“I go to work at Skull with Feed-I and PD
Well life is never dull with Sue Diamond and RD.”
Everyone at Skull Skates is saddened to hear about the passing of Gerry Hurtado aka Skatemaster Tate this morning. Taters was the brand manager for Skull Skates at the LA warehouse back in the mid 80s and was instrumental in arranging many of the Skull Skates band board collaborations such as Gang Green, Social Distortion, etc. Taters was a legend in the skateboarding scene and one of the first to cement skateboarding’s relationship with hip hop via his ‘Skatemaster Tate’ recordings. It was always cool to read Taters’ articles in Thrasher magazine back in the 80s outlining great skate culture mystique like the tricks to thrift store shopping. A lot of kids also remember him as the host of Sk8 TV where he exposed to the masses late 80s skateboard culture with an immense inside view of the industry and it’s many characters.
There is a GoFundMe account set up to help with funeral expenses and the like.
Check it out HERE for more information.
Taters hassling his co-host as he tries to interview a young Guy Mariano during an episode of Sk8 TV. [Note the couch made out of Skull Skates Hosoi decks built by Ross Ducommun back in the day.]