as we wouldn't be able to do any of it without your support!

It's been a pretty tough year for everyone with the rising cost of living so it means more than ever that you choose to spend your money with us. Whether you've dropped big money on a fancy set-up or just come in to complain about how expensive decks are getting, it all helps us keep doing what we do: hooking up local legends, putting on events, filming videos, going on trips and everything else we do to help push the scene. It's safe to say we wouldn't still be here without all our customers, so once again thanks for allowing us to keep living the dream!

Cardiff Skatepark Plans

On the topic of helping to push the scene, one of the most exciting things to come out of 2022 has got to be Cardiff Council's plans to build a load of new skateparks for everyone to enjoy. We've been working with Cardiff Council since last year but it finally seems like its paying off as there are now plans for a bangin' new park in Llanrumney as well as a smaller one in Maltings Park (which hopefully should be open some time soon!). Again, we can't take all the credit as we wouldn't have got very far without everyone filling out the surveys and getting involved in the meetings so shoutout to everyone who's helped along the way and fingers crossed we should have something to show for it within the next year!

Spit and Sawdust 2.0

As if the council's plans for new parks wasn't enough, this year has also seen everyone's favourite indoor park receive a serious facelift. Thanks to the efforts of All Terrain Trev and an assorted rabble of DIY-savvy skaters, Spit and Sawdust has magically doubled in size with the crusty old vert wall being smashed through to reveal a brand spanking new bowl that would make even the Birdman weak at the knees.

That's not all though as the street section has also seen some serious refurbishment with the rarely-used top section being transformed into a street skaters' wet dream complete with all manner of hips, banks, ledges, rails and wallrides with almost endless possibilities for new lines. We're not even finished yet either as there are still big changes coming to the Cafe area as well as some finishing touches to the street section so be sure to keep your eyes peeled.

Mega in Majorca

In October, we even managed to round up some of the team and take them to Majorca for our first overseas trip in years. Despite Don being injured before we even left out and Mike Hellier destroying his knee almost instantly, PJ, Collins and Oscar stepped up to stack a load of hectic clips on everyone's behalf - in between giving each other mullets, punching cans in half and doing laps of the water park. For those who didn't get a sneak peek at the video after the Papa Mio's premiere you'll be able to view it to your hearts content in the New Year via our good mates at Skateboarder's Companion.

Ads For The Lads

Probably one of the most wholesome things we've carried on doing this year is putting out magazine ads featuring the CSC Team. Whether it's the double page spreads in Companion which have inspired loads of our clothing designs or something we've had to rush through last minute because we forgot about the deadline, it's always an honour gracing the pages of any mag and it's even better when we get to include our mates.

This year, we've managed to put out more ads than the gaffer's had hot dinners which of course means loads of exposure for all the legends on the CSC Team and the various local artists who help us out with the designs. This year there was one man who stood above the rest though: Oscar Evans. Oscar has been going absolutely mental all year long scoring three ads back to back in Skateboarder's Companion, Grey and Thrasher! The man cannot be stopped.

But not only does it make us feel all warm and fuzzy inside seeing the homies' photos in magazines, it also means we get to support legendary mags (and fellow skater-owned businesses) like Vague, Skateboarder's Companion and Grey so they can also keep pumping out insightful interviews, features and, of course, loads of bangin' videos without having to make you pay for the privilege.

An Eventful Year

As always, we also made sure to put on a load of fun-filled events to keep you all entertained, and with no COVID restriction to deal with it's been easier than ever! Whether it was our tried-and-tested classics, like the 12th annual CSC Plaza Comp and the return of our prestigious CSC Skater of the Year award, or experimental new ideas like our first ever Spot Bounty or when we turned up to Bute with a load of ledges, it's always a pleasure seeing everyone come together and share the love of skating - even if it's just a few of the homies turning up to one of our last minute video premieres at the shop (you know who you are, big up!).

Jokes aside, we've managed to pull off some bangin' nights in the shop, like our recent premiere of the upcoming Papa Mio's Hardware video which led into our (first ever) legendary Christmas pub crawl. It's not all just skating and drinking though as we even hosted an art show with our very talented mates: Lloyd Houston, Lee 'Beef' Bennett, Phil Morgan and Reid Allen. Celebrating the release of Reid's Cardiff skate zine, 'Lords of Butetown 2', the exhibition was easily the most cultured thing we've ever done, even if there was still plenty of the usual chaos.

Photo courtesy of KMB Photography.

Another equally sophisticated event we were honoured to be part of this year was the launch of our dear friend Dykie's book, 'Open That Door'. Dykie's a true legend of the Welsh skate scene and he's since taken it upon himself to expand his legendary status by completing a run around the circumference of Wales on behalf of several charities, including the Ben Raemers Foundation. But not only did he take on and overcome this monumental challenge, he also managed to write a book about it in which he explored his own struggles with mental health, and he even dusted off the old camera and treated us to an amazing new skate video/documentary. It was an absolute honour to not only witness him on this journey but also to support him along the way, and we've still got some of his books in store if you haven't got round to grabbing one yet.

This year our Go Skate Day event was easily one of our best yet as we made our way round town with our trusty kicker to open up a load of new spots before hosting our own version of the Dime Glory Challenge at Bute. Safe to say everyone went absolutely nuts and laid down some serious hammers around town. It always gets us hyped seeing so many people get involved, and this year especially we got to show the general public what we're all about. But best of all, we got to see a load of the young guns putting it down alongside the CSC Team - the future's looking bright!

CSC Is For The Children

On the subject of talented young guns, another NBD from us this year was the start of our prestigious Youth Development Program™️ decided to expand our horizons and take some of the younger generation under our wing. The first youths to join these elite ranks were Ru and Jo Richards who've both been absolutely killing it this year, with Ru seriously stepping up his ledge game while Jojo continued to dominate the transition.

Joining the Richards boys, we've also branched out and hooked up one of Aberdare's finest, the young prodigy Jayden Viljoen. Jayden's got bangin' style and he's no stranger to stackin' clips in the streets so it seemed like an obvious choice to have him join the youth squad. Just like the Richards boys Jayden's been progressing like crazy so we reckon there's definitely gonna be big things coming from him in 2023. Paris Olympics here we come!

That's enough chit-chat though. Thanks again to everyone who's supported us this year. Fingers crossed 2023 will be even better. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and all that bollocks. Safe!