New business skates into Lodi, bringing ollies, kickflips and 180s

Anthony Lucarelli, center, owner and operator of Wake and Skate, with his children and family friend. From left to right: Brett Lucarelli, 12; Nicole Lucarelli, 4; Stefanie Lucarelli, 10, and Parker Estep, 13. (Jennifer M. Howell/News-Sentinel)

New business skates into Lodi, bringing ollies, kickflips and 180s

By Marc Lutz
News-Sentinel Staff Writer

Saturday, June 21, 2008 7:01 AM PDT

Comments (No comments posted.)

Names like Humpston and Muir, Peralta and Alva, Adams and Biniak are the ones that started it all. They are the legendary '70s skaterboarders of Dogtown, the senseis of shredding. That's where the love of all things skating began for Anthony Lucarelli, of Lodi.

Three decades later, Lucarelli has taken that love and used it to open the Wake and Skate Board Shop on Lodi Avenue.

When he was in his early teens, Lucarelli followed the example of skateboarding idols and made his own skateboard decks. He shaped the wood; he painted and coated it to make it last. He sold them for $10 apiece to his boarding buddies.

Because the smell of the chemicals he used to coat the boards, Lucarelli's step-father discouraged the practice, and the young entrepreneur walked away from making boards, though he continued to skate himself.

Instead, Lucarelli says he focused on becoming a top-notch mechanic.

Years later, he decided he wanted to open his own business. A shop centering on skateboards and accessories was a natural fit, though it wouldn't come without challenges tougher than mastering a kickflip underflip.

"I had a business plan, but it was totally worthless," Lucarelli said. "All the banks turned me down." Lucarelli, who prides himself on having always worked for his own money, was given the money by a relative, whose only wish was to be a silent partner.

Brett Lucarelli, 12, plays SKATE at Wake and Skate. (Jennifer M. Howell/News-Sentinel)

Lucarelli originally had his heart set on the space that is now occupied by Dirty Dog Pet Wash at 515 W. Lodi Avenue. After that business opened, he pulled a 180 and switched his longing for the space in the middle of the row of shops that include a nail salon, a gun shop and Uniformity.

The owner of Uniformity was planning to move into 527 W. Lodi Avenue, and asked Lucarelli if he'd consider the corner shop.

He jumped at the chance like a boarder doing an ollie.

Ten weeks later, through the challenges and frustrations of setting up shop, Lucarelli opened the doors last Saturday. The flow of customers, through word-of-mouth and passing by, has been steady.

Kyle Suess, 17, made it to the shop for the first time on Thursday, getting there via skateboard. The Lodi High senior had one thing in mind: shoes.

"I gotta get new shoes today. I'm looking for Vans," Suess said. Though Wake and Skate doesn't carry that brand, they do carry names like Baker, Sk8 millionafia, Santa Cruz, Powell-Peralta, Independent and others.

Skating definitions

Airwalk: A grab trick involving holding the nose with your front hand while your legs split as if walking.

Alley-Oop: A trick performed in the air while turning the opposite or "unnatural" way to the direction of travel.

(Marc Lutz/News-Sentinel)

Backflip: Pretty much exactly what it says — a backwards end-overend flip of the rider and skateboard. This is only possible off of ramps.

Backside: Along with frontside, this term is used to further define any trick involving rotation of the rider, and some tricks that involve a rotation of the board.

Boneless: An old-school way of getting airborne. The boneless was invented before the ollie. It involves stepping off the skateboard with your front foot and jumping off that foot while holding the board with your back hand.

Disaster: A lip trick or stall that is effectively a lipslide without sliding — placing the rear wheels over the lip with the board resting on the edge of the lip.

Fakie: The feet are positioned naturally but the skateboard travels backwards. The skater effectively stands at the front end of the board as it rolls and looks over his shoulder to see where he is going.

Grind: The act of riding along an obstacle — usually a curb, rail or ledge — on the trucks of the skateboard.

Judo Air: The judo is a grab trick invented by Tony Hawk. It's a onefooted nose grab in which the front foot is extended to the toeside of the board in a mock-martial arts flying kick.

Kickflip: A variation on an ollie in which the skateboarder flicks his front foot off the heel edge of the board as he ollies, causing it to flip once, twice or even three times before he "catches" the board with his feet and lands the trick.

McTwist: A vert trick consisting of a 540 degree rotation with a backflip, named after its inventor, Mike Mcgill.

Ollie: Simply how to get airborne.

Shuvit: A simple trick in which the board does one or more varial rotations.

Source: www.board-crazy.co.uk

Lucarelli has made it a point to carry skateboard decks, trucks and wheels, as well as skating accessories, clothing and wake boards.

While Lucarelli tends to ordering and customers' needs, his son, 12-year-old Brett Lucarelli, assembles custom skateboards. His sister, Stefanie Lucarelli, 10, works the cash register and helps her brother with the boards. Though she doesn't skate, Stefanie Lucarelli is definitely mastering the tricks of running the business.

The meticulously decorated interior of the skate shop has two flat-panel televisions playing skating video games and documentaries on skaters. A banner hangs from the ceiling reading, "Skateboarding is not a crime."

Andrew Salinas, 10, of Morgan Hill is visiting his aunt Michele Salinas, and cousins, Erica and Sarah. The group stopped by the shop to see if anything appealed to Andrew Salinas, who has been skating since he was 3 years old.

"Any board is good for me," Andrew Salinas said, though he admits he prefers a shorter board. Michele Salinas says she would prefer that her daughters don't take up the hobby.

"They could break legs and stuff," Michele Salinas said. Her daughters both said they really didn't care for skating.

Brett Lucarelli, an avid skateboarder, recently broke his wrist while trying to pull off a trick. Will it keep him from getting back on a board?

"Nah," Brett Lucarelli said.

Anthony Lucarelli has taken a lot of advice from Bill Ackerman, who owns Bill's Wheels in Santa Cruz, a staple of the skating world. He considers Ackerman a mentor, and heeds everything he has to say when it comes to who to hire and what to sell.

Anthony Lucarelli expects the top sellers in the shop to be Independent and Creature, though off-shoot brands like Mystery also seem to be doing well. No matter the sales, his goal is quite simple. He is planning for his children's futures.

"I want my children to have the business," Anthony Lucarelli said.

Reader Feedback

Comments on this story are now closed.

Archives

Story Tools

Indexes