The Friday Interview – Catching Up With Aaron Smith
Interview and photos by Fat.
We went out with Aaron Smith for an afternoon session in Long Beach while he was filming for a Demolition Web vid and were able to get a handful of photos to go along with this week’s Friday Interview. We caught up with him about the Kink House, Demolition, living on two coasts at once, and more…
Bars down the first set, wallride to 180 down the second set.
Name: Aaron Smith
Location: Long Beach, California
Sponsors: Kink Bikes, Demolition Parts, Osiris Shoes, Easter Boarder, Bad Timing, Rye Airfield Skatepark
Since we’ve never done an interview with you here on the site, let’s start back a from right before you got hooked up with Kink…how did you run into those guys and get on the flow team originally?
I was friends with Darryl Tocco before I got on Kink, so he mentioned something to Jay Roe (Kink team manager) and they started helping me out.
After your video part in “Safety First” they bumped you up to the pro team…were you aiming for that as you were throwing down bangers for the section?
No, not at all. They took me on a few trips with them to film for the DVD and I was just trying to keep up with everyone. I was pretty nervous the first couple trips I went on because it was my first time meeting Doyle, Sean, and Tony. I had been looking up to them growing up, so I was pretty excited
Now that you’ve been on the Kink pro team for a little more than two years, how has it been traveling and riding with everyone? It always seems like the Kink crew has such a good time together…
Yeah, we definitely have a tight family vibe…it’s awesome. I couldn’t ask for better people to be traveling the world with. It’s actually crazy how well we all get along.
Since Kink rented an apartment in Long Beach, California, you’ve left New Hampshire a few times to stay out in Cali for a while. What’s that been like for you?
Yeah, I moved here in October and I only went home once for the holidays. It’s been fun, the weather is always nice, and there are a ton of spots to ride. I hope we get to do it again next Winter.
What do you like about California, and dislike about California? Could you ever see yourself moving out here full-time?
I love it here and I would probably move out here for good with Jay and Darryl, but I have a girl back home and Boston is so good to ride when its nice out. New England weather is amazing from Spring till Fall, but I just can’t handle the winter.
Shortly after your buddy from New Hampshire (Chris Long) got the job as team manager for Volume/Demolition you recently got on Demolition What’s that like having a good friend as your TM and being able to film with him and stuff?
It’s definitely cool having him as my TM for a ton of reasons. I’m definitely psyched to film with him for some Demolition stuff because we have filmed multiple things in the past, and it’s always been fun.
What’s the transition like from hanging out and filming with Chris on the East Coast then doing the same thing with him on the West Coast?
It’s the same vibe wherever we are…it’s always good.
180 over a bar-height fence to end a line while Chris Long snags the rolling shot.
The day that I shot all these photos you were working on a “welcome to the team” type of Web vid for Demolition…What all goes into a video like that for you? Do you put pressure on yourself to get a bunch of good stuff, or do you just kind of film and get whatever you can since it’s just an online video?
I try not to put any pressure on myself, but I always want good stuff. I don’t care if it’s a DVD or a Web edit, I don’t want to put half-ass stuff out.
Describe a typical day for you when you are working on filming an edit like that…
It’s just like any other day…I wake up, eat some food, then go out riding.
Since Demolition is almost done filming for their DVD and you just got put on, will you have any clips in the full-length?
No, I don’t plan on having anything in the DVD.
Is there anything else you are working on right now with any of your sponsors? Upcoming travel plans, filming trips, etc.?
Kink is always doing stuff. The Kink House is almost over, so we are trying to do as much as possible before we head out. No plans after that, but I will be back and forth from NH to Cali for the next few months.
Starting a line... (Hop.)
Have you set any goals for yourself to work towards for 2011?
Just riding as much as possible.
Am I leaving anything out? Anything else you want to get us caught up on?
Nah, that’s about it…thanks for the little interview.
And ending the line... (Ice to bars.)
