Five Questions with Dave Bachinsky, Pro Skateboarder

James Demer, co-founder of DemerBox interviews pro skateboarder Dave Bachinsky about travel, his new creative business endeavor ShapeThree and his favorite skate music.

James Demer: It’s so many kids dream to be a professional athlete. As a teenager I was way into skateboarding and so I understand how good you have to be to turn pro. Did you ever imagine your career turning out this way?

Dave Bachinsky: It’s unreal looking back at it. When I was 16 I was living in a little city with an amazing crew of friends that skated night and day. Throughout those years I developed my skating. I never thought I’d see my name on a board. It’s a continuous, unfolding dream every time I get out and skate.

James: You’ve been doing this a while and I know you have a family. What’s the hardest part about having a career skateboarding?

Dave Bachinsky: I travel a lot so leaving my wife and my dog is always hard but she’s more than supportive. I think the hardest part is being 3,000 miles from my family. I chose to live in the southern hemisphere so I can skate year round. FaceTime keeps me content but when I get home a couple times a year I cherish all the time and moments.

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James: You have a side business making usable objects out of old skateboard decks. Tell us about how that started and where you want to go with it.

Dave: It was 2014 around Christmas time and I decided to make photo frames out of skateboards for my friends back home. Those gifts changed everything because I got sparked on woodworking and repurposing things around the house with skateboards. Each skateboard has 7 different colored plied veneers and made of dense, hard maple wood.

The projects started and I decided each sale would donate a percent back into the skatepark where I grew up. We’ve built 3 giant obstacles and it’s awesome to see the city come together each year. I’ll always give back to the skate scene but as of ShapeThree 2019 I’m focused on a limited batch of canoe paddles, doing a few rad collaborations, and finishing up a couple of whiskey barrel tops that work as side tables.

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James: What trick are you most proud of?

Dave: A Kickflip. Growing up I would watch my uncles skate. They ripped a backyard ramp but they could never flip a board. I was 9 and my thoughts were “if they couldn’t do it I’ll never be able to.” Once I learned that, I took it everywhere I could.

James: When I was skating a lot in the early/mid 1980’s the music we listened to at the ramp were hardcore bands like Minor Threat, Minute Men and fun punk bands like The Dickies. I enjoyed the energy but also listened to many other genres like bluegrass and jazz while not skating. What music did you listened to when you were young and skating, and what do you listen to now?

Dave: My first cassette tape my grandma bought me was the Beastie Boys License to Ill. I still jam to this in the car when my wife steals the spotify. Now a days it’s usually something like Future Islands, Yelawolf or some Talking Heads.

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James: How did you make custom DemerBox grills out of a recycled skateboard deck?

Dave: It took about two days to dial in and a couple Home Depot runs to make it happen, but my first draft is done...I’m stoked! I left the bolts sticking out a little because the wood was thin. With the bolts hitting first it seemed a lot more durable compared to the vertical ply skateboards strips hitting first. I tried to sand out a knife mark and it made the scratch more noticeable so in the future I’d have to use tape so it would come out clean. But it’s on there and ready to for the missions!