Author Topic: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.  (Read 23458 times)

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art hellman

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #1 on: June 25, 2015, 09:58:44 AM »
No suciu or rattray?  yeah, both have been interviewed on the subject before, but coulda gained some new insight from rattray or found out if suciu is taking any easy "A" courses to BOOST (adidas pun intended) his GPA.
hardly art, hardly starving


GAY

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #2 on: June 25, 2015, 10:03:30 AM »
No suciu or rattray?  yeah, both have been interviewed on the subject before, but coulda gained some new insight from rattray or found out if suciu is taking any easy "A" courses to BOOST (adidas pun intended) his GPA.

Suciu starring in "Easy 'A' 2, Scholastic Boogaloo", confirmed.

Aatila

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #3 on: June 25, 2015, 10:36:37 AM »
i basically read dan murphys section as stay in school and dedicated to skating because nike payed off my student loan debt.

ChuckRamone

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #4 on: June 25, 2015, 10:59:14 AM »
College? I thought the formula was to drop out of high school and only skate.

Heather Chandler

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #5 on: June 25, 2015, 11:46:53 AM »
Stay in school and strive for higher learning.  The skateboarding world is overflowing with high school dropout local heroes that have a harder time stringing together an 8 word sentence, than they do an 8 trick line.  You're 98% certain to never make it as a professional, and if you were, you probably have about a 1-2% chance to live comfortably from it and be able to retire with some form of savings, investments, etc.  So yeah, skate for fun, don't try and get sponsored, and don't be a complete skateboard person cliche'.

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #6 on: June 25, 2015, 11:58:30 AM »
College initially was a great way to prove to a prospective employer in any field that you were responsible enough to show up to the same place for four years consistently and handle increasingly difficult tasks and assignments in a satisfactory manner.  That was the main appeal. 

Things like, "oh I did psychology, kinesiology, business etc" were supposed to provide the base entry level education requires to start in a menial role in those fields.  Now, due to laws of supply and demand, the general accreditation a college degree confers is basically useless unless it's from an artificially constrained point in the supply demand continuum (ie, yes I went to college, but it was Stanford / Yale / Harvard). 

Which is why you find a lot of grads out of work.  They simply will not subject themselves to a 32k a yr 9-5 after the freedom they've tasted or they are just ... trying to enter the art / history / non-existent professions by and large.  Never too late to be a barista, and who can blame them, offices suck.  Then you are in the catch-22 cycle - you have to go back and get a masters, and likely a professional accreditation to not be a shit-slurper screwing on caps of toothpaste at the factory. 

Anyway, interesting read -- appreciate the drawing of Hammeke (Bobby Hill) doing the 360 flip in full academic regalia. 


HyenaChaser

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #7 on: June 25, 2015, 12:39:28 PM »
^Yo I hear what you're saying but it's not so cut and dry. I hear people who graduated before the recession constantly saying how college grads today aren't willing to put in the work and, speaking from experience, that's not true. It's that these days a college degree is equivalent to a high school diploma and the shit just doesn't do what it used to. That "non-existent art job" is my best bet for a job right now, having graduated with a BFA in Design (a growing industry, at least where I'm at), because it's a niche job. Yea being a dancer/journalist probably won't pay the bills, but the competition to work at a coffee joint here is ridiculous and sometimes the best bet is to get an entry-level position that falls in line with your degree.
You know I thought these forums were a for skating not discussing fetishes

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #8 on: June 25, 2015, 12:53:16 PM »
^^ agree.  Kudos to your work ethic and best of luck on getting that art job of yours.

Just like the 2 plus years it took me to master the kickflip at age 11, my initial out of college work sucked but the destination was the reward, as now I am in a great field with a lot of upside (corporate finance). 

Also, as an aside, it's why all kids should skate -- really teaches you stick-to-itiveness and drive

Makaveli

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #9 on: June 25, 2015, 01:04:23 PM »
The perspective in which college is viewed within skateboarding is really misguided. From all the things I've read about it via skate mags and interviews, its been made out to be scary, incredibly difficult, and almost unattainable. Pros with degrees seem lauded for their "amazing" achievement as if they did the impossible. Yet, the contrary is true. College, for the most part, is not difficult to get into, and while being much more demanding than high school, is actually fairly easy. Even grad school is pretty easy.
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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #10 on: June 25, 2015, 01:05:02 PM »
You're 98% certain to never make it as a professional, and if you were, you probably have about a 1-2% chance to live comfortably from it and be able to retire with some form of savings, investments, etc.�

No one said it was rational to chase dreams

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #11 on: June 25, 2015, 01:11:12 PM »
College, for the most part, is not difficult to get into, and while being much more demanding than high school, is actually fairly easy. Even grad school is pretty easy.

Agreed.  It is the base minimum of scholastic requirement to show anyone who is giving you a steady paycheck in some vocation you have the base level of skill needed to get an entry level position. 

southsecond

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #12 on: June 25, 2015, 01:11:59 PM »
It's a weird double-edged sword, for sure. But it's always about instant vs delayed gratification, isn't it?

On the one hand, you lose a bunch of freedom when you're young, but you set yourself up (potentially) for the rest of your life. And honestly, the odds of you going pro are slim to none. The odds of a BA helping you to land a better job than without the BA are way higher. And sure, there are lots of great jobs for which you don't need a degree, but you'll need some sort of apprenticeship or trade school.

My own experience was this: I was sponsored for years. I got to travel and see the world via skating and I thought I was the luckiest dude in the world. I even started college before that happened and then dropped out to skate. But then, one day when I was pushing 26 or 27, it became painfully obvious that I was never going to get my name on a board. And even if I had? I would've been B or C-level at best and never in my life have made enough money to live off of, let alone retire on. Even if I had stuck it out and maybe (maybe?) turned pro at 30 (like some people have, and fucking A good for them), I would certainly have had to do a second act in life when that ride ended. But trying to figure out your second act at 35 or 38 or 40 is a hell of a lot more difficult than at 26. So I kept skating and came up with a contingency plan: go back to college, get an artsy fartsy degree and see what happens. Then I went to grad school and somehow was lucky enough to get a job that I love and still leaves me time to skate while still contributing to a 401K and not constantly worrying about blowing out a knee in my twilight years.

Not turning pro was the best thing that ever happened to me, in hindsight. I talk to a lot of my friends who are pro (but, like, B or C-level, whose shoe money is gone, who are barely holding onto those boards) and have no clue what's going to happen when the gravy train comes to a stop. Team managing? Maybe? Repping? Sales? Sure. All in the skateboard industry, and none of them with a real long term prospect.

I know they're smart dudes who are going to somehow land on their feet, but being 37 without a resume or marketable skills? That's fucking tough.

But again, the double edged sword: fuck man, they got to live, see the world on a board, briefly become "skateboard famous," and do it all on someone else's dime with smiles on their faces.

Who's to say if the trade-off is worth it?

Fuck, I love skating.

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #13 on: June 25, 2015, 01:15:02 PM »
^^ well said

Makaveli

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #14 on: June 25, 2015, 01:22:56 PM »
It's a weird double-edged sword, for sure. But it's always about instant vs delayed gratification, isn't it?

On the one hand, you lose a bunch of freedom when you're young, but you set yourself up (potentially) for the rest of your life. And honestly, the odds of you going pro are slim to none. The odds of a BA helping you to land a better job than without the BA are way higher. And sure, there are lots of great jobs for which you don't need a degree, but you'll need some sort of apprenticeship or trade school.

My own experience was this: I was sponsored for years. I got to travel and see the world via skating and I thought I was the luckiest dude in the world. I even started college before that happened and then dropped out to skate. But then, one day when I was pushing 26 or 27, it became painfully obvious that I was never going to get my name on a board. And even if I had? I would've been B or C-level at best and never in my life have made enough money to live off of, let alone retire on. Even if I had stuck it out and maybe (maybe?) turned pro at 30 (like some people have, and fucking A good for them), I would certainly have had to do a second act in life when that ride ended. But trying to figure out your second act at 35 or 38 or 40 is a hell of a lot more difficult than at 26. So I kept skating and came up with a contingency plan: go back to college, get an artsy fartsy degree and see what happens. Then I went to grad school and somehow was lucky enough to get a job that I love and still leaves me time to skate while still contributing to a 401K and not constantly worrying about blowing out a knee in my twilight years.

Not turning pro was the best thing that ever happened to me, in hindsight. I talk to a lot of my friends who are pro (but, like, B or C-level, whose shoe money is gone, who are barely holding onto those boards) and have no clue what's going to happen when the gravy train comes to a stop. Team managing? Maybe? Repping? Sales? Sure. All in the skateboard industry, and none of them with a real long term prospect.

I know they're smart dudes who are going to somehow land on their feet, but being 37 without a resume or marketable skills? That's fucking tough.

But again, the double edged sword: fuck man, they got to live, see the world on a board, briefly become "skateboard famous," and do it all on someone else's dime with smiles on their faces.

Who's to say if the trade-off is worth it?

Fuck, I love skating.

who are you?
I’m a ghost that everyone can see.

southsecond

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #15 on: June 25, 2015, 01:35:17 PM »
Expand Quote
It's a weird double-edged sword, for sure. But it's always about instant vs delayed gratification, isn't it?

On the one hand, you lose a bunch of freedom when you're young, but you set yourself up (potentially) for the rest of your life. And honestly, the odds of you going pro are slim to none. The odds of a BA helping you to land a better job than without the BA are way higher. And sure, there are lots of great jobs for which you don't need a degree, but you'll need some sort of apprenticeship or trade school.

My own experience was this: I was sponsored for years. I got to travel and see the world via skating and I thought I was the luckiest dude in the world. I even started college before that happened and then dropped out to skate. But then, one day when I was pushing 26 or 27, it became painfully obvious that I was never going to get my name on a board. And even if I had? I would've been B or C-level at best and never in my life have made enough money to live off of, let alone retire on. Even if I had stuck it out and maybe (maybe?) turned pro at 30 (like some people have, and fucking A good for them), I would certainly have had to do a second act in life when that ride ended. But trying to figure out your second act at 35 or 38 or 40 is a hell of a lot more difficult than at 26. So I kept skating and came up with a contingency plan: go back to college, get an artsy fartsy degree and see what happens. Then I went to grad school and somehow was lucky enough to get a job that I love and still leaves me time to skate while still contributing to a 401K and not constantly worrying about blowing out a knee in my twilight years.

Not turning pro was the best thing that ever happened to me, in hindsight. I talk to a lot of my friends who are pro (but, like, B or C-level, whose shoe money is gone, who are barely holding onto those boards) and have no clue what's going to happen when the gravy train comes to a stop. Team managing? Maybe? Repping? Sales? Sure. All in the skateboard industry, and none of them with a real long term prospect.

I know they're smart dudes who are going to somehow land on their feet, but being 37 without a resume or marketable skills? That's fucking tough.

But again, the double edged sword: fuck man, they got to live, see the world on a board, briefly become "skateboard famous," and do it all on someone else's dime with smiles on their faces.

Who's to say if the trade-off is worth it?

Fuck, I love skating.
[close]

who are you?


Tell you? And compromise my ability to bother people by insisting on the correctness of "frontside half-cab flips?" NEVER!

Fenzadill

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #16 on: June 25, 2015, 01:39:54 PM »
how is a way i can go to college for free
example. i cant cast a spelll or love potion on a girl and she falls total in love for me
but i can show a girl my tv youtube clip on my or her phone. but there's a difference ok

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #17 on: June 25, 2015, 01:40:05 PM »
wellllllll, since you started it, it's a fakie frontside flip.  

Unless you are of the "nollie cab" or "frontside indy" ilk.  Ugh.  

The "cab" pronoun can only mean one thing -- fakie and backside.  Half-cab, Full-cab.  Half-cab flip?  Caballerial heelflip.  Etc.

Would you ever be caught dead saying frontside half-cab heelflip?  I would remove a man's mustache, chin, and jaw with a clean punch if I heard suchness.  




Casey Jones

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #18 on: June 25, 2015, 01:47:09 PM »
I personally went the college route which enabled me to begin my career and I don't regret that. However, I do believe there is a negative connotation associated with choosing to not go to college that is engrained in kids even in middle school and high school. "You have to do this so you can get into college" "What college are you going to?" "This will be great prep for college." Ever hear any of that when you were younger? It's like if you decide to not go to college, you failed. And you're a sack of shite.

I think it's okay to choose not to go to college. There a lots of things you can do without a college degree, provided you'll need some vocational or apprenticeship training. College isn't for everyone, period. Some of us would really enjoy hands-on labor or manufacturing or something like that. As long as you're happy with what you're doing, who cares. Who is to say making more money is the definition of success. As long as you're not sitting on the couch eating pizza and smoking weed all day, and actually contribute to something you believe in or care about in some way, I think that's great.

I see people every day that I work with, that make much more money than I do, and they are fucking miserable. They have failed relationships.. romantic and friendships, they have nothing they're truly passionate about and don't have any time for anyone but themselves. I see that as a failure, not success.

Determine what your priorities are, then take the necessary steps to achieve those priorities. Whether that's going to college or not.

southsecond

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #19 on: June 25, 2015, 01:48:16 PM »
wellllllll, since you started it, it's a fakie frontside flip.  

Unless you are of the "nollie cab" or "frontside indy" ilk.  Ugh.  

The "cab" pronoun can only mean one thing -- fakie and backside.  Half-cab, Full-cab.  Half-cab flip?  Caballerial heelflip.  Etc.

Would you ever be caught dead saying frontside half-cab heelflip?  I would remove a man's mustache, chin, and jaw with a clean punch if I heard suchness.  




Fuck, you're late to the party on this one. Please read the entire BATB 8 thread and then post a coherent response.

Thx.



ChuckRamone

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #20 on: June 25, 2015, 01:49:52 PM »
It's a tradeoff either way. In the end, you will always wonder what if I had taken the other path. If you gave up on the dream of becoming a pro skater, you will wonder "What if I had just gone for it?" If you become a successful skater, you might wonder "Would I have been better off trying something less dependent on physicality?" All athletes have to deal with these issues.

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #21 on: June 25, 2015, 02:16:41 PM »
^Yo I hear what you're saying but it's not so cut and dry. I hear people who graduated before the recession constantly saying how college grads today aren't willing to put in the work and, speaking from experience, that's not true. It's that these days a college degree is equivalent to a high school diploma and the shit just doesn't do what it used to. That "non-existent art job" is my best bet for a job right now, having graduated with a BFA in Design (a growing industry, at least where I'm at), because it's a niche job. Yea being a dancer/journalist probably won't pay the bills, but the competition to work at a coffee joint here is ridiculous and sometimes the best bet is to get an entry-level position that falls in line with your degree.

this is the best point. sometimes people think they are entitled to a certain amount of money just because they have a degree.  when in all honesty, they have a degree, but ZERO work experience.  And no company is going to pay you top dollar with no experience.  that's just the way it is.  having a college degree isn't the end-all, be-all it used to be.  BUT, it's foot in the door and THAT is how careers start.  a company that hires an employee is making an investment and when you can prove you bring something good to the table for the company, you will be compensated accordingly (hopefully).
"See you are like Mark David Chapman and my posts are John Lennon. You having nothing to offer so the best you can do is try to assassinate my beautiful posts. My Dental Plan is Strawberry fields and you are a sexually frustrated fat man."  ---NigNogNooo---

abudabi

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #22 on: June 25, 2015, 02:25:20 PM »
wellllllll, since you started it, it's a fakie frontside flip.  

Unless you are of the "nollie cab" or "frontside indy" ilk.  Ugh.  

The "cab" pronoun can only mean one thing -- fakie and backside.  Half-cab, Full-cab.  Half-cab flip?  Caballerial heelflip.  Etc.

Would you ever be caught dead saying frontside half-cab heelflip?  I would remove a man's mustache, chin, and jaw with a clean punch if I heard suchness.  
what do you call a frontside half cab noseslide then?

castillo's curls

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #23 on: June 25, 2015, 02:27:47 PM »
Expand Quote
It's a weird double-edged sword, for sure. But it's always about instant vs delayed gratification, isn't it?

On the one hand, you lose a bunch of freedom when you're young, but you set yourself up (potentially) for the rest of your life. And honestly, the odds of you going pro are slim to none. The odds of a BA helping you to land a better job than without the BA are way higher. And sure, there are lots of great jobs for which you don't need a degree, but you'll need some sort of apprenticeship or trade school.

My own experience was this: I was sponsored for years. I got to travel and see the world via skating and I thought I was the luckiest dude in the world. I even started college before that happened and then dropped out to skate. But then, one day when I was pushing 26 or 27, it became painfully obvious that I was never going to get my name on a board. And even if I had? I would've been B or C-level at best and never in my life have made enough money to live off of, let alone retire on. Even if I had stuck it out and maybe (maybe?) turned pro at 30 (like some people have, and fucking A good for them), I would certainly have had to do a second act in life when that ride ended. But trying to figure out your second act at 35 or 38 or 40 is a hell of a lot more difficult than at 26. So I kept skating and came up with a contingency plan: go back to college, get an artsy fartsy degree and see what happens. Then I went to grad school and somehow was lucky enough to get a job that I love and still leaves me time to skate while still contributing to a 401K and not constantly worrying about blowing out a knee in my twilight years.

Not turning pro was the best thing that ever happened to me, in hindsight. I talk to a lot of my friends who are pro (but, like, B or C-level, whose shoe money is gone, who are barely holding onto those boards) and have no clue what's going to happen when the gravy train comes to a stop. Team managing? Maybe? Repping? Sales? Sure. All in the skateboard industry, and none of them with a real long term prospect.

I know they're smart dudes who are going to somehow land on their feet, but being 37 without a resume or marketable skills? That's fucking tough.

But again, the double edged sword: fuck man, they got to live, see the world on a board, briefly become "skateboard famous," and do it all on someone else's dime with smiles on their faces.

Who's to say if the trade-off is worth it?

Fuck, I love skating.
[close]

who are you?

Yeah, spill the beans.



Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #24 on: June 25, 2015, 03:19:09 PM »


Fuck, you're late to the party on this one. Please read the entire BATB 8 thread and then post a coherent response.

Thx.


I did already.  Not going to join that hornet's nest of ill-informed fuckery. 

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #25 on: June 25, 2015, 03:20:13 PM »

what do you call a frontside half cab noseslide then?

Fakie frontside noseslide

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #26 on: June 25, 2015, 03:24:29 PM »
plus, I want to know, seriously, would you ever say frontside half-cab heelflip?

Also, to Abudabi, rather than edit my post, you would say fakie frontside blunt, not frontside halfcab blunt (as another analogy to your question about fakie frontside noseslide). 

I'm not calling into question your knowledge of the nomenclature, I'm just saying.  Now if I accused you of calling frontside nosegrinds on round bars that lock in frontside overcrooks, well, then we'd have fighting words, haha.

I'm just asserting the truth handed down from on high that "cab" prefix is fakie and backside only. 

dillanharp

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #27 on: June 25, 2015, 03:29:34 PM »
how is a way i can go to college for free
Are you American? 2 years in the military.

Go to college, I'm a 32 year old junior. Go to college. Making $15 an hour, physically busting your ass or dealing with customers is all you're going to get otherwise.
« Last Edit: June 25, 2015, 03:31:27 PM by Nallid »

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #28 on: June 25, 2015, 03:32:14 PM »

It's definitely not a fakie frontside anything. By that logic, a nollie backside 180 would be called a switch fakie frontside 180.

BY THAT LOGIC  :D :D
  
To think, all these years I've been calling 'em tailslides, when, by all apparent logic, they are ollie late 90 switch noseslides.  Boy, am I embarrassed.  

Lusty RunchBox

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Re: JENKEM: College? A perspective from pro skateboarders.
« Reply #29 on: June 25, 2015, 03:34:55 PM »

Yeah, spill the beans.

I'm guessing Tom Krauser of Media Skateboards