Harold Hunter Day XIV Recap

On September 12th, the DC team and a 1,000-plus skaters converged at New York’s LES Skatepark to celebrate Harold Hunter Day XIV. From OGs to young guns, guys, girls, spectators and participators—everyone was in attendance. The scene was sparked as they lit up the park and kept Harold’s memory alive. Check the recap, then come to the next one. —Mike Heikkila



Pool tournaments, photo shows and a skate jam full of pure joy, this is just a glimpse of the good times

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 001Getting off on the good foot, the girls got the day’s event going with a best-trick contest in the corner pocket

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 002Hype it up or set if off, these ladies brought the good energy to the park

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 003Blunt kickflip on the Daewon tip, Jordan Pascale was puttin' it down

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 004OGs in the house—Steve Rodriguez with his 5Boro boys Danny Falla and Jimmy McDonald

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 005Steve's been keepin' the scene stoked for decades; Harold Hunter Day would be no exception

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 007Young Rara out of Jersey came over to show the city kids how to Smith

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 008This shove-it melon rewind over the apple really doesn’t translate in a photo, but that bandana's pretty sick

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 009Jiro, kickflip front board without his Red Bull hat fallin' off. I heard they glue those things on

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 010What a sight—ollie late flip with the Freedom Tower overlooking

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 011LES was dubbed Harold Hunter Park for the day and no one could disagree. Maybe we can leave that up a little longer?

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 015Brian Panebianco Sabotaged the scene with a switch nosegrind in the middle of the course

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 018Over on the hubba, Rara went on the attack again—crooked grind with some added respect for our guy

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 019Brandon James' kickflip front tail was only one of a half-dozen moves down the steps

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 022Before the next event, let's walk the grounds. First up, some East Coast icons in the wild. Fun fact: Quim Cardona and John Shanahan have both been on the cover of the mag

1500 John Shanahan TH1120CoverSee, told ya’. November 2020

1500 Quim Cardona Thrasher CoversAnd Quim had two! Left: November 1995 Right: May 1997 

750 Camera Gif Harold Hunter FoundationI wasn't the only one covering this thing. The best camera is the one you got

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 031Brandon Novak and Brandon Turner made it out the Big City. These dudes have paid their dues and then some

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 035Everyone wanted to get a flick with Lil B. Who knows when he’ll be back?!

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 037Brian Panebianco and Kevin Bilyeu earned their DC rings after that new Sabo video dropped

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 040Scotty "The Body" on the mic for the final jam. He ain't afraid to tell the people what he wants to see

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 042Closing out the day, the double set got a facelift. With DC's makeshift Union-Square block, there were only two outcomes: glory or the grave. This kid flirted with both

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 041Back from the dead, he gets the kickflip onto the platform

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 047Aftertime gap to back 50-50 for the love—and maybe 30 bucks straight out of Steve's pocket

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 048Yes, Dylan Jaeb does leave Poods for special occasions

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 050Pay some respect to the OG Ron Hunter. He and the HHF crew pulled off one helluva day

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 053Brandon “Neva Skimp” James going home with some cash for messin' up the hubs

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 055Josh Wilson, John Shanahan and Will Marshall take a break from stackin' Bronze clips. Now see if you can spot a SOTY

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 057It was a good day at the park, but eventually, the streets were calling. Evan ends one session and starts another with a wild-style streetplant

HaroldHunterDay LES 21 DCshoes Heikkila LOW 058That’s all, folks. Thank you again to the Harold Hunter Foundation and DC for putting this thing together. Can't wait for the next one. We'll just leave Evan here 'til then
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