First up is Dave. Dave is Dave, and if you don't know Dave then go back and watch his parts from the first two videos. They sum up his skating in a nutshell: commitment and guts combined into an epic mix of hair, beard, and style. When Dave decides he's going to do something, he gives it 200% and he does it. That's how his skating is, and he's the most inspiring person I've ever skated with. He lives in Paris now with his wife, and they constantly battle disease, metro security, and world-class skate spots on a daily basis. Rachel and I made it to Paris for a couple days when we were in Italy, and we hung out with Dave the entire time. It rained 4.5 days out of the 5 that we were there, so that half an afternoon of dry weather is when we were able to film his tricks. We also went to a covered skate park and filmed a couple tricks there one night. The rest of the time in Paris was spent hanging out with Dave and seeing the city, and it was an awesome trip. I fully intend to make another trip over there within the next couple of years, and Dave and I will skate once again. Dave has the ability to film a lot of tricks in a short amount of time, and even if they are basic tricks he's been doing for years, he's makes them look good and helps you see why skating is so much fun. I'm not sure when the next session with Dave will be, but there will be more. If there's anything I've ever said in my life that will be true, it is this.
A single clip of Nick is worth its weight in gold. In fact, it is solid gold. Nick is the heart and soul of Bolts of Thunder. He was in Provo a couple weekends ago, and I got to skate with him for the first time in two years. The session was full of some harsh tranny skating performed flawlessly by Nick and a lot of laughs. It brought me back to the start up days of Bolts of Thunder when it was no more than a twinkle in my eye, and we shared some good memories with each other. I even filmed him skating so that he has the most footage so far out of anyone for our next video. That's right, next video. Get on it, reader, because we're planning a secret video for the future. AJ, get filming... Nick's one trick in the video is him dropping in on a slide and sticking at the bottom, only to fall into a bush. He sent it to me a couple months back, and I've been hiding it up my sleeves ever since. Because he only had one trick in the video, I found other ways to pay tribute to my friend, including the title of the video. Billy Wayne Michael Duff was a guy that he knew on his mission in the back woods of the deep South. For some reason I've never been able to forget the guys name even though it's the longest name I've ever seen, so I felt it appropriate to put it as the title of the video. I also inserted Nick's helmet picture into the video twice during Steve and Chad's tricks. Nick is super busy doing research on the brain, and he doesn't have a ton of time to skate. So thanks, Nick, for sending us that clip! We, too, shall skate again on some future day.
Matt is my brother and co founder if Bolts of Thinder. He may have even founded more than me. It's a little fuzzy in my mind. Matt filmed the majority of the first three videos and scrutinized over every frame during the editing process. But he now lives in Omaha and couldn't be as involved in the filming or editing of this video. But don't get me wrong, this video carries Matt's mark as much as any of them. Every time I talked to Matt over the past 6 months, he wanted full updates of who filmed what, how it was filmed, how the trick looked, if anyone had asked and/or commented on the next video we were making, and all other items of Bolts of Thunder business. He always referred to the video as "my video", which was funny considering he didn't even get involved in any of the filming or editing until 4 weeks before the premier. But hear me now, reader, and take note on good parenting skills, because this kind of love, attention, and devotion is characteristic of any good father taking care of his baby. If you want your baby to carry on your legacy, you get your hands off the X-Box controller and your eyes off your smart phone screen, and you roll around in the mud! You get yourself out there, and you put your mark on the world. Nuff said. The Bullfrog Yay section is Matt's brain child, and he edited the part. I sent him the footage of Dan and Brandon, and Matt filmed his tricks then put the part together. Hannah, his at the time 8 month-pregnant wife, filmed all of Matt's tricks, and did a very admirable job in doing so. Being heavy with child, she still bent down better than most people I know and got that fish eye moving. Sadly enough, having had no filming experience and not being all that mobile, she still filmed the tricks better than the average trick you see on youtube. Good job, Hannah, and thanks for filming Matt. Matt's ender trick, the bullfrog belly ride, is definitely a game changer, and has opened eyes and hearts globally. It is starting its own, new style of skating that was inspired by Matt chipping his tooth as a 7 year old on Morning Glory, and it will live on as others strap up and follow suit. Every one of Matt's parts has a game changing trick, so you shouldn't have been so shocked when you saw this one.
Brandon isn't physically in the first Bolts of Thunder video, but he is emotionally. Maybe even spiritually, but I won't speculate. Let's stick to what we know. We know that my boy's got moves combined with style and a touch of Dan family genes that give him super powers to push through tranny and fly through the air. Him and Dan went out and filmed all of there tricks during a couple of sessions on Brandon's go pro camera, then he sent me everything. Going through their footage was so much fun, because they sent me all the raw footage of them hanging out between tricks. It made me feel like I was in on the session with them because I got to see what it was like between takes and what not. Brandon is an inspiration to me because he keeps on top of his game while still becoming a lawyer and being a good family man. He hasn't lost his skills, nor his love for the game, which is important for me to see as I gear up to get my Masters this next year. Let Brandon be an example to all of us.
Daniel R Shaw. I could end this paragraph with those words, and you would know exactly what I am talking about. Actually, I will make this paragraph about Dan short, sweet, and to the point because if I get started on talking about Dan and his super powers, I will never stop. Dan is hands down the most interesting person I have ever met. He his indestructible, afraid of nothing, and stunningly handsome all combined into a ball of passion, skills, and shirtlessness. Several different stories just went through my mind of Dan running a marathon without training, stretching, or even eating a decent dinner the day before, or the time that he rode 100 a day on his bike for 2 weeks without training, or the time that he free climbed that 200 foot cliff on Catalina island and almost fell to a watery shark grave but of course didn't because he's Dan Shaw, or all the other times that he performed amazing feets while other people would have died. Dan is as close to being my brother without legally being related to me, and I wish he was around more often to skate and hang out with. But the one day that he was skating in Provo and the couple sessions he had with Brandon were plenty to get him the ending section of the OGs with some crazy launches in pools that nobody else in the video would dare skate in. I was going to say more about his super powers, but I will stop there. It's a trap that I won't get sucked into again right now...
I haven't been writing much because I'm in the middle of driving across the country with my wife, baby, and trailer full of all my possessions. It's been a super busy month, and I will finish my analyses of the video as soon as I can. But until then, watch the video again. We're over 1,000 views on youtube!!!
Brandon isn't physically in the first Bolts of Thunder video, but he is emotionally. Maybe even spiritually, but I won't speculate. Let's stick to what we know. We know that my boy's got moves combined with style and a touch of Dan family genes that give him super powers to push through tranny and fly through the air. Him and Dan went out and filmed all of there tricks during a couple of sessions on Brandon's go pro camera, then he sent me everything. Going through their footage was so much fun, because they sent me all the raw footage of them hanging out between tricks. It made me feel like I was in on the session with them because I got to see what it was like between takes and what not. Brandon is an inspiration to me because he keeps on top of his game while still becoming a lawyer and being a good family man. He hasn't lost his skills, nor his love for the game, which is important for me to see as I gear up to get my Masters this next year. Let Brandon be an example to all of us.
Daniel R Shaw. I could end this paragraph with those words, and you would know exactly what I am talking about. Actually, I will make this paragraph about Dan short, sweet, and to the point because if I get started on talking about Dan and his super powers, I will never stop. Dan is hands down the most interesting person I have ever met. He his indestructible, afraid of nothing, and stunningly handsome all combined into a ball of passion, skills, and shirtlessness. Several different stories just went through my mind of Dan running a marathon without training, stretching, or even eating a decent dinner the day before, or the time that he rode 100 a day on his bike for 2 weeks without training, or the time that he free climbed that 200 foot cliff on Catalina island and almost fell to a watery shark grave but of course didn't because he's Dan Shaw, or all the other times that he performed amazing feets while other people would have died. Dan is as close to being my brother without legally being related to me, and I wish he was around more often to skate and hang out with. But the one day that he was skating in Provo and the couple sessions he had with Brandon were plenty to get him the ending section of the OGs with some crazy launches in pools that nobody else in the video would dare skate in. I was going to say more about his super powers, but I will stop there. It's a trap that I won't get sucked into again right now...
I haven't been writing much because I'm in the middle of driving across the country with my wife, baby, and trailer full of all my possessions. It's been a super busy month, and I will finish my analyses of the video as soon as I can. But until then, watch the video again. We're over 1,000 views on youtube!!!
Yay blog!! Journey well Mr. Hart
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