Waiting for Lightning Page #6

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I remember realizing

there's something about

the way he's skating

that I'm not gonna be able

to keep up with,

and here I am

in my first couple of years

of being a professional skater,

and I'm thinking,

"I'm done".

Yeah, Danny!

# Had no future #

# Remember youth #

# No pop culture #

There have been

a few people in skateboarding

that have truly been able

to not just spot talent

but allow that talent

to be the best it can be.

Mike saw talent,

but then he also was able

to bring it out of people.

Mike would take kids

under his wings

and help them along.

He could get you to do things

that you didn't want to do.

I mean, he would push you

to get you to go

to another level

that you're not

comfortable with.

But yet he could see it and say,

"Oh, yeah, you can do that".

Mike

was a character.

Big-ass fanny pack

and this ponytail

and his voice...

I can still hear it.

You know how you don't see

somebody forever

and you kind of lose their...

lose their face?

I can hear his voice.

Yeah, John.

Yeah!

I felt really close to Mike

almost from the get go.

Come back

over, Matt.

Yeah, Matt.

He always had my back.

I just felt like

this was different.

This wasn't some guy I was

calling every once in a while,

like, "Hey, man,

I need a sticker".

He was, like, in your grill

every five seconds,

and not in a bad way,

just close to you,

making sure things

were going your way.

Next up, we got

a local boy from Vista.

Yeah, man. Whoo!

Mike really cared

for everybody

and was trying

to make it all work.

Ripped it! That was it, dude.

That was it.

There was

so much new young talent

that was coming along in this

new wave of skateboarding.

We were right

in the middle of it,

and it was being created

right then and there.

Mike and I were talking,

and Mike's like,

"Have you heard

of this kid, Danny Way?"

I go, "Yeah, of course.

Yeah, he rides for Powell".

He's like,

"That kid's phenomenal.

It'd be great

if we had him".

I go, "You're not gonna

take him from Powell".

Powell's the number-one company

at the time.

This became

a challenge for Mike,

you know, just personally,

because Danny was on

and then he was off.

It took us a while.

All of a sudden a contest

comes up in Houston,

Shut Up & Skate,

big, big vert contest

on the metal ramp back there.

Danny was upset

because Powell

wouldn't pay

for him to go there.

And Mike said, "No problem.

I'm gonna have you go there,

but by the time you do,

you're riding for me".

For me to leave Powell

to join a start-up company

was a big deal, but Mike

was the reason why.

Mike just had a...

had a calmness about him,

had a rational disposition

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