Saturday, Oct. 16 – I got to do a show with Tony Hawk and gang for Tony’s Stand Up for Skateparks. This was another big “getting back on the horse” moment for me. I hadn’t ridden with Tony for about the same amount of time I hadn’t jumped out of planes!
We got there and the weather was looking bad. The one time it rains in LA, it has to be the day I was going to ride with vert royalty. We are all sitting back stage and I notice Perry Ferrell and Ben Harper hanging out! I find out Jane’s Addiction will be performing before us! Awesomeness! I talk with Perry and Ben. I had never met Ben before, but I met Perry about 15 years ago. We were introduced when he was looking for someone to help dream up some ridiculous sport style extracurricular events for a new festival he was thinking of creating in Israel called “Jubilee.” Obviously this was before the times had changed that would make this not the most embraced idea, but either way it was amazing to get to know Perry.
So, it was looking like we weren’t going to do a show because the rain wasn’t letting up. Jane’s Addiction took the stage and destroyed it! I was moshing like I was 11 again with my brother’s punk rock army. Perry saw me moshing and stopped the show for a moment and talked about the first time we met. I was pinching myself.
[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4YNmGSAjDc’]
After the show, nobody was feeling a vert session with the rain. Unfortunately, I got this “Do or Die” mindset after being called out by Jane’s amazing show and got on the ramp. Everyone was shaking there head, but sorry… I dropped in and started pumping the ramp. It was feeling sweet, but the lip felt soft. I remembered Tony’s ramps are a little bigger and the flow is a little strange at first. I remember thinking last time I rode this I had to just trust the lip and lean into it. I launch to about 9 or 10 feet out and look down to see that I’m going to case the lip hard. I knew there is no way my shoulder would take it. The next thing I know I’m ejecting off my bike to the flat bottom…
Okay, this was my first run on vert in an official show (besides the one I did at the Tribeca Film Festival) in more than 3 years and I’m riding in the rain and eat shit the first run. WELCOME BACK….
I didn’t have elbow pads on, so both elbow are bleeding pretty good, but when I stood up nothing seemed broke and I didn’t hit my head too hard to jack my balance, so I picked my bike up and got back to the deck of the ramp. I popped out and saw Tony looking at me all like, dude WTF. I said, “I was going to case front wheel…” Tony said, “Uh, yeah I saw…” Then he gave me his elbow pads. Thanks Tony.
My next run I got up to about the same height I crashed at and felt like I was working the lip right, so I spun a 540 to spite my slam. These are the shows I love, but I know it’s not going to be pretty. I pulled it and threw a flair on the next wall and flew out. Redemption.
That was a great day! It felt like a reunion. Sergie Ventura’s huge crucifix airs, Neal Hendrix’s fastplants, Lincoln Ueda’s riding his board like a magic carpet, Lindsey Hawkins is the man, and Tony’s a machine! It was an honor to be a part of it all. The rain just made it more fun. I got to do a triple stack with Tony and Lincoln! That felt good. I slammed on an ally oop (weird) but pulled a no handed 540 to a flair to a tailwhip. It had been a while since I linked that together and it made me smile…
After the show I auctioned off my bike. This has been a tradition since the first StandUP fundraiser I did. Back in 2005 Pamela Anderson bought it. In 2006 P Diddy bought it for his boy, then in 2007 I got t-boned by an 18-wheeler and I hadn’t been back til today.
The great Jason Ellis auctioned it off and the GREAT Ben Harper bid highest for it! I’m floating on a cloud at this point. Ben Harper! A lot of heart went into this bike. This was the bike I retrained my body to ride with an arm that doesn’t work anymore. I wanted someone to adopt it that understood the heart that went into this bike. Thanks Ben. I was living the dream today.
After the show, I went back to my hotel and got a call from Spike Jonze and Rinko. We met up to get some ice cream. After the delicious ice cream, Spike heard Jackass 3D set a weekend record # at the box office, so we went to this ridiculous Jackass billboard on Sunset Blvd and shot this picture, to savor the moment. Spike is the most unofficial official player I know. heh heh. …here’s to never growing up!
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