Kurt Wastell

“I don’t consider myself a jock.”
Professional snowboarding sometimes reminds me of the movie Willie Wonka and The Chocolate Factory in the sense that choosing which company to ride for can be like choosing which Wonka Bar to purchase. Only a few contain the golden ticket, and for the rest... well, they’ll be gone before you can get the damn thing unwrapped. Nobody knows more about purchasing bunk Wonka Bars than my good friend, Kurt Wastell. With sayings like, “Thanks for playing,” and “Not an Instant Winner” printed on the inside of all of Kurt’s wrappers, he is still determined to tour the chocolate factory even if that means ripping open every last freakin’ Wonka Bar on this planet. -Willie McMillon

Part 1
A Quick Hike With Kurt Wastell
By Willie McMillon
Location: Mt. Hood, Oregon
Why do you get so pissed when you skate/snowboard?
It’s due to the fact that I’m super hard on myself. I have very high expectations.
So when you’re punching yourself in the face, that’s just adding to your progression?
No, you bastard. I haven’t done that in a while, I’ve mellowed out a lot. But you could say it used to get a little thick.
What’s wrong with your shoulder?
It just pops out once in a while. It takes like 10 minutes, then it goes back in. My sister had a word for it. She’s super smart.
Dislocated?
No, you bastard! When you dislocate, you can’t move it. I can move it.
So you’ve known (Justin) Hostynek a while?
Yeah, I met him up here a long time ago. We’ve been filming for a while now. So, yeah we know each other pretty well.
Is that why you guys always bleach your hair together? You guys aren’t gaying off or anything are you?
Whatever dude, it’s not like that. Look around; everyone’s got white hair up here. It’s nothing out of the ordinary.
What can you recall from your 21st birthday?
Well, I woke up wimpering and went to look in the mirror to find some serious shit tagged up on my face. My hair was sort of long and I had just bleached it. You and Dave Tuck had striped my hair with a black marker and wrote mean shit on my face. I looked like Pat Benetar’s twin sister.
So you knew I was involved the whole time?
Yeah, I forget who told me you did it.
Jay Nelson?
Yep, he narc’ed you guys off.
What would you like to say to one of those people who claim snowboarding’s gay and skating is so much harder?
Skating obviously takes a lifetime to master. You can learn to turn a snowboard in a short time. Now, what degree or level you do either is a whole different subject. People who talk shit obviously haven’t experienced what snowboarding can offer. But to me, skating is a relief from snowboarding, which acts as a job.
How many frontside indys have you done today?
There’s no such thing.
What about backside slobs?
No such thing.
How about stindys?
Oh, you mean stale/tindys? Four.

Part 2
A Questionaire by Fax
By Willie McMillon
Location: Jackson Hole, WY
Date of birth: 11-22-75.
Place of birth: Redding, California.
Number of siblings: 4 plus a step brother and sister.
Current sponsors: World Industries, Billabong, Vans, Smith, Bluebird Wax.
Favorite Reef model: Every damn one of them.
Most money won in a contest: 10,000 big ones.
Favorite beer: Corona.
Best team manager: (Besides Dave Tuck) All my current team managers.
First pro model: 145 Spiderman from Solid Manufacturing.
Music: Anything but that damn pop shit such as the Crap Stink Boys or whatever they’re called.
Name some pro snowboarders who are good skaters: Marc Frank, Jay Nelson, Todd Richards, Todd Franzen, Matt Kass, Jeremy Jones, and way too many more.
Do you think these two activities go hand in hand?
I think they definitely do. All the grabs come straight from skateboarding and a good portion of the snowboarders out there come from skateboard backgrounds which is a good thing.
Do you think it looks funny when snowboarders build 4 foot kickers to get onto handrails?
I don’t think it looks funny at all, it just shows how creative people can get.
Top 3 best skateboarding movies of all time?
Bones Brigade, Blind video days, Rodney vs. Deawon II.
Who has influenced your skateboarding?
My older brothers.
Favorite terrain to skate?
Every kind.
Last trick learned on a skateboard?
Switch frontside shove it.
Favorite place to ride? (besides Jackson Hole)
Mt. Baker.
What would you be doing if you weren’t snowboarding?
I would be in school, in search of...something to do with my future.
Favorite snowboarding terrain?
Natural jump formations.
Do you ever get out in the backcountry?
For the last two years I’ve been going to Alaska in the spring and New Zealand in the summer, snowmobiling during the winter, so I guess I get my fair share of the backcountry.
Name 3 current pros who worked at Solid: Kendall Whelpton, Mikey Leblanc and Willie McMillon.
When did you realize that highbacks were a necessity?
The only time I rode with no highbacks was at Mt. High with an old Craig Kelly that I had put a huge stance on to check it out.
Was that before or after you stopped cutting your boards down?
I hadn’t even cut a board down yet, you bastard!

Part 3:
A Chat by Phone
By Sonny Mayugba
Location: Chicago Airport
You were born in Redding; did you grow up there?
No, I grew up in Utah from 2 till 10.
You were pro for Solid, which incidentally was one of my favorite companies back in the day, and Neil Rankin (founder of Solid) was on the second cover of Heckler.
Are you serious?
Doing a boardslide on a handrail in 1993.
Nice dude, oh damn I need a copy of that. If you can get me one, I want to frame that shit. Neil is such a good friend of mine. He designed my board.
Do you miss being on Solid?
Do I? Oh yeah. The whole team, everyone at the company, except for a few people. (laughter) We all worked there together and I lived with Neil, it was all tight and close. Just way different than every other company that I’ve ridden for.
How do you think snowboarding as a whole is different now as opposed to that era?
The standards were way lower obviously. Things were progressing pretty quickly back then too, but nothing like it is now. Back then you could do something over a pretty small jump and it was considered pretty sweet. Now if your not doing fucking 60 plus it’s not that sick anymore. It’s way more serious than it used to be I think. On the competing level and just what you have to do just to get into a video. There’s actual standards and if you don’t meet the standards you’re coming up way short, you don’t really have a place anymore. That’s my feelings on it. Companies don’t really give a fuck about the riders. All they care about is that the riders are pushing to the next level. They’re like, “You get the job done or your fuckin’ canned.” That’s what it seems like to me anyway. I’m fortunate to have good companies finally.
So why do you live in Southern California now?
Oh, you had to ask. Well I lived in Colorado for 3 years. That was when I was in a pretty down period in my life, not making any money and just struggling and shit and I just freaked out and went back home. Things slowly built back up and now they’re good. I had awesome friends in Colorado, my family, a couple of brothers and all that stuff, but given the situation I freaked out and went back home. I have been happy down there and it’s been really convenient traveling. It’s actually been a lot easier than living in Colorado or a place like that. LAX is so close and LAX goes anywhere you name it. Close to the beach, close to everything ya know, skating, snowboarding, surfing is there. You don’t have to depend on one thing. It’s a good way to keep your mind off of, ya know you can do one thing one day, another thing, another thing. I like living in the mountains, but I get cabin fever.
You seem pretty comfortable at World Industries as a board sponsor. What would it take to make you jump ship from World to another board company?
Umm... If I had gotten the same...I don’t want to say this kind of shit really, but I was dealing with Burton at the same time. It’s got to have a big name and I think World is pretty steady. Even though they have a small snow program, they have a lot of other stuff backing it, they’ve got some stability. I’m pretty happy where I’m at. It’s hard to say because I haven’t really had too many things to compare it to. Turning Burton down was hard as hell dude, trust me.
I bet.
I was freaking out about that, so stressed about that.
So how about as far as riders in snowboarding today. Who gets Kurt Wastell’s respect?
Dude, so difficult, there are so many people. I can say directly the people I’m involved with like Jay Nelson and Marc Frank, those guys are on my top, top, top. Then there’s people like Willie McMillon who is bad ass and has never really gotten any recognition at all where he should have, people like that.
Where do you think that comes from? We all know so many darkhorses who rip in snow and skate who don’t get coverage or fame, why does that happen?
There can be a number of reasons. If they don’t make a hard enough effort at it and they just don’t fall into something major then they’re just going to be set aside the whole time. Some filmers, some photographers just have their clique and that’s all they do and other people regardless of how good they are they are shut out. You know what I’m saying? I’ve always wanted to shoot with Mack Dawg, but I’ve always felt that he didn’t want to film with me. Now this year it’s different. I think I’m gonna be filming with him.
What’s your girl situation? Do you have a girlfriend?
No I don’t. I did, but I don’t. I actually had a really long conversation with her last night. Trying to ease a little bit of the bitterness between the two of us. No I don’t, put a big “single” in there.

Part 4:
Another Chat by Phone
By Sonny Mayugba
Location: Michigan
If global warming turned this planet into a 79 degree tropical ball of humidity and snow didn’t exist what would be next for Kurt Wastell?
Surfing. Pure Happiness.
Is snowboarding something you see yourself doing for the rest of your life?
I hope so. Push it on other people, kids whatever. I hope I can. If the body allows. It will though because all of my recent trauma is ok. I can’t believe that everything is good to go on my back. It’s pretty crazy that I punished myself for the last 9 years and get x-rayed and I’m totally fine, for the most part.
Alright Kurt tell me your favorite drunk tale.
Hostynek head butting me twice in one night. That’s a good drunk story. He got wasted and decided I wanted to head butt.
Is Justin a jock?
No, he’s not a jock, he’s just tough and he’ll fight anyone. Once the alcohol gets in the system then it’s on. I was actually trying to be mellow ‘cause I was hurt and everything. I was in and out of the hospital. One time he actually cut my forehead in New Zealand.
Ouch.
Many stories with him.
You guys have been friends a long time, huh?
Yeah. The first time we met and filmed and took photos together is when I was 18. That was back in the Solid days and ever since then slowly evolved into what it is now. He is one of my best friends.
Tell me something about Justin that no one knows.
The other side. The other Justin that is not Justin anymore once the booze levels are up. Justin has disappeared and it’s the other half, the problem half. People might be a little thrown off by it, watch out for it.
Do you consider yourself a jock?
(laughing) No, not even. When I think of jock, I think of football or baseball. I was just never into it. On Thursdays all the dudes wore their jerseys to school that whole deal, I was never into that. We were always looked upon as dirty little skater kids, that’s how I liked it.
What is one thing that no one knows about Kurt Wastell?
I have such a big mouth, I tell all my friends my deepest secrets.