Interview With
Ex-Pro Skiboarder: Mike Nick
By: Matthew
Matthew: How did you get started in the sport on skiboarding, what was your background?
Mike: I started skiing when I was 11, my father taught me. I grew up with the levinthal brothers and we would go skiing every weekend. Then we all began snowboarding. After a few years, we all went our separate ways to college but kept in touch. J. Lev. began making skiboards in college and we all started riding them together. Then J. and I got invites to the 98 X-Games for the first ever skiboard event...you know what happened next, and the rest is history.
Matthew: How did you hook up with line?
Mike: The above answer should explain that one. J. Lev. and I actually taught ourselves how to weld, then he built a bunch of presses and machinery, started laying up boards and Line was established.
Matthew: Do you still skiboard at all anymore why or why not?
Mike: Not anymore, skiboarding has allowed me to become a better skier. I started on skis and am going to end on skis.
Matthew: What were some of the best times skiboarding, skiing?
Mike: Skiboarding was the beginning to my pro traveling career so all those memories are great. That was where it started, and my skiing memories are even better because they have allowed me to start Siver Cartel, host camps, see more of the world, do TV shows, etc. etc. etc. its an amazing thing to make friends from all over the world just because we slide on skis. In particular my best memory skiing was the 2001 when I was blatantly robbed, despite...well, you know. (For everyone that doesn't know Mike should have placed higher then he did and he thinks its cause of his skiboarding past.)
Matthew: Why did you jump onto skis?
Mike: ESPN got rid of the skiboard event and invited me to the 01 Ski Big Air. Plus a lot of skiers had been pushing me to make the switch for a few years already. I just decided to give it a shot and started riding skis again 5 weeks before the x-Games that year.
Matthew: What do you think about the sport of skiboarding now that you are a skier?
Mike: I think they are two totally different things...skiboards are easy to pull tricks but super hard to land on, and skis are harder to pull tricks but easier to land on. They are both tools, you have to choose which one you want to ride.
Matthew: Where do you see line going with their skiboards and skiis? Any crazy new things planed to change the sports?
Mike: That's a J. Lev. question, but Line has always been devoted to progressing the sport ever since day one in J's garage he and I and the rest of the Line crew was under the same influence and thinking, skiing was lame and desperately needed a kick in the ass. So we gave it one.
Matthew: What was it like to win gold at the X-Games in skiboarding? And if you where the best why did you jump to skiis?
Mike: It was the beginning on my career so for that fact alone it was the single greatest moment of my skiing career. I made the switch because in order to sustain myself as an athlete and have a legitimate shot at a career in the sport it was my only option. Skiboarding just didn't grow the way it needed to.
Matthew: Do you feel like skiboarders have turned their back on you or the other way around?
Mike: No because technically I did more for skiboarding once I began riding skis that I did while I was on skiboards. Switching and becoming a top name in skiing only forced people to recognize my roots.
Matthew: Would you like to add anything?
Mike: yeah, don't dis on anyone, we're all just sliding on a tool of our choice.
Mike would asked us to promote The Siver Sessions so here it is:
The Siver Sessions: "No rules, no judges, and no pressure. Just sessions." Throughout the 03-04 ski season Siver will be hosting a tour of sessions across the east coast, that will bring The Cartel and tons of free schwag to resorts near you. (West coasters: no need to stress, we're coming to you next year.) No judges, no pressure, no rule;just you, your resort, Siver pros and free gear. All you have to do is show up; buy a lift ticket and sess with our pro team. We'll take care of the rest. We'll be posting a full page on our new website dedicated to the Sessions in early August listing all locations and dates. For now, make plans to be at our first session in JULY at Tenney Mt. in N.H.! That's right I said JULY. For the July 26th Session details Visit us @ www.SIVERCARTEL.com or quiz us @ info@SIVERCARTEL.com
See you there,
Mike Nick