Inside a Qualicum Beach home rests one of Canada鈥檚 largest skateboard collections.
Eric Pinto owns approximately 400 boards, with the oldest ones dating back to the 1950s, complete with squeaky metal wheels that threaten to cut into his kitchen floor on a trial run.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just a hole, an axle, and a wheel. That鈥檚 it. Pretty sketchy,鈥� he says with a laugh. 鈥淚t鈥檚 still fun, though.鈥�
The walls of the home he shares with his wife and daughter are lined with boards set up as 鈥榗ompletes,鈥� meaning mounted with trucks and wheels, ready to ride. Pinto has ridden most of them, just to get the feel.
He says the styles all feel a little bit different.
鈥業 like the character of a used board. 鈥� I like to set them up era-accurate. So the trucks, and the wheels, all the components are from the same year, and usually to what the pro rode,鈥� said Pinto.
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鈥淚 know a few people that have larger collections than mine, I do. But I don鈥檛 know anyone that has completes like this.鈥�
Each wall is organized by teams, and his collection is carefully arranged, a monument to the rich history of skateboard culture. They鈥檙e organized by brand, or team 鈥� legendary names in the skate world like Powell-Peralta, Alva, Santa Cruz and Skull Skates, to name a few.
鈥淭hese teams were solid teams for years. So it鈥檚 like the beginning of these brands that are still around,鈥� said Pinto.
A collection like this is a long journey in the making. Pinto has been skating since he was in Grade 2, and collecting decks for about 16 years.
In the beginning, he was buying about one deck a day, searching for them on eBay and finding gems back before skateboard collecting was really a thing. A collection of this nature doesn鈥檛 happen overnight 鈥� the hunt for the exact era-accurate components can be time consuming.
鈥淚t takes a while. Or there鈥檚 different parts that you get, different skateboards 鈥� it鈥檚 all interchanging. Sometimes you鈥檒l find trucks that are on a board that鈥檚 10 years later, or something, and the skateboard will be inexpensive but the trucks are what you really want, stuff like that,鈥� said Pinto.
The setups line the walls and snake down the hallway into the laundry room, where piles and piles of decks are stored. Each board holds multiple stories: from their original riders to the teams they represent, to back-story about the designer, to how Pinto came to acquire them.
By playing the role of collector, Pinto becomes the de facto keeper of all those tales. He pulls out his favourites from the stack and the stories spill out.
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鈥淚t鈥檚 a little bit obsessive. But I think it鈥檚 important to share the history, and it鈥檚 important to preserve the history of skateboarding. This time definitely won鈥檛 be repeated again, and it鈥檚 like the evolution of the sport,鈥� said Pinto.
Notable members of the skate world like pioneer Mark Gonzales and Anti Hero founder Julien Stranger have gifted him boards to add to his collection.
Needless to say, Pinto owns a number of boards with great personal meaning, to others and to himself.
鈥淢ost collectors would probably say a grail to them is getting their first board back. And I have that 鈥� and that鈥檚 a hot pink Powell-Peralta Lance Mountain. That means a lot to me. As far as rarity, I have a lot of pro鈥檚 boards, pro鈥檚 first model boards, that are pretty rare, and I have a lot of pro-ridden boards, boards that were ridden by the pros themselves back in the day,鈥� said Pinto.
鈥淚 think most people when they initially get into it, they want to get pieces of history that they had when they were younger. 鈥� My first board was in 1989. I was looking at magazines for maybe three years before that happened. So 鈥�86 on is all my nostalgia. I鈥檝e never stopped skateboarding, so it鈥檚 all very nostalgic to me.鈥�
Pinto is relatively new to Qualicum Beach, moving to the area with his partner Illana Hester, executive director of The Old School House Arts Centre, and their daughter.
An artist himself, his garage is filled with abstracts and projects from years past. A stack of T-shirts on display in the garage reads 鈥楺ualicum鈥� in the font made famous by the brand Supreme. He鈥檚 also in the beginning stages of opening a framing shop.
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He鈥檚 also wasted no time getting involved in the local scene. Pinto helped out with Qualicum Beach group Pacific Board Culture鈥檚 last event, an all-ages punk show at the Bradley Centre in Coombs, and he already sees room for improvement in the local skate community.
鈥淚鈥檝e been talking with Jerrett Vanstone, and I鈥檝e been getting involved with Pacific Board Culture. We鈥檙e trying to get a new park at Qualicum Beach. That park is grossly outdated, and not very safe. It鈥檚 essentially 鈥� it鈥檚 slanted. It鈥檚 like they built a basketball court on a slant. A lot of people say 鈥榦h, well if the park is bumpy and at a slant, that should make it more challenging. And you would like it more as a skateboarder,鈥� said Pinto.
鈥淚t鈥檚 more dangerous, and unpredictable. 鈥� I think if we had a park that was more accessible for people of all ages, and it was more open, you would have 鈥� people of all ages would use that space a lot better.鈥�
The days of skateboard culture being an underground sport have passed, although the DIY ethos of rebelliousness and thumbing your nose to authority still remains. No longer a fringe activity, the sport has worldwide acclaim, and its influence on popular culture is not to be overlooked.
鈥淚 think having a strong skate community brings the community together. I think it鈥檚 a great activity that you can do year-round here, basically. It promotes all of these wonderful things, like determination, self-confidence, self-awareness,鈥� said Pinto.
His voice quiets as he talks about the feeling of rolling down pavement, which he still does almost every day.
鈥淚 like that it鈥檚, it鈥檚 freedom to me. You can skate whenever you want, there鈥檚 no rules. You can be as creative as you want,鈥� said Pinto.
He鈥檚 offering private tours of his collection for those interested in a rip through the history of skateboard culture.
Find Pinto on Instagram @professor_pintossible or reach him via email at ericpinto3000@hotmail.com.
