New spot junk jam: 3rd and Army, SF, CA. Jan. 31, 2004.

YOU KNOW AS WELL AS I DO--it doesn't take much to start a session. Permits? City permission? Ramp building crews? Corporate sponsors? No, no, no, and no. Who's in charge here? No one and everyone--ain't it great? The Junk Jam consisted of old file cabinets, a heat up desk or two, a few four-by-eights, old jump ramps, manual boxes and a slider mysteriously dropped off at one of SF's most famous skate spots. A secret coded flier that only skaters would understand--no logos, no contact numbers--was passed out a week before the event. Untraceable, but completely effective. Hundreds of skaters converged on 3rd and Army on the designated day, hungry to skate whatever they found there. For some, it was their first time skating the spot. For the locals, who came out in strength, it may have been the first time they added a trick over a file cabinet to their lines. It was great. At one point an SF fire truck drove by to check the commotion, and after a few minutes decided it was a no-win situation to try and stop the mayhem. They gave a thumbs-up and siren salute on their way out. Hightower kicked it live for a good hour. Mic-E had a $200 one-try best-trick contest (Fixed? Hey, Ernie needed food money that night). The thing went on for hours, and at sundown everyone knew it was another one of those days that can only happen in skateboarding. Junk Jams show how rad skating truly is. It doesn't matter if you're a pro or it's your second day on a board--whether the spot's perfect or a pile, if you want in, you're in. Do what you want. Draw a one-time only line. Nothing lasts forever, except skating. And maybe that old metal cabinet ...

When's your Junk Jam? We want in. Cheers to all who showed; 3rd and Army locals for opening their spot up; Hightower; Matt and Mic-E for handling the heavy lifting; and SF for being one of the best places in the world for skating.