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Keeping it real is our motto here at Real Skate, and
who is keepin it more realer these days than Mike V. With no intent
of hurting anybody, his "call a spade a spade" attitude
has and continues to win him the respect of many in the industry,
but perhaps ruffling the feathers of others.
Back around '93 Mark Gonzales
told me to put Mike on his KOOLS team because he was rad; and if
the gonz sez you're rad, you're rad. I think he's rad too. Ironically,
we all worked with "the king" every day but when Mike
called, it was like we all got all star struck or something! "Hurry,
hurry it's Vallely on the phone" "Wow, guess who's on
the line, Vallely!" "Turn down the music, it's Vallely!"
Mike Vallely is not only rad,
he's a damn nice guy. In the course of conducting this interview,
he's been most cooperative and attentive in spite of his beyond-busy
lifestyle. I have a lot of respect for him. Mike had been turning
down interviews due to time constraints, but he said he liked our
questions, "I'm into it," he said.
If you recall, several months back I held
a contest to bring in some good questions for a pro interview. Some
of those questions are being used here, as they are totally suiting
for Mike—they are marked by an asterisk (*). Here we go!
*Aside from the ollie itself,
if you can remember this far back, what was the first trick you
pulled that sent your adrenaline to extreme heights and ultimately
told you that skating was doable, nonnegotiable, and a state of
being that would last an eternity?
The first time I ever stepped on a skateboard I knew. It had
nothing to do with tricks or an adrenaline rush. It was more so
a sense of self that I had never felt before. It felt right. I
knew I'd found my thing.
*What has been your worst injury?
Watching skating become overrun with jocks, jock mentality, and
money-hungry corporate types.
*Do you think of yourself as
a "rockstar" or do you like to chill and talk to your
fans on a same-status basis? The big question is, would you go out
and drink with your fans if they invited you?
I don't play that rockstar bullshit. I like to interact with
skaters. I truly enjoy meeting skaters and talking story. Of course
I'd go out for some lemon water with some cool people.
*With all the commercialism lately,
and the surge of skaters coming into the sport, do you think skating
is gonna die down again and become uncool like it has in the past?
Or, do you think this time it's here to stay as a part of our culture?
Or, when do you see it dropping off again?
Tough question. I think what's here now is probably here to stay
for a while, but in my eyes, what's out there now is not really
skateboarding as I know it or believe it to be. I can only just
keep doing my thing, trying to contribute and make a difference.
*With what's going on now in
skateboarding like X-Games, Gravity Games, and large-scale corporations
moving in, where do you see the future of skateboarding going? Do
you see it keeping true to its roots, or will it give in to the
mainstream?
It's pretty mainstream now. I think that war has already been
fought and not even contested. But, there will always be those
of us who are deep rooted in this and no matter what will always
help skateboarding keep its edge.
*Nowadays with all these companies
popping up and big companies that exist in other areas of sport
trying to get in on skating, do you think that skating is just getting
too crowded with pros and ams and that the kind of high status that
pros normally have is starting to diminish, since it's not such
an elite group anymore?
It's been too crowded for a long time. I think the opposite will
eventually happen and/or is happening. The elite group is becoming
more elite. I think the status of the top pros will only become
higher.
*If you could walk up to any
other professional and focus (break) their board right before a
competition, whose and why?
I'd rather let those certain people expose themselves for what
they really are than get involved in any way.
If you could name one person
in your life who has influenced you the most who would that be?
(Doesn't have to be a pro skater.)
I'd say my biggest inspiration is life itself.
Who is your all time favorite
pro skater and why?
Lance Mountain wins. Commitment. The guy has given back to skateboarding
every step of the way.
A kid on a message board asked
for advice on how to get in a couple good punches on two bullies
bigger than him who were threatening to beat him up. One of the
answers was "Go ask Mike Vallely." Mark told me about
you and Joey Suriel almost getting into it at a SCJ, and given the
recent security guard incident at the 2000 SCJ—Are you a bully?
Do you like to fight? How does this fit into your personality?
I'm no bully. I don't like to fight, but sometimes the last thing
one wants to do is the first thing one has to do. I will stick
up for myself, my family, and my friends without question.
How did you get interested in
wrestling? Are you serious about it and maybe going pro eventually?
I've always been a wrestling fan, ever since I was a little kid.
I've followed it somewhat ever since I can remember. I'm about
as serious as can be about it and am determined to end up in the
big leagues on Monday night television.
How do you balance your wife
and kid situation with the responsibilities of pro skateboarding,
touring, and now wrestling? Do they travel with you?
Yes, they travel with me quite a bit, they went to Europe with
me this summer. All's I can say is I balance it the best I can.
Luckily, I have their support in everything I do.
I know you're going to answer
with "my wife" but try not to. What type of girls are
most skate pros attracted to?
I can't speak for most skate pros, I can only speak for myself.
I wasn't aware there are "types" of girls....Love doesn't
get caught up on such boundaries.
How do you feel about women skateboarders
in the industry? Do you know any of them? Chill with them? Support
them? Think they're in the wrong place?
I am a big fan of the ladies.
What advice would you give a
young girl wanting to learn to skate?
Just skate.
Do you have any dogs? If so,
would you send a picture of it skating? You might win a deck?
I have two dogs, and English Bulldog named Betsy and a Boxer
named Romance. They don't skate.
* "What color boxers are
you wearing hah hah hah?"
Currently I am wearing gray boxers.
Thanks so much for your time Mike!
Take good care.
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