Photo by Sam Muller
A conversation with one of the most talented and versatile skaters from out east — or anywhere really — about his new board sponsor, New York and the Gram, obviously.
P.S. Static IV is really good and full of surprises ;)
You went without a board sponsor for a pretty long time, especially for someone who still got a lot of coverage. Were you ever worried that you might not be able to skate for a living anymore?
I wasn’t too frustrated, I still kept skating. Skateboarding is in a weird place right now, where things are changing and evolving quicker than ever. It’s easier for a lot of companies to put on AMs because they don’t have to pay them up front and it’s sort of like a trial period. There aren’t many board companies out there making tons of money and able to pay pros a whole lot. I understood everything was about timing. Being on the east coast is another thing, since you’re not in people’s eyes every single day like you would be in California.
I’ve been blessed with so much other stuff in my life. Whether being a pro comes or goes, I knew that I still loved skateboarding, and that I still have a lot more skating I want to do in my life.
How did the Organika situation come about?
I talked to a few companies prior to that and nothing felt right at the time.
Karl Watson hit me up out of the blue and asked if I was down and I said “Let’s do this.” Expedition was a possibility a while back, but I think they were more hyped on having me on Organika since it’s a smaller knit crew. They have some young dudes killing it, and legends like Quim and Karl, so they needed someone to bridge that gap. I feel like I’m getting a second wind right now and I still got a lot left to give.