Adrian Lopez.

I wanted to start this interview off with a name poem. Kind of like the ones you had to do in elementary school.

A: awesome

D: doesn't open himself up to others

R: real]y over thinks every situation

I: Isn't into talking about himself ...

SEE? IT JUST DOESN'T WORK. He doesn't let me know enough about him for me to even write one of the simplest poems there could possibly be. Now, I could ramble on about how he is "so dedicated and focused" and how he "had to struggle from the bottom to get to where he is now," but I'll reserve that bullshit for someone else. What you get of Adrian is the following pages, photos, and text. Make of it what you will. Try to figure him out, or even what he is about. Good luck. You'll need it.

What are you doing right now?

Nothing. I'm drinking Coors Light--trying to break the ice.

Where are you, in Canada?

Yeah. I'm in Calgary right now. I'm on a Circa tour. Last stop is tomorrow; we're going to Vancouver.

How's that?

Pretty good. I got a broken wrist right before I came on so I've been kind of iffy throughout. It's only four demos, so it's been pretty mellow.

What do you do when you can't skate on tours?

I go out with the posse and roll around. I just can't really try anything.

Let's get down to brass tacks: You down with Smolik's Skatemafia?

Oh fuck yeah! I kind of grew up with a lot of those dudes that are in Skatemafia and it's San Diego--so I'm down. Fuck yeah.

What's the wildest Smolik encounter you've had?

I think on my 21st birthday. I was wasted and he tried to get me to get three hotel rooms for him and his crew.

Did you get them?

I don't think so. It was pretty funny, though.

You have a San Diego tattoo, huh? You must have a lot of SD pride.

Yeah, I definitely do. I always wanted to get one even before I turned 18, but then I ended up waiting awhile. For some reason I just love coming back to San Diego. There's no place better for me.

Did you get tattoo crazy at one point?

Yeah. The thing is I always wanted to get tattoos. As soon as I was old enough and had the money I just went for it. I went nuts for six months and then I kind of had to slow down for awhile.

What was the first one you got?

The first one was the Independent cross and heart and a freedom bird. I got those when I first moved out and turned pro and all that.

What tattoo is your favorite?

My San Diego tattoo. That is my favorite for sure.

Was it a big deal to get them on your forearms or did you not care where you got 'em?

Honestly, I never really even cared. I never really thought of it like that. I just got the ones I wanted.

Have you gotten any funny looks?

I definitely get looked at. I always have to do the secondary screening at the airport. Every time! I've never been fronted by anyone 'cause of the San Diego tattoo of anything like that, though.

Do you have any bigger tattoo plans?

Nah. I get these big ideas and then by the time it comes around to do anything about it I'm usually over it.

Do you have any tattoos you regret?

Yeah. I think my 1989 Dyers Eve. It has personal meaning that I don't want to get into, and that's the one I get asked about all the time. I never thought about it when I got the tattoo, but I put it on my forearm and now every demo I go to they ask me, "What does that mean?" I just make shit up, sometimes.

How tall are you?

I'm five-five.

Are people surprised when they see you in real life?

Yeah. I get that all the time. People think I'm bigger than I am from the videos.

Does it help you in anyway?

I don't know. I've never been tall so I've got no way of knowing.

Yeah, that makes sense. Are there ever things you think you could get onto if you were taller?

Nah. I've always been able to ollie pretty good. It doesn't seem to make any difference to me.

I know from going on photo shoots with you over the years that you're not afraid to push it with security guards and cops. What's the farthest you've ever pushed it?

I definitely have a snappy temper when it comes to authority people. When security guards cross the line of doing their job I have no problem getting into it with them. I've gotten in little scuffles here and there, pushed them, but nothing too serious.

What's the skate vibe like in San Diego these days?

It's weird. There almost isn't one, 'cause there's not a spot that everybody can just go and skate. It's almost like there's the South San Diego guys, the Osiris guys or whatever, and then all the guys up here. Up here it's just skating the Zero or DC park. Everybody just skates their own parks now. Most of the week that's it, and then you can go out on weekends. The San Diego scene's not too great right now, to tell you the truth. There's no Love park or Embarcadero where you can just go skate with everybody. I actually skate with my little brother a lot at the Zero park.

You have a brother who skates?

Yeah. He's 18. He's really good.

Does he want to pursue it like you have?

No. I don't think so. Maybe back in the day, but for now he's more into work and school.

Whose skate career do you really admire?

I always had a couple teams that I thought were really tight, but then once you hear the inside scoop you find out it's not really like that. There's never a team that's 100 percent. The only team I can think of right now is the Flip team. I like how they all stick together. Like, Zero goes through team changes non-stop. It's never a good thing when you lose riders. Flip team I've always admired. They don't care who's running the show over there. Yeah, Rowley's the man in charge, or whatever, but he doesn't give a shit. Nobody cares who's on top over there. They're just ripping and doing their thing. They're able to have that gnarly of a team and not worry about egos. Nobody has to leave so they can shine better. That's something I've always admired about them.

So you're pretty much the last guy from the original Zero squad still with the program?

Yeah.

Why, when everybody else has moved on, is staying with the program the right thing for you?

Zero's been built around me, pretty much. I've grown up with it. I've gotten the backlash that I'm Jamie's boy or whatever, but I have the same tastes as he does--graphics, clothes, colors. I've always been into it and we just keep on growing and getting better.

Who were you saddest to see go?

I think for me it was Ellington. That was the biggest hit I felt. With everybody else I was over it in a week. With Erik I was all, "No, we've got to get him back!" I think he could have made a go of it on Zero and been happy in the end. He moved up to LA and made some new friends and felt it was the right thing to do. He needed to have his friends on the team, which I understand. With Mumford, he pretty much had to leave. I expected him to leave sooner. He'd just had enough of Zero and needed to move on.

Has it ever gotten weird between you guys when someone leaves?

The only time it was like that was with Jim Greco. He and I were pretty good friends and I personally like him a lot. I saw him a month after he quit and it was like we weren't friends anymore at all. That was a weird thing, but there's no bad blood at all. When you're on a team together it's like you're forced to be friends, and when that's gone sometimes it's not the same anymore. I like Greco a lot and it sucks to not get to skate with him as much anymore.

Who would you put back on in a heartbeat?

On Zero? I don't know. I've lost connection with Zero.

Well, then who would you put on Mystery? An ex-Zero rider?

Ellington--no doubt about it.

Yeah, he's good. Speaking of Ellington, what do you think of all these fools biting his shit? It's almost like a cottage industry!

Ah dude! They're trippin'! I definitely see it. Ellington's an interesting dude and I guess people just kind of latch onto that. The shit be does, it's sick and he has his own flavor.

When did your skate career start improving your luck with the ladies? Did you go from nerd to player when your ad came out?

Honestly, everything started happening for me after Misled Youth. The first video was cool and the kids liked it, but I don't think people really paid that much attention. After Misled Youth my entire career changed, it kind of put everybody's name on the map.

With the ladies?

Yeah. Everything, with the ladies too.

Speaking of, let's hear the real deal with this Avril Lavigne situation.

There's nothing whatsoever with that. She wore my shoes a few times on TV and it started all these rumors that I was hooking up with her.

Didn't you talk to her on the phone?

Uh-mm, no.

What? You told me you did!

No. Nope. Never happened.

Hmm. I see. Under what conditions do you lie to people?

I just feel really awkward with people sometimes, so anything I can say to alleve that I'll do it.

Me too.

It's tough to say, but I do it all the time.

Who would make a good 2004 Skater of the Year?

Jon Allie.

Yeah, he's good.

I've got my vote on fuckin' Allie.

Is he the biggest nerd on the Zero team?

Nah. He used to be. He's a grown man now. Allie's shook that nerd shit.

You ever dropped acid?

Nah.

What's the harshest drug you've ever taken?

I've taken mushrooms. I've taken 'em twice.

Were you trippin' balls?

The first time was great. I thought I was James Hetfield--full trip-out. The second time was a nightmare. I'll never touch 'em again.

What happened?

They started kicking in and I decided I didn't want to be doing it. I was kind of hesitant and then I wanted to back out after I'd already taken them.

That's the recipe for a bad trip.

It was me fighting off psychoness. You know how people lose their minds and end up on bus benches talking to themselves? That's what I was thinking about the whole time, that I was gonna be that dude.

What are you good at besides skating?

I'm a pretty decent golfer, I guess. But other than that not much. I don't do a whole lot.

I know your friend Lee Dupont is always putting bans on people and restaurants and what not. Do you ever put the ban on people?

No, but I get banned all the time. Mumford, Skin--everybody bans me.

What do you do to get the ban?

Just be a complete flake. Not show up at people's birthdays, good shit like that.

Why do you do that?

Honestly, with Mumford, I was dressed up to go to the fucking boat party. He rented a party boat and I was fully ready to go, dressed up and everything, and then my fucking anxiety kicks in. Will I have fun? What if I want to get off the boat? Will I be trapped and freak out? I've got problems, you know. So I flake out and end up getting banned. Sorry everybody. I wanted to go but then I couldn't do it. I just stayed home.

Who's your favorite vert skater?

Bucky.

He's your next door neighbor, huh?

Yeah. Bucky's sick. I don't know if you'd call what Danny Way does vert, but it's pretty much the gnarliest thing in skateboarding right now.

What kind of pets do you have?

I have two dogs and a turtle. I have a Saint Bernard and chocolate Lab.

Do you talk to them?

The dogs? Fuck yeah.

Do they get bummed when you leave?

Nah, my girlfriend takes care of them She takes care of them even when I'm at home, so they don't mind.

Not being a fan of pools or mini-ramps, what do you think you'll skate when you get old?

I've thought about that. I still don't have very much tranny skill but I think I'll want to learn that later on. I don't want to try and learn with everybody ripping all around me, so maybe that'll be my project when I get old and am just skating for fun. It's not something I grew up with, but I still like it a lot.

I asked Ellington that same question and he said, "The flat ground, dude."

Yeah. I gotta get on the mini-ramp.

What would it have taken for you to take on Chad Fernandez's role in Grind the movie?

There's nothing in the world. Nothing against Chad--I think Chad's awesome--but I could never, ever do something like that.

What were the events leading up to you having your own company, Mystery?

Honestly, that happened over night. Mumford was going to do it and that didn't work out so Jamie called and pitched me on it. My first reaction was, "Fuck no! Why would I want to leave Zero?" But then the more I thought about it the more I realized my ties with Zero weren't what they used to be. The team had changed and it turned out that the dudes on Mystery were the guys I liked skating with the best anyway. Smithers and Lindsey and Dan Murphy were the guys I was closest with on the team anyway, so it worked out great, After I thought about that it was a no-brainer.

What are your responsibilities with Mystery?

I'm supposed to be creative director, which means I work on the graphics and stuff. I'm supposed to do stuff with the team but I'm kind of fucking that up. I'm not very good at that.

Are you looking for more team riders?

Yes and no. Our team is really tight so it's hard, but at the same time everybody is always looking out for the new kids.

Has becoming the boss changed your life drastically?

Not really. I'm busier. I go in the office a few days a week but I don't think of it as a drag or anything. It's good to have more to do and have greater input in the things you're involved with.

When are you the most comfortable?

Any time I'm back home I'm fine. When I can keep my own schedule and drive myself I'm perfectly comfortable. Take me out of my own element and I'm freaking out. Like with tours it makes it so I'm on someone else's schedule. I wake up at tire or six every morning. So on a tour I wake up and I can't watch TV, I can't do anything 'cause I don't have a car and then I have to wait like seven or eight hours for everybody to wake up so I can go and eat. It works against me when it comes to being on the road.

At this point Adrian freaked out, thinking the answers he was giving were not making sense and called the entire interview off. He had planned to distribute his photos to all his different sponsors for ads and catalog use and move on from there. Much like Martin Riggs in Lethal Weapon, I tried to talk him off that ledge, pleading that he "not give up," and that "the interview didn't sound as bad as his head made it out to be." I might possibly have a future in the police force because Adrian slowly stepped away from the ledge and back into this interview. You see, Adrian isn't the simplest creature to figure out. His mind indecisively flips and flops back and forth all day long on what might be just simple choices for you and I. This constant over-analyzing gives lil' old Adrian very few hours of sleep, maxing his shut-eye time to a mete four hours per night. He has been known to leave a tour early in the morn and be 30,000-feet up before the test of his tour mates would even be awake. Once he even pretended to be locked in his hotel room for hours, answering his cell phone insisting, "Please stop knocking on my hotel room door! I'm trying to sleep for a couple hours." When in actuality he was in the check-in line at Miami International Airport catching the next flight home. Or how about the time he drove late one night from San Diego to San Francisco for a two week filming trip getting into SF at 3:00 am, only to catch the 6:45 am flight right back down to sunny San Diego. For years I have known and worked with Adrian; still, after all these years I can't figure him out. I feel like I know him better than anyone, and yet, while filming for the last Zero video I never once saw where he lived. So I figured I had to get through his tough outer shell. I wanted to find out for myself just as much as tell the world who the real Adrian is. Mike Burnett tried--but failed to break through. But kids, I know something that Mikey didn't: get this guy just a bit sloppy on the brewskies and he'll be singing like a jailbird.--Lee Dupont

Lopez Interview Part 2 Interview by Lee dupont

What part of you bugged out when Burnett was asking you those last questions?

Oh, fuck. I wasn't there. My fucking mind was over-thinking every question, over-thinking every answer, over-thinking the situation, getting uncomfortable and it got too awkward and finally I was like, "I can't even answer anything right now." Like seriously, he would ask me a question and I would say a full 10 or 20 words before I even got into what my answer was. I would just be like, "Blah, blah, blah, blah--wait what was the question?" Mike had to repeat the question so many times.

It sounds good when I read it.

No man, this thing is so edited it's ridiculous. Those were all like two-minute answers into 10 words.

Is that just because you are being interviewed or is that everyday life for you?

No, it's just being interviewed. It's sketchy, because how often are you sat down and asked 20 questions on the spot?

What about when you go in for something like a home loan or doing taxes, don't they ask a bunch of questions for those?

Naw, that's all standard procedure. Everybody has to deal with that. Wait, actually I kind of bug out. Anyways, enough with these questions. Let's get four more questions and call it a wrap. I mean, I don't want to say too much shit anyway.

All right, have you ever been in a completely uncomfortable situation and had absolutely no way to get out of it?

No. No such thing.

Are you going to get married soon?

Uh ... next question. Let's not ask stupid shit. Don't try to put me on blast. All these other questions were all industry bullshit questions. Let's get to some personal stuff.

What do you mean? I just asked you ...

... Well, not "personal" personal.

What do you do to get out of situations business-wise, like if someone needs you over at Mystery of Circa?

Usually I tell 'em I'm filming. Who's going to argue with that?

How do you balance being a complete freak and a company owner, boss, mentor, and role model for all the other riders?

I don't know; l can get down to business when I really need--fuck, let's skip that question. Those are all good questions but lets get some funny shit in here. Like I don't want to explain a bunch of stuff. It'll get too long and I'll start stuttering. So, uh, what happened to Mike's questions where you'd just say one word of some shit?

Oh, you mean word association?

Yeah.

Okay, since Lenny Rivas is calling me right now, Lenny Rivas.

Oh really.

No that's your first one, Lenny Rivas.

Oh fuck. Weed.

Baby Ice.

No more tours.

Backside tailslides.

Too many.

Diego.

The Butcher?

No, "San,"

Oh, San Diego. Love.

Tim Gavin.

Hot dogs.

United.

Gold Card member. Upgrade please!

Fuck, I think that's enough questions. Let's get one big ender question. Okay, what's next for you and Circa?

We've got a video we are working on and I got a new shoe coming out.

What's that one called?

The video or the shoe? The shoe is the AL805 coming out, boys.

Is it better than the last one?

It is basically like the last one but with a bunch of upgrades.

Same price?

Yep ... No, it's more expensive. This interview is a wrap.