Ryan Sheckler - The Top Dog in Skateboarding

Mar 31 2007 / Los Angeles, CA

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Lat34 Catches Up With Ryan Sheckler

There's no doubt in any fan of skateboarding's mind that Tony Hawk is arguably the greatest skater of all-time.  At the very least, he's one of them (an argument can certainly be made for Rodney Mullen, Danny Way and a slew of others).  Yet when it comes to the present day, there's no question who sits on the throne as the King of Skateboarding: Ryan Sheckler.

Since he exploded on the scene at the age of 13, winning X Games gold (in addition to winning the Gravity Games, the Vans Triple Crown, and many other contests that year alone), Sheckler has dominated the skate scene.  Proving to everyone that his rookie year wasn't a fluke, Ryan continues to dominate all facets of skating, recently winning the AST Dew Tour skate park title and staying busy filming a new reality show for MTV, and traveling the world filming a skate movie sponsored by Red Bull.

PHOTO GALLERY    Check out some photos of Ryan from the red carpet and in action View Gallery>

And to top things off, Sheckler is a presenter at this year' Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.  Despite a sponsor list that challenges the length of the Nile, and throngs of teenage girls constantly chasing after the 17 year-old skater from San Clemente, Sheckler keeps it real.

I sat down with the top dog in skateboarding to find how Ryan Sheckler deals with the fame, and what he's got cooking these days.

Lat34: First off, you're going to be a presenter on the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards.

Sheckler: Yeah, me and Chris Brown are going to be introducing Gwen Stefani and Akon, so that should be pretty interesting.

Lat34: I read this interview once where you said if you could date anybody in the world, it would be Jessica Alba.  Very nice choice by the way, like your taste.  And it just so happens she's going to be at the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards.

Sheckler: She is definitely going to be there, and I'm definitely going to try and say what's up to her.

Lat34: A pro skater and Jessica Alba.  I like the sound of that.  You definitely have to get her phone number.

Sheckler: Hopefully.  I'm going to be wearing a lot of diamonds, so hopefully it'll happen. (Laughing) I already have a plan, it's going down!  No matter what, she'll be leaving there saying, “That Ryan Sheckler kid, he's kind of cool!”

Lat34: Speaking of TV, you have an MTV reality show coming out soon.  The Life of Ryan, correct?

Sheckler: We're going over names right now, but The Life of Ryan seems to be sticking.  It's basically a reality show with me and four close friends, and my family.  It just kind of goes over what I do when I'm being a normal teenager and then what I do when I'm the superstar that my life has turned into.

It's kind of cool, it has a couple of dynamics to it.  It really shows how I'm trying to be a normal kid, and how I love it when I go out and I'm not normal.

Lat34: Is it going to be Jackass style, or do you have your own unique flavor?

Sheckler: I kind of have some dumbass friends, so there's going to be some of the (Jackass) dynamic to this show.  It's kind of serious, but it's a comedy also.  It's a good show.

Lat34: Are you going to high school right now, or did you graduate?

Sheckler: I'm going to Future's High School in Mission Viejo.  It's like a private, home school deal.  I can't go to high school, it's too much work and I don't have the time.  I promised my parents I'd graduate high school, which is smart.  So I'm going to do that.  After that, you know what?  It's balls to the wall, I'm going to be skating every day!  I only go to school two days a week.  Every other day I sleep in 'till noon, and then I go skating.

Lat34: You grew up in San Clemente, a big surf town.  Do you surf as well?

Sheckler: I surf a little bit here and there.  I just go to the beach and bronze.

Lat34: You hit the big leagues in 2003.  It was your landmark year.  You won the X Games, Gravity Games, Vans Triple Crown, and Slam City Jam.  It put you on the map.  How did your life change?  What was your life like then?

Ryan Sheckler - Volcom Vid   Here's a little tease from a Volcom shoot in March 07 with Ryan...

Sheckler: It was fun, but it was difficult.  I never really dealt with it before, so I didn't really know what was going on.  I was a normal kid winning these contests, and then after I won the X Games it turned into mayhem.  People coming out of the woodworks, and that brought a lot of fame with it too.  Quick fame.  People didn't know if I was going to be in it for the long haul, or what would happen if I would just fall off.  I proved myself and I'm still here.

Lat34: You've been touring all over the world with Red Bull for an upcoming film.  You went to Dubai and Australia among many places.  Tell me about the film.

Sheckler: This film basically pays homage to all the people I look up to in skateboarding.  Red Bull funds the movie, but it's not all Red Bull athletes.  It's whoever I want to bring on the trip.  These dudes, like Jereme Rogers and P-Rod are getting free trips around the world first class, because Red Bull has money up the ying-yang.  It's fun, and the skating we're getting is amazing because everyone is happy and having a good time so it's fun.

Lat34: When and how is the film coming out?

Sheckler: Actually, I don't know.  It's coming out in a year, I know that for sure.  It'll be in all skate shops, and we're submitting it to Sundance just because it's a new type of skate film that no one else has seen before.  We got some amazing footage.  Red Bull paid for these cameras that have never been used before in a skateboard film.  We're getting all HD footage.  It's insane.  It's going to be all over the internet as well.

Lat34: Speaking of riders you look up to, you recently signed on with Danny Way's company, Plan B.  Describe the experience of working with Danny.  Is he showing you the ropes?

Sheckler: He's a legend.  I'm going along with it pretty well, just because we're so similar.  He started when I started, and he's gone through everything I'm going through, so he's a good guy to go to for advice.  

Other than that, I kind of know what I'm doing right now, so when we go on trips, we get along , but he's old enough to be my dad I think. (Laughing) It's kind of like father and son, when we go on trips he's always looking out for me.  It's tight.