Scotty Cranmer: Skateboard Guitar, originally uploaded by Eric Takes Pictures.

(This is Part 2 of a 4 part interview.  To read Part 1 please click here.)

I am here with Pro BMXer and X-Games Gold Medalist Scotty Cranmer at SC Action Sports.  Scotty’s extreme sports shop is located at 2449 Route 9 North in Howell, NJ. Just behind the store is Central Jersey BMX, one of the top NBL, BMX race tracks in the USA.  Scotty bought this store and the race track from the previous owner and he opened up for business on April 1. 2008.    

In the early years, were you racing in a circuit? 

There are two racing leagues, the ABA, the American Bicycle Association and the NBL, the National Bicycle League.  I was part of the NBL and the track in the back of the store is part of the NBL also.  They have the state series and the national series. I did all of the state series my first year and the year after that I stated getting first in the state.  I was nine years old and loving it.  We were traveling across the country.  It was pretty amazing and a lot of fun.  I made a whole bunch of friends doing it.  But when you do something for a while it starts to get dull.  I stopped racing when I was 13 years old.  I was basically done. I liked racing it was fun but for me, it seemed like it was a lot of pressure.  It’s either you win or you lose and I just wanted to ride and jump the big jumps.  At that time, the skate park, that my parents own, had just opened and I was there constantly.  I was sold on it.   They opened it January 29 of 2000. 

Tell me about your dad.

When I was nine years old my dad became the track director for the track in the back.  He was the head guy back there.  He has been with me the whole time.  He was a person who did not know much about bikes.  He has come a long way.  Now, my dad will trade new bikes for old bikes.  He just likes bikes now.  We have bikes from the 60s and from the 80′s.  We just got a Mike Dominguez, Diamondback.  (He was a freestyle guy like me.)  It is a rare bike to have.  Seeing one in good shape is kind of cool.  Now my little brother rides and my mother runs the store and the skate park. 

Tell me about the half time shows that you did when you were nine.

The first show that I did was at the Olympic stadium in Georgia.  It was one of the last games that Michael Jordan played with the Bulls.  It was crazy.  I was too young to comprehend it.  There were a couple of older guys who were jumping and I was just having fun with those guys.  It was a cool experience.  It helped me out a lot for what I was going to get into.  I did half time shows for the Steelers.  I still do shows today with a stunt company in Toms River, NJ called Hell on Wheels.  I would rather ride my bike in front of people than walk. 

Were you thinking about a career at that point, when you were nine?

I was not getting paid at that point.  I did it for free until I was 15.  I was just a little kid.  I was with my dad and he enjoyed watching.  It was a cool experience.  It was a blast.  It never went through my head, you know, what are you going to do for money.  I was just having fun and it just came together and here I am.  I have a house now and all of this (the store) and I think where did all of this come from?  This is crazy.  I was just a kid who was riding his bike.  It’s a pretty wild situation. 

(This is Part 2 of a 4 part interview with Scotty Cranmer.  In Part 3 of the interview, Scotty will talk about his first professional event.

If you are looking for a bike, you may want to stop by Scotty’s shop, SC Action Sports, in Howell, NJ on Route 9 North.  They carry a wide variety of name brand bicycles, skateboards, accessories, clothing and much more!)