File This Under "Abrasive"

Well it's finally happened, the Worcester shop's trusty & time-worn old griptape file has now officially been retired. In the 15 years that EB Worcester has been open, it was only the second griptape file to be used down here. It had been in constant use at the shop every day, gripping board after board for something like 10 years. That file has been involved in skateboarding for longer than many of you reading this! Who knows how many thousands of boards it has been used to setup over its' long and illustrious "career". In that time it has gone from a new shiny file to something that more resembles some sort of warn down, prisonyard weapon. As you can see, time has clearly taken its' toll on it. Whenever someone was in the shop complaining about how their new skate shoes had gotten a hole in them after only a month or 2 of use, I always liked to bust out the file to show to them. "If griptape can do this to a steel file, well then it's no wonder that it's going to put some wear on your shoes... now check out some Shoe Goo." Anyway, file #3 is now officially on duty in Worcester, and here's hoping that we get as much use out of it as we did from the one that it is replacing... -TEO