Well the title boldly says it all. But some people might wonder what the hell it means, that is if they don’t know that I used to ride a 2×4 skateboard all the time.
My Halloween costume this year was a Caveman and so I brought out the 2×4 board as part of the outfit to a couple contests/jams. One was at Leeside and one was at North Delta Park. I hadn’t pulled this deck out for years until earlier this spring for a couple clips in a video part, and then I put it right back into it’s spot hidden away in my laundry room. But when I started riding it at ND for the Coastal Riders/Street Dreamz Jam it brought back the memories of how hard it was to skate but how fun the challenges of learning tricks on a 2×4 skateboard were. So I told Jordan Strong that we were gonna have to go back to North Delta Skate Park with it on a quiet day and film a quick video part.
That day was November 14th, 2012
Wet, slippery and empty – Hippie Mike represents on his legendary 2×4 skateboard at North Delta Skate Park
With today being a day to reminisce I would like to pay tribute to some of the local skaters who were my friends who we have lost over the years and we all miss every day:
Major Dave, Rachel Hunter, both just uncalled for tragic losses to the skateboard community.
Lee Matasi, chased down by an ignorant kid with a gun in 2005 and shot in the head on the streets.
Chris Whitmee, hit by a random bullet in a public washroom. The guy it was meant for took 5 shots and is still alive.
Josh Evin, tragic motorcycle accident.
And Don Hartley, The Mad Carver, a solid face to face collision with one of his best friends during a Bowl Series Contest at Seylynn Park.
These are just to name a few, and unfortunately I’m sure I missed some people.
All these people were great influences on us in many ways, when they were living, and even after we lost them. And they all shared a passion for skateboarding, a passion for friendship, and a passion for Freedom.
Kaelen Faux loves skateboarding, which was pretty much inevitable since both me (Hippie Mike) and mom (Carrie Williams) are skateboarders for life. It’s Kaelen’s 3rd birthday on Sunday, November 11th and I asked him if he wanted me to get a Clown to show up at his Daycare on Friday, and he said he wanted Ryan Brynelson to come instead and do a Freestyle Demo for all his classmates. I talked to Ryan and of course he was down. Kaelen really loves watching Ryan skate and I figured this might be a great opportunity for Kaelen to join in to the Demo and show off some of his skills in front of all his friends that know absolutely nothing about skateboarding. And so it happened. Everyone was super stoked!
Here it is – Kaelen Faux’s 1st Skateboard Demo – with his idol, Ryan Brynelson
Okay it’s here, the Protest Best Trick Contest, and it’s open World-Wide!!
Compete to win a huge Prize Pack containing:
a Protest – Hippie Mike Deck, an Old School Shaped Protest Team Deck,
2 T-shirts, a Trucker Hat and a Custom Protest Skateboards Hoodie.
All you have to do is film any trick, anywhere, edit it into a video that states your name and what trick it is, upload it to Youtube or Vimeo and submit the link on the website www.protestskateboards.com
Then get your friends to vote for your videos.
On December 17th, voting will close and the Top 10 videos (ones with the most votes) will be judged by the Protest Team and a winner will be chosen.
Winner will be announced December 20th, 2012
Here’s an example entry video.
You can submit as many different tricks as you want as long as they are in separate vids.
Okay here’s the footage from the Halloween Jam that was held at North Delta Park on October 28th. Put on by Street Dreamz and Coastal Riders, it was bound for success and everyone had a good time skating obstacles for prizes. Lots of solid tricks go down in this video made by AdamLudwiczak including some rare rail tricks by myself.
Or is that the real Hippie Mike or not?
and where the heck was Fighter that day??
and who was that caveman riding that 2×4 skateboard???
Welcome to Episode 5 of GLORY DAZE with Hippie Mike. Today we are hanging out in North Delta with a very unique skateboarder. He’s one of the only Freestylers in Canada, his pockets are overflowing with tricks, and he’s always ready to put on a Demo. Sponsored by Protest Skateboards, Kilian Clothing and West 49, he’s the Number 2 ranked Amateur Freestyle Skateboarder in the World – give it up for Ryan Brynelson!!
Hippie Mike: What’s up Ryan? How’s it feel to be on GLORY DAZE with Hippie Mike?
Ryan Brynelson: Oh, I was very surprised when you called me yesterday and asked me if I wanted to be on GLORY DAZE. I thought it was so great, I watch it on Youtube every now and then and I definitely enjoy it, so thank you so much for having me
HM: Cool. First off, can you tell us a little bit about the history of Freestyle Skateboarding and how many people actually still do it?
Ryan: Alright, so Freestyle Skateboarding is the essence of skateboarding. It came out first in the 1970’s and people would nail 2×4’s to roller skates with clay wheels and they would just kind of ride around on that. It was Freestyle Skateboarding but it was definitely not the same compared to what Freestylers do today. They were mostly just doing tic-tacs and handstands and it was very limited. Then of course the urethane wheel came out and that changed a lot. But it was still pretty much the same. People were still doing tic-tacs, maybe a little more fancy footwork you know if they did have the urethane wheel. And then of course came Rodney Mullen, the Number 1 Freestyle skateboarder in the world ever, the number 1 skateboarder in the world ever in my opinion on the planet. And so what Rodney did was, he sort of saw Steve Rocco doing like 50-50 tricks and then he started doing that, but he made a ton of variations that I’m sure you’ve all seen in videos like Almost Round 3 and stuff, so, pretty much like all truck variations, caspers, that all came from him and then Freestyle started to become more than just footwork and handstands and people were starting to like ride their boards you know on the truck, on the side, upside down and things like that
HM: So how many people in the world are Freestyle Skateboarders?
Ryan: Laughs… Ah ha, yeah so it’s funny, ’cause I get called like the 2nd Top Amateur in the world, but really there is seriously like about 120/150 Freestylers in the world. Very few of us, so…
HM: How old are you, and when did you start skateboarding?
Ryan: I’m 20, and I started skateboarding when I was 8. I got my first board you know like most kids, at some point in their life they get a skateboard for Christmas, and of course it’s a Walmart Skateboard, and uh, so I just started puttering around on that. I would just kind of ride around on that you know goofing around and stuff, and then when I was 14 I saw Lords of Dogtown and Dogtown and Z-Boys and something about those movies just made want to start doing tricks and stuff. It showed more of a community in skateboarding for me you know where normally I’d be skateboarding with the kids up the block, but then I was introduced to the Dogtown Movie and I kind of saw more of a community there and it was very attractive to me. I saw that and I thought it was really cool you know.
HM: And that’s why you leaned towards the Freestyle?
Ryan: Well part of it. I saw them doing like the Burt Slides and stuff like that, but of course everybody’s doing street skateboarding and not many people skate that 70’s style and whatever. So at that time I thought, Okay I have to learn how to Ollie, so I learned how to Ollie. So then it was like, now the pressure’s on, you know, you gotta learn kick flips and pop shovits, and then I kept kind of going but I didn’t really like that aspect myself. I was still just kind of doing Burt Slides and just playing around with that and then I saw Freestyle Skateboarding when I got invited to a barbeque at Kevin Harris’s house and it was kind of like a Jam Session for the 2007 World Freestyle Championships of Skateboarding and since then I’ve just been doing Freestyle Skateboarding and yeah, I enjoy it very much
HM: How much has Kevin Harris taught you over the years and what other influences has he had on your life?
Ryan: Ohhh, Huge, Huge. I mean, you know, Kevin has always been such a great mentor to me. He showed me Freestyle Skateboarding and because of him I am doing this. I would say my spins and any kind of my footwork, flow work, that all comes from Kevin, and then truck tricks and everything after that, you know, that’s just me wanting to be just a rounded skateboarder.
HM: You are very into Japanese Culture. You work at a Japanese Pub, you study Japanese at school, and usually have Japanese girlfriends. What sparked this interest and where is it leading you in life?
Ryan: Laughs… Oh that’s very interesting… Well, skateboarding you know, you’re always using your body and stuff and I was very into that using my body thing, and then at school my marks were always low and people started thinking I was like stupid or whatever, and um, then I went twice to Japan on Exchange Trips and I liked it very much, so I took a Japanese Course and I decided to make it as much of a passion as skateboarding is to me. So skateboarding, I’m using my body, and then Japanese I get to use my brain and stuff, so I thought it was cool to do both
HM: So therefore you’re always learning both
Ryan: Exactly,exactly. Yeah, yeah
HM: And the girls just came with it, right?
Ryan: Laughs… I don’t really think of it like that. I just study and stuff. Laughs…
HM: Say your favourite sentence in Japanese
Ryan: My favourite sentence, ohhh, I got a few. それはたわごとの価値がありません。 “It’s not worth shit” – Laughs…
HM: There are so many skateboarders in the world, but so few of them are into Freestyle. It’s a whole different way of life. Do other skaters treat you different because your strictly a Freestyler?
Ryan: Yes. They do actually. You know, a lot of it’s been very positive, and I go to a skate park and I kind of stand out and stuff. There is times where there is a little bit of a negative side of it and I think that it’s kind of weird because so many skateboarders got into skateboarding because society kind of pushed them out and then they started skateboarding. And then I’m doing Freestyle Skateboarding. I’m doing skateboarding, I’m just doing a different style, and then by that group I get pushed out by them because of it. Not all of them, but there is definitely a group for sure and I feel like it’s kind of hype-critical…
HM: Right. Do you think people don’t respect Freestyle Skateboarding, or is it just a sign of insecurity?
Ryan: You know, I feel like it is a sign of insecurity… I feel like a lot of people respect it, but at the same time, it’s not taken as seriously
HM: They don’t understand it
Ryan: They don’t understand it, that’s exactly it. Like when Longboarding came in at first that was very like separated from skateboarding, and this is very much the same
HM: Yeah, except Freestyle created what skateboarding is and Longboarding just….. I mean like, I’ve skated 26 years and I don’t even attempt Freestyle
Ryan: Laughs…
HM: Who’s better – Rodney Mullen or Kilian Martin? Right now?
Ryan: Ohhh, that’s a hard question… Uhhhhhhh. You know, rodney is just so tech tech tech, and as far as being the tech-master it’s Rodney, but Kilian with his creativity. I mean, damn. Honestly I gotta say hands down, my favourite skateboarder is Kilian Martin. I have much respect for Rodney Mullen but my absolute favourite – Kilian Martin.
HM: What do you love the most about life?
Ryan: Life… just so many great people, so many great people.
HM: Alright – Shout out to anyone?
Ryan: Shout out to anyone, oh my gosh, I just want to say Kilian Martin I’m seriously so stoked to be riding for you on Kilian Clothing, thank you so much, uhh, I appreciate all the advise you’ve given to me before, and um, Kevin Harris, absolutely one of my greatest mentors and it’s because of him I’m even doing this, so thanks
HM: Okay Ryan, I’d like to thank you for being a guest on GLORY DAZE and I’d just like to say I have always had respect for you as an individual. From the moment I met you many years ago you were a Freestyle Skateboarder, and no one was going to change that. You’re an artist, you’re a solid skater, you’re a leader and a role model. A rare fish that swims alone in a massive sea of followers
Protest Skateboards Filmer Jordan Strong put out this little teaser video strictly named “2012” portraying the chaotic times he had over this past summer going out with all his friends and gettin’ clips. There’s a lot more of the chaos displayed than the skating, but that’s okay, that’s the life he chose. Featuring all the Surrey Loc’s like Calvin Dignard, Dale Kind, Mitch Salter, Ryan Barron, Jay Mykyte, Andy Anderson, Brad “Fighter” Muscat, Jordan Strong and more. Check it out
With this weather going back and forth and being completely unpredictable we had to pick and choose where we were skating on Sunday. It was a toss up between Tsawwassen Skate Park or White Rock Res, so we chose the quieter one. Still a bit puddley when we first arrived but that was not issue for these Protest boys. It was Andy Anderson, Jordan Strong, Jaden Easton-Ellett and myself Hippie Mike just chillin’ at the Res. Andy and Jordan threw down a couple lines while Jaden and I stuck to what we do best and only rode the nasty obstacles.
I’ve been watching all of Hippie Mike’s video’s on YouTube seeing what he’s up to. I’ve been so stoked on how he get’s people pumped to skate by having different kinds of sessions and filming projects. One of the video’s that really caught my eye were of the latest ramp sessions, the ramp contest was insane. I realized that Hippie has had ramps for years and I’ve never skated any of them! So I shot him a quick text about how fun the newest version of his ramp looked, he got back to me right away inviting me to shred and even film the next episode of Cap’n Old Ballz….
My thoughts exactly – so we hooked up for an hour the other day – the rest is history.
It was the first closed in bowl with coping in Surrey, and when it was in the planning stage for the Guildford Park I was very adamant that we got a Bowl. There was too much of the same street stuff popping up everywhere and those parks get boring after a while. So Guildford Bowl was built, along with a tiny, somewhat pointless Street Section. Of course now you have to be thankful for the street section because that’s all that will be skateable for the next year and a half until the construction is complete. Once this Lap Pool is built then New Line will come back and build something fresh for us to ride in the remaining footage between the building and street section.
This Park helped to teach a lot of the young kids in Surrey how to hit coping. I remember when it was new and at my Hippie Mike’s Tour de Surrey Contests there the young kids would all avoid the Bowl and just ride the street stuff, and now almost everyone focuses completely on the Bowl at those events. It also created a group of friends that localized that place, Allen Handley, Myke Johnson and Randy. These guys all know how to shred this spot. It’s a shame that we’re losing it, but life goes on.
Here’s the Video by Protest Skateboards of our Final Film Session at Guildford Bowl. Lots of people showed up including Andy Anderson, Brad “Fighter” Muscat, Jordan Strong, Dale Kind, “Giver” Michael James, Riley Allen Clerihue, Adam Lewis, Josh Lewis, “Hasbrown” Mike Shulze, Dustin Locke, Derek Mayer, Stephan Burke, Matt Cook, Ryan Brynelson, Bachouch Michael, Myke Johnson, Randy, myself and Allen Handley who absolutely destroyed it all day. No one will miss that Bowl as much as this guy.
I’m not completely sure when the fence will go up and the Bowl will come down but it could happen at any given moment, so take your chances and get there for one last session
