Brand Knew: Real Skateboards

Welcome Back to Brand Knew! The weekly series where we take a deeper look at some of the brands we carry here at Rumor. This week we’re highlighting Real Skateboards, a brand we’re hyped to carry in both our Edmonton Skateboard Shop and our Leduc Skateboard Shop.

 1. Real was founded in 1991 by Tommy Guerrero and Jim Thiebaud.

A Real Skateboards ad from Thrashers 15th Anniversary issue. 

Real Skateboards has been around 30 whole years this year. Tommy, one of the very first skateboarders to go pro as a street skater in an industry that was, at the time, dominated by Vert skaters was left feeling like they wanted more control and to do their own thing. So along with some other members of the Bone Brigade, they started Real Skateboards and Deluxe Distribution (One of these days we'll do a Deluxe Distribution Brand Knew so keep your eyes peeled).

If you’re a regular reader of Brand Knew, you might have noticed our boy Jim keeps popping up. That won’t stop any time soon, the man is very prolific and his influence on skateboarding is enormous.

2. Jim Theibaud and Tommy Guerrero don’t own Real Skateboards.

This is one of those things you hear all the time that it turns out isn’t quite the case. In a 2014 interview for Vice magazine, Tommy dispelled the myth that he and Jim own Real Skateboards. What he says is that they are "small shareholders in Deluxe Distribution". (Vice Magazine, 2014)

3. Real has never been afraid to make a political statement.

Real Skateboards has never shied away from taking a stand. One of their most iconic boards, and a board that has been released multiple times in the past is the Hanging Klansmen Deck. To Quote Jim “You are supposed to take a fucking stance.”

Not only is the imagery thought provoking, but to launch the board… well let’s hear it from Jim himself, in his interview with Solo Skate Mag “Tommy and I thought it was funny to do a tour to the Deep South in the U.S. right when it came out”.(Solo Skate Mag, 2018) Clearly, Jim knew that a board like that could spark a strong reaction from certain people in those areas and was banking on the controversy.

4. Speaking of the Hanging Klansmen Deck, It’s an official part of history.

There aren’t many skateboarders that can say they’ve created a museum piece. But Jim Thiebaud can. The Hanging Klansmen board currently resides in the freakin Smithsonian National Museum of American History, in Washington D.C. Check it out!

5. They put their money where their mouths are with “Actions REALized”

Actions REALized is a division of REAL skateboards that takes on projects with the idea that “skateboarding can be a positive force for change” 

Through Actions REALized, Real releases boards from which a portion of the proceeds go do different organizations, such as The Ben Raemers Foundation .

Skateboarding has always been such an incredible force for good in people lives, whether just from riding the board, or the many many things that the brands do to support their communities. (P.S We do this too! This year we’re donation a portion of the proceeds from every Jake T deck 8.0 / 8.25 and set of Jake T Wheels 52mm / 54mm sold to the Hope Mission!)

Their most recent drop is a Cairo Foster Re-issue that came out just two weeks ago. If you’re after one of these boards give us a call and we’ll help you track it down!

6. They make amazing skate videos!

Ok, ok you might have known this one already, that’s fair. But still, it’s worth taking a look back at some of these videos and skateboard parts.

Real Since Day One 

I always love when brands make their older content available for free online. I’m happy to pay for a full lengther from a local shop, or brand, but once it’s been out for a while, it’s nice to be able to watch it for free somewhere. This one is no different, Real has it up on their site!

Real Through and Through.

Another absolute banger from real. These dudes rip.

7. Their team is unReal (hehe)

To put out amazing videos year after year, you’ve got to have a team that’s filled with a little bit of everything. Real Skateboards team has some absolutely insane riders. From the O.G’s like Dennis Busenitz, Max Schaaf, and Kieth Hufnagel (RIP) to the new hotness like Zion Wright, Ishod Wair and Kyle Walker.

This team is seriously so unbelievably packed with talent it’s incredible, and that talent has meant they’ve been able to keep pushing the envelope when it comes to their product which means….

8. They make some of the best damn skateboards in the industry, and have “Since Day One”.

From making a plethora of different shapes, including new decks with a symmetrical nose and tail, to slick decks for better slide, and their R1 construction, which promises a longer lasting pop and stronger skateboard, which also has a more consistent concave, Real makes some amazing boards.

Check out our selection of Real decks for yourself right HERE

Here's one of our favourites from the Edmonton Skate Shop: 

 

The Real Zion Wright Glitch Oval 8.25"

 

Real is just one of those brands. You see it at your local skateboard shop and know it’ll skate great and last a long time. We’ve got a great selection of Real Skateboards, both in Edmonton and Leduc so swing by and feel the shapes for yourself.

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And that wraps up another instalment of Brand Knew! As always, if there’s a brand you want to know about, if you’ve got questions about the boards or product we talked about, or just think we got something wrong, feel free to shoot us a DM over on Insta @rumorboardshop, shoot us an email @rumorboardshop.com or send us a message by carrier pigeon! We also accept cryptic magazine cut out letters. Any sort of blood pacts will be seriously considered.