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Josh Stafford – Juice Magazine State of Skate Interview

Name:  Josh Stafford
Hometown: San Diego, California
Age: 24
Sponsors: Arbor Skateboards, Pick Pocket Mfg, Independent Trucks, OJ Wheels, Supra Footwear, Randoms Hardware, Carve Wicked.

What set-up are you riding right now?
Arbor skateboard 8.5, Independent Dressen 149s, 57mm OJ Power Riders, Mob Grip, Randoms hardware.

What’s the most fun DIY, skater-built or renegade spot that you’ve skated lately?
I’m lucky enough to live down the road from Washington St. skatepark, which was started under a bridge in San Diego over a decade ago with one small 3-foot hip and some bumps, and now it’s a massive compound built by skaters and the city is cool with it. It’s something to behold that’s for sure.

Have you ever built something to skate?
A couple months ago me, Tom Remillard, Ivery Turner, Daniel Malkovich and some homies built this spot on Sunset Cliffs on the water. Took only two bags of Quick Crete to do and used some of the pushed up sidewalk that was already there to make this little tranny to bank wall. It only lasted about four days before the cops hammered it out, but totally worth the $40.

Who do you like to skate with these days?
Alex Perelson, Sam Beckett, Malky, Taylor Bingaman, Zack Dowdy, Auby Taylor.

Best skate graphic you have seen lately?
There are some super rad new Arbor graphics coming out that I’m super hyped on from the Whiskey Project, obviously, and I just saw a James Brockman Zero board with a chick’s head chopped off and she’s eating herself out. Pretty brutal, but that’s kinda the point. Haha.

Best thing you’ve skated in a skatepark?
Tigard Skatepark in Oregon has a dinosaur off the side of the big flat wall there that’s pretty tight, and there used to be a center volcano there that would spin around, almost like a pinball game.

Favorite skateboarders of all time?
Neil Blender, Peter Hewitt, Alphonzo Rawls, Rick McCrank, Gou Miyagi, Alex Perelson.

Is there anything that hasn’t been built to skate yet that you’d like to see built?
A dirt course made for skating.

What’s one of the best road trips you ever took?
Two years ago, I was on Vox at the time, the whole team, 15 dudes, 1 van, 30 days, 35 parks, camping from SD to Canada and back. Sometimes it seemed like hell, constantly tired and cramped, but all those dudes are like brothers now. The trip was called the Back in Blue tour, but we eventually changed the name to 1000 Years to Life.

Are there any skate-related charities that you support?
Grind For Life does a great job supporting cancer survivors through events and fundraisers. It’s ran by Mike Rogers who has personally beaten cancer more than once.

What music have you been listening to lately?
Anything heavy, I’m super into hardcore and death metal. I recently found out I like outlaw country. Hank III and David Allen Coe are tight.

What do you consider the responsibilities of a professional skateboarder?
To skate, have fun, and share that feeling with the world.

Which skate shops do you support?
Any skater owned shop really. They’re all right in there own way, but Route 44 and Pacific Drive are especially tight in San Diego.

Favorite skate photo of all time?
That’s such a hard one but, over the past few months, it’s been this one of Kien Leu ollieing this massive curb cut over a little newspaper dispenser in SD from the ‘90s.

What is your take on girls skateboarding?
GET SOME!

What skateboarding memorabilia do you have that means the most to you?
I have my mom and uncle’s boards from the ‘70s that are pretty much cut out 2x4s, roller skate trucks, and cracked rock embedded clay wheels.

Who contributes the most to your local skate scene?
That’s a tough one. There’s a lot of dudes around San Diego constantly out searching for and building/making spots skateable. My boss at the Clairemont Skatepark is super cool, and helps out a lot of kids ride that otherwise wouldn’t be able to, and he’s constantly trying to organize fundraisers for this and that. Charlie Payne rules.

Top three favorite skate tricks?
Smith grinds, bonelesses, and anything Gou Miyagi does.

Do you think skateboarding should be in the Olympics?
I go back and forth with it… I don’t think skateboarding needs it and I just think it will be another way for corporations to get involved in the sport and take away money from skater-owned companies that do it genuinely for the love, rather than the profit.

What is your proudest moment in skateboarding so far?
Jeff Grosso gave me a dollar bill when I did an Andrecht Invert over Kelly Bellmar’s channel and told me it was one of the gnarliest things he’d ever seen. That’s definitely up there.

Josh_Stafford-boneless-Andrew_Jasper
NO WAY BEACHFRONT BONELESS TO DOOM. GSD WOULD BE PROUD. PHOTO © ANDREW JASPER

ABOUT THE JUICE MAGAZINE STATE OF SKATE:

When we started Juice Magazine 22 years ago, you could count the number of skateparks on one hand and grindable pool coping was mostly a distant memory. Now there are thousands of skateparks all over the world, along with a vast quantity of DIY spots built to skate. In 1993, the majority of skateboarders listened to punk rock or hip hop exclusively. Now skateboarders listen to almost every kind of sound created. Two decades ago, skateboarding related charities were non-existent. Today, there are numerous non-profits giving back to skateboarding in many ways. One of the most important differences between now and then is that, 22 years ago, there was a clear division between old school and new school skateboarding. Now that wall of separation has followed the same path as the Berlin Wall, allowing for an unprecedented unification of skateboarders all over the globe. Great strides have been made for girls that skate as well as the acceptance of skate history and long overdue recognition for skateboarding’s pioneers and its artifacts. At the same time, the current generation of skateboarders is taking skateboarding to new heights, previously unimaginable. As the landscape of the skateboarding industry changes on a daily basis, and the topic of skateboarding in the Olympics rears its head once again, along with the disturbing subject of who controls skateboarding being tossed about by corporate entities, we decided it was time to take a good look at the State of Skate. We asked 20 questions to 100 skateboarders, ages 8 to 58, and found that skateboarding is as diverse as the skateboarders that are addicted to it, no one controls skateboarding except skateboarders, and the State of Skate is savage and strong. Now get out there and skate tough!

JUICE MAGAZINE STATE OF SKATE features interviews with 100 skateboarders including: Tony Alva, Dave Hackett, Chris Strople, Duane Peters, Steve Olson, Dave Duncan, Steve Alba, Tony Magnusson, Pat Black, Jesse Martinez, Bill Danforth, Jim Murphy, Ric Widenor, Lester Kasai, Glen Charnoski, Bryan Pennington, Peter Furnee, Jeremiah Risk, Ryan Smith, Jason Jessee, Omar Hassan, Cam Dowse, Jen O’Brien, Depth Leviathan Dweller, Brett Roper, Travis Beattie, Chris Gentry, CW Dunn, Chris Albright, Charlie Wilkins, Cairo Foster, Pierre-Luc Gagnon, BJ Morrill, Dr. Lenore L.A. Sparks, Sid Melvin, Jesse Irish, Packy Fancher, Greg Lutzka, Jimmy Larsen, Adam Dyet, Luis Tolentino, Greg Harbour, Frank Faria, Ryan DeCenzo, Dave Bachinsky, Johnny Turgesen, Casey Meyer, Edward Sanchez, David Gravette, Ben Hatchell, Brian Geib, Felipe Gouveia, Eric Santos, Kyle Smith, Cameron Revier, Josh Stafford, Justin Grubbs, Etienne Eden Archila, Sanzio Piacentini, Josh Elder, Eddie “Mighty” Moreno, Kevin Kowalski, Otto Pflanz, Jeremy Smith, Adam Wiggins, Jimmy Wilkins, Danny Gordon, Jake Hilbish, Corey Blanchette, Adam Legassie, Nick Santos, Trey Rounds, Curren Caples, Justyce Tabor, Andy Anderson, Sarah Thompson, Coral Guerrero, Collin Graham, Derek Scott, Ace Pelka, Sonny Rodriguez, Jarren Duke, Mikayla Sheppard, CJ Titus, Noah Schott, Emily Earring, Julian Torres, Wyatt Wisenbaker, Josh Forsberg, Nathan Midgette, Roman Pabich, Yago Dominguez, Jack Winburn, Jonas Carlsson, Kiko Francisco, Bryce Ava Wettstein, Desmond Shepherd, Matty Jessee and Luke Kahler.

FOR THE REST OF THE STORY, ORDER ISSUE #74 BY CLICKING HERE…

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