The mysterious name “Path Cra 911” , the cheap graphics of a simian faced Bush chasing around that pesky Bin Laden , it was all too beautiful. Bush is of course in a tank but hold on….is that…no…is that Bin Laden on a skateboard? It is! Who knew that he skated…and so well by the looks of it. The final thing that did it for me was the subheading “Super Funny Children’s Toy”. I like a laugh as much as the next man and there is literally nothing funnier then international terrorism , especially 9/11. My pants were sodden I laughed so much on that day. And the wholesale loss of civil liberties we’ve experienced since then? Comedy gold , even funnier then that bit in Dad’s Army when Captain Manwaring says “Don’t tell then your name , Pike!”.
I needed this piece for my collection badly so negotiations began. Like getting the shits at some point it’s inevitable that you’ll have to haggle in Marrakech. I was quite open to paying just about anything for “ Path Cra 911” but when the child running the stall’s opening price was something like twenty quid my haggling instincts kicked back in. I tried my hardest to wear my hagglers face but the light sweat on my forehead and my dilated pupils betrayed the fact that I coveted this special toy. After bouncing up and down the price spectrum a few times , walking off once and acting like he had insulted my mother we agreed at a price of around two pounds or so which I’m sure was still a rip-off but I was willing to pay.
I practically skipped back to the hotel with this under my arm so pleased was I.
In an interesting footnote , a friend of mine was out in Morocco shooting a movie when someone on the crew found one of these in the market. It subsequently became the souvenir to have and the guy selling them had to order in more to cater for almost the entire crew’s insatiable lust for “Path Cra 911”. I’m wondering whether any children have ever played with it because , outside of it’s obvious kitsch value , it is pretty much a piece of shit.
