Money fist. (Trash).

And speaking of, the Tracker team had their tour van's tires slashed by some ne'er-do-wells at the recent Sound and the Fury contest. Lester and McGill put on a spare and the trip was saved. Don't look for coverage of the event, as Thrasher staff was denied entrance because of last year's report. If you want a happy press release, read another mag then pat yourself on the back.

In happier news, Ray Barbee and his wife are expecting their first child just about any second now. Congrats to both of you, Barbees! News from the exciting retro market--Duane Peters left Beer City for a better offer from Vision. Jay Adams shoe on Osiris and Alva shoe on Vans. Vision re-released classic Gonz board, sans name.

In the follies-of-youth department, 12 hot shoe Anthony Mosley is back on DVS shoes, as a highly valued amateur rider.

RIP? Arthur Lake III, the legendary Man Hole proprietor, is said to have died in Hawaii. Lake was also widely alleged to be the great grandson of William Randolph Hearst, who was at one time the world's richest man.

A number of leading skate manufacturers have left or are at least openly planning to avoid the recurrent Action Sports Retailer trade show. It seems that in view of this mass defection, the management types that run this mecca of mediocrity and merchandising are again attempting to appear 'skate friendly." In recent talks with James Fitzpatrick, the long-suffering head of the International Association of Skateboard Companies, the ASR have been pleading to know "Just what do the skate companies want?" Some leaders, such as Chris Carter, view ASR's change of stance as "being significant." Others such as Steve Rocco state that "In my mind, ASR are criminals. They have been immersed in skateboarding for more than two decades and have intentionally tried to stifle the genius that continually flows from our industry"