So we were at the Nike Pop up park at 50 Kent in Brooklyn the day before we did the Damn Am NYC last month, and a youngish kid, (I’ll call him W) approached me saying he’d emailed Eric and me that morning about entering Damn Am. I let him know I hadn’t checked my email but that we’d been doing registration for the last two months and that it was probably a little late to try to register now. I said he’d probably have to wait until next year (“just don’t wait up until the day before the contest haha”). I promised I’d get back to him about his email later on. Let the record show that W was maybe the nicest kid of all time, and that he wasn’t being pushy, he really just wanted to know what he had to do to skate the Damn Am next year. The email shown was in the old inbox when I was back on my computer that night. First of all, let me say for the record W, that this is a pretty amazing email. Kind of out-there, but incredibly thorough. So thanks for sending it. Below are my answers to your questions. I’ve used them for this week’s Zaturdays assuming that there are hundreds, maybe thousands (but possibly just tens or ones) of people that have the same questions, and if that is the case then perhaps skaters throughout the world can benefit from our little exchange.
But hold up for one second W. Before I get to the actual questions, I thought I should respond to the introduction in your email. I like your energy, and your confidence, but I think we might want to tone it down a notch. The last person I heard make claims about their skating that would compare to what you said about “world domination” was Lil’ Wayne, and you see how far his skate career has come. So maybe next time just say something like, “I’d like to skate your contests and possibly turn pro someday.” On second thought, maybe just “I’d like to skate your contest because it looks like it could be fun.” Okay, now for your questions:

This is a good question W, to which there is no easy answer. Trying to determine if someone is at a level where they’ll be able to genuinely compete in a Damn Am is not an exact science. I’ll say this though, we can usually tell in the first 10 seconds of a video whether we’re going to give it a thumbs up or a thumbs down. A lot of times it’s less about what you do than how you do it. If you land a sketchy tre flip down an 10 stair with your feet in the middle of your board and an astonished look on your face, we’re probably right to assume you’re not going to make it in your run. However, if you land a high speed buttery tre flip on flatground followed by some rad and or interesting ledge tricks or whatever, you’ll probably be on the invite list. So the bottom line is this: Does it look like you rip? Or not.

Send all registration questions and requests to eric@skateparkoftampa.com. It’s wise to do this a month or two in advance of any contest. Eric gets like 100 of these emails a day so give him a minute to get back to you. Here it should be noted that Eric murders it on the board, he could win Damn Ams if he wanted to, but he chooses to work at them instead.
Dude, W, we’re blushing. I’ve heard the Damn Am called a lot of things, but this might be the first time anyone has called it prestigious. But seriously, let’s not think of it as a pressure situation. Think of it as a super fun time riding a skateboard, which it is, with the added incentive of getting the chance to show off a little bit for your friends. Pressure usually makes it harder to skate, having fun makes it easier.

People like Mike V, Stevie Williams, and Jamie Thomas are famous for having started their own companies, and in essence, sponsoring themselves. But I don’t think this is the right approach for you W. We guarantee a spot in our contest for any skater that has the backing of a legit skate company. Legit in this case means brands like Santa Cruz, Toy Machine, Element, C1RCA, Nike, Emerica, Bones, Volcom, AYC, etc. It can also mean reputable skateshops, like Labor, or Orchard. It does not mean sponsors that nobody has heard of and sound like I could have just made them up, like Mr. Slipperies Skate Wax, or Man ‘o War Board Co., or Surfgrinders Flat Bars, etc. But again, if we look at your footage and you kill it, we’re going to let you skate whether you’re sponsored, unsponsored, or somewhere in between.

Simple. Email Eric a month (or two even) before New York next year. Tell him you want to enter. He’ll ask if you have any sponsors, if you don’t, he’ll ask for a link to your footage. If you send him footage that he thinks gets the job done he’ll say, “Congrats dude you’re in!” If not he’ll tell you no in the nicest way he can think of. To prepare for the contest you’re just going to want to skate a lot, but you’ll want to do that anyway I hope.

Another great question. I’d say that since it’s a skate contest, skating really well is the only key element for success. But what does that mean? Well, go online and watch some footage of the best Ams, preferably ones who’ve skated Damn Ams and done well, like Dashawn Jordan, Alex Midler, Micky Papa, Dylan Williams, Corey Glick, Yoshi Tanenbaum, etc., and notice how they do their tricks. In fact, don’t just notice how they do their tricks; notice how they actually ride their boards. First they make skating look really really cool. It also tends to look pretty easy, and fun. Due to those factors, above all their skating is inspiring. Try to get to a point where your skating is like theirs and you can’t miss.
One minute. Two at the most but you’ll be pushing it.


W, I’m glad we got the chance to meet and I hope my answers are helpful. Thanks so much for your interest in skating the Damn Am and I’m looking forward to being blown away by your run next year in NYC.

Sincerely, Paul Zitzer