 |
BOARDFREE – AN INCREDIBLE JOURNEY
World Record Breaker Dave Cornthwaite sits down in an exclusive interview with Community Times and chats about his most recent adventure and the new book featuring his travels on his longboard
:: So Dave, first things first – how did BoardFree and the entire concept come about?
I went snowboarding in early March 2005 and was, quite frankly, rubbish at it. On the way home I made up my mind to take up another boardsport so the next snowboarding holiday wouldnt be such a waste. By chance I read an article about a long skateboard at Geneva airport and it sounded like just the trick, so I got hold of one within the week.
Thing is, having been the least cool kid in the world, Id never skated before. A longboard is just as it sounds, its a long skateboard, and is designed to cruise around, replicating surfing or snowboarding but on tarmac. I set about teaching myself how to skate and almost immediately it changed my life. I wasnt happy in my job, had just come out of a long term relationship, and two weeks after stepping onto my first board I woke up and realised I needed a change, so I decided to couple an old passion, travel, with a new one, longboarding.
I started to develop the idea of skating a long way, then the concept grew and I realised it could be much more than just a personal journey. I set up an initiative called BoardFree, selected three charities to support, and then quit my job.
:: You skated from Perth to Brisbane – from one end of Australia to another (over 6000 km) – earning you a place in the Guinness book of Records, why did you choose Australia?
Initially I was going to skate from Wales to China, but that fell through due to a distinct lack of good roads in Siberia. A guide to Australia dropped on my foot as I browsed some books at a friends house, and in two minutes flat Id decided that Perth to Brisbane would be the new route. I was looking for a good challenge, and Australia ticked all the boxes.
:: Did you encounter any nasty or scary moments in Oz?
Id planned for 18 months before pushing out from Perth and safety was always top of the agenda. Potentially there was a lot that could have gone wrong so I did what I could to prepare for any eventuality. Still, a few close calls with snakes were unavoidable – you quickly learn to turn sharply when faced with an 8 foot Brown Snake on the road!
:: You warmed-up for Australia by skating from John O Groats to Lands End (becoming the first person to skate the length of the UK). Did the journey scare you and did you ever reconsider the plans for the bigger skate through Australia?
The UK leg terrified me. There are twice as many cars in the UK as there are people in Australia (stunning considering Australia is 28 times as big) and saying goodbye to my family before driving up to John OGroats felt like the last time Id see them. My feet went through a fair bit of trauma, a shoe change ten days in led to a second degree burn on the back of my heel just from the friction of pushing, and then a blister the size of a tennis ball grew on the sole of my right foot, eventually getting infected. Still, I never took my eye off the bigger goal. Every push for the last 600 miles of the UK journey was agony, but I told myself that if I couldnt skate the UK I may as well forget about Australia. Thats when the whole thing became a mental battle, physically you can do anything if your mind is willing.
:: BoardFree seems to be really taking off worldwide with more and more people involved with ongoing fundraising - can you tell us more about BoardFree and the charities that are involved?
The UK and Australian journeys supported the Lowe Syndrome Trust, Link Community Development and Sailability Australia, but the publicity generated by these skates encouraged other people to start working on their own journeys and now BoardFree has become a central hub for endurance skates for charity. Since I reached Brisbane six other journeys have taken place, with many more in the pipeline for 2008. BoardFree is about more than just raising money for charity, it promotes boardsports to people of all ages and also, I hope, highlights that ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things.
:: Are there any BoardFree events going on at the moment?
Im touring Australia and the UK in 2008 promoting BoardFree and the book I wrote about the birth of the project. This summer several other skates are in the pipeline, and Ill be running a series of mass charity skates around the UK to raise more money and promote longboarding as a viable form of green transport.
:: Have you ever attempted a book before?
Yes, a novel about Africa. But tragedy struck when I foolishly failed to back it up, and one broken computer later Id lost over 100,000 words and six months of writing. Suffice it to say I backed up the BoardFree book about ten times a day!
:: Finally, whats in the pipeline for Dave Cornthwaite in the near (and distant) future?
Ive turned my hand to business, and am co-founder of the leisurewear brand Chilled Turtle, as well as running the marketing for rollsrolls longboards, one of which I used on my journeys. 2007 saw me bouncing around on a brilliant contraption called an Aquaskipper, and Im sure there will be more antics on that this year. Im also working on a new book called Confessions of a Temporary Serial Dater, so a big step away from long distance skating! Travel has always been in my blood, though, and I cant imagine it will be too long before a new journey will be on the horizon, all I can say is it wont be on a skateboard.
BoardFree by Dave Cornthwaite is published by Portico and is available from www.chilledturtle.com
BoardFree – www.boardfree.co.uk
Charities
The Lowe Syndrome Trust is dedicated to finding a cure for Lowe Syndrome, which effects young boys and causes eye, kidney and brain trauma – www.lowesyndrome.org
Link Community Development sets up sustainable education projects in sub Saharan Africa – www.lcd.org.uk
Sailability integrates children and adults with disabilities into sailing – www.sailability.org
|
 |
|
