The thing is being a professional skateboarder is actually work. Hard work. The guys I grew up with are (or were) pro and they're under a lot of pressure to perform. It's like Jason Jessee said, "Skateboarders are disposable heroes." The moment your knee goes out, you're done (where's Alex Gall at?). My old friend Justin Case had the same problems Sheff had. Another one of my friends (Van Wastell) really hated the industry side of skateboarding. It's totally different when you're in the limelight. Some handle it well (Mikey Taylor), some lose it (Mark Rogowski, Billy Waldman), some walk away quietly (like my all-time fav Matt Reason), and others -- mostly freestylers -- plant themselves in the industry (Per Welinder, etc.) Additionally, when you skate, the years where you're supposed to go to school, or learn a trade, are taken up by skating. So when you're thirty, and the next crop of kids comes up for your job, you're left holding the bag -- living with mom again and wondering what in the fuck you're going to do. It's fucking tough...nowhere near as ideal as it seems.
Topic: Sheffey (Read 3416 times)