Pro Skaters @ The Lounge

When Kernowyouth heard 2 US skateboard pro's were in the county, we sent Phil Hadley along to the Lounge in Newquay to chat to them & snap the action....

Okay guys, who are you?

Jud - I'm Jud "Farmboy" Heald. I come from Maine, USA. I am 26 years old and I've been skating 16 years.
Tim - I'm Tim Byrne. I come from a place called Rolla - pretty cool name for a skateboarder. I'm 23 and I've been skating 7 years. I'm a freestyler.

So what are you doing in the UK?

Tim - This is our world tour!
Jud - We are on a short visit to the UK. It's our first trip overseas. We've been to the Eden Festival in Torquay. We did 5 demos in 2 days. It was right next to the road so we'd preach to everyone watching and passing by. Kids came and accepted the Lord. It was awesome. Now we're in Newquay for this event.

So what's it like being a Christian skateboarder?

Tim - Being a Christian is awesome. In skateboarding, there is not a lot of Christians. It's a road less travelled.
Jud - Being a Christian skateboarder makes me different from the rest. I want people to say "That dude's a Christian, even in the way I skate." I have Jesus written on a white strip on my board, but we're real, not cheesey, in all we do. We're Christians up front, not behind the scenes.

So how did you become a Christian?

Tim - I became a Christian when I was 20. I knew an emptiness in my heart that drugs and sex and stuff couldn't fill. So I said, 'God, if you're real, I wanna know you. I know there's more to life than nothing after death.' I went through a hard time with depression, but I was being broken so God could fill me. Without God I'd just be spinning around in circles like everyone else.
Jud - My mother was a pastor so I grew up knowing the stuff, but it was a case of do church on Sunday and do my thing the rest of the week. I was just walking away from God. Then I broke my neck snowboarding in Maine. I fell 20 feet onto my head. Following my injury I visited a chiropracter who unknowingly pressed down on my head hard enough to do fatal or paralyzing damage. But this event changed my life. It showed me I didn't have control. So I started seeking God. I started to read the Bible - the whole Bible. And that began a restoration and now faith affects all my life. Through a series of events, as I was asking God for direction, He led me to Manna Skateboards, a Christian skateboard company, and I was able to turn pro. I was scared of the skateboard after my neck break and began thinking crazy thoughts. But God brings a peace about doing tricks and stunts, and if He doesn't then I don't do them, and also a peace about money, about my wife. I don't worry about how I look to other people. I don't worry about saying I'm a Christian because God is bigger.

So what advice would you give our young Cornish skater boyz and girlz?

Jud - In everything you want to do you've got to put the Lord first. You've got to do that to know where the Lord wants you. You've got to sort sin out and put the Lord first. But don't just sit down and wait - you've got to work at it. I used to skate in the barn back home as a kid, on the boards and amongst the hay and stuff, and I'd hear in my head the crowd saying "Do the trick, do the trick!" I worked at it, got an opening to go to California and got more coverage. I went to a Skate Camp. You see the Lord had a plan. He opened up the door. Unless the Lord opened it I'd still be stuck in Maine. So go for it all the way. Put Jesus first and He'll open up the way.

So when are you next in the UK?

Jud - I'm coming back in August to do Festival Manchester where I'm helping to build the ramps and do some demos. That's the Luis Palau thing and it should be awesome.

So how would you sum up your ministry?

Jud - Manna Skateboards focuses on putting God first and then living life according to that.

So what message would you want to leave with the youth of Cornwall?

Tim - Jesus rocks! Jesus is Lord and He'll change your life! He is, we're not!

Photo Guide:

From top to bottom:
Jud airborne over the spine ramp at Wooden Waves;
Tim signs a board at Wooden Waves;
Tim freestyling at Wooden Waves;
Jud poses with his board outside Newquay Christian Centre;
Jud skates down a wall opposite the church;
Jud does a back flip off a vert ramp at Wooden Waves.

For more photos click on the Photo Page button at the top left of this page