Twice a year the Girl Skateboard Company Inc releases a catalog containing new products from most of the brands under their roof in Torrance, California. Girl, Chocolate, Royal, Fourstar, Ruby, Skate Mental and Lakai are all represented within it’s pages along with skate photos and other editorial. More than a catalog, Wallride is a perfect bound collectible book to be put on the shelf.

Last week they released issue 17 and I’ve got to say that personally I think it’s the best one yet. Andy Jenkins, a former co-worker of mine, fellow Club Mumbler and the head dude over at Girl’s Art Dump, agrees. Below is an interview I conducted with him about the history of Wallride along with a visual history of every single cover from the past 8 years.

BOB K: When did you start doing Wallride and what sparked the launch of it?
JENKINS: The first Wallride was 2001. I guess the real reason we started it was practical - it’s much easier for shop buyers and distributors to go through our product when it’s all in one book, as opposed to 4 or 5 different catalogs in different formats - which is what we were doing before Wallride.

What’s your favorite issue to date?
The brand new one, number 17.

Favorite cover?
Again I’d have to say number 17 with Carroll. Ben Colen shot it and the blacks are just so rich. Perfect contrast. I also like number 9 with Koston goofing on it.

Favorite product to ever grace it’s pages?
The Chocolate cube clock and Skate Mental’s Holy Roller ceramic bearings - the packaging is genius.

What pro would you like to see on the cover who hasn’t already been?
The young bloods Malto and Mike Mo haven’t had one yet. Olson’s already scored 2!

All in all, how many man hours do you think go into each issue?
To be honest, a good six months of work goes into each Wallride. From gathering inspiration, to product design, to design content and layout, photography, editorial and layout it takes six months. We do two a year. One hits in January and the other in mid-summer.

Do you have a favorite memory involving the delirium in staying nights late to finish it?
It’s much much easier, or at least smoother these days. Early on we had a much smaller crew of artists and it was much tougher to get all the work done. Pre Wallride was the toughest and I need to really give Johannes Gamble a big shout out for really being there… and Doctor Octagon - we used to play that CD through my bass amp which we turned all the way up to 11 on those really long nights of work.
Rick [Howard] setting off a whole box of firecrackers next to you as you slept under your desk is a good one too. And Larson almost getting his face blown off by a bottle rocket that same day… guess who shot that one off?

WALLRIDE 16 - ALEX OLSON

WALLRIDE 15 - ALEX OLSON

WALLRIDE 14

WALLRIDE 13

WALLRIDE 12 - BRIAN ANDERSON

WALLRIDE 11 - MARC JOHNSON

WALLRIDE 10 - KENNY ANDERSON

WALLRIDE 9 - ERIC KOSTON

WALLRIDE 8

WALLRIDE 7 - TONY LARSON

WALLRIDE 6 - RICK MCCRANK

WALLRIDE 5 - PAUL RODRIGUEZ

WALLRIDE 4

WALLRIDE 3 - MIKE CARROLL

WALLRIDE 2 - SCOTT JOHNSTON

WALLRIDE 1 - RICK HOWARD