Brandon DesJarlais

What’s the most interesting thing about you that most people don’t know?

One of the most interesting things is that I’m comfortable with being uncomfortable. I haven’t always been this way, but it’s really helped me to grow over these past few years. It all started back at the beginning of college when a few people close to me got pretty heavy into drugs and alcohol. During this time I questioned why people smoke, drink, etc and embraced sobriety for awhile.. I soon realized that many people use intoxicants to open up and avoid feeling sad, scared, or embarrassed. I then challenged myself to embrace uncomfortable situations and be the most sober and/or most open guy in every room. My first challenge was sitting by someone new every day in class and really getting to know them. Not only did this significantly increase my confidence but it also made all my classes so much easier and more enjoyable.

What were you like in high school?

My friends describe me as goofy, sharp-witted, and very ambitious. At the beginning of high school I was a pretty typical student athlete. I focused most my time into varsity wrestling and studies while my passion for longboarding grew organically on the sidelines. Slowly but surely skating began to consume me, and by halfway into my junior year I quit the wrestling team and boarding became my full-time passion.

We finish this interview and you step outside and find a lottery ticket that ends up winning $10 million. What would you do?

Without a doubt I’d be building a downhill skatepark with some of that money. Nothing too crazy big, but the general idea would be to have a beginner, intermediate, and advanced course with ramps, rollers, steep corners and variety. Basically a bigger version of Kamloops with pumptrack and skatepark elements. The one thing that’s really lacking for me in downhill skating is the three-dimensional element that snowboarding has.

@desgnarlais

Free shipping

Free shipping on orders over $25 within the lower 48