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Burnquist in Brazil Part II

Editor's Note: Brazilian skateboarding legend Bob Burnquist is in Rio de Janeiro for the Latin American X Games Qualifier. It took us three days but we finally caught up with the vert magician at the site of the X Games qualifying event in Rio. Bob had been busy attending a Hurley video premiere in Sao Paolo and hosting a charity skate event for under privileged kids of Rio. When he finally sat still we cornered him and asked him the questions below.

It's all about the kids.

When you walk around this event you get mobbed like a rock star. Do you find that intimidating or threatening?

Sometimes it is. They’re desperate and stoked. I know they’re not going to hurt me. They might just want to grab my hat and run, you know, but that’s cool. I’ve been there I know exactly how that feels. It’s definitely a different time, now you’ve got a million icons out there in the international scene you know? Before it was like I remember Tony came to Brazil here in ‘88 I believe and it was crazy. I wanted to go see him and my Dad didn’t want to take me. I didn’t go but I remember it was just nuts with people everywhere but now they have a Brazilian that’s doing good, so that’s their mirror right there like, “Oh this guy made it happen he’s flesh and bone he’s from brazil he’s born here oh my god”, you know? So it’s like it’s pretty neat. And if you let it really get to you it can drive you nuts. But it’s like you’ve got to take it like it’s a mission that I have and I have to take care of it. These kids need my guidance.

Bob checking out his spread in today's sports section.

You’re a hero/ambassador to Brazilians skateboarding and skateboarders around the world. Can you describe the feeling of being back in Brazil in that role but not as a competitor?

It’s pretty neat - just the fact that I’m not competing. You know that I can be here and they can still be really stoked? It’s not about winning, or not and them being disappointed. It doesn’t matter. This is a big event for Brazil. And this okay, we look back into the history of skateboarding and you see all the people that made it happen and all the influences and a lot of them here. A lot of the old school guys are here, and they’re here skating and they’re really proud of us the Brazilian skateboarders and myself and it’s just really neat to come back and have that. And see how far skateboarding has come and you know it’s just like these kids are really stoked. They’re really excited about it and it really is the best feeling. It’s a feeling of accomplishment. It’s like landing a gnarly trick you know. But in a longer sense it’s like Tony trying a 900 for years, you know we’re trying to get skateboarding out there for years in Brazil and all they show is soccer on TV. You know all these soccer players, are just making millions and they come from a really poor background? And all of sudden they’re making millions and they’re heads just like flip and they’re freaking and they’re buying million dollar cars or whatever and they’re driving around and they’ve got this materialistic view of the world and they have no base structure. And it just sets a crazy standard for the kids. And skateboarding doesn’t have that. Skateboarding is an individual sport each character has its own style; has its own way of doing things. You can be however you want to be, do whatever you want to do. And that speaks a lot stronger than a team sport. So I guess that’s where skateboarding is really conquering these young minds and it’s because of how free it is.

Now fly little bird!

Is that feeling you get skateboarding, being proud of skateboarding, people being proud of you, that sense of community different in brazil? Or is it different in Brazil vs. the U.S. vs. maybe Australia vs. Europe vs. anywhere else you go to skateboard?

Well in what relates to my own person it’s very different in Brazil. They’re just excited. I mean Tony can be here, Danny Way, Colin, I mean everyone can be here - they (Brazilians) are definitely going to be really stoked on it but they’re just going to mob me but it’s because of that Brazilian thing. You know they’re stoked on it they’re really excited about it so everywhere else in the world it changes. In the U.S. it’s definitely different it’s not so crazy people are, I don’t know if “civilized” is the right word, but just more used to seeing the guys. It’s like they’ve got Michael Jordan in the corner. They’ve got all the top players and all the international guys. And Tony’s always cruising around always doing a demo here or there so they’re used to it but here it’s like a dream come true almost every time you come by you know? And you say, “Hi”, to them and it’s like they really take that a lot further . . . they’ll never forget that day. I guess that’s another reason why you just have to be very very patient with these kids you know? Because I can totally put myself in their position. And just maybe they can come up to me and I can be having a bad day or a bad time and I can treat them kind of weird or shove them off or kind of ignore them and he’ll take that for the rest of his life. You know he’ll go like man, “Bob sucks”. But it’s tough on us because we just have to be this perfect human being the whole time but there is no such thing. We’re humans.

The pressure of celebrity...

Yeah, yeah but I mean the pressure is really in everyone’s mind you know like I can let the pressure destroy me or I can let it make me make me even stronger and just be who I am.

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