Gerry Lopez was a famous surfer back then and his board had a lightning bolt in the in the middle, so my Dad made me a surf/skateboard with a lightning bolt on it.

Through reading the scriptures I realized there was a purpose for my life, that I was created for a reason, that I was significant, that it was my choices that got me to where I was at and that it would be my choices that would get me to where I wanted to be as well.

Two weeks after the arrested I was on the phone with my wife and we said a prayer and I was crying and just so happy, I can't even explain it. It was euphoric. People said I went from freedom my whole life to prison, but in reality, I went from imprisonment and bondage of sin and death my whole life, to finding freedom in a prison cell.

I want to be an example, the person who when they look at, they say, "That guy is a Christian, there's no doubt about it." I want to be blameless. I want to be an encouragement. I want to be a role model for the believer.

God always puts somebody in your life at the right moment.

It was a revolving door that kept going in circles. I got to the point where I thought, "Man, none of this is doing it." but I'd keep repeating the same actions. I'd go win another contest, open another company, invent a new maneuver.

Contests were so pertinent that you had to think that way but today, it's not like that. You have your contest skaters, you have your video skaters, you have your skaters who don't like either of them, but they all are sponsored and get paid.