It's really tough relying on being healthy every weekend in a sport where you can be wrecked in a heartbeat.

I've known Tony eight years. I feel lucky. Twenty minutes ago, I was eating lunch with everyone. I'm just sitting there with Tony, and he's just one of the guys, laughing and joking. Even though I'm 27, it's still like a dream come true.

A few years ago, I had a bunch, but when 9/11 happened, a lot of companies who were willing to throw their money into skateboarding or BMX all backed out. It hurt the economy in general, but it hurt our sport, too. A lot of people lost sponsors. I certainly did.

I was like freaking out.

He ended up moving down and I started skating because of him. He gave me my first board.

We planned on stopping (subscriptions) on the Monday after opening weekend, ... But we shut it off on Aug. 23. We are at 62 percent. That's insane - it's unheard of for us.