“OMEN” is SoCal up-and-comer Nathan Treloar’s latest self-described “passion project.” Nathan’s ascension in recognition within the scooter community seems to be a relatively recent happening, but is nonetheless fully merited given his advanced abilities and prolific degree of outgoing coverage.
In this video especially, Nathan’s 50-50/5-0 game shines above most else. Frontside 5-0 gap to frontside 5-0, fakie to fakie 50 on street transition, front 50 gap to front 5-0 a circle rail. Each of these tricks pushes this niche frontier that much further, and in a way which demonstrates a commitment to progression without falling victim to excess. The rest of the tricks in the video were certainly fun to watch as well, as Nathan displays a range of trick and obstacle comfortability, sending it down stairs, up rails and even throwing an extended super-man grab into the mix.
As enjoyable as each of these tricks were, one among them is particularly worthy of discussion. With as many people doing 50-50s/5-0s as there are (largely thanks to decks being steadily manufactured wider and wider), it speaks volumes to a rider’s creativity when they offer something truly original in this dimension. For me, what stood out was the fakie to fakie frontside 5-0 to backside half-cab out over the stairs. Fakie 5-0s are already a rarity in scootering, but to slide one as far as he did—and to pop up and out as strongly and smoothly as he did—was entrancing. It’s trick progression like this which should really be regarded as the benchmark of success in an activity like scootering. This maneuver doesn’t take something of old and add aimlessly; rather, it actively engages with the technological advancements and progressive subcultural influences of contemporary scooter locales, piecing them together into something wholly and uniquely anew. This is, in other words, a structured, scrupulous approach to pushing the boundaries of what is possible. It adopts a reflective yet simultaneously intuitive means of going above and beyond what has previously been done, and in a manner which does not simply “one-up” or pile on. As scootering continues to attract new actors, and, with that, new conceptions of what constitutes progression in a given trick domain, this approach, I believe, will stand the test of time. This form adds in a way which allows for habitual and reflexive reinvention, and does not merely begin a race to the bottom insofar as what further tricks can be done in or out, perhaps even in between. And therein lies its value: this trick—or indeed, this style of trick—does not seek to be all that it possibly can be, but simply to be what it is. It doesn’t do the most; it does what it needs to do. It engages the viewer and inspires the subsequently inspired actor to adopt and reinvent even further, not just to take what is and add more and more and more. This approach to progression functions, in short, to provide the present array of scooter trick availability and arrangement with a fresh canvas to be perpetually expanded upon as additional technologies and subcultural influences take root. I hope more individuals within our community can recognize how truly significant this means of approach really is, and latch on to it more in the future.
Digressing from tricks and the nature of progression more generally, I lastly wish to comment on the more thematic constructions of this video. Whether we engage with this reality or not, the act of scootering is at least to some extent a reflection of who we are—our real or imagined thoughts, experiences, families and communities. Our riding takes influence from the minutiae which make up our lives and repurposes and represents them in expressively kinetic fashion. Unfortunately, videos in scootering seldom make emphasis, either directly or indirectly, on this inextricable relationship. Nathan’s video, on the other hand, does, and is even explicitly clarified in the final titles section. True, not every video part need offer explication of why a song, title or trick was selected or not, but doing so inspires a degree of engagement and consideration in viewers that cannot be said of other productions. Reading Nathan’s unabashed self-commentary, reckoning with the bi-directional influence of his life and his expressive outlets undeniably humanized him and intrigued me in a way that wouldn’t otherwise have been possible. I enjoy—and I imagine others do, too—learning about who scooter riders are as much as what they can do, and this video gave me an opportunity to do just that. I appreciate him taking a chance to convey this deeper layer of himself in this manner, and hope others might in turn be inspired to follow suit.
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