When did you start skating?
At the end of 1995.
What kind of terrain were you skating at first?
I just skated at this plaza with stairs, ledges and manual pads--that's basically it.
Did you skate any skateparks or ramps?
They were kind of far from my house. We had to take a bus an hour-and-a-half away, so we just stayed where we lived.
So, mostly street skating?
Yeah.
Who were you skating with back then?
Just friends from Brazil.
No one that we know?
No.
Who influenced you back then?
I didn't know much about how skateboarding was. I thought it was more just like a toy. So, who probably motivated me was just my friends. The first time I saw a video, Plan B, was probably after almost two years of skating.
Can you remember the first American pros you looked up to?
Probably Eric Koston.
Who were your first sponsors?
I rode for this board company from Brazil called Shine.
When did you move to the U.S.?
2000.
Did you move up for good?
You mean stay here forever? I'll go back to Brazil, but not that soon. I want to try to live there and just come up to all the contests here in the U.S., but not live here. I'll just stay a while and do whatever I have to do here, then go back to Brazil.
Back and forth?
Yeah. I have a place here, but I go home at least every three months.
Do you like skating in contests?
Not really, because I'm not doing what I like to do. I just have to land my tricks. Sometimes it's something I don't even want to do, like, "I'm tired of it and I don't want to try this trick again." It seems too much like a job, like you're there to work. I don't see how it would be fun for me.
Because you have to keep going and going?
Not that I have to keep going, but I'm not doing what I like to do. I'm doing something forced to "make it happen."
How could contests be improved?
(Laughs) I don't know what they could change about them. I like the contests--I think you call them jam sessions--where you just skate and the judge watches you all day long. That's how I think contests should be.
Do contests or real street sessions prove a skater more?
Real sessions, because in a contest, you don't even have the time to skate. You practice 15 minutes and there's a hundred people skating with you. Then when you take your run, it's only one minute. If you're not good in that one minute right there, it's just going to mess you up.
What is good about being a pro skateboarder now?
You get all of your stuff for free, you travel for free, just skating and doing what you like to do.
Is anything bad about it?
Yeah (laughs)--just the way all the business in skateboarding makes you feel that you're not skating like you used to when you were a kid before. Like, you used to have fun, but now it's just a job. Today, I'm not even going to skate, because I'm going on the éS Germany Tour Monday and I don't want to get hurt before I go. I feel like skating, but I'm afraid I'll get hurt before I get there.
Is there too much staircase / ledge coverage in videos and magazines?
There are a lot of videos and magazines now. Some videos show one kind of style and some other videos show another kind of style. I don't know.
Should there be more variety?
They should just show skateboarding. I don't even care what it is, whatever looks good.
What do you think of skate videos these days?
I just think a lot of people are going crazy. Someone's going to die pretty soon (laughs). Kids see people like--I don't even want to say names--go down stairs, but the pros know what they're doing. Kids that start skating today think that's what it's all about. Before kids learn, they'll kill themselves.
Do you like shooting video parts?
Yeah, it's pretty fun. I like it better than doing contests and magazines. That's what I like the most--filming.
Do you skate small stuff like flatground, curbs and parking bumps?
Yeah, that's what I skate every day if I'm not filming, just to feel my board right.
Do you ever skate vert ramps?
No. I try to, but I don't think that's for me.
Any pools?
I've never skated one before. I skated once at Bob Burnquist's house, but it was too hard for me (laughs).
What do you think of all the public concrete skateparks that are opening?
I think it's rad. I've been to some of them. Some of the parks are kind of crazy, but I think it's good because it means someone is doing something for skateboarding.
How could they improve the designs of skateparks?
The only way you could do it is get together with the right people. The people that are doing it right now are not real skateboarders, so they don't know.
So they should get pros to help?
Yeah.
Should skateparks copy real street spots like Love Park and EMB?
I think they should make something like that, but they still gotta make the other ones with vert, because skateboarding's not all about just street.
What shoes were you riding before éS?
Brazilian shoes called Alva, I don't know what else.
How did you get on éS?
I went to a European contest in 2000. Bob Burnquist started talking to Don Brown and Don was like, "Yeah, sure." Then I came out here. That was when it started.
What do you like about éS?
I love the shoes, I love the people here, but it's just kind of scary--it's hard to explain. For me, all of the people that are on éS are like legends, you know? So, if I'm with them, I don't feel comfortable, I feel like, "Whoa!"
I know what you mean. Who do you skate with a lot now?
My friends from Brazil most of the time.
Who are some of your all-time favorite skaters?
Lavar McBride, Chany Jeanguenin, Eric Koston.
What have been some highlights of your skateboarding career so far?
Back in Brazil when I used to skate just like playing with a toy.
What do you like to do when you're not skating?
Just to be with my friends from Brazil, no matter what we're doing, cuz I don't get to see them too much. Out here in the U.S. I just skate.
Do you have any future goals?
I want to keep skating as much as I can. I know it's not gonna matter in my whole life, but I'm going to try to make it happen right now while I have the chance.