man wearing goggles surrounded by cactus man wearing goggles surrounded by cactus

Hitting the road is part of Volcom’s DNA and if we go for too long without a roadtrip we start to go stir crazy. So just as we began to feel enwrapped by an overwhelming sense of claustrophobia, we started planning a loose route through the southwest assembling a solid crew to join us on the journey. Milton Martinez, Collin Provost, Omar Hassan, Mathias Torres, Alec Majerus, Simon Bannerot, CJ Collins, Peter Hewitt, along with snowboard legends Jaime Lynn and Scott Blum on their Harleys, joined Remy Stratton in the #VolcomYOTA along with Tom Remmilard keeping Peter company in his own vehicle, while Wanderlodge driver, Jarrod Pimental aka ‘Road Rage’, manned the wheel in the skate van.

Normally skate trips consist of going from city to city, hotel to hotel and hitting all the spots we can fit into the timeframe. But on this trip we were camping every night for 2 weeks, which meant finding a camp spot on the outskirts of each city and hitting spots for a day or two. 

Hitting the road is part of Volcom’s DNA and if we go for too long without a roadtrip we start to go stir crazy. So just as we began to feel enwrapped by an overwhelming sense of claustrophobia, we started planning a loose route through the southwest assembling a solid crew to join us on the journey. Milton Martinez, Collin Provost, Omar Hassan, Mathias Torres, Alec Majerus, Simon Bannerot, CJ Collins, Peter Hewitt, along with snowboard legends Jaime Lynn and Scott Blum on their Harleys, joined Remy Stratton in the #VolcomYOTA along with Tom Remmilard keeping Peter company in his own vehicle, while Wanderlodge driver, Jarrod Pimental aka ‘Road Rage’, manned the wheel in the skate van.

Normally skate trips consist of going from city to city, hotel to hotel and hitting all the spots we can fit into the timeframe. But on this trip we were camping every night for 2 weeks, which meant finding a camp spot on the outskirts of each city and hitting spots for a day or two. 

We started down at Collin’s house for a leg stretcher then hitting a kicker to gap on the bay in San Diego before finding a spot to camp directly off interstate 8. After hitting a couple pools in El Centro we kept it moving, camping at the infamous Hippy Hole on the Colorado River for a much needed chill and dip. Before we knew it we were in Phoenix for a few nights camping out under some powerlines at a DIY on the outskirts of Phoenix. After a backyard pool session and sessioning a roof, we were off to Tucson where Volcom family, Aaron Suski, would be showing us around.
skate collage background skate collage background
We started down at Collin’s house for a leg stretcher then hitting a kicker to gap on the bay in San Diego before finding a spot to camp directly off interstate 8. After hitting a couple pools in El Centro we kept it moving, camping at the infamous Hippy Hole on the Colorado River for a much needed chill and dip. Before we knew it we were in Phoenix for a few nights camping out under some powerlines at a DIY on the outskirts of Phoenix. After a backyard pool session and sessioning a roof, we were off to Tucson where Volcom family, Aaron Suski, would be showing us around.

In Tucson we got a little relief from the cold by staying at Premise Skatepark, sleeping where kids would have their birthday parties. Simon's birthday fell on one of our days in Tucson and the session at the ditch spot with 3 pipes sticking out was all time! Initially we were going to try and go to El Paso, TX, but opted out after hearing that most of the city was shut down due to the pandemic, so we decided to just skip it and head to Albuquerque where the spots were plentiful. Big shout out to ‘Jake da Jeweler’ for all the hospitality!

In Tucson we got a little relief from the cold by staying at Premise Skatepark, sleeping where kids would have their birthday parties. Simon's birthday fell on one of our days in Tucson and the session at the ditch spot with 3 pipes sticking out was all time! Initially we were going to try and go to El Paso, TX, but opted out after hearing that most of the city was shut down due to the pandemic, so we decided to just skip it and head to Albuquerque where the spots were plentiful. Big shout out to ‘Jake da Jeweler’ for all the hospitality!

skateboard collage skateboard collage
skateboard collage skateboard collage

Due to the epic spot selection Milton Martinez was on fire, dropping hammer after hammer, jumping off of overpasses, gapping out to grinds down double kinks and hitting rails on the fly while getting kicked out, all in the same day! After a few days in Albuquerque, NM and some heavy footage logged we kept it moving back west. ‘The Muscle’ which consisted of Snow team riders Scott Blum and Jaime Lynn with his girlfriend Dini on Harleys, motored ahead and found this tight little pool in the middle of nowhere in Arizona right off old Route 66. After digging out the sludge it was ready to rip just in time for the skate teams arrival. It also served a secluded camping spot. Later we found out that it was an abandoned zoo that was next to some Apache death caves!

Due to the epic spot selection Milton Martinez was on fire, dropping hammer after hammer, jumping off of overpasses, gapping out to grinds down double kinks and hitting rails on the fly while getting kicked out, all in the same day! After a few days in Albuquerque, NM and some heavy footage logged we kept it moving back west. ‘The Muscle’ which consisted of Snow team riders Scott Blum and Jaime Lynn with his girlfriend Dini on Harleys, motored ahead and found this tight little pool in the middle of nowhere in Arizona right off old Route 66. After digging out the sludge it was ready to rip just in time for the skate teams arrival. It also served a secluded camping spot. Later we found out that it was an abandoned zoo that was next to some Apache death caves!

At this point we were about a dozen days into the trip and all the ripping and sleeping on the ground was starting to take its toll. We made our way towards Las Vegas for a roll around the massive Craig Ranch skatepark. Camping again secluded out in the middle of nowhere served as a proper way to end the trip and after 14 long days of ripping and battling the elements we made the journey home.
skate collage background skate collage background
At this point we were about a dozen days into the trip and all the ripping and sleeping on the ground was starting to take its toll. We made our way towards Las Vegas for a roll around the massive Craig Ranch skatepark. Camping again secluded out in the middle of nowhere served as a proper way to end the trip and after 14 long days of ripping and battling the elements we made the journey home.

Que Saguaro

Starring:

Milton Martinez
Collin Provost
Simmon Bannerot
CJ Collins
Omar Hassan
Grant Taylor
Axel Cruysberghs
Alec Majerus
Peter Hewitt
Aga Luszcz
Monica Torres
Mathias Torres
Cyprus Blanco
Kristion Jordan
with
Jamie Lynn & Scott Blum

For more from this epic road trip, read the article in the March '21 issue of Thrasher Magazine 'Welcome to Gnarzykstan: Volcom's 30-Year Camping Trip'

thrasher magazine cover