Author's Note: This interview originally appeared on Yahoo! Sports several years ago. All publishing rights now belong to me.
I recently had the opportunity to interview 36 year old Andy Weiss, founder of Launch Community Through Skateboarding, a Colorado based organization that is using skateboarding as a vehicle for empowerment. Weiss grew up and currently resides in Sterling, Colorado. He has been skateboarding since he was 11 years old and prior to founding Launch Community Through Skateboarding owned his own skate shop. We talked about his personal experiences with skateboarding, the skateboarding industry as a whole, his organization and how skateboarders may become involved with the group.
Here’s what Weiss had to say on those subjects:
Gonzalez: What is your favorite skateboard set up?
Weiss: 8.38" x 32.5" deck, Independent 149s, 54mm wheels, Bones medium bushings, Bones Swiss Bearings; a typical old man setup.
Gonzalez: What is your favorite form of skateboarding?
Weiss: Hmm. I like to skate street, skateparks, pools, anything. We have four amazing public skateparks in Fort Collins, so I skate them a lot.
Gonzalez: How often do you get to go skateboarding and what are some of your favorite spots?
Weiss: I don't skate as much as I would like to....but I do get to the skatepark three to four times a week. I go to the Northside Aztlan Skatepark...it is close to my house and has a little of everything (bowls, banks, ledges, barriers and flatbars).
Gonzalez: Describe the skateboarding community in your area?
Weiss: The skateboard community in Fort Collins is one of the best scenes I have ever been around. There are a large number of skateboarders for a City the size of Fort Collins and it is growing in numbers every year. It seems most of the skateboarders here are not too concerned with getting sponsored or being competitive. Our skateparks are diverse in design and has therefore spawned a very diverse skate-scene and kids here are very well-rounded; meaning they skate everything (tranny, handrails, flatground, ledges, pools).
Gonzalez: What is your fondest childhood skateboarding memory?
Weiss: Probably learning kickflips or my first handrail.
Gonzalez: How has skateboarding changed since you first started skateboarding and what are your thoughts on those industry changes?
Weiss: 25 years ago skateboarding was more of a sub-culture. When I started skating it was very underground. There were only three to four skateparks in the entire state of Colorado at that time and we had to order our boards through a mail order catalog. The actual act of skateboarding was so misunderstood by the general public that people were threatened by it and wanted nothing to do with it. And we loved that.
Skateboarders were outcasts. We looked different, dressed different, and we weren't interested in fitting in. These days, I think the amount of publicity that skateboarding gets on TV, Internet, commercials and advertisements has watered down the sub-culture that it used to be. That said there are still so many kids that live skateboarding, just like I did when I was growing up.
But since skateboarding has become more main stream, companies and brands unrelated to skateboarding are using it to promote their products and to cash in. This has obvious positive and negative effects since it really comes down to money. These companies are providing more opportunity for their riders, employees and the shops, but in turn, you have a lot of people with their hands in skateboarding that don't skate. It's a double edged sword.
Gonzalez: What trends have you seen emerging in the skateboarding industry’s non-profit sector within the last year and what do you foresee occurring in the next five?
Weiss: As the skateboarding population grows, more people will see the positive impact skateboarding has on people's lives. Organizations like A. Skate Foundation and Skateistan are doing amazing work by utilizing skateboarding as a tool to improve people and their lives.
Gonzalez: I have talked to some skateboarders who say that the act of skateboarding has helped them find peace during difficult times and others who say it made them more confident human beings. What has or does skateboarding bring to your life?
Weiss: I grew up in a small town. I wasn't the team sports type and my parents were getting divorced around the time I discovered skateboarding. I know skateboarding got me through a lot of those difficult times. Today, I can credit skateboarding for so many great things including: most of my closest friendships are through skateboarding, my career path, having an eagerness to travel and exposure to other cultures...just so many awesome experiences.
There is one important thing that skateboarding teaches that often gets overlooked. It teaches an individual the ability to cope with failure. For example, you may try a kickflip 200 times only to land it once....and when you land one it feels so good, you want to land it again only better, cleaner and faster.
Gonzalez: Let’s talk a little about Launch Community Through Skateboarding. What inspired you to create the organization?
Weiss: I owned and operated a skateboard shop here in Fort Collins for 15 years. I came to a point where I was just burnt on retail. During the last few years of running the shop, I started to see a lot of groups and organizations asking for my help with facilitating skateboard programs, lessons, demos, clinics, etc. I started to see a trend.
These groups wanted to connect with kids by using skateboarding, but they weren't simply promoting skateboarding as the positive force. Skateboarding was just the vehicle for something else. Don't get me wrong, most of these groups were doing well through their organizations, but they weren't really heartfelt about how impacting skateboarding is. Launch was created to simply promote skateboarding and to empower individuals to better themselves through skateboarding.
Gonzalez: How long has it been in existence and areas of the country does it serve?
Weiss: We are a new organization; we started in June this year. Our first year will directly affect the Northern Colorado region, but we plan to be a nation-wide organization.
Gonzalez: What are some of the programs Launch plans on using in its mission?
Weiss: For our first year, Launch plans to offer a few different programs including: our "Skate to Success" program as an incentive program for Middle School and High School students to improve their GPA in school; "DIY" art workshops including Griptape art workshops and a custom skateboard shaping workshop; and a series of volunteer efforts like "Clean your Skatepark" days where we will get a group to clean trash at all of the local skateparks.
Gonzalez: Do you have any amateur or pro skateboarders on tap to help with Launch skateboarding classes?
Weiss: We currently have a list of talented local volunteers that will be assisting Launch with many of our programs and classes this first year. Eventually, Launch will host guest speakers from the skateboard industry including sponsored riders, company owners, art directors, photographers, etc. There are so many amazing, talented people in skateboarding and we want kids to meet these people, hear their stories and hopefully be inspired by them.
Gonzalez: Has the reaction you have gotten towards Launch from the skateboarding community been what you expected?
Weiss: Considering we started Launch in June, we are experiencing a ton of interest and support for the organization and its mission. It's a new idea and people are excited. Obviously, skateboarders young and old have been our organization’s strongest supporters thus far. The kid that just started to skate is excited but so is the 40 year old dude that used to skate and understands how skateboarding can be such a powerful force that impacts your life forever. We have support from parents of skateboarders and the skateboard industry. In addition, our friends at Real Skateboards are planning to release a skateboard deck for Launch through their Actions Realized program.
Gonzalez: How have America’s economic woes affected Launch?
Weiss: Our first fundraiser was two days after the Dow Jones fell 512 points in one day, yet we had a very successful event. It is a hard time for people right now, but fortunately we have had a lot of support locally for the organization. Skateboarding is so important to so many people that they really want to help.
Gonzalez: What has been the most challenging thing Launch has had to deal with and how did the organization meet that challenge?
Weiss: Although skateboarding has made a lot of progress in terms of how the public perceives it, we are still challenged to convince some that skateboarding is a positive activity. This is a challenge we are happy to take on!
Gonzalez: At the moment, what is Launch’s greatest need and what can the skateboarding community do to help?
Weiss: Right now we are in the process of getting a location for the Launch Creative Center. This will house our offices, a library of skateboard/art books and magazines, a workshop area, a mini-ramp and a skateboard museum. Without this location, we cannot facilitate many of our programs.
We are raising money for the Center through a website called KICKSTARTER.COM where we have a set goal of $12,000 that we must reach, or we don't get any of the pledged donations. We are currently at $3,000, so we need to raise $9,000 in the next two weeks. There are rad incentives to donate including a Launch T-shirt if you donate at least $25! Other items on our wish list include: gently used skateboard and art books, skateboard magazines, vintage/old school skateboard decks and completes. We will eventually have a lot of volunteering opportunities once we have a location.
Gonzalez: What events does the organization have on tap for the balance of this year?
Weiss: We have already signed kids up for our “Skate-to-Success” program and once we have the Launch Creative Center up and running, we will dive right into skateboard lessons and clinics. The Center will serve as a destination for after-school programs like Griptape art class, DIY ramp building classes and custom skateboard construction workshops.
Gonzalez: What has been your most memorable Launch moment?
Weiss: Our first fundraiser, "All Hands on Deck", was an amazing art show that had custom designed skateboard decks by 50 local artists. The show also included donated original artwork by Mark Gonzales, Michael Sieben, Dennis McNett, Michael Burnett, Joe Hammeke, Chris Session and Atiba Jefferson that we had in a silent auction. The show was a huge success and was a really fun event. We have decided to make it an annual fundraiser.
Gonzalez: Let’s switch gears for a moment. If you could cook for and have dinner with five famous people (living or dead) what would you cook, who would you choose to dine with and why?
Weiss: How about a veggie stir-fry for Ian MacKaye (I've always respected his views on music and business), Lance Mountain (has always kept skateboarding fun and is still a total goofball), Gandhi, Albert Einstein and Louis Weiss (my grandfather I never new).
Gonzalez: If you could only be remembered for one thing what would it be and why?
Weiss: Being genuine in everything I've ever done.
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