888
While at
Transitions
Skatepark in
Los Angeles,
Mike Crum
(left) piloted
a mongo
stalefish and
Chris Gentry
(right)
landed a
clean back-
side carial.
HOT SHOES
The legacy of skateboarding in Texas is timeless. The names
may change, but the spirit and devotion remain the same. In the
80s, it was Phillips, Johnson and Gibson. Now, Mike Crum and
Chris Gentry have emerged to continue the tall Texan skating style
into the next decade. Crum learned his craft from Phillips and
Johnson in Dallas. Gentry studied under Prince and Pennington
in Houston. These seventeen-year-olds skate like the state itself, big
and hot. They plan on being around for a long time, so get used to
their names. Bryce Kanights cought up with them in Switzerland.
How long have you been skating?
MC: Close to six years.
Did you learn to skate street or ramp parks?
MC: Well, I started out on the street, like just basic things. Then I
went on to rampe. I had an eight-foot ramp. I got it for my birth-
day when I was eleven.
How many years have you been skating, Chris?
CG: About six years
Where did you learn to skate?
CG: I just started skating launch ramps and stuff. Then my mom
used to take me out to the Skatepark of Houston every weekend.
40 THRASHER MAGAZINE
It was about thirty minutes from our house.
How did you guys meet?
MC: Well, I would always go to Houston.
CG: Yeah, we were like twelve years old. I came to Houston one
time and that's when I met him
MC: We met when I was on Zorlac
CG: And I was trying to get on Zorlar, but I never did.
MC: Then he got on Vision about two years ago and got me on
CG: I put a word in for you.
MC: Two months after he got on the team.
OG: Gator helped us out, too.
What skaters stoke
you most?
MC: Danny Way,
Chris Miller and
Tony Hawk
CG: Everyone's rad
Do you dig
travelling?
MC: Yeah, but not
SHPUS
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VITO
M
this long. It gets old after awhile. I mean, two and a half
months in Europe is a long time.
CG: I want to go home, then when I get home, I'm bored two
days later I want to leave, but then I want to go home.
How often do you guys skate?
Both: Every day
CG: A chick asked for my phone number, so I gave her the
skatepark's number.
What interests do you have besides skateboarding?
MC: Nothin'. Powder skiing
CG: Movies, or snowboarding
CRUM GENTRY
MC: Anything to keep busy. Anything fun.
What tricks do you guys like?
MC: I like olies
Obviously! Have you made that backside MeTwist yet?
MC: No. I did a MeTwist once before and then I started trying
backside ones, and it screwed me up. I think backside's se
much easier.
CG: I like varial tricks.
Yeah, I see you do them back-to-back-to-back...
CG: Yeah, varial tricks are rad.
What is your main approach to skating?
CG: No matter what everyone else says, I try to go fast.
MC: Yeah, I like to go fast and go high.
What's your approach to learning new tricks?
MC: I'm a puss
CG: I have to land and jump off, ride to the flat, jump off, and
then finally do it, if it's worth it. Sometimes, I'll get pumped
I'll just want to slam on it, just to get it out of me
Anything you want to say to the world?
MC: Don't think so much.
CG: Be original, but don't try too hard to be original.