How long have you been skating?
Like 26 years maybe haha.
What got you into it?
My friend Darrel, he’s from my neighborhood. Just riding around butt boarding, he had a regular board and an old school board, a sizzler, and that was like my first board, riding around butt boarding on hills. It was like a banana board, plastic, roller skate wheels, the whole 9.
Where you from? Pittsburgh?
Yeah but I was born in NJ though. Wildwood NJ, I moved to Pittsburgh when I was 6 or 7.
What made you move to Philly?
Just the skate scene and my friends. Back in the day Matt Reason, and a couple guys used to come up here and skate all the time, and a couple of them went to Temple so we’d come skate for the weekends, and that’s how I got to know a lot of people.
Do you remember the first time you skated Love?
Yeah, Subzero would have these contests back in the day, it was the second contest. I missed the first one, but the second one was the first time I went there, and I skated Love, it was rad. All the guys from New York would come down, and from all over, it was rad.
Have you been down there recently? It’s fenced up but I know people still been down there.
Yeah they’re still keeping the dream alive. I was down there on Easter Sunday, these fools were still skating it yo! Haha they had a bump set up to the side, and I guess my man was trying to get this last trick, and he got it. they pulled it off.
Who was your first sponsor?
My first sponsor was Sean Sheffey, he hooked me up with Life boards and stuff. I met him at a demo in Pittsburgh, and he started sending me boards and stuff.
You’ve been pro for a while, you have a favorite board graphic of yours?
Yeah, this one Aesthetics, one where they made us, uh, babies. I don’t know how to explain it but all the photos looking over the fence, like to play baseball or something, yea it was one of those, i think that was my favorite graphic of all time.
Do you have input normally on the graphics?
Not normally, they normally do team series nowadays, but back in the day ye ah for sure. Like when I skated for Capitol I had all my ideas printed up for capitol, and some for Aesthetics too, but not too many after that.
What’s the longest you’ve ever spent outside of Philly?
Just on the road, for like three months maybe for Axion tours, I never really moved anywhere else or stayed there for a while for skating. Just go visit friends or whatever.
How were the Axion trips?
They were good man, they were really good, it went through phases you know. I remember one time we drove all way from California to the east coast and back just on a skate trip. It was rad getting clips and hanging out with the brothas.
Been to any hip hop shows recently?
Yeah went to one the other night i saw some old school cats, it was Lost Boyz, Kwame, Roxanne Shante was there, 3x Dope did a guest appearance, it was amazing. It was epic.
There some cops right there but its cool,
Huh?
Some cops passing, right there.
Oh ok, uh, fuck. I can’t get caught with weed either fuck.
So you skate New York a lot?
I used to a lot. Sometimes I still sneak up there and catch a shred every once and a while now.
How is Philly skating different?
I think it’s the same, I don’t know. To me it seems like, it’s more raw spots, a lot of things are harder to skate, you know you got the “one push.” The east coast one push trick, a lot of stuff like that. You gotta just get it whatever it is, it seems like the same kinda though.
3 favorite Philly spots.
I like the ghetto banks, that spot’s ill, that’s like the dopest spot to me. It’s in the hood, its got the projects behind it, it just looks dope. the whole downtown area, Love and Municipal, City Hall was really fun, I like Puerto Rican park a lot. That spot’s dope.
I feel like your skating all the time do you try to take care of yourself?
Not really, I think skating just keeps my body good. Sometimes I feel like I can skate better than I can walk. But just keep it moving you’ll be alright!
When was the last time you got drunk?
Friday night? At that hip hop show. A little drunk.
Any skate travel destinations?
trying to get out to China once, see whats up, that’d be cool. Seems to be like the spot, you know. But whatever comes about I’m down for.
Any advice for pros out there now trying to keep doing it?
Yeah all theses dudes are super rad nowadays, so I don’t think the skating part is the problem, it’s more like loyalty to things. Don’t always be moving around all the time you know, stay rooted to something and get to know that, and I’m pretty sure it’ll take care of itself. And it seems way cooler you know?
