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Ric Widenor – Juice Magazine State of Skate Interview

Name: Ric “Longboard Ric” Widenor
Hometown : Clarks Summit, PA
Age: 50
Sponsors: Conspiracy Skateboards, Venom bushings & wheels, Flypaper.

What set-up are you riding now?
I ride 8.75”-9” Conspiracy decks, 14.5-15” wheelbase. The 14.5” is a new thing I decided to try when I turned 50. Shortest ever. I use Independent 159s, hollow with Venom Blood Red bushings. I ride 56mm Conspiracy Park Cleaner wheels in skateparks and private tranny, and Venom Curb Stompers on streets, hills, ditches and dirt. Flypaper grip. I also ride a Wounded Knee Andy Kessler with Indy 169s and Curb Stompers because MURF!

What’s the most fun DIY, skater-built or renegade spot that you’ve skated lately?
The funnest skater built structure I have skated lately is definitely the Rosy Bowl, a private indoor bowl designed and built by Merk of East Coast Ramp Design. That could change in a few months because Team Pain is building more skateparks in Colorado as we speak.

Have you ever built something to skate?
I helped Merk build the Rosy Bowl, but I was the unskilled labor. When I worked with the YMCA of Boulder Valley as the Skateboardinator, I ran free skateboard clubs at middle schools. I would show up at the school an hour before school in a van full of ramps, and we’d set up a session in the courtyard and shred until school began. I was constantly building stuff with recycled materials that had to be fun, could be combined in different configurations, could be carried safely by a couple of 12-year-old kids and could all fit in a cargo van. Tetris.

Who do you like to skate with these days?
I love to skate with everyone. I spend all summer running a skateboard camp, so I skate with the 5-14 year old crew a lot. Love it. I love a session with all the 40-50 year old guys because they are my fellow lifers, and I am stoked to skate with the ripping teen and twenty-somethings that destroy everything. Everyone but the grown men who whine about children on scooters and the kids who disrespect the skatepark with litter and trash talk.

Best skate graphic you have seen lately?
The one that Tim Kerr did for Conspiracy.

Best thing you’ve skated in a skatepark?
Maybe the snake run at Team Pain’s Breckenridge Skatepark, because I could spend months trying to unlock the Secrets of the Snake.

Favorite skateboarders of all time?
Steve Olson, Duane Peters, Lance Mountain, Jim Murphy, Merk the Jerk, Brian Ball, Zach Cusano, Zak Maytum, Ace Furlong. Murf is number 1!

Is there anything that hasn’t been built to skate yet that you’d like to see built?
I would love to see a crosstown pump track, like all the bike paths through communities we have in Colorado, but a pump track. No foot pushing needed to commute.

Best road trip you ever took?
Best road trip would be the Great Skate Escape. One week every summer from 2002 to 2011, I’d load a bunch of teen skaters on the bus and we’d do a 5-day, 600-800 mile loop in the mountains, skating different parks, tent camping, cooking our food and completing community service projects at the skateparks when available. Life changing moments for these kids and me.

Are there any skate-related charities that you support?
I’ve volunteered with Askate and sat on the board of directors of Nedsk8, which made the Nathan Lazarus Skatepark in Nederland, CO a reality.

What music have you been listening to?
DEVO, Brian Eno, Ryan Adams, Cabinet, Ghost, Big Boys, Pete Seeger, Lewis and Clarke.

What do you consider the responsibilities of a professional skateboarder?
I have a different view of this, because I am a “pro skater” in that I earn half of my living creating and administering skateboard programs. My responsibility is to keep the participants safe, happy and stoked. I try to show there is more to skateboarding than riding skateboards. There is the community, history and culture of creative progression.

Which skate shops do you support?
I support the local skater owned shops in Colorado’s Front Range: Satellite Boardshop, All Boards Sports, Crisis, Meta, Sol, and 303.

Favorite skate photo of all time?
There are way too many to choose one, but the first one that comes to mind is the Santa Cruz Street Skate advertisement in Action Now with Olson in a red shirt, frontside ollie on a mosaic bank. Mind blowing and influential to 14-year-old me.

What is your take on girls skateboarding?
Girls and women skating is more common every day, and should be.

What skateboarding memorabilia do you have that means the most to you?
The most meaningful piece of memorabilia I own is the orange plastic Makaha skateboard that I started riding in the summer of 1974.

Who contributes the most to your local skate scene?
I think the ones that contribute the most time to my local scene are the communities and recreation departments that provide the skateparks, and Team Pain for building the skateparks.

Top three favorite skate tricks?
My favorite skate tricks are the tailblock, frontside lipslide and the layback grind.

Do you think skateboarding should be in the Olympics?
Sure. Skateboarding should be in the Olympics. It will not take away any of the joys we all get from the act of skateboarding. If you’re a skater who wants skateboarding to stay out of the mainstream, it’s too late! It is mainstream, and popular culture is very influenced by the aesthetic that skating created. Skating will remain on TV, as well as in secret backyards and renegade DIY spots.

What is your proudest moment in skateboarding so far?
Proudest moments in skateboarding: Steve Olson saying to me “I love your style. You’ve got the wicked frontside.” Lance Mountain standing up and clapping after my run in Whiskey Tee’s pool. I am most proud of watching Zak Maytum and Joe McLaren grow from little kids learning to skate in my program into World Champion racers.

ric-widenor-LINDSEY_KUHN
Ric Widenor keeping it golden at the Rosy Bowl. Build x destroy. Photo by Lindsey Kuhn.

 

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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