Thankful for Keith

Photo by Justin White

What could be said about a sweet boy, who on the night of the Static 4 premiere — in a video full of east coast legends — received the largest cheers of the evening for a mere appearance in a montage? Or of a young man who is repeatedly the subject of anonymous “Ask Me Anything” Tumblr questions eager to know the answer to life’s eternal question: “What’s good with that Keith Denley part?”

We’ve been here for a long time, just trying to summon Keith from the demands of his sales job and the magnetic pull of known drinking establishments to give the world what it needs. Yes, that Keith Denley part.

Following the release of Sweet Waste’s “Reps Who Rip” part in the spring of 2014, Keith was emboldened. The budding skater who had backside 360ed the Banks 9 when he was 18 and spent his early 20s grappling with injuries never had a full part before. Needless to say, he — also a representative of sales for a major footwear brand — was not impressed with the inaugural “Reps Who Rip” outing.

“I could film a better part by the end of the summer,” he told us.

Some people just want to see Gino push. We just want to see Keith succeed.

Except he did not take the remainder of the summer to film a better part — or any part, for that matter. Nor did he take the remainder of the year, or the following year, or the year we are currently in to film a finer part that Waste’s exquisite take on switch crooked grinds and camouflage tinted skating.

And so, as 2016 nears to a close, the world does not have that elusive Keith Denley part. But it now has this: a best-of compilation of Keith’s finest moments from the past several years, edited by Justin White, and filmed by Joe Bressler, Johnny Wilson, Rob Harris and…Justin White. Keith may never have that monumental part he was so convinced he could film, but that doesn’t make us any less thankful for what he means to our lives, each and every day.

This holiday season, give thanks for Keith. #thankfulforkeith.