ISSA - International Slalom Skateboarding Association

Anyone with photos to post of of Korten please do it in this thread . A lot of people are curious.

a repost of NCDSA post of mine.


Thanks Jack for a great weekend, Henry Hester-, You make it all real- you have no idea how cool you each racer feel when you announce their name over the loudspeakers.

The TS was very tight. Much muchTighter than I like to run.. I walked it on Thursday night, narrow boards and narrow trucks would make it a lot easier. Yet still- on Sunday, I saw lots of people attempting to run boards with wheelbases too long, decks too wide, or wheels too tall. Only Evans seemed dialed (Custom ICK, trimmed trucks), along with Aki (original Jani S-camber), Micheal Stride- GUS trucks, Jon Ravitch Roe, and strangely enough, a man on a borrowed ICK. There were gates that seemed to be less than 6 foot on center. I was surprised that many people did not try and modify their set up, given they had seen the course days earlier. I felt the course was set very tight, but I also think Jack did the right thing by not changing it after practice had begun and people had already spent time adjusting their boards to the course. For many racers…it would be- tiptoe through the minefield.

Thank you Ed Economy- always great stories. Racers/spectators in the Super G, can you imagine how Ed feels when he is doing the starts all day and can't see the high speed racing at the bottom (he just got to see a bunch of men's spandex covered butts pumping slowly over the crest of the hill - hmmm...please someone...rephrase this-). He's got only one position to watch from all day long at every race, and never complains.

The slalom Cinderella story-

Korten- sleeping under the stars for years, fast right out of the cardboard box. A tired man, traveled here by bus, over a decade of despair hopefully now behind him.

Korten hadn't skated slalom since 1993, and had to ride completely unfamiliar set ups. JK borrowed a 25 year old ICK board + Mid-Track Tracker Trucks (from Rick Howell), Some Park Bearings donated by Junior Ben Chapman - that's the spirit Ben!, Steve Olson offered him his own set up- he used some of Steve's personal set of Manx wheels for a run, Weasel gave him a set of ABEC 11 Stingers, I gave him a set of 3DM Cambrias + 8 piece Fried Chicken dinner, The Mollica's gave him a fresh shower.

AND all of us gave him the best weekend of his life.

For those of you that don't know Jim. I talked with Jim over the phone from the late 1980's to the early 1990's, he built me a custom foam core board with integrated front rad pad....and charged me only 40 bucks.

Jim has won nearly every slalom race he has entered...but he entered slalom in the Dark years from 1980- onward....after the slalom contests crumbled. Korten was really fast but the spectators and other competitors were thin then. He had no one to drive him to go faster other than himself. Likely Jim wanted someone to chase after...but for that Decade Jim was one of the fastest.

He had a devastating Luge accident- where he had to be flown to the hospital and died on the operating table……… twice. I tried to find Jim for the Jeux Pyreneens race in France in 1993 but he was completely MIA. If we had had Jim then I think Team USA wouldn't have had so much trouble with the very tight flat course.

Jim had vanished.

I spoke with him on camera, I have a lot of footage from the weekend so you can trace his return to slalom.

As I walked into the Pizza Port with him on Saturday night - he looked in from the outside and I told them they were all slalomers...he said to me "These are my people." and a smile from a weathered tired man cracked ear to ear.

I left Jim to his own to float about making friends- I figured this is something he should do for himself. Even with all the free pizza, Jim spent more time talking to slalomers than feeding his starving stomach.

Later I left the Pizza Port with Ed Economy and Jim, we walked up the hill, Jim paced out a few spots on the course. Told me a 16-18 inch wheelbase was the ticket.

Later that night I walked down to a party in the Hotel behind the Days Inn- as I walked past the service alley for the hotel I saw Jim on his sleeping pad fast asleep.


I then went in to the party and told the guys that Jim Korten was here. They said- "No way...where is he staying?" I said I saw him sleeping in the alley/nook, as I walked over. Kosick was like... "No way, THAT homeless guy? He's fast?" I said , you watch that guy place higher than most of the guys tomorrow, he might win. "Ritchie Carasco asked.."So he has been practicing?" I said..."Nope- he hasn't skated since 1993, he'll have to borrow stuff, doesn't even have a board." No one in that room could of predicted Jim's advance from 18th place qualifying. It was like lightning stuck every opponent in his way as most drove themselves into DQ's trying to chase Jim in their first run.

Reaction times of .05 seconds were posted by Korten, a guy who certainly hasn't stood on a ramp in over 15 years.

At a time when most racers were times over 20 seconds, early in qualifying, Jim said he thought a 19.8 second run was possible on the course.... I think the fastest raw time by was very close to that. Jim was running slower.

As that day went on on Sunday I could see Jim was getting tired (he never had to race such a deep bracket). He didn't make the round of 8 in qualifying and had to struggle up through the brackets beating Atilla, Then seizing the Number 2 Qualifying position from Michael Stride after driving Stride into a DQ like Atilla in the first run and coasting with a 2.1 second advantage over the number 2 seed in the second run, Then looking to see who he might face next...it looked like Chicken might advance, but Chicken was taken out and Hollien was the person who he faced next.

Throughout it all Jim knew exactly where he stood. I looked at Jim in the starting gates next to Hollien who looked a few runs fresher. Jim was running out of gas. Jim said..."I can't do it." He was too tired. When the dust settled Keith Hollien, a man at home in Ultra tight courses, advanced by .4 seconds.

Was Jim unhappy? He had missed the cyber slalom the night before where likely he would have won some cash, and he just got knocked out of a tight slalom. No..instead he was happy he had so many talented racers to race, and races to look forward too.

Jim had hope for slalom. At the pizza port the night before he took the most tattered Slalom! Magazine out of several Ziploc plastic bags wrinkled from hundreds of miles in a tattered backpack. Along with his medals from slalom races, his birth certificate and GED (He shares the name of Habitat for Humanity, and former president James Carter). But perhaps the most telling item in his bag, was a roll of raw fiberglass cloth he had been carrying for the past ten years….so that someday he could make another one of his boards and race again.

Jim already has a few fans, I'm one, - I hope he's got a roof under his head tonight- it would be cool if he was able to race some of the races left this year.

john,please be so kind to shoot me your e-mail address.it's regarding korten.
thanks
don

John,
I think I have his runs on film? I'll look for it
He "floated" down the hill like it was nothing
Does anybody have an address for him?

When Korten first walked up to me at the end of the day on Saturday, to ask if he could get into the race for Sunday, I didn't even take him seriously. I thought, "Another homeless guy, buttering me up to ask for change". What can I say, I'm a newcomer to this sport, I don't know anybody from before. When he didn't ask for change and I realized he was serious I directed him over to Jack Smith. The rest is history.

I probably don't need to add that after the events of Sunday I felt like a complete and total a**hole. Live and learn.

http://www.68mm.com/video/Korten.wmv

2.3mb

Korten is in the white (far) lane vs. Attila

Having him there, doing well, raised the level of stoke exponentially. I've got a couple more clips I'll try to string together, including at least one complete run.

Do you know what the key quote on that clip is?

"He's riding parallel this time."

Korten is like the guy who is so good at table tennis that he says (or does) stuff like, "This time I'm gonna beat you left-handed, playing with a frying pan for a paddle." He's a really interesting guy, and very nice, but as a competitor he has all the skill and confidence to completely humiliate and discourage most of his competition. If he gets all the way back on his game, he will be able to beat almost everyone in the world, while, in his own head, he'll just be messing around with 'em.

Sad story ! Any ideas how to help this guy ?

good point,carsten!!!!!
how strong is this community?
obviously this guy needs help,since he's stranded.
did anybody check what happened after the race?
or did he just vanish into thin air?
i read john's story and found it really saddening,i want to help this guy
any way i can,even though i never met him.

...from what I remember Korten took off after the races with Olson & Hackett. After that he was going to get a ride back to the Burbank area with Floyd.

I gave him my card so we can stay in touch in LA. If I do manage to keep in touch with him I'm going what I can to get him in the loop for practices with me & Evans & the other guys.

I think I remember Korten mentioning to me that he's located near the Sunland offramp, on the north side of the Valley. It shouldn't be too difficult to go get him for practices at least some of the time.

It might be a little ironic to note that Korten lives closest to Attila, the guy he took out for 7th place in the tight.

This is what happens when you leave your door open for five minutes!
A more paranoid reader of Dan Brown might see an obscure exotic symbolism in those finger gestures.

BELOW: JIM KORTEN..... HAULIN' - MAN !
@ 2004 Morro Bay Worlds'....Sun. Event.




PHOTO: by Rene' CANNONBALL Carrasco !

From Henry Hester:
Just got back from a trade show in Houston. I wanted to add to the great comments about the Worlds. Jack did a excellent job this year. The timing was the best I've seen in the past 4 years. I really enjoyed announcing, given some data to talk about. You know, slalom is all numbers from the announcer's point of view. When the reaction times, the splits and the raw times are not available, all you can say is... "great run by that guy". I had a lot more to work with. Thanks go to Pat Chewing and Seismic Dan. Both of these guys really have it wired and we are almost becoming a "show".

I was one of those guys who raced Korten in the 90's and immediately gave up slalom. He was so fast, on one foot that I simply threw in the towel. I can't tell you the mixes emotions I felt seeing him at Morro Bay. I. like Gilmour, know a fast dude from a dude who looks fast. I knew Korten's ability as he walked into the Pizza shop. I knew nobody there was remotely aware of what Gilmour and I knew.

Korton came from a wierd era of slalom. The late 80s. An era with an attitude not too far off the luge guys. He was the fastest TS guy to ever emerge from America (including Piercy) yet he had nobody to show it to. This must have been frustrating. When he finally got a shot at me and PD, we were not in top shape and it was a cake walk. Unfortunately, at the Worlds, it was Korten who was out of shape, weak, tired, recent weight loss and no familiar equipment. We saw a guy who is better than us. A guy who is weirder than us and a guy who is more like us than we are.

I was heart broken that he didn't advance in the TS event (JG is correct, he was worn out) but that's slalom. You're "on" for three years and then, for the next 30 years, it's all a dream. Korton is now in the dream stage with a lot of us. He could come back to win a USA event, on a good day, but when I tell you that "You should have been there..." trust me. You should have been there. Thanks to Gilmour, we may have some very interesting film of a great American Slalom Star who nobody knew. Jimmy Korten.

HH

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Korten still has talent- and certainly is up there with legend status despite having missed slalom's heyday. I also got Henry Hester on film predicting Kortens erie march towards the podium.

I also wonder about his training technique- if his super short boards had something to do with his speed. In looking at the video- it is remarkable how accurate and close he runs to the cones- I would say he is far closer than any other racer- likely within 1 inch or less to nearly every cone. He doesn't even appear to be working.

got crack?

bad joke,jeff.
sorry to say that.
it is absolutely uncool to make jokes about people with any kind of addiction.

with jim?

I didn't talk with him,but your question doesn't affect my statement about people who are on drugs at all.
I have seen a lot come and go in the saddest way possible,some were good friends.
I don't know what you're pointing at, when you ask whether I talked with him or not?
care to explain?

I talked with Jim at the Worlds, it is a shame that drugs have affected his life. I too have lost many a friend to drugs. We all make choices in life good or bad, those choices have been made. Watching Jim skate was an experience to behold, you had to be there to take it all in. It was an amazing, truly mind blowing. I hope Jim has a warm place to sleep tonight and stomach full of food. They say humility is the mark of a great man. I interviewed John Gilmore after the race, this is what he had to say " For a guy who slept in our backalley last night, to come so far, Last night I bought him some chicken and a bag of oranges from Albertsons, Unbelievable." Eddy Texas Outlaws.

I met Jim Korten back in December 1989.
Me , Leon and Nutsack spent 12 hours on a coach from Victoria Coach Station, London to Glasgow, Scotland with Jim and his then wife.
I think her name was Debbie or Diane.
Jim seemed like a nice enough guy but he and his wife spent the whole journey spouting on about God and how Nutsacks Tracker shirt was a pentagon and was the sign of the devil etc.
This is no bad thing in small doses, but don't try to ram it down my throat on a 12 hour journey.
Jim and Debbie were staying with Martin Sweeney before we went to Glasgow but Sweeney did'nt go as he had a really bad Flu.
Apart from the God Squad side of things watching Jim slaloming was a lesson in itself.
You think your not a bad skater, maybe hold your own with a visiting skater from across the pond, and then someone comes along and is
1.skating to a whole other level!
2.skating in another dimension!
It was sad to hear that Jim has had a few rough years, but I would love to see him skate again.
After reading some of the above posts I realised that I had once been witness to a skating legend in his full flow, which believe me was a wonderful thing.
I hope all goes well for Jim in the future.
If anyone should see Jim soon please send my regards.

Edwin (LSD)

I'm thankful that Korten has returned. Bobby Piercy is the one missing now.

The God stuff- well, I don't think it matters much of Tiger Woods is Jewish or Catholic or whatever-

All I care about is how well he can play....same for the skaters.

The one thing that would be great is if Jim had a way to get more comfortable- to lose this talent - I wouldn't want to think about it.
-
he cuts the cones so clean- it looks effortless.

Hey John.....the guy is living off of a freeway ramp in a cardboard box!....I think he has a few more things to worry about than his slalom skills.

Fact is, if he's been on the street for that long, he'll probably stay there.

I've lost alot of friends to drugs, suicide and wrecklesness....it doesnt matter how they died really, it all followed the same pattern.

The people who make it out of tough places do it with Friends, Family and, yes, God...whether they'll admit it or not

Strange yet true. My Step Father came to Morro Bay- but not my real Dad.

My Dad was once the Editor of the New York Times. We lived in the highest style on Manhattans 10021 Upper East Side. Interesting people- great parties, access to everything you could imagine. My Mom was a very atttractive millionaire Chinese woman with a Dutch/Swiss accent- she had a fantastic figure and drove the world's fastest car at that time, a Red Mercedes 1954 Gullwing, and worked for the hottest firm on Wall Street, with her Mom as wife of an ambassador. So for my Dad it was not a bad life for a guy out of Allentown PA, a scant 10 years away from being valedictorian at a small writers college dealing with Manic Depression.

Alcohol cost him his job, his marriage, my sister (died in drunken car crash), and of course his relationship with me.

He never recovered. Last time I spoke with him he was sleeping under a cannon in the Armory homeless shelter on 68th street and Park in NYC. Ironically he was using my First name and Middle name (John Adams)- thanks Dad for the thought.

He was a truly Brilliant man- never ever met anyone else with a mind like his. Literary Genius, perfect memory, socially skilled. Problem was he would never accept another job that was "below him" . He ended up living in a homeless shelter playing the stock market (doing very well at that) with the money of the people managing the shelter, and taking a percentage for managing their money- which of course went for booze.

That was in 1983. -probably, he's dead now. I can't find my Dad anywhere. The streets in New York aren't very forgiving.


I always find that many people with substance Abuse share something in common. A lot are hyper focused and very successful at doing things they like to do. However they can get "sooooo into it"....... That regular people can't deal with their intensity level.

So people start nodding and saying "uh huh uhh huh"... and not really listening (mostly because it is too much information or too much detail than they want). They start thinking..... how can I change this "Radio Station" without offending "the DJ". Because so often the conversations get dominated (say 97% intense person to 3% regular person...nearly sermonized... by the intense person). The solution.... for the regular guy is to get the intense person wasted (drinks/drugs) so they can hopefully make the person "less intense". "THIS GUY NEEDS A DRINK/JOINT" is what the regular guy thinks. And in the short run..... it works. Eventually the intense guy sees that Drinking makes him more acceptable, and his behavior supposedly more acceptable..

All the intense guy wants is to fit in and feel some respect for his accomplishments and/or knowledge. These "intense" guys find their way into lots of intense professions- Trading pits on Wall Street, racing cars, stunt men, B.A.S.E. jumping, war etc...

But when the Intense guy no longer feels like he can connect- or when he feels "shunned" that is the worst thing for the Intense guy- and so he starts a downward spiral. He feels less and less connected and does what worked for him before...Drink- to feel less intense and hopefully more accepted. Eventually- at the bottom- all the homeless drunks relate in a completely obliterated state. Weird- but for the Intense guy- while not optimal a situation... it can seem okay...okay enough to remain in that situation for years. And get stuck there.

I understand Jim Korten.

When he quotes of times, pitches slopes, cone settings and blurts out his times for those courses. It actually means something to me. I understand when he says he did a 10.09 for 20 cones offset 4 inches at 6 foot centers on flat. I understand what it takes to get to that mark- wheres as if the time were 10.45 it wouldn't be nearly so impressive.

problem is ...so few people understand that...and are willing to speak that language- even if they can...because they have tossed that type of relating out of their social realm. It only means something to high level slalomers who set courses and time themselves.


So you can imagine how few people Jim Korten thinks he can relate to.

He raced slalom- when it was deader than dead. He rode Vert in parallel stance crouched- (Very few people did that)...but he did these things exceptionally well. Yet didn't get much recognition for the difficulty and practice it took to get there. So of course the guy feels isolated. A "kook".

So where can he get "SUPER INTENSE" and still have people willing to listen to Radio Korten and be able to have a huge base of other enthusiasts??? RELIGION.

You see it's not that Korto is so religious...though he will say he is. It's that he is just very intense. and Religion lets him get as intense as he wants to- for the intensity is its own reward for him- so long as people are listening to him and validating the effort and thought and study that went into creating his points of view.

Same things goes for Meth. How to cook it- how to get the best high..etc.. Its about being intense. What's more intense than someone high on Meth? I don't know if this ever happened- but I can venture to guess that Korten was probably one of the better Meth "cooks" around.

I see a lot of reformed alcoholic intense people turn to religious pursuits.

If Korten had turned to machine language - or software development tools- he might have escaped and kept his intensity intact and useful. But likely he just didn't have that available to him. Its just what he could afford and what was accessible. He was in the middle of nowhere. With just pavement. So what could he do that was intense and affordable and available?

Slalom.

Religion.

Gilmour rules

JG. Good, but sad story! Too often we overlook the depth of the situation(s) that are smack dab in front of our mugs!

I'm in the process of giving a 2nd deer to "helping the hungry" here in West "by God" Virginia. And implore all to donate/give substance to those in need! I for one could not believe the amount of "homeless" individuals holding cardboard signs at virtually every exit in Columbus last week! The realization of the use of monies given to them may not be in the best interest or vital importance ie: Drugs/booze! I've opened my home for Thanks"giving" etc... to those in need and offered food clothing etc... Give the things directly to the needy, and see the shine in their distant eyes!!!
!

Wow! Holy shit John, that was amazing.

I'm with Joe, I have no idea what to say......

except that "You're right" . I too have personally seen what you speak of and now it makes sense - intensity


You are a very wise man, Mr Gilmour, and not just about obscure skateboards.


Cheers,
Fatboy



is there someplace we can send stuff, clothes, whatever to?

Being an incredible newbie to slalom and just back into skating the last year and half after a 24 year absence I have been using the posting boards at NCDSA and now here to reconnect, learn, and absorb as much as possible. They have been a resource for me to fuel my need for information. You see, I can relate to John Gilmore's post because I have been described more than once as being "too intense". It was not too many years ago that a doctor finally said what I had always suspected, I am a borderline Obsessive Compulsive. My friends call me the poster child for OCD. Fortunately, my OCD tendancies have never manifested themselves in destructive addictions but that is only by the grace of God.
John, I am like everyone else that have responded regarding your post. All I can say is Wow and thank you. Though I don't know Korten and have not met any of you yet, I have learned through these postings, e-mails, and phone conversations, that I have chosen to get back into a sport at just the right time! There is a community of people that have come together who actually cares about each other.

Thanks again for the posts, the advise on how to get back into the sport, and all of the other info. Thanks also for posts like your last one John.

Dudes, if any of you are in this part of the world December 11 (the Carolinas) try to make it to Exit 46 for the "South Carolina State Slalom Championships" (see posts on the Down South Forum for details). Wesley Tucker and 66 are going to be there with the timers and I am going down to hang out , learn and skate.

Hope to meet all of you soon at a event.

Hey, welcome aboard NCL!

Yeah, these slalom guys are pretty cool.

They've been real nice to a fat old longboarder like me!

I've been talking with Marmot Moutain International about doing another line of clothing (I designed a very successful Mountaineering Jacket, the Climbing Jacket 3, and line for snowboarders in the 1990's.) I wanted to call it Vagabond- the market = couch surfing snowboarders...sort of like myself...But also useful for people living on the streets (Urban campers). It's a convertible jacket that becomes a sleeping bag- some have done this...but not very well due to lack of good materials and construction techniques. Well- this would be a liner and insulation- and the snowboard bag would have integrated thermarest pad that folds and zips to become a snowboard bag/folding garment bag. Well insulated, windproof, waterproof, compressible and lightweight. The two garments can zip together to become one sleeping bag- and the carry sack for it can become the sleeping bag liner that is microfiber / quick drying/ easily washable and stain resistant.

My tester... Korto. He's first in line. In fact I think a lot of Homeless people should be testers for this stuff. My Dad, well he would rather shiver all night in a tattered Brooks Brothers shirt and Penny loafers, with his cloth watch bands- for him style is everything. But who knows?

But that "vagabond system" will take well over a year to make , and hopefully Korten will have a place to live by then.

Jim's wits aren't gone yet, and I think that is what has kept him alive on the streets for so long.

He's still carrying that roll of fiberglass around instead of a warmer sleeping bag (that's his style). But I am hot on the trail of a board he made for me 15 years ago- spoke with sister of the owner yesterday. It's a X-mas gift to him, with no tree to put it under.

As Jim Korten took out the 2nd fastest qualifier Micheal Stride on a moments notice kluged together antique ICK deck with park bearings- I wonder what he can do on something he is truly familiar with?

Joe- yep Gullwings all slalomers should have one. Tways Dad had one too. My step-dad met my mom when she was selling her Gullwing (which was bastardized with 300SL roadster headlights). She sold it to him, married him, and still got to drive the car- which was fine because my step-dad had two others. Red, White, Black. I threw up in every single one of them dozens of times getting carsick from riding on the side gas tanks on the door sills as a kid. He had a slew of antique 1905- 1930 Mercedes and Bugattis type 75 and type 55 racer...All gone now. He filed for bankruptcy 2 years ago, and now its just SSI. and a cat in the desert.

on crack.

truth is stranger than crack

truth is we all do what we want.

The 'poor people are poor because they want to be' ignorant simpleminded right wing attitude is surprising in this crowd of largely articulate well educated mellow cats. The whole world is reading.

Greg Olsen wrote: The whole world is reading.

who cares?

ummhh jeff
i do have a simple question
why did you talk with jim at the worlds?
what was the motivation/impulse that lead to that conversation?

Without intensity nothing would get done really right- or in some cases...at all. Intense people are doers, they are impatient and make things happen. They are risk takers often with a high degree of success and enjoy the recognition and social rewards of being doers. They are enthusiasts in the extreme.

Nothing "wrong" with those guys really- it's just intense.

Let us not confuse "intense" with overly compulsive/overly passionate/overly jealous. It (can, and probably will)lead to a huge downfall,resulting in self destruction! Take it all in stride and don't get tripped up.

Goad,
That dancing fat lady is freaking me out! ha ha.

Marion Karr

A lot of homeless people are in tents.

That could be JG's new clothing line, <i>InTentCity.</i>

Nice gif.

i can.

I have followed this thread for a few months and this is my first posting on your board.
I was pretty good friends with Jim and Shirley his so called girl friend/wife.
I would like to come to his defence last time I heard from Jim was around 1993 he was working for his Mom in Calinete, Nevada.
The Jim I know was a great slalom and luge boarder and fun to be around when Shirley was not around. He would act like a decent person and not spout the religious crap when she was not around. The Tracker Truck Star thing came from a grudge he held against Larry Balma and Peggy Cozens for not covering slalom In TWS and letting slalom die. Also because they hired GSD aka Gary Scott Davis to work at tracker and TWS and he would walk around in his skeleton pants and black eye liner on. I have to go of track for a one sentence here a Good GSD joke. I was at the tracker team office with my buddy Stephen Harnish we were hanging out with Britt Parrott and Chris"Sarge" Carter. GSD walks in and they Introduce him to Stephen Harnish. Harnish said "What does GSD stand for Gay Sex Daily?" Everyone is laughing except GSD.
Done with GSD joke back to the Tracker thing also Jim came from competive skateboarding in the late 70's and he could not embrace the punk thing that was taking skateboarding over in the eighties and eventually saved skateboarding. So that why he went the other way embraced religion like for example Russ Howell or Primo and Diane. But when Russ talks about religion it makes since. But Jim does not he was always hanged up on the Satan thing. He would come up to you point at scar in between his eyebrows and say it was the mark of the beast. Plus I think he liked to mess with people minds that way also so they will remember they met Jim Korten the fastest slalom racer.
I really felt sorry for Jim sometimes he was left behind in Pro skateboarding he could not compete any more because their was no Pro slalom contest .But Jim did the next best thing he would come to every CASL contest and set up Slalom course and shag cone all day for kids who hit the cones on their street boards on purpose. But he always did get his reward because some of the kids would see that they could boost their overall ranking in CASL with some Slalom wins or placing under their belt. So they would barrow his boards and he would teach them how to run cone and they would go home practice slalom racing. Jim also started making his own Koffin boards and selling them to the kids. Plus at the very end of each contest Jim would take a few secret runs after the factory winner to see if he still had it he would always beat them. The only time I had seen Jim run against racers. Was at the CASL Montrose street contest we had dual GS course on a steep hill ?!?{all Casl slalom contest were usually on flat ground or gently inclines} I think It was Steve Olson who showed up and he took a few runs and Jim was taking a few run and The Top Factory guys Dave Duncan and Dave Crabb. I think Jim beat them all. Jim for awhile was having a come back in skateboarding with emergence of Luge board racing. But then he made the luge board from hell made out of 3/4" thick plate steel and he cracked up and went down a storm drain at a Colton luge race. Jim rearranged his internal organ and died on the table a couple time in ER. Ask Beau Brown about the crash next time you see him he was there. Jim lost a lot weight from that crash when he was in the hospital after that he wore long johns or pant under his shorts to keep warm because he lost so much weight after the accident. Again skateboarding dised him he was asked not to luge board race because he was to dangerous of racer.
When I had a lot of influence in Running CASL I was the vice president/head judge and you name it job. I asked Sonja Catalano to let Jim have his amateur status back so he could race again, Sonja had this rule once a pro always a pro. I said how the hell are you suppose to be a pro if you don't have pro races. Sonja would not budge on this at all I think Jim weird religious antics had something to do with this and also the industry would not support slalom. Basically slalom/cross country racing in CASL was to keep the skaters busy in between the main event being run at that contest. I really think thing might have turned out differently for Jim in his life. If he would have been allowed to race as a amateur again and hang out in the only slalom friendly environment CASL. Paul Dunn was racing it would have been some intense racing back then.
I only wish one thing in 2005 for Jim Korten is he can race against you guy next year and realise his dreams of becoming a great pro slalom racer.


Myself I wish I could skate/race with you guys I really miss skateboarding alot but I have osteo arthritis in my left ankle really bad to many twisted ankle from skateboarding so I can't skate any more because of the pain. I can barley walk in the grocery store with out pain. I sometimes go down to the Clairemont skate park or Encinitas YMCA skate park and I watch the skaters in the pool and I mentally skate the pool and think of the lines I would take. I want to also thank Jack Smith for putting me on team Kryptonics back when I use to skate CASL it help me get other sponsors like Cutter trucks , vans shoes.Other Flow team.
I think it cool the old pros are taking skateboarding back to it purest from of going down a hill and turning.Seeing who can make it down the hill the fastest.Having fun with your friends.Maybe I will come watch you guys race if your down in the san diego area.
Later,
Terry Trimble

Here's a scan of Gary Fluitt's article on Jim in ConcreteWave - Holidays 2004 issue.

Hello All! This is the computer illiterate Jim Korten, having my assistant Eileen O'Hara type this for me. I am 52 years of age, and I live in the city of Mojave. I do not skate anymore, but I thoroughly enjoyed the world championships in Morro Bay in 2004. Maruse Strobel of Switzerland was the fastest guy I saw since Billy Hanes of 1979. I'm sorry I could not contact anyone after the contest, because I stepped off a train and left my wallet and bottle of wild turkey on the train in Santa Maria. I have lived like a hermit since I left my ex. My uncle is the nephew of Lindon B. Johnson. I have had to retire from competitions because of my accident and broken heart. I would love to hear from one and all. However, I am computer illiterate, but my secretary Eileen will gladly inform me of any replies. I do so miss the slalom world and the people that participate in slalom. My email address is: dbadboysk8er@yahoo.com. My phone number is 661-824-3529. I can be reached most anytime, seven days a week. This number belongs to a close friend I live with, so you will have to ask for Jim Korten. I would like to know what happened to Henry Hester, Rick Howell, Maruse Strobel, John Gilmore and everybody else. Please call! Before my ears fill with sand in the Mojave Desert! XOXO.
Jim Korten.

It is so great to hear from Jim again! Really glad he seems to be doing well. All the best!!! Simply just a great guy!!

Hi Jim,

This is Jani writing! Good to hear that you eventually found your way into our forum and that we know have a way to reach you. On a trip to the US I drove by your home, stopped by, asked around, but couldn't stay around long enough for us to meet up. Too bad. Then I heard you showed up in Morro Bay in 2004. Cool that you do stay in contact!

I'll send you a personal mail soon. I should also have a couple of old pictures that I could scan for you one day. But no promises for doing that anytime soon. I've got plenty of boxes with old pictures to go through first.

You can find a few scans of old Slalom! Magazines here to freshen up some of our old joint memories:
http://www.skateboardmemories.com/Magaz ... chive.html

Cheers,

/Jani

Korten turning up to race at the Worlds 2004 in Morro Bay was pretty mind-blowing. He was on it in the tight especially after showing up out of the blue and made his way through the eliminations on the setup Rick Howell gave him on the spot. His racing runs are included in the 2004 Worlds dvd video we did -- so when you have some time -- check it out: http://youtu.be/s8OFVTJ7XwY .