Issue 74: The Diego Todd Interview

Photo by Sam Muller.

words by Caleb Sugai.

Photography by Sam Muller and Anthony Acosta.

While many of today’s pro skaters choose to dress like Mortal Combat characters, Diego’s uniform seems to consist of a t-shirt, jeans, and a pair of glasses.

But don’t let his gentle nature and humble appearance deceive you. He is not one of us. He is a freak of nature that wallrides chain-linked fences.

Diego Todd makes Ventura look like an EA Skate map, which from the outside looking in, is every city in California, but upon closer inspection, Ventura is a tiny beach town, and what may look like a dream spot on fisheye is actually just a weird concrete slab that's kinda sorta near some crusty ledge, and what looks like a chill gap in a generous photo is actually a death drop from the heavens into a gravel pit. All in a day’s work for a generational talent and Hockey/FA tour fan favorite.

It must be said that for such a happy camper, Diego is painfully good at skateboarding. Insidiously, even, for the exertion of such talent often requires him to suffer, and we are grateful for his willingness to huck. Watching his parts makes me want to stop watching his parts, put on pants, go outside and skate with my friends, most likely due to the fact that his footage contains him outside… skating… with his friends. Simple as that. All this to say, there are no hidden bells and whistles to this guy. He’s skater’s skater that lets his flip-ins and flip-outs do the talking. Someone had the bright idea to pester him with some questions (mid-surf) to see if he could really be just a talented, glasses-wearing skater from Ventura, or some psycho undercover industry plant axe murderer from Canada, hucking off school rooftops and wiping away blood like it’s Windex. Either way, I’m sure he’ll tell us the truth.

Portrait by Sam Muller.

How was the shoot yesterday?

It was good! Landed the trick I wanted to do. I’ve wanted to do it for a bit, it’s like a kickflip off a roof and then down a couple banks and then you ride off. It’s at my middle school and I’ve wanted to film something, so.

Thanks for hopping on a call. I’m actually sitting at Zucati Park right now in New York looking at the ledge.

Oh yeah, I know that spot. I forgot that I said noon and I’ve been surfing; I just got out of the water and looked at my phone and was like, ‘oh shit!’, so now I’m getting changed and sitting in my truck at the beach.

You live in Ventura, did you grow up there?

Yeah, I’m born and raised in Ventura. I’m like five minutes from the beach so I’ve been surfing a lot lately.

Ventura is a great skating and surfing town, but what has kept you from moving to LA like a lot of the other Ventura crew has?

I always think about moving somewhere and then I’ll go on a trip for a few weeks and end up missing Ventura. I love coming back here. If I didn’t travel so much, I probably would’ve left already, but I’m away so much that it almost feels like vacation when I come home. Especially this year, I’ve been traveling more than any other year.

Photo by Anthony Acosta.

Traveling isn’t a bad thing, it means your skate career is healthy. How’s that been going for you?

The career - I am taking it a lot more seriously this year. I’ve been trying to do the best that I can. I’m not getting any younger so I might as well really give it my all these next few years.

You’re what, like twenty one?

Twenty five.

Same shit.

Yeah, same shit. I’ve been nicer to my body, too, I haven’t drank alcohol in over a year so that’s been pretty good. I’m focusing on myself and treating myself well.

I’ve definitely noticed a shift in skate culture toward sobriety and healthy conscious living. Lifting weights and yoga - full Neen.

I definitely don’t do that, but I should. I’ve been surfing a lot which has been helping. Like mentally, it is a new challenge. I’m not good at it and so I have no expectations doing it. It’s just fun as hell, even catching a shitty wave is the best feeling ever. It’s been nice; humbling.

Meditative. Are you an angry skater? I hear you break boards.

Recently I’ve been getting a lot more angry because it’s like, all I’ve been doing, and so if a trick is not working, I’m getting pretty pissed. I’ve been focusing boards recently which sucks to say. I don’t like being the guy who focuses boards, but it’s been happening.

Are you alright?

I don’t know it’s something about getting so close to a trick and you think you’re going to land it and then it starts getting further and further away, I can’t handle that. I used to not be like that. I think I’ve just been putting so much into skating recently that I’m like, ‘fucking come on! Just give me it!’

Do you do things to chill? Meditate?

This year has been pretty 100% skating, but I go to the beach and chill, ride my bike…

Portrait by Sam Muller.

Are you one of those guys who bikes from Ventura to LA and back?

No, no way, I wouldn’t. I broke my ankle a few years back and was like, ‘fuck, I need to do something while I’m recovering,’ so I got a bike and just started riding. I was doing like crazy shit - sixty mile rides, but once I recovered I stopped doing that so much. I don't know - it can be nice, you know? If you do a long ride that takes like three or four hours and you’re just slowly riding along, it’s good on your mental for trying tricks. It makes me more patient, because I’m taking three or four hours and slowly working on doing something, so when I’m trying a trick that’s taking two hours… it’s not the same thing, but you’re working at something.

Oh yeah, like adjusting your scale for how long something should take.

Yeah.

Do you make art? Are you making music or drawing? What do you do when you’re injured?

No, no, not at all. I like to game a lot. I’ll play CoD or Fortnite, but I mostly try to stay active.

Ah shit you’re a Fortnite guy?

Yeah, but I’m late to that shit, I only started playing a little while ago.

Photo by Anthony Acosta.

Everyone’s falling victim to that shit. My thirty-something year old roommate is on it non stop playing as Hank Hill.

I get killed by a lot of Hank Hill’s.

What’s your gamer tag?

It’s sonof__, because my dad used to play Halo when I was a kid and his gamer tag was  __ so I made mine sonof__. It’s also a famous football player’s name so sometimes I’ll be playing Call of Duty and like random kids in the lobby will be like, ‘yo! Sonof__! That’s hard!’

I mean it’s still sick that you get clout for it from random children.

Yeah, it’s sick.

I’ve got a question from a fan. How long did you work at your uncle’s restaurant and did you like it?

Oh shit, hmm. I worked there for like a year and a half - I was a dishwasher and I would help make the horchata, It was pretty awesome. I got to work there from like fifteen and a half to sixteen and he would just throw me cash at the end of a workday, and I would literally take the cash and go straight to the skate shop and get a new board. I would just hand it all over. It was pretty sick.

What kind of restaurant?

It’s a Mexican restaurant. It’s really good, it serves all of my grandmothers recipes - she came over here from Mexico. It’s really damn good, if you’re in Ventura you gotta go there.

Is that the last job you had or are you working in the FA warehouse?

Nah, luckily I’ve been able to just like support myself from skating for the last six or so years. I’m very lucky with that.

Photo by Anthony Acosta.

So when an ankle breaks, that’s a terrifying thing, that’s your livelihood.

Yeah, for sure. When I broke it, I was told that I had to chill completely or if I moved around on it, it’d get worse and I’d have to get surgery, so I rode the bike to keep my leg strong. When I was younger and was partying, the moment I got hurt, I would stop partying and take healing really seriously.

I’m watching dudes skating this out ledge right now and the homie just ate shit.

Sick! I’m watching my friends surf right now.

Curren gang?

No, no, I’m not good enough to surf with them yet, I’d be embarrassed. I just surf with my childhood friends who don’t skate.

Separate worlds. Good call. What’s it like being friends with Jake Anderson for so long?

Jake’s the best. I used to look up to him when I was a kid before I even met him, but now we get to go on trips together and shit. He’s one of the funniest dudes I ever met. He was being so funny on the FA/Hockey tour. He was so fired up at this In-N-Out burger. You know how In-N-Out is usually super crowded and if you get a table, you’re stoked? Somehow we got a table inside for like eleven people, and Jake is so pissed because he wants to sit outside so bad.

Why?

I don’t know he just wanted all of us to go outside and he’s like yelling at us - not angry yelling, his voice is just super loud, and no one wanted to. So he goes and sits outside by himself. So we all get up and decide to stoke him out by sitting outside with him and it was so shitty. It was windy as fuck and crowded and it sucked, so we start going back inside and he just lost it on us.

You need a guy like that on trips, someone who is down to clown and fuck around.

Totally! He just has to say whatever he is thinking, it has to come out.

Photo by Sam Muller.

Who’s your favorite Wright Brother?

Wait, what?

This is a question from someone who knows you. I don’t know what it means.

Wright Brother?

Yeah.

Like, my friends? Or the airplane guys?

It was spelled W-R-I-G-H-T. Are you into aviation?

No… I mean, I know two brothers whose last name is Wright. I’m with Jeff Wright right now!

Who is Jeff Wright?

He’s my… wait, right? Like Justin and Jeff Wright?

…

Yeah, I’m with Jeff Wright right now.

…Is he your favorite Wright brother?

I mean, recently, yeah just because me and him surf like every morning together.

These are people you know? Not the fathers of aviation?

No, these are brothers that I’m friends with. Now Justin lives in New York, but Jeff lives in Ventura still and doesn’t really skate. I mean, he can kickflip, but me and him kick it all the time doing other things, surfing every day. I’m literally looking at him right now. He’s changing into his pants.

Photo by Anthony Acosta.

You strike me as a bit of an obsessive. If it isn’t skating, it’s biking, or it’s surfing. You go headlong into very physical shit. Where is the leisure? Do you garden?

No I’m not gardening, but I would be down to. I just don’t have the space for it at my place.

Are you living at Mike [Anderson]’s place?

I live on Ventura avenue, but I skate at Mike’s place. I met Sam [Muller] there yesterday before going to go skate that roof.

Oh yeah, that brings us full circle. Sam and I wanted you to skate something mellow for this, really take it easy, and that in mind, you chose to kickflip into and ride off of a roof. Is that just where you’re at with spot selection? There is no mellow anymore?

Well, to be honest, I didn’t have any other idea besides that. I’ve been dry with spots in Ventura ever since I finished the Hockey video cause I filmed so much of it in town. I was also like, if I’m going to be in a magazine, I don’t want it to be some whatever shit. I want it to be good.

I appreciate that, but you don’t need to get broken off, either, you know what I mean?

For sure, but it’s still printed - it’s going to be seen. It’s going to be good.