Portrait Courtesy of Facebook. Click to enlarge.
I love Steve Durant. I can honestly say that he's one of the most positive, energetic, and down to earth people out there, and he's always got an interesting story to tell. Seeing him up at the skatepark is one of life's finer pleasures, as he will get you sparked to skate. When I started asking people to do these interviews, Steve was one of the first people to pop into my head, and with good reason. If you graduated high school in the 2000's, he has been skateboarding longer than you've been alive. The best thing about this interview is it goes hand in hand with the last interview. Steve mentions the dentist office spot that Ryan would always ask his dad to go to so he could watch the skateboarders, and Ryan would eventually go on to be taught by Mr. Durant in highschool. Steve and the other downriver skateboarders from that generation may indirectly have inspired Schendel to pick up a skateboard, and that is truly beautiful.
-Allen Dillard
The year was 1988. I moved to Allen Park, and I was into skateboarding, but I had no board. I bought my first board little by little. I got a Lance Mountain Future Primitive with Trackers and Vision Blurrs. I rode with Jeff Andrews, Nick Papsick and Sandy Deguli. No one knows these dudes now, but they were rad! We watched videos over and over and rode everyday. We would skate Allen Park and my ma would drop us off in Dearborn.
"No one knows those dudes now, but they were rad."
Steve's first board graphic was out before you were born, most likely. Courtesy of retroskatestickers.com
After a few years I met the Taylor crew, Luke, Kevin, Devin, all those dudes at Soup 'n' More. Eventullay the old crew folded but I had started working at the shop, and ended up rolling with JP, T, the dude the big ts gap is named after, and Lapo too.
"It's endless, man."
Actually all the dudes downriver would skate the dentist office and then we would roll downtown. Shit, we rode everywhere. We would roll to east lansing to visit Coffey. We hit Toledo, this was during 1993 to 1997. We all would push each other, JP, Scott Arron and myself would hit up Taylor Town or hit D-Town. It's endless man. I am sure im forgetting people but here's the point: Skateboarding introduced me to so many people, I have made friends, I seen shit go down and lived it. Its weird now that Im the old dude, but im greatful for riding, and I lived a life most would only dream about. I, like most kids, wanted to go pro, but at that time, skating was dead, so I went to college and now I can buy shit when I want. I skated everyday as a kid. In my twenties it was a bunch.
"So I went to college and now I can buy shit when I want."
I slowed down because of my grown up responsiblities and my kids and job but now its so much more fun. Its a part of me. I can still hang. Of all the skaters I have seen come n go, there are a few of us og downriver fools still pushing, and its been 25 years. I am proud to have been a part of skateboardings ride, fall and rise. I appreciate all the parks now because of them kids get stoked. I plan to roll forever. Oldman out.
"I plan to roll forever."
360 Flip. Click to enlarge.
Steve teaches Honors Pre-Calculus, Algebra, and Personal Finance at Roosevelt High School in Wyandotte, as well as at Washtenaw Community College. He also teaches skatepark etiquette at Elizabeth Park.
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