Skateboarding
Northern Ireland’s latest wayfaring talent touches down.
Joe Hill is from Derry, Northern Ireland. Derry is a rough town, and its skaters have to be a hardy breed to survive. Joe’s journey has seen him leave his hometown and pop up first in England and then Germany, where his gritty riding has landed him a spot on the Via Skateboards squad. It takes courage to follow your dreams.
This is Joe’s story so far, and his take on who is doing it right today.
Hi Joe, let’s do the gentle introduction thing: how long have you been skating, and what got you involved? Been skating…12 years; I just saw some guys cruising around outside my friend’s house and asked for a go; from there I was hooked.
What was it like, growing up skating round Derry? Not great! (laughs) It had a pretty good scene back when I was starting out – but no ‘real’ spots or anything. As I got older, though, that flipped a bit. There were more spots and fewer skaters. Now there’s a good crew of guys – and an indoor park. Things are looking better for Derry’s skating again.
When did you first leave Derry, then? First time I left was to go to University in Newcastle, England. That really opened my eyes to what skateboarding could be like – DIY spots, a huge scene, and demos in Five Bridges (park). We had a good crew of Irish guys living over there, and we spent all our time filming for a video. For reasons unknown it never got put together. It was two years of my skating that I had no footage to show for, but finally the part is out there, now.
So you’re in Hamburg now; has life changed since you moved to Germany? I think it has changed… a lot. The whole lifestyle here is so different, and the skate scene is really strong. I have a lot of good friends here now; there’s always someone to film with or shoot photos with. I do a lot of travelling around, to other cities like Berlin, too. Plus, the nightlife here is on a different level to back home (laughs)…this place is going to kill me!
Who was the most inspirational skater to you growing up? I had a lot of skaters I looked up to, worldwide; but my most influential skater growing up was Jonny Mulgrew from my home town. He took me everywhere, and pushed me to where I am today.
Who’s the biggest Irish ripper? There are a lot, man! Dee Collins from Derry is killing it right now; progressing so fast… but Cian Eades is still my favourite. Everything he does is just done right.
And the biggest German ripper? Again, there are too many, but my favourites from Hamburg would be Lars Zimmerman and Kenny Hopf. Two of my Via team-mates, and both some of the techest and most consistent skaters I know.
Any last words for us, Joe? Yeah – a big shout to all the Irish and German crew, and to the Irish skate blogs Skate Eire and Derryskateblog. The DSB Crew have been killing it all year, filming for a full length video which is dropping September 2014. Full sections from myself, Dee Collins, Dee Diamondz and John Fleming: get hyped! Peace!
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