Date of Birth:
March 22nd 1986.
Sponsors:
TorqueBMX, Colony, Maxxis, POC Helmets, #PieNot, Profile Racing, Ethika.
How long have you been riding?
I think I’ve been riding bikes for around 17 years now.
What got you interested in BMX?
I played American football growing up. And a few guys on the team would leave practice on their BMX bikes and meet up with more friends in the parking lot. They would ride flatland for a little bit and then pedal off to go street riding. So I asked one day what they were doing. They invited me over to one of the guys house that weekend and I rode my coaster brake Huffy across town to his house. He had ramps and grind ledges and then down the road a small six pack rhythm section. I borrowed one of their bikes and instantly fell in love. I learned feeble and double peg grinds that day. Along with jumping the first jump in the rhythm section. I instantly fell in love with everything about BMX.
Biggest influences in BMX:
I grew up with a Schwinn shop in my town. So I looked up to guys like Jay Miron, Brian and Alan Foster, Joey Garcia and Andrew Farris. As I learned more about BMX that list kept growing.
Where are you living at the moment? And where did you grow up?
I grew up in youngstown Ohio. Home of one of the best skateparks to have ever lived (Section 8 Skatepark). I currently live in Costa Mesa, CA.
What does a regular Saturday out on the bike usually consist of?
Being that I live on the west coast. Our trails are out in the open. And even though I live at the beach, it still gets really hot. So I try and consume most of my day with getting some chores done. Maybe a early morning surf for a few hours. I’m always cooking and eating. It’s one of my favorite things to do. Then I’ll text everyone to see who wants to ride, establish a crew and head to the trails for the last 3 hours of day light. We ride the last hours because the shade from the landing covers all of the lips. And then when we water it will all stay down. After the trails, I’ll head home cook some dinner and relax with the lady. Everyday varies though. California is so diverse. You never know what’ll pop up on the day to day.
What are you doing for work these days?
Luckily I’m one of the few still riding BMX for a living. I’m very grateful for that. If I had to say I worked it’s mostly digging at the trails. I hang out with a lot of younger teenage kids that have found there way to the trails. So it’s pretty rad showing them how to work a shovel and some of the little tricks that come with that. I also currently run a lot of the inner working at TorqueBMX. Almost like a TM role.
Top 3 places you’ve ridden over the years:
New Zealand (north and South Island trails), SMP in Shanghai China, Caddy Woods in PA and east side in Austin. I also love our trails just as much.
What are your interests outside of Riding?
I’ve had many over the years. I tend to jump from one to the next. Everything from VW’s to woodworking to panther Chameleons. I think I generally like to test myself to see what I can accomplish.
Car you own/drive:
Not so daily driver: 2003 VW 20th AE GTI and my daily is a 2008 VW Jetta.
Tell us something about your local scene:
California is a crazy place. I dig and ride at the trails everyday. My local scene is the trails. They are kind of in the open near the beach. We get a lot of nice local runners and dog walkers and then the occasional insane drunk bum type person. There are a lot of things that happen out there that make me realize that people have no lives and just want to come out and mess with things because they have nothing better to do. But our scene is really strong. We have about 10 guys that are true locals that come out everyday to ride and dig. I’m honored to call them all my friends. And the scene keeps building. We get a lot of new little kids that are interested in riding dirt. So we try our best to take them in, teach them trail etiquette and show them a thing or two.
What motivates you to go out and ride all the time?
Honestly I’m really motivated in general. I’ve always been the type of person that lives by “if you don’t get out and do something, then nothing will ever get done”. I guess being on this planet is my motivation. Being able to wake up everyday and do what I love to do for a living. I try to live with no regrets and live life to the fullest. You never know if you don’t try.
Favourite place you’ve travelled to and why?
Right now it’s Puerto Rico. I just got back from my bachelor party and it was amazing! So much surfing and so many riding spots. Island life is the best kind of life.
Give us some bands/musicians you are into these days:
My music selection is really diverse. I don’t often get into too many new bands. Anything from Slayer, future Islands, Metric, Tame Impala even some of the catchy hits on the radio.
Favourite Colony product?
I’m running the Tradition frame now which is amazing! I love that it’s a solid geo for the trails. And this might seem silly, but the headset spacers are genius! I get so many questions about how they work. Once I explain it seems to blow people’s minds. Let’s be real, everything Colony makes is amazing.
What has BMX has taught you:
BMX has taught me so much. I wouldn’t be able to list it all. It’s truly a lifestyle. I’ve learned so much from traveling the world and meeting new people. Experiencing things in unique cultures that normal people couldn’t comprehend. BMX has taught me that you can’t take anything for granted and that you need to take advantage of every situation you come across. It’s opened up so many doors to so many relationships. There really isn’t anything quite like BMX.
The usual thanks…
Shout to all my sponsors for keeping the dream alive. Thanks to my family for not being to concerned on the path I was going down. Gotta thank all the guys from the Wetlands for always having my back and putting in a ton of hard work. And to my future wife for letting me continue to live the life I lead and loving me.
Instagram account:
@anthonynapo
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