Sam Milianta's interview

I've known Sam for a good 11 years plus. He's a skate dictionary, he's super chill, funny, and in general a really nice guy to hang out with. He's been killing it for his part in "Bolts of Thunder Gone Wild", and we thought it was high time he gets a few words on this blog. Also, I'm extremely happy to announce that Dan Shaw is an official follower of the blog! So is his brother Greg. Welcome to the team guys. So here it is, the Sam Milianta interview.

(MrThunderBolt) How long have you been skating?

(Sam) I started skating in the winter of 1993.  So I guess it's been pretty close to 18 years now.  0

What got you into skating?

Before I was skating, I was in a band.  The band I was in used to play with a hardcore punk band that all skated.  My band broke up and I stayed friends with the guys in the other band.  They got me into skating.  I went to the bike store and bought a blank. The first day I skated, one of the guys I knew brought me over a pair of baggy jeans and the first Real video to help educate me and help me look the part.

How do you study, retain, and rehearse so much skating information? what counsel would you give to up and coming skaters that want to follow in your footsteps?

I pretty much look at Slap's website every day.  I used to read the magazine but sadly it is no more.  The website isn't the best source of news anymore either.  Also, I love videos.  I see pretty much every video, including local videos from places I've never been.  I don't know, I've always been a person who gets really into things I'm interested in.  I knew everything about Fender Stratocasters and Jimi Hendrix when I was in a band.  I read photography how-to books constantly even if I don't need to.  Someone should make a history of skateboarding text book.  Maybe I should write that.

So we've created this scenario that you get trapped on an island with one and only one member of Bolts of Thunder. There is a small band of cannibals on the island as well. Who would you chose to be on the island with and why? How do you see things going down, what would be your final show down with the cannibals?

Even though I don't know him that well, I would say Dan Shaw.  The dude just rode a bike over a thousand miles and slept in the woods.  He's gnarly.  I bet he could fashion a blow gun out of  tree and fill it with some kind of narcotic to appease the cannibals.  Pretty soon, the island would be rich from narcotics trading, kind of China's opium trade in the 1800's.  We would be kingpins/drug lords all because of Dan's ingenuity. 

What's the first curb you ever slappied?

That's a hard one.   I don't know if it counts as a slappy grind but we had this bike rack that we waxed up at SUU in Cedar City back in the day.  It was next to a tiny curb and you could roll off the curb onto it and grind the whole bottom of the rack.  There was a security guard on campus who used to skate and would wax it for us during the night shift.  He would roll up some nights in his security golf cart thing and get out his Hosoi board and slappy the rack with us.  I guess it's not really a curb but it was a good introduction to slappies.

Have you crapped your pants within the last 5 years? If not, when's the last time you did?

I have peed my pants in the last five years but don't remember the last time I crapped my pants. 

How do you explain to your students and their parents that you're a skate addict?

I usually don't.  There was one parent who was a big time snowboarder and we spent a whole parent teacher conference talking about mini ramps.  Also, I had one mom who had read about me being a cancer survivor in Slap.  That was weird.

How's it been filming for your part in "Bolts of Thunder Gone Wild"? This is your first part in a video, right?

First part!  I've never really filmed anything because I'm not gnarly.  I'm stoked to be part of something rad and it's crazy to film all these little cruiser tricks I've been doing for years. 

Who's part are you most excited for in the video?

That's a hard one.  I'm a big fan of unique spots so I'm really looking forward to all the Paris stuff.  But truthfully, I would really like to see a Tyson Cantrell part.  If Garrett comes through with that footage, that's the most anticipated part for me.  Also, I could watch Weston do a frontside lipslide over and over. 

So what went down with that guy in Salt Lake, the guy that tried to steal your flash?

The guy came to kick us and just started off being a jerk. He told Dave that if he rented an office in the building he could skate the rail.  He was just some guy who worked in the building, not even the owner or landlord.  He kept raving at Dave about his "property".  We were trying to be nice and just leave and he grabbed my flash, and said I'm going to take this so you'll leave.  It really didn't make any sense.  We were leaving anyway and how can you steal someone elses "property" since property was what he was so concerned about.  He was blabbing nonsense and I started arguing with him.  I told him he couldn't take my flash because that's stealing my property.  He told me he was going to call the cops because he thought that would scare me and I told him to go inside and call the cops, I wanted to talk to them as well.  I guess that surprised him because he gave me back my flash and went inside and didn't say another word. 

Any last words for our Bolts of Thunder blog readers?

1000 followers.  By tomorrow.  Recruit everyone you know.  Use Facebook or Twitter or whatever, I don't care.  1000 followers by tomorrow.  That is your assignment readers.