EP 163 Calm, technical and driven with Adrian Williams

In this one, co-host Micah Hollinger and Cody talk to Adrian Williams. Both of them grew up skating the streets of Anchorage, at spots like Hanshew Middle School and Abbott Elementary. Those two spots in particular were important to their upbringing and their skating. It’s where they met up with friends, learned tricks and got shots. They were both on the Boarderline Skate Team too, where the yearly shop video gave them even more of a reason to push the limits of what local skating could look like.

Staying motivated was important to progression, especially in a place like Anchorage, where the weather isn’t always conducive to skating and it’s easy to put limits on yourself. But Adrian was never about that. He was about making the most of his environment, which meant skating tennis-court-skateparks and schools in the summer and cold parking garages in the winter. It was a struggle, but he and his tight-knit group of friends made it work. It’s this perseverance that molded Adrian’s style into what it is — calm, technical and driven. And a lot of his perspective, he learned from his older brother, Angel, who actually got him into skating and remains one of his biggest influences.

His part in Business As Usual, Think Skateboards 2013 video, marked a major turning point for Adrian: Not only did it prove he could hold his own among the best skaters out that year, but it also signaled the beginning of the end for Think, the company he had skated for since 2007. When Think went under, it was a blow to his career. He was now out of a board sponsor and everything that came with it — skate gear, a travel budget, connections to photographers and filmers, and the momentum that comes from being part of a functioning team. It was a jarring reset after years of building toward something bigger. But it never dampened his love for skating. He just had to pivot. So, he picked up more traditional jobs at companies like UPS and Amazon and always made sure that skating stayed a priority. Lately, though, that priority has shifted. In search of more consistent, less physically demanding work, Adrian recently enlisted in the Air Force Reserves, where he’ll be training in Heavy Aircraft Integrated Avionics. It’s a new chapter, for sure, but the same mindset: Still rooted in dedication, persistence and putting in the work. But even with his focus shifting to a new career path, skating will always be a part of who he is.