« Sorry » was the first video I bought.
Salabanzi is 4 years older than me, and you can imagine my reaction when I found out he was a fellow Frenchman...Then I saw him at a demo few months later, I was obviously mind blown. he was so good. he destroyed my hometown’s shitty wooden skatepark.
I also heard bad stories about him after Flip kicked him out... to me he has the « kid with too much pressure on his shoulders » syndrome. Must be hard to cope with all the pressure of being a French teenage pro skater living in the USA... with adult men. adult men partying all the time haha.
After his Flip years (as I entered in my boring « Puleo New York Cellar Doors loose trucks » phase) I kinda lost interest, to me he was more of a contest skater, too « mainstream » and he did too much double flips for me. Living Europe for months / weeks must be hard at that age. Even if this a dream comes true experience.
That said i hope his doing well. Starting gofundmes to buy a guitar is not a thing I would recommend, but he will always have a special place in my skateboarding life.
Ah i just remembered I had a Flip Bastien Victory sticker on my desk for years.