Nick Tyrrell
Where are you from?
I’m from Emporium, Pennsylvania. It’s about as small as you can get. We had one stop in the county until I was 13 or so.
But you live in Lancaster now? How close is that to Bethlehem?
Yep, I love in Lancaster now. We’re like an hour and a half from Bethlehem. Since I moved here, I’ve become friends with a lot of guys from the Lehigh Valley through my friend Nick Tyrell. Homebase has cultivated an amazing scene up there. I remember I met Po for the first time over 10 years ago when the shop just opened.
What do people who don’t skate do for fun in Lancaster?
It seems like a lot of my friends, both in and out of skating, are real into local, organic food. I know that might not be the coolest thing to talk about in a skate mag, but it’s big out here. It’s pretty nice though. All year round I can get vegetable grown within like 20 miles of me.
Do you eat healthy?/How often do you eat McDonalds?
I don’t really eat meat…I eat fish and dairy but I’ve been off the chicken/pork/beef train for about 15 years. I was vegan for about half of that. In the past few years, I added dairy and then seafood back into the mix though. It’s still easy to eat like an idiot though. Like I’m a solid 25 pounds overweight and I don’t eat meat. That’s primarily beer weight though.
Andy Vasquez wallride nollie
What are you drinking tonight?
Old Milwaukee my roomate had in the fridge and Pinnacle vodka. Think we can get me a beer sponsor out of this.
How many weddings have you been to?
Definitely over 100. This year was light with like 15. 2012 was crazy, about 35 shoots. Then one of the companies I worked for got bought out. For 2014 I’m going to try and book more on my own. It’s the best job in the world if you can swing it.
Worst wedding you’ve seen/or any trainwrecks?
I saw the best man puke on the bride during the introductions into the reception last year. It was amazing. I saw it coming, was about to take the picture, and had to just pretend like I didn’t see anything. I’m still upset about not just taking that photo, but they would’ve been pretty bummed out. He wasn’t trying to be a dick, he was just nervous that he was about to make a speech.
Do weddings make girls act crazy?
Weddings give women, especially bridesmaids, an excuse to go a little crazy. That is a fact. Do what you will with that information.
What do you think is a video that influenced you when you started skating?
Welcome to Hell, hands down. I started skating on my 5th birthday, in 1987. I had an ALF board, then a Ninja Turtles board, than an Omar Hassan Blockhead. About a year after I got my first real board, I got teased by this older kid for carving weird and I got super bummed. Bummed on skating in general. Took a few years off. Was a jock in junior high, then I started smoking weed and became friends with the punk rock kids in my town. From there it was full tilt back into skating. That was ’98. I had a VHS with Welcome to Hell, Thrill of It All, and Mouse on it. I had a VHS dub of a dub of a dub. I watched that tape to death when I was 16.
Gary Hillegas no comply tailslide revert
Joe Meck bs tailslide bigspin
How do you think skating has changed since you started?
Skating itself is exactly the same. The only way skateboarding changes for me is being at a new park, or spot, or learning a new trick.
Ever have a photo show?
Yeah I’ve been trying to keep things rolling. Three or four times a year I try and show my most recent stuff. I’ve been very fortunate to have venues to show stuff. Like the shit from this interview is all from this year. I hate the idea of being someone who rests on past work. I want everything to be fresh.
Chuck Samson wallride to wallride
Favorite city to skate?
Philly man, c’mon. I moved to Philly in 2000 based on skate spots alone. And it’s better than ever. City Hall is gone, but fuck it, I’ll take all that shit Jesse Clayton has built any day over some ledges and stairs.
Your camera get you into trouble recently?
Indirectly. This is actually something I wanted to talk about because people need to know. I got busted in Connecticut this year for weed. Total bullshit. Was skating the Fairfield park on a trip. I was parked like half a mile away and the cops brought drug dogs to my car because we had out of state plates, there was a small music festival in town, and the other car had a “Show us your tits” sign in the window. The cops said it was just a ticket so no big deal. Turns out I’m about to lose my license for six months, even though it’s decriminalized in CT. That shit carries over to some states apparently. Be careful out there! I talked to literally four lawyers. They all said they had never heard anything like it but I remain fucked as far as PennDOT is concerned.
Theo Korkidas blunt fakie
