Globe Skateboarding: Saint Gilles
No Excess
Intro by Josh Barrow
Interview and photography by Alex Papke
“You didn’t book Ryanair flights from Berlin to Brussels, did you?”
–Alex Papke
Skate photographers love a European budget airline, and Alex Papke is no exception. On top of the multiple text messages leading up to the trip, it was probably asked on average five times a day if we definitely had extra carry-on allowance for our internal flights. A genuine concern, and not just about the rain forecast for the entire back half of the trip. Renowned for his photography, and even more so for his behaviour after a few mojitos, Papke’s been on every single trip since Globe signed Austyn Gillette three years ago and has been an integral part of the ‘skateboarding’ segmentation re-launch of the brand. And that’s why it seemed like a better option to have him ask the latest addition to the team (Val Bauer) some questions about the trip than have me ramble on about navigating Berlin and Brussels whilst driving the van.
Not having the luxury of an inexhaustible marketing budget as per some of the bigger footwear brands in the field means that doing a 9-day intercontinental trip is a rarity, and not one which entails hopefully returning with just a clip or two. It means shooting and placing this article, filming a team edit and getting ads, all whilst doing store visits (which invariably turn into store parties), and then, of course, the demos followed by skatepark BBQs. The fine balancing act of time spent doing essential promo work whilst on the ground vs time in the streets is something which, even after 10 years of trips as a team manager, seems hard to get just right.
The initial reasoning behind this trip was to shoot an impending catalogue with Val joining for his first trip alongside the US team overseas. Thankfully print deadlines were brought forward, leaving this Europe trip wide open to run it as we usually do.
Despite the destination being mostly decided by commercial motives, we didn’t want to find ourselves eating döners for nine days straight in Berlin, which is where Sammy’s weakness for Belgian spots came in. Before flying west, we spent three glorious days under the German sun, with peak productivity. Belgium less so, leading to a large portion of our time taking refuge from the rain under Brussels’ European Parliament. On a plus, Papke’s camera bag avoided the hold, and without any additional baggage fees. –Josh Barrow
“Brussels forecast is looking solid. Should we bring skateboards?”
–Austyn Gillette
“Nine days… Felt like 90.”
–Christian Maalouf
Alex Papke: Hello Val, how are you? What are you up to?
Val Bauer: I’m good, I’m home right now in Paris. I’m chilling with Tolya, we went skating today. I mean, we tried to go skating. You know how it goes.
Tell Tolya his beard looks good.
It’s getting him a lot of compliments, he’s very happy with the positive feedback about it. He says thank you.
You work for Rassvet full-time on top of skating, yeah? How is that balance?
I wouldn’t call it a full-time job, I’m doing the hours for the job exactly how I want it to be. Of course, sometimes there are obligations, but I don’t have to go to an office every day. It’s a lot of following up with things as soon as I wake up, it’s very flexible. It’s giving me a nice balance to give my brain to something other than skating.
How long has that been a thing? Since you started skating for them?
Well, I’ve been skating for them since the second drop, so I think that’s around seven years now? I was just skating for them at first, and it’s been about three years now working for Tolya.
Did you have any real-life job experience going into this? Or you just kinda winged it?
I did some internships when I was studying communications and marketing, but I mostly learned by working at a skate shop. I worked there while doing my studies before I could make a proper living from skating, but that was pretty much my only experience. But being involved with some brand projects over the years with different sponsors helped. If you’re curious and you pay attention to what’s going on, who’s doing what and what’s working out, I think you can get a lot of experience.
Would you do university again? Did you enjoy it?
I did the studies just because it was something to do. You’re never sure how skateboarding is going to work out for you, so I was just trying to secure some sort of opportunities for the future. It was also just that thing where I was trying to make my parents feel like I was doing something, you know? Skating can teach you a lot and I feel like there’s more out there than just going on trips and trying to film clips. It’s fun to have an understanding of how the corporate world works sometimes to get a full-circle experience. When I did the studies, after a year I felt like I had been getting taught the same things over and over again and wasn’t getting anything new, it’s just very repetitive. That can be very useful in life, but I don’t think you need four years of studies to understand what a deadline is. I wouldn’t do it again if I had to.
Is it hard travelling with a job like that?
No, I don’t think so. Paris is the city I like the most for skating, so I’m doing it a lot while I’m home and working, no matter if I’m just skating for fun or skating to film clips. So, it feels the same way when I’m on a trip.
Do you think being sober helps your productivity on these trips?
Yeah for sure, it makes a big difference. I’m not gonna be the one staying up until three in the morning every night. In the past, I’ve put so much pressure on myself traveling. It’s hard not to have that when you’re always thinking about how someone else is paying your way to be there and get footage. But when you take away the drinking, there seems to be fewer distractions for me and I can really just enjoy being around everyone and be less stressed out about everything.
Do you have a go-to mocktail?
I’m not a mocktail guy, I was a beer guy but I stopped drinking four years ago, so now it’s just NA’s and Coca-Cola.
Besides the short trip in Portugal last year for Austyn’s shoe release and hanging around everyone in LA, this was your first proper trip with Globe. How did it go?
I’m 32, so it’s not like it’s my first trip (laughs). I was already very familiar with everyone and we had been able to spend a good bit of time together in Los Angeles before, so it wasn’t like I was getting introduced to people for the first time. But you do always feel funny discovering things about people when they’re away from home. Hanging out with someone when they’re home is never the same as hanging out with them on a trip. It’s also a lot different going on a trip with only four other skaters as opposed to two cars of 30 skaters. I’m usually trying to stay on the positive side of things going on trips, but when there are more people around that are over it, the whole energy changes. So being with four people is a bit easier for me, and you get to know people better when you’re all on a trip together.
Sitting in a van with someone all day is a lot more intimate than skating with them in LA, yeah?
Skating with people in LA is different than skating anywhere in Europe. In LA, you’re sitting in your own car all day, driving 20 to 30 minutes to skate spots and only hanging out with your friends at the skate spots. The majority of your day is spent by yourself, but anywhere else you are riding bikes around or skating around with your friends all day. And you know, you are on a trip with these people for 16 hours a day, so you get to know them in a different light. But the whole trip went well, I had a really good time. I’m also the only European in the van, so for you guys it’s a lot more exotic. I grew up 45 minutes away from Brussels, so I wasn’t going to the other side of the world. But I think we’ve all been to Berlin before.
Which do you prefer, Berlin or Brussels? Which city has better pole-jams?
Paris has the best pole jams (laughs). I’ve always had a soft spot for Belgium because the border is so close to where I grew up. I’ve made so many good friends through the years who are Belgian, like Axel, Bram De Cleen, Bram De Martelaere, Phil Zwijsen… Phil was always someone whose skating I always looked up to, but when I got older, I really appreciated his approach to his career, it really resonated with me. He was putting a lot of effort and heart into his skating and not just taking it for granted. I always admired that kind of person, so all of this together made Belgium special to me. If you grow up close, Belgian people are always very nice neighbours to have.
Being the token Euro guy in the van, what’s a big difference you notice when you are travelling with all Americans in Europe?
Wow, being the token Euro guy, that’s pretty good. Thank you. I think the biggest difference is Europeans won’t ask the tour guide to order them their dinner like idiots. Nah, we’re all just friends, that’s the important thing.
You’ve been surfing a bunch lately too, yeah?
Yeah, me and my girlfriend just got back from a trip and were surfing a lot. We’re both beginners, but we’re both really enjoying it. I really like the feeling I’m getting from surfing, it feels like I’m ten years old learning how to skate again but without having to produce something all of the time.
You’re doing it for yourself.
Exactly, I mean with skating you are still always doing it for yourself first. But it’s also somehow your job. It’s fresh getting into something else and it’s the only thing that is giving me that same passionate feeling that skating gives me.
What do you think the surfing equivalent of a pole-jam is?
I don’t know, but I need to find out. I’ll probably find something that I’ll get obsessed with if I get good enough at it.
To finish this thing off, what was your first time meeting Mark Appleyard like? You have any good Appleyard stories?
I think I need to tell the tiramisu story.
Oh yeah, that’s a good one.
Sorry Mark. The first time I met him was in Los Angeles at a team dinner. It was the first time being with everyone at the same time and the first time meeting Mark as well. He was very nice, we went to a very nice restaurant and everyone was in a good mood. Mark was telling a lot of stories about travelling, like it’s crazy: he had a pro shoe with Circa at 19 years old, so it’s been a very crazy life. He was a rockstar if you think about it. He was very entertaining the whole dinner, and then at the end of dinner, I ordered a tiramisu. It shows up at the table and Mark goes, “Oh, you have a lot of these in France, right?” Americans just kind of think that Europe is one big country, but tiramisu is more of an Italian thing. I told him that, and he went, “Oh crazy, because Bastien really used to love Nutella,” which is even crazier, because there is no Nutella in tiramisu as well. So that was a pretty good one. But he’s a lovely guy, very funny and entertaining.
Maybe for the next trip we can take Mark to Italy to try Nutella tiramisu.
That’s a good idea, I’m sure he would love all of that.