ISAAC “CHALKER” KENYON INTERVIEW

Chalker is a skateboarder from Santa Rosa, CA. We talk the old days and the new. Santa Rosa skate scene and finding your stoke. Hope you enjoy!

What up, Chalker?! Thanks for doing this, man!

No worries. Always down for the homies.

Hell yeah. So where did you grow up, and how did you get into skating?

Ukiah, California, is where I grew up. Shits a red neck town. The fact that I got into skateboarding is wild. You pretty much played sports in that town growing up or you got beat up or heckled. But anyways, I saw this hesh-ass dude with a mullet and a Rob Roskopp board doing a boneless while riding the school bus home, and I was like “What the hell is that?” So I started to ask around. Because we had no internet back then, and skateboarding wasn’t popular. I should probably add this was the end of 1986.

So way early. Street skating was in its infancy. Did you find a crew early on? What videos were you guys watching?

Oh yeah, street skating was barely a thing. The mags and videos were pretty vert-focused. Powell Peralta’s “Future Primitive” was the first skate video I ever saw, and my mind was blown. It went from skating the sidewalk in front of my house to realizing I have a whole town I can explore with my friends. We would rent videos from the local bike shop. We would skate from one end of town to the other just trying to learn tricks. But again, they were mostly vert videos, so we would do their tricks in the streets, if that makes sense.

Renting videos is something the youth will never have to worry about. So how long until you moved to Sonoma County, and how’d that come about?

Oh man. Kids today would die if they had to wait a week or two just to see a video 😂. So anyways, we had a crew of maybe 20 skaters in the early 90s. Skateboarding was pretty much dead at this point. The majority of my friends decided to move to Santa Cruz or Berkeley and started punk rock bands. This only left a few of us. I can remember driving to Santa Rosa because Ukiah had a weird skate shop at that time. It wasn’t a shop but had a couple of boards. So, on the way back from Santa Rosa, I just accidentally drove by Piner skatepark and saw shit going down. I think it just opened. I told myself I had to figure out a way to get down here and be a part of it. Especially since the Ukiah scene was kinda dying. Some great bands came outta Ukiah at that time though like AFI, Tiger Army, Influence 13, Loose Change and The Process. That left me in limbo because all I wanted to do was skate. So I bounced and brought the Ukiah punk rock styles to Santa Rosa.

So sick. So you were tight with all those bands, did you guys all kinda move out of Ukiah at the same time? Where were you at in skating at that point? Were you thinking career? Or just going for it, having fun?

The thing that people don’t realize is those are all skate rock bands. All those dudes skateboarded. Hell Dave aka Davey Havok had a sick heelflip. As for me everyone dipped out about a year or two before I left. I actually made a sponsor me tape that I sent out when I lived in Ukiah. I thought I was pretty good. Then when I moved to Rosa I realized I sucked ass 😆. I still pushed mongo, I couldn’t skate transition to save my life. On a side note. I did get 3rd place at a CASL contest at the Santa Rosa skatepark. And yes I pushed mongo! Who fucking gave me a trophy? I shoulda been disqualified. I don’t know if I ever thought about going pro. I just wanted to get free shit and travel. I knew in the back of my mind I would never see my name on a board. I just wanted to get on Anti-Hero flow somehow.

Damn 3rd at a CASL in Rosa pushing mongo!! Nuts! So who did you start skating with in Rosa? This stuff is fascinating to me because you guys were the first ones out here doing it like that. During that time, I bet you got to skate with a bunch of Rosa OG’s and everyone else coming through the park. What was it like back then?

The first 2 people I met were Josh Powner, who now owns Brotherhood Boardshop, and Tony Evjenth, rest in peace. They both pushed mongo as well. Then shortly after that, I would become homies with Tony Trujillo, and he pushed mongo as well. So fucking wild when you look back at it. After a while, I became friends with the real Rosa legends. Let’s just say it took a while for us to warm up to one another. But I got to see Joel Price, Charlie Watts, Jon Miner, and Brian Gaberman in their primes. Shit was insane. They were so good. I spent a lot of time there back in the day. I’ve seen all the pros roll through. Used to be able to get boards for 20 bucks, tees for 5 dollars, and wheels for 10. It was an awesome time at Rosa. I learned so much back then. I’m thankful for those times. Hell, I saw the pre-Muska back when he was on Foundation wearing a beanie with a bill. I’ve got so many tales.

That’s crazy you guys had a mongo squad of all legendary fools. RIP TONY EVJENTH. What were the shops and the culture like at that time? When did Josh open Brotherhood? Also Foundation Muska is a crazy pull lol.

Santa Rosa has had many waves of rippers. So when I showed up it was Joel Price, Charlie Watts, Jon Miner, and Brian Gaberman. Nanda Zipp, and Jason Monroe (RIP). There are a few more. But many won’t know the names. Then comes the late 90s to mid 2000s which was the era I was fully immersed in. You got Tony Trujillo, Mike Rusczyk, Silas Baxter Neal, the Hendo bros, and many more. Around this time there was 3 shops in Rosa. Of course Brotherhood. You also had Jason Farthings “The Skateboard Shop” and this really shitty one called Skatef8. They fucking sold 2 Fish shoes in there. The real ones know how wack that shoe company was. Skateboarding was doing pretty well at that time I feel like. Brotherhood would eventually change hands a few times. It was Kurt who sold to Jon Lohne. He owned Revolution skate shop. They had locations in Cotati, Healdsburg and Sebastopol. Then eventually Josh Powner bought it and it is what it is to this day. I don’t know the dates but I can remember the chain of events. I got a lot of Revo love. We did some cool shit.

So many names, I was like a decade late but I remember all the homies when I was a young buck. I always went to Gone Surfing because I was in Cotati but then when Revo opened at Wolf Den in RP I gave them all my money. So sick to see Josh holding down Brotherhood. The old spot on Mendo had a lot of memories. Were you there for the Stay Gold showing?

I think we watched Stay Gold in the parking lot of Brotherhood on Mendo ave in the old video droid building. Jeff Henderson was the TM at the time and we got to see it a day early. It was so sick. I remember being with some friends. I think we are in our mid to late 30s at this point. We threw around the idea of a video called “Stay Old” cuz as skateboarders we were pretty outdated by then. But we still wanted to get some.

Hell yeah so I went to Ridgway high school during that time and all my RP homies pulled up and watched that premiere in the parking lot. That’s when I fully got tapped into the Santa Rosa scene. Did “Stay Old” ever come out?

Oh yeah it did. We were taking all the trips with the young kids. I love all of them. But fuck they were annoying as shit. We were skating West Oakland one day. Under the bridge at Bordertown. It was me, Chris Bryant, Tony Evjenth, Brian Henderson and I think Lohne was there too. We were talking like “Fuck these kids! Let’s take an old man trip.” The Dirty 30s was born on that day. You gotta be 30 or older to get in the van. It was so sick. It only lasted for 5 trips. But man were they were worth it. If you go to the Chalker Chronicles and look on the left hand side. You can click the link and check them all out. They aren’t the most gnarly videos. But they are the most fun.

The Dirty 30s was dope because it was exactly that. All the younger homies were like shit, can’t wait to turn 30 and get on that trip lol. So Rosa park has been through so many different phases and it had a strong comeback for a while, where are you at with it right now?

Rosa park has had a lot of phases over the years. It’s kinda rad. So you had the birth years with Watts, Gaberman, Miner and Price. Then when they all moved away you got the “USSR” years. Aka the United Scumbags of Santa Rosa. This was the longest for a crew. Maybe 1996 to 2015 or so. This was the one I was involved with the most. Dudes like Killahoe, Old Dirty James, Juice Tiger, Me, Tony T, Lohnestar, One Eye Willi and many more. After that was the OULK years, One Ugly Lookin Kid. Followed up by the Rats Mobb crew. It was so rad seeing the younger generations come in and put their spin on it. Now it’s a fucking clown car. You got the local wanker that’s there 7 days a week. Rain or shine. Getting anyone that rolls in to film the 1 trick he can do. It’s a fucking mess. I love Rosa with all my heart. But it sucks now.  Which sucks even more cuz I live across the street from it. So until the herpes clear up. I’m just gunna skate everywhere else.

I feel that man. It’s so rad that space has held up for so long and has birthed so many crews. But also sad to pull up nowadays and not see an OG in the park. How do you feel about “Gatekeeping” in skateboarding? I always say it’s inclusive if you are included. It’s so different nowadays, there isn’t much mystery anymore.

It’s funny. I get dudes calling me an “old head” or “gatekeeper” because a lot of skateboarding I see today is wack. Full of shitty styles. It’s one thing to be a 50 year old dude doing a shitty tail slide. I get it. It’s another with all these younger fools that don’t even try to slide, grind or air as good as it should be. Remember I keep the gate closed to keep all you clowns out for a reason.

I gotta say you have shared that sentiment with me and all the older homies have always stood on that code. I learned early on, roll the fuck in, do it right. So I don’t wanna blow it out but it’s out there now. What’s good with Dead Lot DIY, how did that come about?

That spot has been on the radar for a while. My buddy Stu has been talking about it for years now. Then one day this old Rosa skater from the 80s slapped some Crete on a jersey barrier. We all skated it thinking the city was gunna come in and tear it out. A month goes by and everyone is like “Let’s see what else we can do.” Slowly but surely we have cleaned all the garbage up and built some other objects. Tony Trujillo is really the fire behind a lot of it. He usually gets the squad hyped to come out and put in work. The best part about this spot is everyone has some stake in it. Whether it is sweeping, cleaning up shitty graffiti or mixing crete. It’s what a skateboard scene should be. Everyone working together to create a better skate environment. Not just for yourself but the next generation. Show em how to run a shovel, read a tape measure and cut some 2x4’s. These clowns that skate the same spot everyday claiming to be part of the scene are just fronting for the gram. The real skaters of the Rosa scene got dirt underneath their nails.

So that’s what is so sick about the Rosa scene. I remember it was like that at the Cleveland spot. I rolled up not knowing anybody and the homies put me to work and then the younger homies would pull up and they were working. There’s something about Rosa and earning your keep. What are some of your all time Rosa memories. Be it videos or tricks you seen real life? I’m sure you’ve seen some crazy shit.

The Foley DIY was rad. It had so much potential. But all the dipshit gangsters and high school kids doing drugs ruined that spot.  The great thing about the Dead Lot DIY is it’s totally visible. So rando kids can totally get caught pulling lame ass shit. Oh man as far as memories go I could easily talk for hours about them. What people don’t realize it that Santa Rosa looks like this sleepy suburban town. But under the surface has some of the sickest skateboarding history to it. As far as memories go, watching Tony and Silas winning SOTY and just partying our brains out. Seeing guys like Chris Senn just destroy the skatepark. Growing old with all the Rosa homies and still skateboarding to the best of our abilities. It’s hard to just pinpoint one memory. I mean the old days where my buddy would drop me off at the skatepark back in 95 or so and I would spend the entire day there making friends and learning how to skate transitions.

Two SOTY from Rosa! What were those party’s like? That’s huge.

It was so sick. When Tony won we got to party with Nikki Sixx before he kooked it. Punk rock karaoke with members from NOFX, Social D, TSOL and The Descendants. I was pretty hammered. I remember throwing my beer at Corey Duffel that night. Love ya buddy 😆🤣. I was full Ukiah punk that night. When Silas won it was super chill. Too short played. Silas wanted to dip out. So we all went to some random bar and got party’d out. Great memories. Those old skater of the year party’s went off. They are pretty chill these days. Sign of the times I guess.

Man that’s so rad. Straight skateboarding. It can take you crazy places. What pumps you up to keep skating? What music are you listening to nowadays? I’d imagine all the old bangers right?

Just watching my friends still skate into their late 40s early 50s hypes me up the most. Sometimes I like to look at old mags from the 80s for style references, that gets me stoked too. Music is definitely a motivator. If I’m trying something and need some juice I’m going Motörhead or DMX. But lately a lot of 80s butt-rock has been stoking me out. Any warm day and a cold beer is a good day these days. Getting heckled by your friends. Watching old skate videos. Lots of nostalgia fuels the fire as well.

That’s what it’s all about man. Okay I got a couple quick hitters for you if you are ready…

As Flavor Flav says in 911 Is a Joke, “Hit me!”

Haha!! Favorite skate video?

Probably Savannah Slamma. A contest video from 1987. Mark Gonzales does a switch early grab method. It’s a mind melter. Plus prime time Hosoi fucking shit up.

Yeah that’s hard to argue. Favorite board graphic?

Now that’s a hard one. The 80s had graphics for riders that ran for at least a year. Now they are like toilet paper just wipe and flush. Anything with Pushead art on it. That would be all the old old Zorlac graphics. But either the Jeff Phillips tye dye dragon or the Neil Blender coffee break board.

Damn those are two choices I wouldn’t have expected but are so tight. Best 80’s butt-rock and why?

Definitely Ratt. Best riffs and lyrics. Plus they made a song specifically for the movie Point Break with Swayze and Reeves.

Great choice. Well shit man, I feel like we can run this for hours. I appreciate your time and everything you have done for skateboarding. Any last words or plugs? Fire away.

Oh man. I could old man ramble for days. So many tales. But maybe some logic that people need to hear.  Anyone can pick up a skateboard and ride it. Hell my kids can ride a skateboard. Does that mean they are “skateboarders” certainly not. Skateboarders roam the streets and the wastelands. Looking for stoke. If you ride a skateboard at the same spot everyday your just a jock going to the gym for your daily routine. Don’t do skateboarding a disservice by keeping it bottled up in the same spot. Get out and get some.  

Cover the entire canvas. Get out there, meet new people, try new tricks. I love that. Keep searching and keep that stoke lit!! Thanks Chalker you the best.

Thanks player!

Thank you man. 🔒