25+ years later, has anyone ever come close to Tom Penny's chainlink session?

[TheDraught]

I guess most people here are familiar with Tom Penny's legendary chainlink session that was first featured in Transworlds "Uno" (1996; a 2:11 long shared part with Rowley, Penny only has the last 40 seconds or so consisting of only tricks over a (then) popular chain to bank in SD. This is the Uno part, skating to Sebadoh:



It later gained more fame and attention when it was featured again in a TWS video (Anthology, 2000) where Dyrdek did a great job imho telling how amazing Penny was at that time. This part is just Tom Penny (so no shared part; chainlink again at the end) same tricks as Uno but including a few bails too. This is the Anthology part:



Since then I can't think of ANY skater destroying a spot like that, maybe some dude on a park rail but the chain link was way different:

1 real street spot, chain links are scary because if you're board hits it or gets stuck you can slam really akward

2 landing (also switch) into a bank that is apparently steeper than it looks

3 a drop at the end bottom of the bank, another thing that can send you flying to the asphalt

4 asphalt looks quite rough, at least enough not something you want to scrape your chin or elbows on

5 ALL Penny's tricks - from to hippy jump to the nollie backside flip to the switch ollie are all absolutely PERFECT. Landing bolts, no hands on the ground, nothing sketchy, style for miles.

6 it took him a very short time, if you head over to Reddit some geek can probably calculate the time between first and last trick analyzing the shadows or something.

Not necessary though since is not even sweating, shadows more or less the same, no red face or anything. I am guessing 2 hours maximum for 13 perfect tricks in total (maybe they didn't put in an ollie in the edit) 

7 hair in front of his eyes so no vision but I think Penny didn't mind that at all.

I think Uno was filmed in 95 or 96 so the footage is at least 27 years old, we are nearing 3 decades since it was filmed.

I don't think anyone has done anything remotely similar since. Skatepark footage doesnt count, nor long ass sweaty sessions that take a whole day.

Sketchy stuff also doesn't count. Like The Great Salabanzi Show was insane too ( ) but contest setting, smooth floor, sketchy landings, hand drags etc., and yes a bit more self cheering than Penny, just a bit...)

Does anyone know of a session similar to Penny's chainlink?

[mareo]

Salabanzi > Penny

[dannyprovolone]

braeden hoban at the hubba hideout contest

[MOE SYZLAK]

 

[Tom Pearl]

Marcus Mcbride did like every flip trick imaginable over the pier 7 blocks

[mattchew]

Salabanzi > Penny

Geeze I have read both some straight dog shit takes and absolutely psychotic non sense posted on SLAP over the years but this is up their mate. Literally no one is better than Penny.

[boston_bruins]

The chain to bank spot was extremely fucked. The bank was smooth and slick as glass and the asphalt at the bottom was some ultra harsh coarse shit, for all the trucks towing boats into the boat launch right there where the spot was. Dunno if it’s still skateable, think I heard it was dead years ago………….(it was murdered by Tom Penny)

[WhoCareZ]

braeden hoban at the hubba hideout contest

HOBAN shut it down at that session. Kickflip BS noseblunt if I remember correctly was the last nail in the coffin

[Burton Ernie]

While it’s not 1 skater destroying 1 spot in 1 session, I think Ishod’s general existence on the Fourstar Obtuse Moments tour gives off the same vibe, relatively newer dude that just did a ton of great stuff in a short time and with a pretty effortless style.

[j....soy.....]

I’ve heard stories of Penny hanging out on the top of vert ramps skating flat….then casually doing one of the tricks into the ramp….so it’s no surprise he put a hurt on that spot…..

[Lenny the Fatface]

Not necessarily the fairest question because skate footage isn’t typically edited like that. If someone is seshing a spot they might just keep one or two of the better looking tricks just to prevent redundancy.

Hard for me to imagine that when Suciu found a spot interesting that he only tried the one trick that the viewers ended up seeing.

[lydius]

I think the most likely situation for something like this is someone rifling off a bunch of tricks on a rail that's particularly hard or scary. Here's one clip that comes to mind. You could probably find similar clips of like Jamie Foy or Figgy. I know I've seen Leo do a bunch of stuff on like outrails or gap to rails that was within minutes of each other: gap to 5-0, gap to lip, gap to nosegrind, etc

[Paul Cicero]

Salabanzi > Penny

You’re out of your god damn mind

Also, that chainbank session with Rob commentary is probably the video I revisit most ever.. The nollie backside flip is absolutely perfect / beautiful

[figureitout]

Not like that NO.

Opposite everything to skateboarding in my life Jah. I just have to give props to Jah for the hurt on clipper.

[shannamal]

Not necessarily the fairest question because skate footage isn’t typically edited like that. If someone is seshing a spot they might just keep one or two of the better looking tricks just to prevent redundancy.

Hard for me to imagine that when Suciu found a spot interesting that he only tried the one trick that the viewers ended up seeing.

i have a memory of reading about him doing kickflips on flat, then kickflips at the very bottom of a QP, then kickflip at coping, then one like 4 feet above coping, all in like 15 minutes. just casually learned kickflip fakies in a single session 

[RoaryMcTwang]

No.

[SHARPSHOOTER]

Koston at CIBC rails

[OwlGreen]

braeden hoban at the hubba hideout contest

I couldn't believe my eyes. Assuming they got the dimensions right, shit is the craziest session I've ever seen go down by one person, including Penny at the chain. The real thing was big enough that doing any trick at all on it was kind of a big deal. Kareem had a noseslide on it in the NWO video. Shipman's backlip had a cover. Drehobl's nosegrind had a 411 opener. Koston's back noseblunt is quite possibly the highlight of his career.

[DannyDee]

I don't think anything is as iconic. But, Justin Eldridge's session at the San Marcos rail when he was pretty much flow got him fully on Chocolate, eS and Stussy I believe (the opening of his Yeah Right part). I know it was a pretty mellow rail, but he was getting switch tricks on it that pretty much no one else was doing on rails at the time.

[xandeo]

Not at a once single spot, but Chad Muska filmed basically a whole video part in a day, with pretty much everything within first or a handful of tries.

[S.]

Expand Quote

braeden hoban at the hubba hideout contest

[close]

I couldn't believe my eyes. Assuming they got the dimensions right, shit is the craziest session I've ever seen go down by one person, including Penny at the chain. The real thing was big enough that doing any trick at all on it was kind of a big deal. Kareem had a noseslide on it in the NWO video. Shipman's backlip had a cover. Drehobl's nosegrind had a 411 opener. Koston's back noseblunt is quite possibly the highlight of his career.

That was so fucking crazy! He did all those tricks in 30 minutes, taking turns with about 8 other skaters.



It obviously must have been more perfect than the real one, but I think it was the exact same size as the original hubba. Everyone, but Hoban, was really struggling to get anything on the ledge.

[Tabletop]

No.

[kook1234]

Salabanzi > Penny

Dyrdek > Salabanzi

[rawbertson.]

All in 1 session like that yeah its pretty crazy and rare. cant really think of anyone who's done exactly that. just a lot of guys getting multiple clips at one spot one session.

me and my friend always called people who get multiple tricks on the spot "session skaters". zered bassett instantly came to mind! Glad someone posted Vicious Cycle.

lol the crazy thing about penny's stuff too is like , every single one of those could have been an ad  could have just sat on those and slowly leaked thme out over time

speaking of osmeone who did that,
dustin dollin put down huge session on the 9 stairs (theres like a few sets in a row) in austrailia and also the trainstation rail. bunch of those went down same day but were spread out between baker 2g, Sight Unseen, and ON Video part.


The presidio rail in SF(the one hanry sanchez sw fs lipslides and does a bunch of other stuff) must have seen some beat downs in its day. that thing was like a skatepark rail.


If you watch the Toy Machine : Sucking the Life tour video, Billy Marks has a section where he rifles off like 27 different tricks on a skatepark handrail. its a thing of beauty. that entire video is basically just single spots getting absolutely destryoed one at a time as each guy puts down their go tos. probably my favorite tour video of all time besides Baker has a deathwish.

[rocklobster]

A big part of the Penny-Bank session allure is the storytelling courtesy of Dyrdek, dude knows how to keep you hooked on his yarns.

Couple of good suggestions - Zered's landing all the staple rail tricks on that square rail in Vicious Cycle and Muska's day in Arizona come to mind.

[Sleazy]

leo does this in his most recent video. does way more tricks than he needs to at multiple spots with clean style.

[Easy Slider]

No.

[Billy Bitchcakes]

What about when Carroll started... ANNIHILATING THE RAIL... IN THE RAIN

[ejazzle]

braeden hoban at the hubba hideout contest

I was sitting there watching that whole thing completely baffled. I had no idea how good he is. I honestly couldn't believe my eyes. Talk about launching your career into the stratosphere.

The chainlink session was iconic.

[jerrygurneyscream]

My boy Sturds had his chain fence day last week brodie. Epic one, I put my name in to do the voiceover on it too