Thursday, May 30

Jason Ellis Speaks

EXPN.com

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Editor's Note: We ran into the ESPN commentating, ape-hanging, and all around nice guy Jason Ellis at the EXPN invitational in Gwinnett County, Georgia last weekend. "Ellis-mate" gave us his insight on his brief modeling stint for Gear Magazine, the status of skateboarding becoming mainstream, and his influences in skateboarding as a kid. Check it out.

EXPN: So what's up with that Gear Magazine modeling gig? I heard you had a situation with the stylist.

Ellis: Yeah, it was my agent's idea and you know he makes me money so when he tells me to go and do things I generally go and do them. More than once I've done things where I think this sucks, this is stupid, get me out of here but I do it and it turns out good. So this was one of the ones where I was like are you kidding, get me out of here. I still don't really think it turned out good but whatever.

EXPN: What were some of the things they wanted you to wear?

Ellis: They had this Versace fluffy vest and it was green with some crazy green skin tight pants where you could see my d*ck. The dude, the make-up artist or whatever, he had like three fingers on one hand. Maybe not even three I think like maybe he had two and a half or something. He's all "we'll put a tissue down the front of your pants so you can't see your d*ck." Then he folds the tissue and starts putting it down the front of my pants. I'm like, let me do it and he's like, no you won't be able to do it right. I was like dude you've got to be kidding me and I was almost crying and then he kind of almost touched it. I don't even know if I should be saying that but it was emotional. It took me a couple of days to recover from that. That was tough, really tough. That was my modeling career, the beginning and the end.

EXPN: That was the first modeling you'd ever done? Nothing even for DC?

Ellis: Yeah. Not that I know of, not yet.

EXPN: So what's up with Atlanta, what do you think of Gwinnett County?

Ellis: I've been here a couple of times actually. Yeah, it's uh... see they (ESPN) always put us in the crappy spot of wherever we are. Atlanta rules though.

(interruption) Ellis looking over my shoulder at some hottie trying to get his attention.

Ellis: Me? Yeah, OK alright. Whoa, some girl wants to see me. I'm excited, no I can't be excited about that. Anyway. I think Atlanta rules. Like downtown Atlanta and all that sort of stuff. I just think that whenever you come to a contest and they put it out in the middle of no-where and you're in the Marriott in the middle of no-where and you're eating Popeye's for dinner, how exciting can it be. Know what I mean?

EXPN: So give me your thoughts on this skatepark in general and it being at a mall in the middle of Gwinnett County, Georgia suburbia.

Ellis: I think any skatepark in a mall is an excellent thing, just because it just makes more skateboarders. It just breeds them. There should be one in every mall so there's just millions of skateboarders. I think every kid should have a go on a skateboard man, their bumming if they don't.

EXPN: Your thoughts on skateboarding becoming mainstream.

Ellis: Well I think that there is a certain part of skateboarding that will never be mainstream. The thing that most people don't understand, unless you're a hard core skateboarder is there are so many different, I don't know how to put it, different ways to be a skateboarder. You know what I mean? There's like five different categories of a pro skateboarder. There's certain dudes that make a living that don't even know other guys that make a living in this sport.

We don't all hang out. There are street guys, there are hard core guys and there're pool guys. It's just a new aspect I think. If you want to be a competitive skateboarder and you want to make a lot of money, well then now that's possible. If you don't and you want to keep it real, or what you call keeping it real, then you can go do that too. You know what I mean? It's whatever you make it. I just think it's better for everybody you know, there's just more to pick from now.

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