Don't count on it.

What I am about to say will undoubtedly be met with much criticism, heart felt condemnation and with any luck even an insulting rebuttal. But nonetheless, I must in all good consciousness say what I have to say: What's up with all the shitting on shit-foot? It seems that pushing shit-foot has become as skate-o-litically incorrect as trying to boneless off a launch ramp was in 1993. I know that legends like The Gonz and Tommy Guerrero didn't push that way, but they also didn't spend their formative years of skating in a sketchy-ass town in Colorado, where the idea of pavement was to throw down a bunch of tar and pour gravel on top of it. In fact, any actual pavement that did exist in my town was so old that the years of freeze-thaw cycles have left it in worse shape than Gary Busey's liver. See, I believe that shit-foot has gotten a bad rap, and here's why: Where I started skating (we won't talk about when, because that was probably before most of the kids reading this were born), there was a distinct advantage to pushing shitfoot. By correctly positioning your on-board foot over the back truck, you could use your heel to lift the front wheels over cracks and chunks of gravel while pushing. This was the only way one could get enough speed to ollie the infamous dirt gap in the alley behind Taco Time. (The gap was, at the time, regarded as the local version of the "Gonz ollie" at EMB--RIP. Though not nearly as long or high, the dirt gap possessed formidable perils of its own, namely the aforementioned cracks and gravel. Not to mention pavement that was so rough it felt like falling on a cheese grater.) Kids in my town who could not master this technique did not go far.

Luckily I now live in sunny California and most of my local skate spots are as smooth as a freshly polished baby's butt. I have since learned to push with either foot and can avoid harsh looks and unprovoked prejudice from the little shits at the skateparks. But I still find myself from time to time hitting a back alley ledge or flight of stairs, where the surface conditions may leave much to be desired. I look on and shake my head as those who struggle and fall because they have not mastered the art of shit-foot maneuvering. They've been had! They have fallen victim to all of the senseless propaganda. Now, I am not asking anyone to say that pushing shit-foot does not look awkward and clumsy. It does. And I am not saying that shit-footers should not try to learn to push regular (if for no other reason than to be able to switch pushing legs and prevent cramping on long hauls between skatespots and/or the local beer store). All I am asking is that we all take a step back from the stigma and hype and recognize that shit-foot is a valid and perfectly functional means of propelling oneself forward on a skateboard. And as hard as it may be for most anti shit-footers to admit, shit-foot just my have certain advantages as well.

Andy Fuller 

Redondo Beach, CA