David Gonzalez

Do you know who SOTY (Skater of the Year) became in 2012? He's from Medellin, Colombia, and he quit school to skate. He got signed to Flip Skateboards and moved to California right away at 13 years of age. In 2012 he released a video part called "Possessed to Skate" yes David Gonzalez. He influenced me to commit more to my tricks and have a positive attitude towards everything that I approach or that approaches me. His videos gave me more positive energy and more heart for my skating. David Gonzalez came from poverty and adversity, but he always had a smile on his face when he got on his board. He witnessed a lot of violence growing up Colombia. And I could relate to his situation that's why he is such a hero to me.

In the article, "Gonzalez wins Thrasher's 2012 SOTY" describes how this small kid from Medellin, Colombia had some insane skating skills and no one had known about him. Then later he became signed with Flip Skateboards. "Gonzalez, 22, grew up in Bello, a city bordering Medellin. By the age of 13 Gonzalez was already showing glimpses of the skate legend he would become. The promising young talent soon came to the attention of skateboard company Flip Skateboards, who signed him to a sponsorship contract" (Buckley). David Gonzalez quit school before he was sponsored or anything and just skated, he then got a sponsor contract which led him to California which I think is very awesome and insane. In the "Weekend Buzz Ep.31" David Gonzalez explains his school background and how he quit school to skateboard. He had support from his mother to do what's best for him. "The day I told my mom I don't want to go to school when I was 12, she's like ok don't go to school" (Gonzalez). He took a chance at leaving school to head over to the USA and trying to make something out of his skating skills. In the "Weekend Buzz Ep.31" they talked about how David Gonzalez was born by luck because of his insane story about his mother's pregnancy incident. "My mom when she was pregnant she had like you know two babies me and my sister but somehow she like died and I survived... my sister died when my mom was 3 weeks pregnant" (Gonzalez). He was blessed to be alive because his sister had died before being born so he was meant to be a skater and his mother didn't even know she had twins so he got lucky that they found him inside her. It really impressed me that he got on Flip because it's a hard company to get on you would have to be very talented at skating to get on. David Gonzalez grew up in a rough country and area but that never stopped him from following his dream to become a sponsored skater. Through his commitment, and dedication he accomplished a lot more than anyone else could have ever thought or done. He went beyond his dreams.

The Author explains how David Gonzalez brought out a Video Part that blew people's minds with his last "Banger" which brought him much popularity and which it preceded him to becoming the SOTY. "Gonzalez put on a serious show this year to woo Thrasher editor Jake Phelps' vote with a barrage of gnarly video parts -- including Possessed to Skate -- and tons of photos that ran in the magazine throughout the year. Huge rails, horrible slams and super-fast skating made Gonzalez edge out other notables such as Justin Figueroa, Guy Mariano, Cory Kennedy, Marc Johnson, Austin Gillette and Nyjah Huston." ("Gonzalez Wins.") David Gonzalez became skater of the year because of his insane tricks and grinds he put into his video part "Possessed to skate" he did some intense tricks that I never thought anyone would actually ever try doing but he proved me wrong and gave his supporters a huge present putting out his amazing video part. In the "Weekend Buzz Ep.31" David Gonzalez explains his steps to landing his banger trick in his video "Possessed to Skate". "I wanna do this I want to know what it feels like to grind the whole thing... it was 9 tries" (Gonzalez) He did all his tricks because he wanted to do them, not because he wanted the fame and glory he could care less about it, but yes all his insane tricks are in his video part. Then his banger was his goal because he wanted to know how it would feel to grind the whole handrail. His fear was not present but his commitment rate was on a rise to landing the FS 50-50 down the handrail. His groundbreaking tricks were all done in his one video part "Possessed to Skate" each trick was a whole new level to every skater out there he did things that no one would have dared try because of the sketchiness of the spots. That's what made him SOTY because of his groundbreaking tricks.

At 13 yrs. of age, David Gonzalez left school to skate all day. "Suddenly, the 13-year-old Medellin native found himself in California USA, with his dreams well on the way to being fulfilled." (Buckley) He gave up school to skate without any sponsors or any support and then to get a sponsor from nothing living in Colombia to end up in California a few months later. That's someone who is blessed and gifted for his talent of skating. He is character everyone wants to be because of his choices and what he has given his skate community. David Gonzalez had a big surprise in 2012 from his skating community with a big award. Awarding him with SOTY which then caused him to give out more to the skating community. "The 22-year-old, Medellin, Colombia, native and member of the Flip skateboards team is the 22nd professional skateboarder to be named Skater of the Year (SOTY) by Thrasher" ("Gonzalez Wins.") David Gonzalez became the 22nd skater of the year because of his knarly skating and epic video parts that he put down for the skating community. All his videos are inspirational because it gives many kids and skaters the knowledge of knowing that any goal is possible. When David Gonzalez dropped "Possessed to Skate" video that was showed his fans that he wanted to give them a gift because he's passionate about skating and could care less about the money and fame. In the skate industry competitions and live skating events are kind of distracting for skateboarders. This is why David Gonzalez doesn't want to be in many competitions. He prefers to be in the streets filming for sponsor video filming. "I'm not into competitions but Street League was fun like the kids yelling my name and it felt good, it didn't feel like a competition more of fun time" (Gonzalez) He has the heart for his hobby and that's what makes the skaters love him. He does a lot for the community and he cares for the skate community, he's a good guy and respects his supporters. He brought all his love, honor, respect, hard work all the way from Colombia to be able to ride for Flip Skateboards. He gave us all his talent in one of the most viral/ epic video ever "Possessed to Skate". And since his video part in Flip Skateboard Video launches many skaters have begun to look up to him, because they respected his hard work and loved his positive attitude towards things with delight.

Often people don't think of skateboarders as heroes however, David Gonzalez has demonstrated his passion for skating through videos that have reached people throughout the whole world. He has driven people to skate more and prevent them from using their time poorly and not put it to waste either from illegal actions, or drugs. He is a hero to me because of how I could relate to most of his life. He doesn't care for big things, he only cares for what is most important to him his skating and commitment. He cares for his skateboard community and that's what a true skateboarder cares for. He gives me attitude for what I love doing. When he released his first skate part with Flip, I respected him for what he gave out to the public and all the hard effort he put into creating this video part. Becoming SOTY in 2012 showed me that he created a big storm in his skating career and touched many skaters' hearts. He inspired me by his way of acting, attitude, and from where he came from which I relate to in my past. I understand his love for skating and I dig it a lot. David Gonzalez acts in a way where he can make skating look more fun than from how fun it is now. I love having fun on my board and watching him skate with his unique style. It gives me power to shred harder. He inspired the rest of his fans with his videos; Whether it's an interview, Video Part, Video, or random video of his skating. When the audience hears his voice it brings out a rush of love and hype.