Skate Creatives: Danny Aubrey
Danny Aubrey started skating in his native Glasgow twenty-odd years ago, raised on that city’s historically resourceful and independently-minded skate scene, one great early example of which was the success of Clan Skates’ locally-sourced Poizone clothing label of thirty years ago.
Danny runs an ingenious workshop call re:ply Skateboards, which is focused on sustainability within skateboard manufacture by ending waste, via re-shaping and up-cycling worn boards.
He has personally rescued thousands of skateboards, raised good money for non-profit organisations (SkatePal, The Environmental Justice Foundation, Gaza Skate Team and more), and given a platform to more than 200 artists- all from a business started in a garage back in 2010. Skateboard GB caught up with him to learn about Glasgow’s current skate scene, DIY culture and second lives.
This is what he told us…
… about Glasgow’s current skate scene.
“As far as skateboarding goes, Glasgow’s one of these cities that is sometimes forgotten about for skate tours or even some funding and attention that would be available south of the border, I’d like to think this is rapidly changing with all of the amazing things that our community has come up with over the past few years.
Glasgow is a very creative city, and I think skateboarding is a really good way of people expressing themselves- not just all the styles of skateboarding, but everything that is within it as well: design, art, music, film, fashion and DIY culture.
We didn’t have an indoor park within Glasgow since Angel Lights, which shut down in the early ‘90s; it was a big halfpipe in Anniesland. Since then, we never really had any indoor or covered spots- which we desperately needed- until the Loading Bay was built in 2019. The weather here is awful- it is definitely a massive asset and bonus to have this amazing facility that keeps us dry. We also have a big skatepark due to open in the not too distant future under the M74 in the Southside of the city, definitely worth checking out the Glasgow urban sports website for plans to this amazing urban landscape.”
…about working to develop the Transport Museum spot there.
“I was also one of the members responsible for the design and development of the new Riverside/Transport Museum spot, which has been a very popular spot for skaters from all over. Originally the museum had accidentally attracted skaters by building ledges with metal edges- perfect height for grinds and mannys- the problem with this was that there was a lot of crossover with people coming in and out of the museum.
Luckily, the museum had a good solution- to build a spot round the side. A couple more ledges, a kicker, a narrow quarterpipe and a gap- built on a tight budget by the guys at Concreate.
This lasted a few years until a bridge was planned to connect the Southside- meaning the spot got flattened…fortunately, the museum manager realised how important the thriving skateboarding community was as part of the museum- so we got together with the council, Glasgow urban sports, city planners, landscape architects and contractors to plan for the rebuild of a modern plaza, built in 2024.
The museum asked us if we could put on events to celebrate the skate and BMX communities, which we’ve done over the past couple of years and always had a great response from the community and skateboarding industry- something re:ply will be exploring a bit more in the future.”
…on re:ply, and sustainability in skateboarding.
“In terms of re:ply, there are definitely people who use skateboards in their own productions, but they don’t look at it from the sustainable aspect. I dived head-first into the research of where skateboards come from, the logistics, how skateboard production and shipping affects our planet.
Since the beginning, thousands of boards have been salvaged. If it’s been used, I’ll give it another life- whether as a skateboard, a canvas for artwork, trophies, furniture or even a cheeky surfboard .
Along with the products we make, we also offer workshops where we teach people the benefits of what we do, from reshaping boards, re-laminating plywood, printing new graphics and learning how to skate. These workshops have been great for opening doors for people and communities who don’t have access to skateboarding and the benefits it offers. The community outreach side of re:ply is really rewarding and something I will continue to expand; whether it’s workshops in Palestine to help extend the lifespan of available decks or skate lessons with deprived communities in Glasgow.
PS – if you have an old deck lying around, send it our way for a new lease of life!”
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