That first set of pictures up there is a sequence of Matt filming AJ fall on a ledge. You can even see AJ's shoe fly up in the air as he lands on the ground...
I'd have to say that Matt's part is my favorite of the video. I may be a little biased because he's my brother. Actually, I'm probably really biased. But nonetheless, whether or not these feelings have been tainted by my relationship with him, I really like watching his part. Matt's always pulled through in our videos with really entertaining parts. He'll be the first to admit, he's not doing the biggest or most technical tricks in the video, but sure knows how to put on a good show. He has showmanship, and that's what sells in this business. He knows how to entertain a crowd, whether he's riding a skateboard or a bike, or even driving in his station wagon, he knows how to make it fun and put a smile on your face. That's why I like his parts the most, they always remind me that you don't have to be doing the craziest stuff to have fun on your board, but you can just be chilling and have the best time with it.
With that said, Matt really did push himself to get the tricks that are in his part. He ended his filming by rolling his ankle pretty good on that wallride on the barrier, but he still filmed a couple tricks on a swollen ankle after that. The heelflip he on that bank was a pretty epic moment in filming for the video, because he had rolled his ankle a couple days earlier. It's not just the slight twist in the ankle either, but it was the complete 90 degree ankle bend into the ground with all the weight of his body coming down on it. So it was pretty serious. But Matt really wanted to get that heelflip, so we went there a couple days later. Maybe even the very next day, I can't remember... We had gone there last year, and he tried to get it, but he didn't. Then we went there a week earlier and tried again with no success. So this day, on his twisted ankle and a week left of filming, we went there again to get the trick. Matt tried it for a while until his ankle was way more swollen and he couldn't do it any more. I put away the camera and skated around for a little bit. Then as we were about to leave, he asked me to get out the camera and film him one more time. He just wanted to say he at least gave it all he had before we left. So he tried it one more time and didn't even spin a full heelflip. He couldn't end on that kind of note, so he said one more try for real then we were done. It wasn't the kind of "one more try" you half heartedly call out to try and motivate you to stick it, either, but it was the "one more try" a man at the end of his rope tells you, void of emotion, care, regret, or sorrow. He really was going to try it one more time. Then he landed it. It was epic and awesome, I was so proud of him for getting it, let alone for getting it on a hurt ankle.
That wallride line was also another victory for Matt's part. The frontside shuvit and wallride are both tricks that Matt doesn't do all that often. Actually, Matt never does wallrides. So to get both of those tricks in a line took diligence and a little bit of suffering before he pulled it off. But he did get it, and really clean too, so we were both way happy about that. Then we were going to film the wallride from another angle, and that's when Matt hurt his ankle. But he wasn't bummed, he at least got the line.
At the very end of the song, that's Matt that rides up that wall before it transitions into me butt boardsliding down it. That wall is tall, steep, and intimidating, but Matt took it on at full speed. The plan was to wallie up to boardslide, which he actually got into it but stuck or slipped out on the boardslide. It was insane. Seriously insane. To do that trick, Matt had to drill new holes in one of my old, cracked boards so that he could make the trucks wider apart so the board would fit down the ledge. Then we had to dig out the dirt on the other side so that the wheels would slide down the ledge. So Matt didn't end up getting the trick, but it was still a victory that he even attempted it and got into a boardslide on that thing.
So Matt's song was his idea. It's a Master P song, and the music video for the song is pretty much where we got the inspiration for the rest of the part. Look it up on youtube, and you'll see exactly what I mean: mid nineties rap video with sideways slow motion shots of Master P and company driving down the street in their bronco and Lexus. Also, whoever edited the video figured out that computers can produce some cool effects on the film, so there's a lot of ripples and spinning sideways shots of people. That's where the inspiration came from to make the part that way.
Also, Matt's professional history of being an ice cream man was a perfect fit for Matt and this song. If you don't know what I'm talking about when I say Matt was an ice cream man, check out these old posts where I tell the story in great detail. It's no joke, Matt was an ice cream man for two days. The story was so good I had to write it in three long posts:
http://boltsofthunder.blogspot.com/2011/03/here-comes-matt-ice-cream-man.html
http://boltsofthunder.blogspot.com/2011/03/adventures-in-ice-cream-delivering.html
http://boltsofthunder.blogspot.com/2011/03/he-works-hard-for-his-money.html
So Matt's packing up and skipping town in about a week. I'm sending him on a knight's quest. He's off to grad school in Omaha, so he won't be around to encourage you to go bigger and better than you'd ever anticipated. Sorry... But don't ride Matt off, he's just getting started. There's already talk of another video next year, and Matt's going to be hard at work filming for it in Omaha, so look forward to some more classic Matt in the years to come. As Bolts of Thunder's cofounder and comanager, I think we all owe Matt a big round of applause and bro-slap on the back. We'll definitely miss him here, but we'll carry on best we can... Awesome job on your part, Matt, and good luck in Omaha!!!!
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