Here he is: The early riser, the motivator, the cleaning crew, and the man with the plan. I asked him for a "Bart Pose", and this is what I got.
So Bart, how did you get the whole idea for this "Old Indy Skaters" deal…?
Well, I started by skating with my daughter, who's 14 years old now. I started going to skateparks, but I really didn't like the scene… so, I started going skating early in the mornings… but then, I realized that I was just all by myself. And, I didn't really wanna skate all by myself. So, I got the old crew that I used to skate with in the '80s together, and we started skating together. Then, I decided that I wanted to make it a little bit bigger, to have more people to skate with. And, it kind of took off from there.
And, it's also really well organized, too, with our club t-shirts and hats and everything. Like, what inspired you to do all that stuff…?
(Bart laughs…) Ahhh… well, just probably how I am, and what I do. I'm a graphic designer-slash-marketing-guy… and so, I figured that if we're gonna do it, we might as well do it right. And, umm… it's as easy as that. I mean, image is everything… that's what I try to tell my customers in the business world, that image is everything. So, we just figured that if we're gonna be a crew, we might as well do it right.
Even in the '80s, we had our own t-shirts…
Oh, really…?!
Yeah, our crew was called "Them Guys". So that way, when you'd see us, you'd go, "Hey, there's Them Guys…"!
(laughing…!)
So, when you said that you didn't like "The Scene"… y'know, we live in Indianapolis, so…
Yeah…
… what exactly didn't you like about "the scene", though…?
It was just, y'know… growing up in the '80s as a skater, you would see a person that was freakin' three blocks away that had a skateboard in his hand… he was like, an instant friend. And I clearly saw that, that was no longer there. It was just… everybody had their own cliques, and you would have people at the skatepark that were just all by themselves that didn't even care about anybody else, or didn't even want to skate with anybody else other than with themselves. And y'know, the black skinny jeans and the gangster skaters and stuff… I just couldn't really understand that concept. So, I really didn't like that scene…
That's another thing about the whole Old Indy Skaters thing, is that we're trying to re-create how it was back in the '80s. Like if you see someone with a skateboard, it's like that instant-friendship all over again, y'know?
So, it's kind of like an anti-social-sort-of-high-school scene that skateboarding has turned into these days…?
Ah, yeah… (laughter)
For lack of a better word for that shit… (laughter)
Yeah… you've got the… I wouldn't say "jocks" or "preps"… I would say you have the, uhh, "skinny jeans" and the "gangsters", and the uhh…y'know, whatever… I don't even know what they are anymore. (hysterical laughing) I can't even label 'em…
"Fags"! (laughter)
Something… nothing against homosexuals, of course…
No, no, no, of course not. Now: I've noticed that we have a penchant for being at these parks like, super-early in the morning. This was all your idea, right…?
Yes.
As a matter of fact, you kind of, y'know, create our whole schedule, and do the e-mail list and everything, don't ya…?
Right…
So, that kind of makes you like, "The Boss", and we're kind of "The Bitches"…
Nah man, it's not about "The Boss" or "The Bitches"… (laughing…)
Thanks..!
Once again, the reason why we come so early is to try to avoid the crowd, and try to avoid the people… and, y'know, the majority of us are grown men that have grown lives, and if we're out from 8 in the morning to noon, we're not really affecting our own personal lives. So if I have two kids and a wife, and if I come home to the house at noon, or one… or, sometimes seven… (laughing)… it's still not really affecting my weekend that much. So, it's a lot easier to get people to come out early in the morning.
Plus, you avoid the crowd of, y'know…
The Razor Scooters…
The Razor Scooters, the kids that just come to the skatepark that don't even skate, but for some reason it's a cool place to go to pretend like they're in the "skate scene", but they're not…
Posers.
Yeah, that's wha… (laughing)… that's what we called 'em, back in the day… (more laughing)…
Is it OK if I'm blunt, by the way…?!
No! No no no! It's not even "posers", because they don't even have skateboards! Like they just… they just show up… I don't know… it's like, they're wannabe posers…
"Wannabe Posers"?! (dying laughing...)
Yeah! They're not even like poser skaters, they're like… posers at life, so… (laughing)… so, it's sad, but…
Yes, the backyard scene is alive and well in Indianapolis. In fact, Bart has several indoor and outdoor "secret spots" at his disposal... including a wooden indoor bowl, two garage mini-ramps, a backyard concrete oasis, as well as this backyard summer project, right here. Knowing Bart helps a lot. Knowing that Bart is universally well-respected, and can keep a secret, helps even more...
Now, the last thing that I wanted to ask ya… and I'm not sure that you can even talk about this… but, we get some kind of support from The Industry doing all of this, don't we…?
(Bart looks at me funny…)
Kind of…?
Ummm…
"American Nomad"…
Well, no, not really…
"No, not really"?!
No…
Are we not allowed to talk about that now…?!
Oh, we can! I mean, American Nomad is a very big supporter of us. But to me… y'know, I also do the American Nomad website, and I helped to re-create it, and re-design it… update it, keep it up-to-date, and everything like that…
So, that's how we got that deal! You're connected…!
Yeah. So with that, comes a few little perks. Y'know, Jay Kelly is an awesome guy, Bill Danforth is a wonderful man… so with that, once again, being the graphic designer/marketing guy, I return and turn that around, and bring it to the Old Indy Skaters. So, yeah, when we want help? We get help from 'em. So, yeah. It's as easy as that.
And we're all riding American Nomad right now. I think everyone has got at least like, a couple Nomads banging around…
I think so. I think everybody in the crew probably has one, yeah. So… (laughing)
But, y'know… I don't wanna put it too publically… but, Jay and American Nomad has come together with a special deal for the Old Indy Skaters. If you're in the crew, and if you're on the e-mail list, and you get the e-mails…you get the special pricing and everything like that… so, y'know… yeah, we get help that way.
But you have to be in the crew, though. You can't just be some burger-headed kid in the middle of nowhere…
Gotta be In The Crew.
Gotta be In The Crew…
Gotta be in the crew, and let me know what you need…
Y'gotta know Bart. Because if you don't know Bart, you ain't shit! I think that'll do it, Bart. Thanks, bro!
Thanks, Bud.
