Old Skool – Brad Holland

I’ve been getting the feeling that people don’t believe that I ever actually wakeboard and instead spend my time in front of a computer criticizing people who do. Since I rarely ever get the chance to ride in front of a camera (and never ride well when I do get the chance), I figured I would post this.

I found this at my Mom’s house recently, along with a bunch of old photos and newspaper clippings. It’s my sponsor-me tape from 1998, and it’s a nice little walk down memory lane. Please note the tiny wake and the lack of a tower or extended pylon in most of the shots. Of course, it’s also kind of embarrassing; I spend a lot of time doing stuff like throwing shakas, air rolls, and doing tricks over my buddy Rob while we’re both wearing leisure suits. I also claim the shit out of a trick I filmed myself doing on the trampoline. I was a pretty big dork, but I bet you were too/will be also when you’re 16, so get off my back. You can also see the early developmental stages of my somewhat fiery temper: there are a few times where I either get really pissed at myself or flip off a jet skier.

If you really want to get technical, this is one of the first TA videos ever made. It was edited one night using the old “hook two VCR’s together” method where you just edit in real time using the pause and record buttons. This is probably a third or fourth generation copy, so that’s why it looks so bad. I must have taped over a tape from the school my Mom taught at, because you can definitely see a classroom full of children right before the thing starts.

It’s like a time capsule from the late nineties, so sit back and enjoy some old school wakeboarding set to the soothing sounds of Unwritten Law and Sublime. And don’t be surprised if you get the urge to do a couple air rolls, bleach your hair blond, and wear clothes that are two sizes too big.

Old Skool – Justin Sellers

Justin Sellers and I go way back. I grew up with his brother Joe, and back then Justin was the annoying little brother that was always hanging around. We would always have to take him out in the boat when we would go wakeboarding on White Lake in the summers. He’d put on his barefoot suit and ride his little Hyperlite kids board and basically annoy the shit out of us.

Somewhere along the line, though, he became less annoying and I began hanging out with him more and more. It got to the point where he was pretty much my best friend and to this day, there isn’t anyone I enjoy wakeboarding with more. Good times kind of follow the kid around; I have trouble thinking of a time when I was hanging out with him and had a legitimately bad time. He’s the kind of guy who could get drunk and piss on your computer, and you wouldn’t even get mad at him, it would just somehow be really funny.

As you may already know, the annoying little brother turned out to be way better at wakeboarding than all of us, and although he’s settled down a bit now, he’ll still go out and kill it when he wants to. This video was for the same school project as the clip of Brandon Graham I posted a few weeks ago. Hopefully, Justin will come out and get some shots for the movie this spring and summer.

Speaking of the movie, I’ve been capturing a ton of footage from our trip to Florida, and I can safely say that we got some pretty good stuff. Keep your eyes peeled for a little sample in a week or so.

Also, if you guys haven’t seen it, go watch the new Sidewayz movie “Transgression.” Randy Harris’ part alone is worth the cost of admission. Ronn Sidenglanz is a total bad-ass, and Randy’s section pretty much confirms that he’s the master of putting together epic video parts.

But anyway, here’s Justin…

A Blast from the Past

On Friday, Brandon Graham came up to hang out and go to the Bright Eyes show in Winston Salem (As a side note, Bright Eyes totally sucks live; don’t even bother). If you’re unfamiliar with the name Brandon Graham, he was quite the wakeboarder for many years, and he still would be had he not spent the past few years recovering from his second blown knee. We talked shop for a while and he mentioned that he would like to start riding a bit more next year. Naturally, I then told him he was expected to come out and get some shots for the movie.

Our conversation prompted me to break out this clip, which was part of a school project I did my senior year. It was shot mostly in the summer of 2004, a year before Brandon’s second knee injury. I realize how ironic it is that we’re classifying a three year old video “old school,” but whatever. Just watch it. BG’s a ripper and if you happen to see him on the street, tell him to get his act in gear and start wakeboarding more in 2008.

In more current movie news, Nick and I have been kicking around some possible names for the video and capturing footage like crazy. We’ve got several trips planned for the next few months, and we’ll keep you guys posted as things come together.

Go Wolfpack!