Mark A.K.A Skater Claus has been with the Skateboarding Saves effort from jump street, is our largest contributor and his articles are kicking ass.
On top of that, he’s an original artist that has his own style and lives in his own world.
He defines what being a Skateboarder is and is changing the world he created one hood at a time.
Thank you Mark for being you.
Q&A
1. How long have you been Skateboarding?
32 years, started in ‘90 on a fish shaped NASH board when I was 5 y/o.
2. Who is your favorite Skater, why?
Rodney Mullen. We’re both Floridians, & I just have a lot of respect for people that innovate. Don’t think anyone can come close to Mullen when it comes to imagination & making up tricks.
It’s kinda like when u hear a dope cover song & think shit maybe this is better than the original… but they didn’t write it so u gotta give more cred to the person that thought it up & executed it first.
Are there skaters that do tricks Mullen created wit a lot more style… yeah, but u gotta respect the OG that invented that shit.
Cred: https://surfertoday.com
3. What’s the hardest trick you’ve ever landed?
When I was younger, I did blunts and nollie heels and big stair sets. Now I’m just working on losing weight to get my kickflips better.
4. Current Skate Shoe, why?
So I like the Nike SB Dunk High Elites. The built in ankle compression material is better for my ankles than traditional high tops, but I don’t particularly like wearing Nikes.
I recently got a pair of Fallen shoes that Nomad Skate Shop gave me a good deal on & I like em a lot. Only thing is they are lows & my ankles suck, but if I wrap my ankles & wear the Fallens they dope.
Cred: Kicks On Fire
5. Best memory of Skateboarding?
There’s this part of the highway in ATL where I-75 & I-85 converge & it’s 8 lanes on each side at certain points, so 16 lane highway.
They call it the Downtown Connector. I always thought it would be cool to bomb but not possible to do. A few years back there was a huge fire under an overpass that cause part of the connector to collapse.
They shut it down for a while to re-build it, & I was like this is my chance. I couldn’t find anyone to go out wit me, but a spent a week planning & then I hit it 2 days before construction was done.
U can’t imagine the feeling of having a 16 lane interstate highway under ur feet to skate as u please.
6. Favorite spot to Skate all time?
A spot in my hood I call 4-signs, but it’s unknown & think I’m the only one that ever hit it. Other than that I’d say Coan Park the big 4 (or 5 depending on who u ask).
I can’t hit the bigs steps, but it’s basically in my backyard & there’s a lot of stuff to skate other than the big steps. If people are hittin the big steps it’s epic. Check the Thrasher Atlanta slama vid
Cred: On The Grid
7. Worst slam / injury?
Got a TBI bombin a hill in my hood. IDK what happened. I woke up on asphalt after an undetermined amount of time laying in the middle of the street.
Brain bleeding, enough road rash I almost needed a skin graft, broken collarbone… when I woke up there was all this grit in my mouth & I thought I’d broken my teeth.
Luckily it was just dirt, asphalt, glass, & other random street scum that had been imbedded in my gums & not my teeth.
Halloween. Skater Claus full length skate video. If u like old skool skate videos u gonna wanna see this shit!
10. Any creds, thanks, rants or anything else you wanna mention?
I rep too many things to mention, thanks to everybody that fucks wit me & u know who u are. I rep Wolf Pack all day, VSSC, UGMF, Anti Everything League…
IDK just fucks wit me & the people I fuck wit cuz we the truth.
I wanna live in a place where we protect our culture against corporate appreciation, but also don’t be gate keeping douche bags that intimidate youngens from propitiating the grow of the culture we have built.
