Skateboarding: Taking risks to get the results

Jake Brown is not your typical athlete.

He doesn't do gym.

And he doesn't do nutrition.

Then again, Brown's sport isn't exactly typical either.

He spends most of his time soaring above a half pipe with a skateboard in tow. A master of vert skateboarding (otherwise known as half-pipe), Brown arrives in Wellington next week for Vodafone X Air.

The Australian, who now lives in California, is among 80 internationals lining up for the event which includes skate, inline and BMX.

Vert skating was big in the 1980s but in recent years has taken a backseat to street skating. But the introduction of a mega ramp competition at the X Games and the skill of skaters such as Brown has spawned a revival.

He was first introduced to a board as a kid.

"My dad has been a surfer all his life, he kind of messed with skateboards a bit when there was no surf, so he got me one."

He started skating "pretty heavily" when he was about 12 and launched himself onto the professional circuit in 1997 and now travels the world eight months of the year competing in at least 15 events a season.

Brown has a reputation for being fearless, pulling off tricks few skaters attempt, let alone land.

He puts his success down to taking risks, having consistency and style.

It's for those attributes he is the only vert skater on the skateboarding label-sponsored Blind team.

He says his inspiration comes from watching other people, videos and from his imagination.

"As long as you are skateboarding a lot, the more you do the better you get. You can get real serious and start going to the gym and eating healthy meals and all that stuff," he says - before coyly admitting that that's something he has yet to get around to.

His board is similar to commercial models but is fine-tuned in terms of length and shape. He uses a Blind board, Independent trucks and Ricta wheels.

"[Skateboards] are like cars - they all work the same and they look similar but there are different models and stuff."

He trains at least three hours a day on the half pipe and when he is not skating "I don't do too much, I probably should be doing something".

Injuries? Well, he admits to a few altercations with the pipe.

"The injuries come and go. I was lucky for a while but I had a few last year. It is kind of like motocross I guess, it is just how you fall. You can get concussion, broken bones, fractures ... whatever."

The event in Wellington is his first after a long layoff with a knee injury so he's just looking forward to getting back on the board. Joining him in the vert are 17-year-old US pro Rob Lorifice, German champions Sascha Mueller and Juergen Horrwarth, European champ Terrence Bougdour and past big-air world record holder Jocke Olsson.

"I just want to come over and skate straight for the next week and put on a good show," says Brown.

After the competition he heads to Australia for a demonstration event at Big Day Out.

By the end of the year he would like to have "won some contests, travelled the world, had some fun and worked out some new tricks".

"There is no real pinnacle of the sport, I just want to be able to look back when it is all done and say I gave it all I had and did pretty good."

And when his skating is over? Plans are pretty loose: "Maybe grow agave and make tequila ... possibly get a place on the coast in Australia for that and surf."

Jake Brown

Born: Sydney

Lives: Carlsbad, California

Born: June 9, 1974

Married

Career highlights:

2005: Globe World Cup - Vert Best Trick: 1st

2004: Vert Year-End Ranking (World): No 9

LG Action Sports Asian Tour, Beijing: 1st

LG Action Sports Championships & X Games Top 10

2003: Vans Triple Crown Overall Rankings (Vert): 4

X Games Global Championships - Vert: 5th

Slam City Jam Vancouver: 3rd

Globe World Cup Australia: 4th

2002: Mobile Skatepark Series Vert Overall Best Trick Champion

2001: Soul Bowl - Vert: 2nd, Best Trick: 3rd

2001: X Games - Vert Doubles: 5th