Jazz Push Interview - Mikey Weber

Ollie to ankle explosion

Have you ever watched Tosh.0?

Yeah.

You know how people on the show get a redemption?

Yeah.

Alright Mikey I have your Realize interview with me.

Oh God! You know what? That's a great idea though because I feel so butchered for that.

Okay, what is your favorite music to skate to?

I like indy and underground rap. I've been listening to a lot of Broken Bells. That band I really like (Broken Bells) and then just like a lot Wu Tang when I skate but NOTHING YOU HEAR ON THE RADIO! Thank you Realize for embarrassing me. I hope no one from my fucking high school read that! You know though you can't blame them. It was actually cool to see somebody try and do something for once.

How old are you?

20. I will be 21 on May 30th 2011.

What was your first board?

It was a beat up, old Element board from my friend Chris Keyani. Basically it was all hand me down so I couldn't see what kind of trucks I had but I could tell it was an Element because it was still back when people were cutting the griptape so you can see the logo on the top. Then my second board was an Illenium. That was the one I was stoked on because I really liked Greg Lutzka at the time.

Backside grind around the pole to the end

Did your brother (Jarvis) start the same time as you?

No. He's three years older than me so he started skating around elementary school.

Was he cool with you skating wit him or did you have to earn your way up?

God I hope he doesn't hear me saying this. Not really. it's just because you figure even if it's not skating, your little brother should have his own friends. But in any situation, the little brother always wants to do what the big brother is doing. It's just the way of life because you look up to your older brother. I always did and I still do. So when I would go skate with him he basically was just embarrassed of me because I was this little chubby kid pushing around on a skateboard going, "Yeah! I can do it too." Obviously the whole concept to him sucked, pretty much babysitting me. I'm sure it got to him but talking to him now, he always just said if anything he wanted me to get better and do the stuff with him. That's what you do as an older brother. You toughen up your younger brother and kind of give him some harsh love, so that way as life goes on, you say that was worth it.

Did you ever catch shit for being chunky as a little kid?

Oh yeah. Like nobody really gave me a hard time but everybody knew. You can't hide being fat. It all worked out. I learned a tumble style and that kind of shit. I think it was just more fun for people to watch a kid with my body type and still pull tricks out and do them kind of good.

Josh Regalado: Like Cory (Jones)

Yeah. Exactly! We had the exact kind of body type as kids. I used to see him at places and say, "alright, I don't feel as bad now." We had the same awkward ass bowl cuts and both wore baggy ass pants that didn't fit us, that we had to cut because we were short. We always had medium shirts on even though we should have been wearing youth small. I wanted to wear a skate shirt but smalls were grip tight and medium was like a dress. I remember every time I bought a new shirt I would get it wet and throw it in the dryer.

360 Flip

Do you have one Mike Holmes story that sticks out?

That revolves around skateboarding?

Just in General. When he crashed his car. I feel bad because Mike was a really inspiring skater. He was doing kickflip back smiths. Remember that?

Yeah. Mike was an amazing skater. Mike was doing all of these gnarly technical tricks that I can remember and people talk shit about him now, about how he fell out and got all kooky, but I remember Mike for Mike. He was still that kid doing the French rail before everyone else.

What did he do on it?

Billy Perry and I were talking about it the other day. He did fifty, feeble and five-0.

I remember around 2008 we were at zytech when it had the huge loading dock and Mike and I were skating every now and then. Mike was mainly chilling and working at Skate Warehouse so he wasn't skating too often but when Mike wanted to, he could do something sick. So we were at Zytech skating and if you wanted to skate the loading dock, you had to hit this little bump. Mike did a kickflip over it to the nicest nose manual off the loading dock and misses this lady walking her dogs as he rides down. Billy has it on film.

Now how about an old SLO park story?

I was playing my friend skate and it was when the two boxes were there that were slanted upright. I was gonna do fifty up kickflip out. So I go for it and went way too fast and put way too little effort into my ollie and just clipped it and came down on my shin. I thought I just had a little shinner but I pulled up my pant leg and my sock is oozing blood. (Mike) Holmes has his VX right in my shin, right on my vagina hole. I've got this huge gash in my leg and I'm going, "Oh my God!" And do you remember Cody the surfer guy who used to work there? He comes up and goes "Dude, I think you're gonna need stitches", and I start going ahhhhh! It just hit me, the little kid in me and I just started crying because I hate needles.

Nollie Phoenix Flip

You've been working hard on a video part. What do you want out of it?

Basically it was my first attempt of like seeing what I can do with a mixture of a lot of new stuff I've been kinda thinking of. Also just with the whole aspect of people giving me confidence with doing something with it. I put a little part together back in high school but it was mostly just park footage and crap like that with little shitty runs, but this time was a real official try. All I really want from it is just to be able to have something when I'm an old broken man and to see if someone will actually help me with boards and stuff, so I can keep skating as much as I do. I go through shit every two weeks or so and it's hard when you gotta pay rent and stuff.

What was the hardest thing to get in the video?

Probably that fucking run.

Josh: The opening line (Ollie double set and nollie heelfip)

Just because of the stress and how much hype I put into it before I tried it the first time. The first time we just left and the second time we almost got kicked out.

It was definitely that run because three kids at the park have already done that double set and so it's like I gotta do that good, plus do that run, plus make sure the run looks good, plus make sure I can do it at the same time. So it was a little bit of hype but also a personal thing because I knew I could do that double set and finally I had to see some kid do it so I could stop being a pussy.

You took some slams.

That one I took to the barrier. I probably still have a scar from that one but that's why I love to skate.

Nollie Heelflip

Okay, the nollie inward heelflip backside 180.

The Phoenix flip?

Who did it first you or your brother?

My brother. He's (Josh Regalado) got probably his first official one going down.

Was it the one over the hip at the night session?

Yeah. But I got the drop and hang time. (laughs)

So he started it but little brother's got it down stuff?

Well he told me to do it. He was like you need to learn that trick because you can nollie inward heel, but I got it frontside revert so get that Jarvis!

Do you know what a Jazz Push is?

It's when you're skateboarding with very fashionable pants and you push. I don't know. When I think of Jazz Push I think of like some dude with a saxophone skating. You know the zoot suits and shit? I think of that when I think of Jazz Push. Like the Ace Ventura pants, that's Jazz Push.

Watch the video interview that has more on skating with Jarvis and a SLO park confrontation.