Red Bull New Zealand

 

"I first met Travis Pastrana in LA at the 2003 X Games. I’d known of him long before that because I was a fan. But I really started to get to know him when he made a $500 bet against the guy who’s now my agent that I would win the skateboarding competition. My agent had told him, 'No way.'

 

"So I ended up winning Travis the money and I just remember him coming up and being like, 'Yeah, thanks dude, I just won 500 bucks!' I was psyched. It was Pastrana. Sick!

 

"From then on, we just seemed to have very similar personalities. We like having fun. Whenever he came out to California, he’d come stay at the house, and we’d borrow my dad’s truck and just go racing around or whatever. From day one, I just felt like he was such a loyal friend, you know? And I’ve been chilling with him all the time since then.

 

"He’s bred to be a motocross guy, just like I’m sitting here to be a skateboarder. No matter if you’re religious or not, that’s clearly his gift to ride bikes and do other ridiculous stunts like jumping out of a plane without a parachute or flipping a rally car eight times. I like to jump off big things and do crazy stuff, too, so it’s brought our friendship closer.

 

"When I was about 13 or 14, I visited Pastrana’s house in Maryland. I had no idea what to expect, but I was just getting jumped into what these guys’ lifestyle is like. We’d go and practise backflips on bikes in his foam pit. He’d be like, 'If I come back and you’re not doing the backflip, you’re going on the boat.' Next thing, we’re on this boat going 40mph, and he just pushes me off with no warning! I was like, 'OK, this is how they roll,' but I was still just a little kid, and he was just pushing me off huge bridges with the rest of the Nitro Circus guys.

 

"I was getting ready to come home and had told my mum all the stories. I was like, 'I’ve gotta come home, I’m gonna die out here!' But then a hurricane came through and flooded the whole of downtown Annapolis. Travis was like, 'We’re gonna go ride jet-skis downtown.' I was like, 'What? It’s fully storming a hurricane out there!' So I’m on this jet-ski holding on to Pastrana and we’re racing through. Then, all of a sudden, we hit a parking meter and fly off because the water was so high we just didn’t see it, and I’m swimming in the middle of a parking lot in a hurricane. Since then, every time we see each other, we just go balls to the wall. It’s amazing. He does it because that’s him, dude. That’s all he likes to do – put his life in danger.

 

"But as dangerous as his whole situation is, I actually feel really safe around him. I don’t feel like he’s trying to put me in harm’s way. So, if I chose to do a skydive or something, I can’t think of a better guy to have around while I did it. He’s broken every bone in his body and still doesn’t stop – that really says something about his character.

 

"I’ve broken my elbow six times; I’ve had a lot of concussions. But I always feel like an idiot when I do it. I’m not bummed at the result, I’m just bummed at how the hell did I manage to fall? I just want to get better so I can get back to the basics and improve. I think it’s just the motivation to get back on the board that drives me.

 

"I’d like to switch sports at some point, like Pastrana did to rally driving. But I have so much practice to do. I’d even race Formula One, because the 320kph-plus really appeals, but I’ve got to get into the right circles to start learning how. I’ve set up Sheckler Racing, which is just basically me and my dad, but we want to help motocross riders so we’ve started our own team. I won’t be riding, though!

 

"I get amped when I see other successes. I like learning and surrounding myself with smarter people. Seeing all the fame Pastrana has and comparing it to whatever sort of fame I have – that’s great – but I think it can be used in a different way besides all the glitz and glamour. I use my professional career to be a role model and a good example for those kids growing up and trying to figure their lives out. Travis, he’s a freak of nature. He inspires me all the time. I have his back for ever."

 

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