Talkin' With The Team #12 - Alex Doyle

How old are you and who are you sponsored by?

I’m 23 and Sk8 is my only sponsor.

How long have you been on Sk8 Skates?

It’s been just over 3 years since I was “officially” put on the team, but almost 8 years since I started filming for Sk8.

How did you get on the Sk8 Skates team?

The day before I moved to Vancouver the whole team and I got together and had a classic rib dinner at the Norwood. They surprised me with a Sk8 “Team” t-shirt and welcomed me to the actual skate team.

I started officially filming for the shop on my 16th birthday, April 7th 2008. I was on a trip to Minneapolis and woke up on the last day (also my birthday) with an email from Colin asking me to help film a new Sk8 video – which turned into Shred. Obviously I was down, this was like a dream come true to 16 year old me!

What made you want to ride for Sk8 Skates?

Growing up Sk8 was just the best shop in the city. As a kid you’d see the videos and the team at demos and stuff and know that they were a super tight crew, like a family. I’m glad the shop gave me a chance as such a little kid and helped me get to where I am today!

What’s the gnarliest trick to go down in Winnipeg?

This is a pretty tough question. If I had to say one trick, it’s got to be Skrib’s nollie bigspin apartment gap. That gap is so insane, I remember standing at it one time and actually getting vertigo, not even rolling up or anything. But we can’t talk about gnarly tricks in Winnipeg without mentioning Nick Serduletz. Fakie flip City Hall, 5050 / lipslide Motel, kickflip front 5050 Woodsworth, gap to lip at The Mint, the list just goes on.

Who would you want to put on the team next? 

I always wished Kevin Friesen were on the team. He’s without a doubt one of the most naturally talented skaters in the city, not to mention my best friend.

All the new young guys in town are also super sick, but it’s a shame there are so many good parks these days keeping them out of the streets. Filming and skating in parks is fun and all, but there’s nothing better than putting in hours and hours of work at spots to come up with a part that you’re proud of.

Back when I was younger, crews would ALWAYS be out filming. There would be several premieres every winter, getting the entire scene together to watch the best skating of the year. The new generation of kids are definitely sick enough to film full parts every year, and I think this is what should be needed to earn a spot on the Sk8 Skates team.

Favorite Winnipeg skateboarder?

I don’t think I could pick just one. As a filmer there are often certain people that just feel “right” in front of my camera. Kevin Friesen, Nick Serduletz, Tyler Gaucher, Kyle Nickoshie, Matt Stelmack, and more recently Keiran Zimmerman and Josh Thorvaldson are some examples of this. There are too many incredible local skaters to pick just one.

Best Sk8 Skates memory?

This is another tough one… It could be that one Sk8 team meeting where Geurts left early to quit his job and then returned to join us for some drinking and lighting his work clothes on fire.

Maybe the time that Colin Lambert, Dan Neufeld, and I drove to Minneapolis one night, slept, went straight to a big rail for Colin to back lip, got kicked out, went back, got the land, and then drove home. And then the footage didn’t work and the photo didn’t turn out as planned.

Or the time we drove two cars 10 hours (each way) to Flin Flon for a 1 day trip, both cars running out of gas on the way there.

Filming for Connect the Dots also stands out. It was nice to have some kind of “goal” to try to achieve, especially when it involved hanging out with your buddies every day for a month.

The Sk8 / RDS demo (and Boyd Young’s bachelor party) in Brandon was the best too, except when I got a bottle thrown at my face at the club.

Honestly I could sit here and write all day about my best memory. There are too many to narrow it down, and I’m sure there are many more to come.

Alex Doyle @alexdoyle

Photos by Brent Gwilt @brentgwilt and Kevin Friesen @kevinfriesen