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As most of us know, professional skateboarder Lewis Marnell died earlier this year on January 18th, following complications related to Type 1 diabetes. It was a condition that he was diagnosed with when he was 10 years old. The global skateboarding community was shocked and saddened by this tragic news. We were in disbelief that someone – one of us, so young and gifted and well-known and liked, was suddenly gone. The days, weeks, and months of our lives continue elapse as Lewis’ life of skateboarding lives on in all of us.

Be sure to consider and appreciate those people that you share great moments with in your life. Let them know that your life is better or enriched by them.

The words below are from Lewis’ friend and cinematographer and editor Jason Hernandez who put together this “One Love” video in tribute of Lewis Marnell’s good vibes and legacy.

We lost a skateboarder, a friend, and most of all, a truly good person.
Lewis lived his life with Diabetes, the kind were you’d need to check your blood for it’s insulin levels and give your self a shot sometimes twice a day. Oh he’d let you know every day he had diabetes :) he’d ask before every spot, “Oi – how far is the nearest store, Oi – I need to eat, Oi – how long are we gonna be here? I need food” I look back at this and smile, at the time I’d be like, “c-mon really…?” He was really good a misplacing his insulin pen, I helped him find it quite a few times, and remember how psyched he’d be to find it under his mess of shopping bags he’d bring on every session, OHHHH the shopping bags – they’d be rustling around making all sorts of noise in the car, hotel room; he’d have all his gummy worms, sour patch kids, all sorts of sugary foods to keep his levels were they needed to be.

Lewis was legitimately a good person, he cared about what was going on in your life, he’d stop to talk with anyone, I mean anyone… A bum, the random lurker you don’t want to talk to at the spot, anyone… We’d always be waiting on him because he met some new friend at the skate spot/or wherever we stopped the car.

I miss you Lewis. I hate to say I truly took you for granted and am sorry for every time I made you eat Subway cause I couldn’t figure out your diet; I wish I could tell you all this in person… but I can’t. So next time, I will try and let the people I see daily know that I appreciate them, and stop to talk with them just a little longer.
R.I.P Lewis

Love you bud.
Jason H

Hopefully by now you’ve had the opportunity to watch Blood Wizard’s new full-length video Wizard Bloody Wizard, which premiered on Thrashermagazine.com last Friday, February 15th. This 34-minute video not only features the raw skate talent of its diverse and skilled team of wizards, but it also celebrates those that have been shredding on their magic rolling boards for quite some time.

Case in point, the ninja-like talent of the Northwest’s very own Ben Krahn is something remarkable to contemplate. His grasp on skating is truly unique with the select tricks and lines that he puts together both on the streets and in the parks. This is blue collar skateboarding. Like the 97% of us, Ben does it for the fun, enjoyment, and love of it. He had his years traveling the planet, doing demos and entering contests with his skating backed by endorsements, but time marches on. And Ben (like most of us) is well aware that he can’t earn a living skateboarding forever.

Nonetheless, Ben works a solid job, has a family and continues to rip in his late thirties. This is some of his best stuff yet and proves that skateboarding is something that you can continue to do (barring any heavy injuries) as long as you put in the time and effort.

To make it clearer for our viewers, Ben was very willing and appreciative to share his 8-minute bonus part with us, which appears after the credits roll in Wizard Bloody Wizard. For those of us close to Ben, we know how much time and effort that he and filmer Dave Hupp put in to create this cinematic gem. To be specific, these guys dedicated the better part of three years to collaborate on spots, tricks and stack a ton of clips. They didn’t have the benefit of a travel budget so the majority of what you see was filmed in Portland, Oregon and the surrounding areas.

Also, the soundtrack was written, played, and recorded by Ben at home on a digital 4-track recorder; his pal Karl Hubble mixed the song for the video.

So kick back and crack open your favorite beverage, and ingest the next 8 minutes of skateboarding with Ben Krahn. Our souls are inspired and our minds are blown. Cheers Ben!

- Bryce Kanights