Death Defying Skateboarding: The Untold Arto Saari Story

[ShyLow]

Arto is a legend obviously but this shit is way too long and drawn out. 20 minutes would have been more than enough time to tell the story.

[assvogel]

I watched it. It was OK. Many questions:

- Why is Mike Burnett interviewed for everything? It feels like it was part of his Thrasher compensation package. "Hey, we're not paying you much but you can insert yourself into any skate documentary for money."

For this one, Burnett was there as a Thrasher’s photo-g for a lot of those Sorry/Extremely Sorry era Flip tours/missions. Like he shot the Arto’s fakie back lip that was used on his SOTY issue cover.

So it makes perfect sense he would get interviewed for this.

[TheWineClub]

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I watched it. It was OK. Many questions:

- Why is Mike Burnett interviewed for everything? It feels like it was part of his Thrasher compensation package. "Hey, we're not paying you much but you can insert yourself into any skate documentary for money."

[close]

For this one, Burnett was there as a Thrasher’s photo-g for a lot of those Sorry/Extremely Sorry era Flip tours/missions. Like he shot the Arto’s fakie back lip that was used on his SOTY issue cover.

So it makes perfect sense he would get interviewed for this.

Nah fuck Burnett!

[Shtonk]

This is the second time (besides his EL) that Arto blows a chance to come clean about what really made it all fall apart and it kind of fucks me up this is still just allowed while people are dying of accidental Fent ODs all over the place. A friend of a friend was the heyday Flip team's bing provider for a Euro tour and even he was kind of shocked by the amounts they were putting back. Drug addiction is a fucking cancer and Arto refusing to do his part in preventing future tragedies gives me the really really bad vibe that he's still not fully off the shit. He's one of my favourite ever skaters but I don't think he should allow people to glorify him like this. "Untold" my ass

[scab]

Relax @Shtonk, not everybody can be a keyboard warrior of your caliber. For what it's worth, Arto was brutally honest about his drug use in the Boulala doc, and he also didn't exactly sugar coat it in this Thrasher piece: https://www.thrashermagazine.com/articles/over-it-article/

What exactly did you expect from a Vice video that Arto himself very likely didn't even have creative control over? Detailed descriptions of what and how much he took and where he got it from? C'mon. You say you work in the media industry. Then you know how these things get made and what kind of story these people want to tell.

[Shtonk]

Ok I'll chill sorry. Hadn't read that article thank you! And what Doc are you referencing? Don't think I've seen it. I think what sent me so over the edge was the mix of Gator-apologist Oblow and "Mimi" just giving the most vapid LA drug-scene vibes. But not for me to judge who Arto falls in love with and you're right, the sponsors behind this piece of content were likely looking for a story of physical and artistic resilience instead of substance abuse. O'Dell trying to keep himself from fully snitching is pretty funny at a couple moments.

[scab]

^No worries. I didn't even watch this vid because I know I'm not gonna like a Vice production. I'm sure there's infuriating stuff in there. The doc about Ali is called The Scars of Ali Boulala. I'd expect that to be much more to your liking. I'm not sure if it's included in any major streaming subscription services because it's a pretty small indy production but it's well worth paying a couple of bucks to see it.

[Shtonk]

Thanks I'll check it out!

[AsianVegan]

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Did Arto come from money or did he make that much from skating?  LA house with a pool, buying $$$ cameras on a whim buying property in Hawaii with no real immediate plan sounds crazy expensive.

I loved this though Arto is the best.

[close]

Arto seems like a smart guy, he probably invested his money well or owned part in something that sold, like a Villager Goods scenario.

Dude also rode for Volcom and Quicksilver. Those guys riding for surf brands were getting paid bank back then.

Burton also owned Gravis, Analog and Alien back then, I remember Janoski saying that if you were on all 3 they paid an insane amount. Also he had a few years at NB# after Gravis

[Johnny Kilroy]

These sw 360 flip and bs flip may be the best ever.
He is my favorite and I wish he and many pros from the Sorry era didn't take every session as a suicide mission.
I don't care about big stuff and nothing is worth almost killing yourself or your health like Arto did.
Cherry on top we would maybe still have Arto footy à la Reynolds or Thomas nowadays.

I was lucky to see the sw tre und sw bs flips in person
It was at mastership 2001 in Dortmund. He did it on both days (black and white shirt) and to this day I never saw someone flying higher on a board.
Penny also did a big Kickflip to fakie and bastien one of the best runs I ever saw…good times!!

[Scarecrow Radio]

That was a beautiful watch. Wish nothing but the best for Arto in his future endeavors

[ToySanta]

I have not watched the other ‘Let It Kill Yous’ so cannot comment on the consistency between subjects, but I enjoyed this overall.

Until this, I thought his wife was Finnish too. I appreciate all the emotion she brought to her stories. These things come with a lot of yadda yadda yadda and too-tough-skaters, but she brought a fresh and important perspective.

Was gladdening to see Arto and Dylan on that ledge back to back. Had he lived, I wouldn’t be surprised if part of his recovery phase was chillin in Hawaii with Arto and all the other homies. Still miss that guy.

Arto’s responsible for a lot more photos of the mid-to-late 2000s than I recall. Especially in The Skateboard Mag (rip). And I forgot all about his backyard pool! Lots of good stuff in there.

[OldieButFrenchie]

Building his house with zero experience is probably more impressive to me than all the stuff he did on a skateboard.

a couple unanswered questions for me: what became of the pool after he sold the LA house? Did he have to get a full-knee replacement? Can he not skate at all anymore? Which would be weird cause he can surf...Or is he the type to not accept degrading skills and he'd rather not skate at all anymore?

Also, I had not realized how much Flip had dominated that period with 3 SOTYS in 4 years. Wish Bastien would have gotten it too! First Frenchie SOTY oui oui would have been nice, and he was killing it at the time.

[Paul Cicero]

Nothing but love for Arto, and I thoroughly enjoyed this, but could definitely live never seeing that short, creepy, dork Oblow ever again.

[Atiba Applebum]

This was gorgeous. But, it would be a lot more interesting if they talked about the more complicated things, like him getting sober. The best EL episodes hold up because they get to the raw truths - Ali Boulala, Antwuan, Fabian Alomar. This beautiful but fairly shallow PR campaign is not so compelling.

But those three were also famously involved in criminal actions and or jail which is the instant narrative for docs to take on them

[Atiba Applebum]

New angle on that Arto nollie.   Had anyone else skated that set?


Also, appreciate ODell bringing up CTE issues.   Toe in the water, but at least someone’s saying something

[professional]

Mark Oblow gets a half-chub at the mere prospect of getting to insert himself into someone else's story. People have gotta stop interviewing this rape apologist.

[scab]

New angle on that Arto nollie.

Goddamn, now you're tempting me to actually watch this.

[Atiba Applebum]

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New angle on that Arto nollie.

[close]

Goddamn, now you're tempting me to actually watch this.

I watched it at like 1.5x - 2x speed.   

[Skateboardenjoyer]

his wife reeks of anti vax

[radcunt]

im guessing he didnt touch on why he was visiting that josh swindell guy in jail? that was really weird

Yuck. Even if that’s an old mate, he fuckin sucks.

[whocaresLLC]

New angle on that Arto nollie.   Had anyone else skated that set?


Also, appreciate ODell bringing up CTE issues.   Toe in the water, but at least someone’s saying something

I was hoping it would go deeper into his mental struggles. As a huge fan of his, I remember thrasher releasing an article with little blurbs from "Sober Skaters" and Arto had a piece in it talking about "stinkin'-thinkin'" or some sort of negative psyche. I dont think we all care too much about hearing every detail of his addiction, however, living in Hawaii and photographing surfers regularly seems like a great place to carry-on an addiction. Hes got a big ego that hides behind a Laissez-faire attitude. I felt like his wives candid interviews were the only actual pieces that hinted at any sort of struggle he had. lol, i probably picked up cigs to be like Arto when I was younger, he influenced my skateboarding a ton in my own trick selection and all that. Mybe around the time he got a pro-shoe with NB was when I started to get off of his nuts a little bit. I doubt in this economy, any old pro is really thriving anyways. I'm happy he has a little family and great life in Hawaii. Still doesnt all add-up in the story-telling. MAybe I can see that those LA party-days led him to his wife? The Apples interview pieces could have shed more light on those times. The whole video was very sugar-coated. I know a few thrasher photogs personally and they are far from "thriving" and they shoot full-time and travel around the world.

I guess Ill just relate with my own 8-year sobriety....my choice not to drink has exteneded my life and energy. I've been in a bad place mentally that drugs and alchohol really started to make worse for a time. Capitalism and coming up with thousands of dollars for rent every month is exausting and my efforts of not drinking has made the hamster-wheel more bearable. I envy the pro skateboarders/snowboarders/ athletes I know in Portland who have shaped their careers into supporting themselves financially, however, It still is a job for them and comes with a dark side of feeling like you always have to be getting footage. Injuries can also play part in the depression. When I think about it, the only true gravy train in all of this was those vice producers that made bank and went bankrupt years ago.

[totallyradical]

Does it have the footage of his infamous slam?  That's all I want to see.  The rest has been told many times over.

[koyaanisqatsi]

Great doco.

I always heard rumours he had heart problems.
I guess it was all bullshit.

[chany penguin]

Great doco.

I always heard rumours he had heart problems.
I guess it was all bullshit.

when he was 16 he had a heart surgery. i believe it's been smooth heart sailing since then.

[childhood]

Does it have the footage of his infamous slam?  That's all I want to see.  The rest has been told many times over.

"13. Arto's slam was recreated with animation not because the footage was lost, but because it never existed."

https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/15thingssorry

Shout out to mensjournal dot com, and whatever series of media consolidation that led to them hosting old sections from Skateboarder back issues on their site

[Atiba Applebum]

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Does it have the footage of his infamous slam?  That's all I want to see.  The rest has been told many times over.

[close]

"13. Arto's slam was recreated with animation not because the footage was lost, but because it never existed."

https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/15thingssorry

Shout out to mensjournal dot com, and whatever series of media consolidation that led to them hosting old sections from Skateboarder back issues on their site

I’m guessing that footage got Grizzly Manned

[totallyradical]

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Does it have the footage of his infamous slam?  That's all I want to see.  The rest has been told many times over.

[close]

"13. Arto's slam was recreated with animation not because the footage was lost, but because it never existed."

https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/15thingssorry

Shout out to mensjournal dot com, and whatever series of media consolidation that led to them hosting old sections from Skateboarder back issues on their site

TIL, thx.

[matureoftheocean]

Great doco.

I always heard rumours he had heart problems.
I guess it was all bullshit.

https://www.thrashermagazine.com/articles/the-year-i-got-soty-arto-saari/

During this timeline, when did you have your heart surgery?
Before I came out to the States, I had the heart surgery scheduled in Finland. It’s free healthcare but I had to get in line for the surgery and it was a year’s wait. I went to America, got knocked out a couple times and McCrank, Templeton and all those guys went on a tour to Finland. I came with them and my heart surgery was scheduled right in the middle of the tour. We’re skating a couple towns in Finland and I told everyone I had to go because I had a heart surgery planned. I went back to Helsinki and got it done while they were hanging out. They actually came to see me at the hospital, which was really cool. They made me laugh and all my guts opened up again. The nurse had to kick them out.

[koyaanisqatsi]

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Great doco.

I always heard rumours he had heart problems.
I guess it was all bullshit.

[close]

https://www.thrashermagazine.com/articles/the-year-i-got-soty-arto-saari/

During this timeline, when did you have your heart surgery?
Before I came out to the States, I had the heart surgery scheduled in Finland. It’s free healthcare but I had to get in line for the surgery and it was a year’s wait. I went to America, got knocked out a couple times and McCrank, Templeton and all those guys went on a tour to Finland. I came with them and my heart surgery was scheduled right in the middle of the tour. We’re skating a couple towns in Finland and I told everyone I had to go because I had a heart surgery planned. I went back to Helsinki and got it done while they were hanging out. They actually came to see me at the hospital, which was really cool. They made me laugh and all my guts opened up again. The nurse had to kick them out.

Thank you.