TOM BOYLE
INTERVIEW BY MIKE MANZOORI
Tom Boyle is a man of many talents, always
testing the boundaries of what is possi
ble. Whether it be on a skateboard or just
hanging out, you can be sure something
is going to get tested. If it's a 360° flip
noseslide or a cigarette flip to mouth
catch or jumping over the banks of a
stream to see if it can be done, it merely
depends on where Tom is. He is a true
trickster, always trying, always learning.
Tom is one of the most natural skate-
boarders in the business; his mastery
makes one think of fine art in the making.
But this piece of artwork has no edges
and no boundaries, for it is a study of
perpetual motion. -Darren Menditto
How old are you?
Twenty-five.
Where are you from, and where you
have lived?
I'm from Toronto, Canada. I've lived in
Philadelphia, I grew up in Houston, St Paul,
Minnesota, Rhode Island, Michigan and a
few months in California here and there. I
guess I grew up everywhere.
Describe one of the best chapters from out
of your life.
The best time I can remember was when I
lived in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, with
Sean Miller, Harry Barford, Rob Crowe,
John Winne and others. We had the crazi-
est apartment where we'd raise hell. The
guy upstairs would shoot his gun out the
"The Rock" (opposite) is so burly that he jumped over the car and the wall
before landing on the asphalt below. The foundations of Cheapskates big ramp
are well used to the abuse (above) from Tom's freight train backside ollies.
window as a warning before he called the cops, daily. When the
cops came, there'd be forty under-agers diving out the back win-
dow. Pretty soon the cops caught on and would have like a paddy
wagon waiting out back to catch us. Basically the fun never stopped.
Since I've known you, I've noticed that you are either zippaty-
do-da Tom or quiet-thinking Tom. As far as your moods and
skating are concerned, what's up with that?
It's not like a chemical imbalance or anything... Well, I guess it is,
kind of. It's just, my moods show so much, and people get the
wrong idea. I just like to be quiet sometimes and think about stuff.
For example, my mom always asks me if I'm tired, and I'm all,