It isn’t every kid who gets Tony Hawk to come to his seventh birthday party. But, when you have the talent to become a skateboard phenom before you even learn to read, people take notice. And, if you’re lucky, people do what they can to help you achieve your dreams. Even if it means just showing up to a birthday party and working out some tricks.
A Natural Instinct
Ryan Sheckler first stepped onto a skateboard at the age of 18 months. It was his father, Randy’s board and he held onto it, working out how to roll, stand, and eventually, do jumps. His dad and mom ,Gretchen, were supportive of Sheckler’s skateboarding, going so far as to set up a small skatepark at their home for him to practice on. Sheckler quickly proved he had a talent for the sport and began earning a name for himself. By the age of ten, he had a sponsor and was a well-known competitor around the competition circuits as the kid to watch.
Turning Pro
In 2003, at the age of 13, Sheckler turned pro and immediately proved that the buzz about him was correct. Among the big wins he claimed during his rookie year were the Vans Triple Crown and the Gravity Games. He also became the youngest winner ever in X Games history when he took gold in the Street competition.
As Sheckler amassed wins and proved to be a consistent skater he earned the respect of other skaters, including many of the skaters that he grew up admiring, like Tony Hawk. He became known as someone who focused on skating and treated it as a career. If there was a competition, Sheckler was either winning it, or among the top competitors.
Sheckler and the AST Dew Tour
In 2005 the AST Dew Tour began. The Dew Tour is a series of five events, over five months, in which competitors earn points. At the end of the tour, the competitor in each discipline with the greatest cumulative points earns the Dew Cup. Sheckler won the first year, and then repeated that win in 2006 and 2007, making him the first athlete to win three consecutive Dew Cups. In 2005, he was also named AST Athlete of the Year, which is a title given to the one athlete in the entire tour with the most points.
The Sheckler Empire
Sheckler’s business began to expand in 2007 when his Mtv-based reality show, Life of Ryan, exposed him to a new audience. In addition to fans of skateboarding, Sheckler now had a wider fan-base of teens and young adults, and specifically a new female fan-base. Sheckler also entered the world of merchandizing, offering skate products and clothing.
While it remains to be seen if Sheckler achieves his goal of becoming one of the greatest skateboarders ever, he is well on his way to becoming one of the most successful.
Additonal Facts about Ryan Sheckler:
- Lives in San Clemente, CA
- Skates Park and Street
- Stance: regular
- Also enjoys snowboarding, surfing, dirt biking
- Sponsors: Etnies, Plan B Skateboards, Volcom, Red Bull, Oakley, Nixon, Panasonic, Kicker, CCS, Ninja Bearings, Bones Wheels, Independent Trucks, Mob Grib
- Brothers: Shane & Kane
- His personal website: RyanSheckler.com
- Ryan Sheckler’s MySpace Page
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