How satisfied are you with your Vox part?
Well over all I like it but it really isn't me. I feel like I haven't had a debut part or a part that shows my ability or what I like in skating, so I have lots of work to do. This part was kind of thrown together really. I don't film on any consistent basis because I haven't had a filmer for almost two years. I can get shit done, still do, but I need to be able to film when I got ideas and whatnot but there have been many times where we end up doing shit and have no footy of it, all the time really. Things are going to change without a doubt. Really, this part has had all great feedback, but I know it isn't my Via part, but I filmed this in a fraction, and I mean fraction, of the time I had with Via. Also, this part was edited the day before it went to press. See, I was on part two of the traffic tour this summer a couple days before I got hurt, and I originally had Rich Adler edit the part, which I have never seen to this day. Well he sent the tape super last minute and it ended up not having sound. So a bunch of shit went down and Ed Dominick, owner of Vox, went to the record store and found something that would fit and edited the part. I am not sure if Shockus, the TM, was in on it or not. I basically gave them the style of music and they got it down good. The editing was good. The part was short but really there is not fillers so I like that. As much as you want people to see your shit, you can't overkill it. I am pretty particular with tricks so I guess it holds to my motto of quality before quantity.
What happened to you in Chattanooga?
Well Nooga was a dope little town. There was so much hype about getting there. This spot called the Equarium was so hyped up. So we get to Nooga late night with a packed van of ten or more dudes and a packed car of five. All to two rooms. Well Puleo manned up and split a room with some dudes to lighten the load. Next day we were to street skate and meet up with Mama Mingo who is an awesome mom that helps run Flamingo Skate Shop. This day was literally 100 degrees cause we skated a bank with a fucking thermometer on it, and it was humid as hell. I managed to get a line before getting kicked out of there. This was only some of us out skating though. We moved on and skated another dope spot, turns out it was federal property, so a cop came and lost it. We somehow got let off. Then we decided to hit the Equarium before we met up for dinner. I was exhausted and starving. I had a shit board and no juice, but I was so excited to skate this place. There was this one thing that's a nipple made out of bricks to a chest high rainbow rail with a kink. I was trying to 5-0 it. Everything was going good, it was hard to judge your speed though. So about five or so tries in I was like "I am going to charge this." So I did, completely looped out as if I was going to land straight on my back, which I practically did with the exception that I landed with my leg folded behind me. It all happened so fast, I heard a crunch and brought my leg around to see my fucking ankle about 90 degrees the wrong way. I new I had bone coming through too. Two spots even. Got to the hospital and this cop showed up because the place (the skate spot) pressed charges on us for criminal trespassing, which I am still dealing with. So I ended up getting a plate put in to repair my broken Fibula (small leg bone) and I had a dislocated ankle. I was in the hospital for two days, then I stayed at Mamas house for about five days. I was too drained to fly right home. She hooked it up, they are great. I left a ton out of this story, but that was my Nooga experience, kinda like your first heartbreak, it will always sting.
Well over all I like it but it really isn't me. I feel like I haven't had a debut part or a part that shows my ability or what I like in skating, so I have lots of work to do. This part was kind of thrown together really. I don't film on any consistent basis because I haven't had a filmer for almost two years. I can get shit done, still do, but I need to be able to film when I got ideas and whatnot but there have been many times where we end up doing shit and have no footy of it, all the time really. Things are going to change without a doubt. Really, this part has had all great feedback, but I know it isn't my Via part, but I filmed this in a fraction, and I mean fraction, of the time I had with Via. Also, this part was edited the day before it went to press. See, I was on part two of the traffic tour this summer a couple days before I got hurt, and I originally had Rich Adler edit the part, which I have never seen to this day. Well he sent the tape super last minute and it ended up not having sound. So a bunch of shit went down and Ed Dominick, owner of Vox, went to the record store and found something that would fit and edited the part. I am not sure if Shockus, the TM, was in on it or not. I basically gave them the style of music and they got it down good. The editing was good. The part was short but really there is not fillers so I like that. As much as you want people to see your shit, you can't overkill it. I am pretty particular with tricks so I guess it holds to my motto of quality before quantity.
What happened to you in Chattanooga?
Well Nooga was a dope little town. There was so much hype about getting there. This spot called the Equarium was so hyped up. So we get to Nooga late night with a packed van of ten or more dudes and a packed car of five. All to two rooms. Well Puleo manned up and split a room with some dudes to lighten the load. Next day we were to street skate and meet up with Mama Mingo who is an awesome mom that helps run Flamingo Skate Shop. This day was literally 100 degrees cause we skated a bank with a fucking thermometer on it, and it was humid as hell. I managed to get a line before getting kicked out of there. This was only some of us out skating though. We moved on and skated another dope spot, turns out it was federal property, so a cop came and lost it. We somehow got let off. Then we decided to hit the Equarium before we met up for dinner. I was exhausted and starving. I had a shit board and no juice, but I was so excited to skate this place. There was this one thing that's a nipple made out of bricks to a chest high rainbow rail with a kink. I was trying to 5-0 it. Everything was going good, it was hard to judge your speed though. So about five or so tries in I was like "I am going to charge this." So I did, completely looped out as if I was going to land straight on my back, which I practically did with the exception that I landed with my leg folded behind me. It all happened so fast, I heard a crunch and brought my leg around to see my fucking ankle about 90 degrees the wrong way. I new I had bone coming through too. Two spots even. Got to the hospital and this cop showed up because the place (the skate spot) pressed charges on us for criminal trespassing, which I am still dealing with. So I ended up getting a plate put in to repair my broken Fibula (small leg bone) and I had a dislocated ankle. I was in the hospital for two days, then I stayed at Mamas house for about five days. I was too drained to fly right home. She hooked it up, they are great. I left a ton out of this story, but that was my Nooga experience, kinda like your first heartbreak, it will always sting.
How are you keeping busy these days?
Well these days are much better than the first four weeks on crutches. That was the worst. But now I can walk without a boot, so I am just thankful for that in itself. Although, I have been working vigorously on our print shop in the South Side. It is just time to make shit happen for so many things, so I teamed up with my friends Chris and Greg to make some moves. We've been working down there getting shit ready. Remodeling was the first mission. We got a lot more we want to do, but we got enough for what we need now. I have not been around skating much at all, I have mixed emotions with it. I feel as if I stay away from it, cause it kind of makes me sad right now, but it goes up and down. I am just dealing with what I can control and this shit needs to get done so my skating in the future will be easier.
How long until you're back to one hundred percent?
This has been a whole learning experience. First i consider myself to be grateful and respectful for many things and people, but really I never expected this. I appreciate even more the simple things in life and I can only hope others will as well. So in the beginning I was unaware of how much muscle you lose and how quick. Within ten days I had all flab, but as time went on I was told I should do therapy and all that. I had no idea really. Then when I got to the stage where I could put weight on it, wow that sucked cause your shit is so stiff and immobile. I was told I was ahead of schedule a few times when seeing the doctor. I was initially told by the surgeon I would be active in 2-3 months. Basically I can push off and it has been 9 weeks to the day. It hurts to do so and today i am really feeling it. It is day to day. I notice certain muscles hurt and i think it is good because they are getting back into shape. I would hope I can be at least able to do tricks and
shit within the next few weeks, but it is just too hard to say. Sometimes I feel confident and way ahead of schedule and sometimes I feel vulnerable and scared that I will never be back to 100 percent, but that is how it is when you are hurt, you think you will never be back but you will. For seeing how bad my shit was I think I am most fortunate to be where I am at right now. I mean our boy Ollie just busted his ankle, screws and all, and I heard he will be out for a hella long time. Jeremy just put a hole in his leg; so nasty; and he will be out for at least a month. So for me being able to push around in two months is a blessing. And ya know what this is the first year since I started 11 years ago that I am actually looking forward to winter, I am gonna eat it up.
What are your plans for the spot you're renting in South Side?
Plans are one thing, doing is another. The plan right now is to get up and printing which is only a couple days away. I will then be down there mad early working on other people's shit and then whatever time is left, I am going to get Direction East caught up because it has been on the back burner and I can't take it. We are going to have art shows there as well. We have a pretty big room that we can put a ramp in as well. I can't wait, we want to bowl the corners and then have a traditional mini, but with some tight extensions and some pool coping. We can probably premier videos there too. There are so many plans for this place because this is the outlet that is actually going to make things easier for me in the future and I believe it will bring people around here together and make shit better.
So many people hate on Pittsburgh. What keeps you psyched on this city?
I am not sure who is hating on the Burgh, but I guess that could mean people in general or the skate industry. If it is people in general, they don't know fucking shit. Sure the people are blue collar, close minded maniacs and the chicks aren't the greatest but there are a few out there. I am proud of the whole reputation our city has and I think a lot of people respect that. As lame as it sounds, the Steelers are a good reason for that. They are a dynasty and have more respect than any other team, believe it or not, and that directly effects a city. If skating is hating on it, which I don't think it is, but if they were, people are probably intimidated. First there isn't everyday shit to skate, like where is the ledge spot. There are very few spots that cater to the everyday cookie cutter. I am just psyched on the city not only because it feels like home, but I feel proud to represent it and try to give it a respectable name to the skateboard world. To let them know that you shouldn't take shit for granted, to look outside of the disgusting norm, to actually have some meaning behind your skating. There are very few originators out there but I really think the Burgh has it's own original look and feel and the people that came from here before now or are to come have a good chance of standing out if they represent the right things.
What do you think this city needs most for the skate scene?
Well first off the East Coast, itself, needs a lot which could have a trickle-down effect to the smaller cities. To be 100 percent fucking honest to whoever reads this. We need a shop that people can meet up at and just constantly be psyched on skating. Something that is always on the grind, I know it is hard, but I have seen many shops that just plain kill it. They give me faith in my company because they go about things in a similar fashion that I do. The shops are the veins of the body. They are the passage for the blood to be sent to make the body work. The heart isn't the industry, the heart is everyone in skating that has the right soul and love behind it and want to preserve our great art. Shops mean so much but I don't think they know it, some are in it for the money, some obviously aren't, but there are a lot of shops that just aren't worth mentioning. Their beliefs are faint at best. So fuck them. For the burgh, obviously a good indoor park would help, as bad as I hate that concept, I know it will help. See, I am always looking at how to make something better and I over analyze everything. I see the east coast being overlooked and has not been as powerful or prevalent as in the past. I think Pittsburgh could represent the East Coast so well. You may think why do I always talk about this shit but it has always been important to me, hence the name of my company. I stand for the overlooked, the forgotten or the less blessed. I take it personal and I have much pride in the stigma the East Coast has. We are raw fucking dudes and so many have had the illest styles and have influenced skating so fucking much. For example, pole jams. Oyola stole the show on those early on, but now you see all these people doing them that just make them look so bad. It is sad. I guess I shouldn't have to give examples of the East Coast's influence on skating, but there are a lot of kids that miss the bridge for what has gone on and what is going on, and who paved the way for us. Skaters are a different breed nowadays and it is hard to find some legit ones. I think Pittsburgh can condition you into a proper skater, if you utilize it. We need to be positive.
Any shout outs?
Thanks to Traffic, Vox, Pennswood, One Up, the cool photographers and filmers, my friends and family and anyone who supports the East and the essence quality before quantity.
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