FRIC
DRESSEN
Interview by Kevin J. Thatcher
Back in 1976 Eric didn't exactly burst on
to the skate scene. At a time when most
of the skaters of prominence were in their
late teens, Eric sort of snuck right under
the ticket window. Besides, when you're
eight years old and barely 4' tall you don't
burst on to anything. Eric has always
talked softly and skated a big stick. With
influences like Tony Alva, Jay Adams and
the rest of the Zephyr/Dogtown contin-
gency doing all the talking, there wasn't
much left to say anyhow. So Eric just
skated. I recently cornered Eric D. for
several interview sessions and managed
to get him to talk it up.
- K.T.
Oposite Page: Eric Dressen is a true skate veteran
with a firm grip on the latest tricks. Crail grab wall
ride, San Francisco, CA.
Entering the studio, we see Kevin Thatcher,
the host of THRASH-TV, greeting his guest Eric
Dressen with the traditional backhand ollie
to face down palm. Zoom in on Kevin and turn
volume up to hear conversation:
You were telling me about your first
memories of skateboarding?
The first time I remember skating, I was four
years old. I rode my father's skateboard down
the slide in my grandma's back yard.
What's your first memory of life on this
planet?
Being bummed at pre-school.
Where and when were you born?
In 1967 at Kaiser-Permanente, Hollywood.
Where did you live at that time?
The first four years of my life was in In-
glewood with my grandma and my dad. Then
when I was seven, I moved to Torrance and
took up skateboarding. My parents were
divorced when I was 6 months old, so I've
lived with my dad all my life. He'd work till
late and after school I'd be all by myself, so
I'd just skate until it got dark.
What was a session like?
I used to pretend I was surfing. Just going
up and down driveways, straight down the
hill, trying to get in speed tucks, pretending
I was so...Zzooooum!
What was your first trick?
Trying to do 360°s, and trying to do hand-
stands, which I never learned. I started.
skateboarding because I always wanted to
surf. Then I saw Skateboarder Magazine and
thought, forget surfing, I just want to
skateboard. My first contest was Steve's
South Bay contest of Torrance. I was eight
years old and I got first in freestyle
barefooted. I probably skated my first two
years barefooted; I used to hate shoes. (The
audience laughs)
So you had the full toe drag blister, scrape
scene?
Yeah I almost chopped my toe off once. I
had a Bonzai and wore down the tail till it was
sharp like a razor blade and then I dropped
it on my big toe. It made a big old cut. The
first time I rode a ditch was Viper's bowl in
Hollywood on a G&S Fibreflex. The guys
made me drop into this huge bowl. When I
got to the bottom, my wheels pinched and
I slid on my elbow. I had to go get stitches,
and I was crying because I was so afraid.
Who were these "guys"?
Tuzo Jerger and his brothers, who owned
Kanoa Surf Shop in Palos Verdes.
Did you do a lot with South Bay boys?
Yeah, because I lived in the South Bay, in
Torrance. Before skateboard parks, I skated
backyard pools. When I was nine, my friend
Dave Thornton was a big influence on my
skating. He was thirteen or fourteen, and he
used to take me to all these pools and a pipe
in Torrance. That's where I learned how to
do fakies. Eight-foot pipe, we used to skate
it every day.
Eight-foot pipe. Eight years old. You were
probably one of the youngest rippers of
that day.
Back then skating was the only thing in my
life. That's all I would think about. I was a
big daydreamer when I was a little kid. I
always skated with older guys and they
always pushed me. I always tried to keep up
with them.
How and when did your sponsorship
come about?
It was a couple of weeks before I turned ten.
I was skating this backyard pool in Palos
Verdes with my friend, and Laura Thornhill
was there. She was totally amazed by my
skateboarding. I thought I was skating like
everyone else. Y'know, doing frontside
grinders and backside grinders. That day she
put me on Logan. The next day we went to
the grand opening of Skatetopia. That's
where she introduced me to the Logan family,
and that's when I met Warren Bolster.
Skateboarder Magazine did a "Who's
Hot?" article on you when you were ten?
Yeah.
A lot of your early photos were speed
carves, hand on the wall, dragging➤