What is it about the skateboarding fraternity and flagrant misuse of government property? Halfpipe? A pipe is for distributing water, carrying gas, or maybe filling with a generous pinch of Ogden’s Walnut Flake after a hard day’s work at the refuse depot, back when smoking was still not only socially acceptable, but practically mandatory.

But there’s no telling C1RCA skateboard pro Eman (that’s Emmanuel Guzman to his mum) as we catch up with him at one of his favourite spots; a renegade skatepark carved out of an old irrigation ditch amidst the farmlands of his native Santa Cruz, California. To give him his due, it’s only fair for us to grudgingly admit we’re at least a little impressed by the effortless skateboarding skills on display here, and the casual manner in which Eman shrugs off a few minor scrapes, stacking several times against the backdrop of the waves breaking on the California coast.

Yes, we know it’s far off the beaten track, away from the prying eyes of the authorities and any minors who might want to follow in Eman and friends’ socially irresponsible footsteps, but is that really any excuse? Most of them seem to be just lazing about under sheets of old plywood anyway. Oh, who are we kidding? This improvised skatepark might look a little bit sketchy in places, and we really hope all of that graffiti has properly dried, but with a beer in hand and the sun in the sky, we can’t think of many places we’d rather be. Now where did we put that pipe tobacco?