A sneak preview of Recording the Ride and why you should make the trip to New York to see it

News of the Recording the Ride exhibit, curated by Jacob Rosenberg and Michaela Ternasky-Holland, has been spreading for the last couple months, and the buzzing vibe was constant: There's never been a celebration of skate video making, and its impact, of this size. The September 7 opening night was set to include a screening of a remastered version of Plan B's groundbreaking Virtual Reality video and a panel Q&A with Jacob, Michaela, Rick Howard, and Matt Hensley!

While we couldn't make that epic event, we did get a sneak preview walk-through on that day.

The design of the space immerses the viewer in a slanted downhill, with bench-like dividers that could be skateable. Glass cases sit in the center of the room and display blocks line the wall highlighting each brand and era of defining video and artifacts: a misfits T-shirt worn by Jamie Thomas while filming Welcome To Hell, the classic Life Sheffey shirt, all while the videos play on mini tube TVs and the filmer's log book is open with editing notes on full display. One end of the room has an 80s recliner aimed at a TV showing The Bones Brigade Video Show, the other end of the room? Dan Sturt's mind-blowing photo of Pat Duffy grinding School Q's rail with Sheffey looking on.

Jake said it has long been a dream of his to have these skate VHS tapes in a museum with a placard next to them. Thanks to The Secret Tape (Brendan Spohn), his dream came true. A glance overhead sees 90s-shaped decks with some of the most influential graphics of all time, thanks to Bobshirt (Tim Anderson)'s collection: The Sheffey Board, Té La Soul, Rick Howard's ragdoll slick, Daewon's school crossing—too many classics to name. Are you getting the drift yet that you need to go see this?!

As Jamie Owens and I were getting this sneak peek before heading over to the Vans Block Party, Jacob , Michaelea and Rick Howard just so happened to roll through. The next 30 minutes or so couldn't have been more special to hear Jacob's take on the pieces in the room, and Rick in awe of the original Plan B logo on paper by Carl Hyndman, a raw log tape of never-been-seen footage from the making of H-Street and Plan B videos, and a contact sheet of Spike Jonze's while making Video Days with, again, never-been-seen photos of Jason Lee, complete in a David Bowie T-shirt.

Get to New York before this exhibit comes down in January. It is a must-see.

For more info, we highly recommend you read Mackenzie's interviews with Jacob, Michaela and Barbara Miller.

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Related: “Recording the Ride: The Rise of Street-Style Skate Videos” exhibition honors the 1990s era of DIY filmmaking