Matthew Roberts
I was born in Palm Springs, California. Raised by my mother and father in Palm Desert, California. I have two brothers, one older and one younger. I was athletic from the moment I was born; I love all kinds of sports and activities. I started playing soccer 4 days a week at age 5 until sophomore year in high school. I am interested in and willing to play any sport. I started skating short boards at the age of 9. After three years of jumping down stairs and off ledges, street skating just didn’t appeal to me any more so I quit. I lost focus and interest in high school, quit soccer and baseball and found myself ditching school and getting into trouble. Sophomore year I was kicked out of Palm Desert High School and later attended San Cayetano Community School where I was kicked out again for tardiness and truancies. After bouncing from school to school I went on to get my high school diploma from Amistad High School, located in Indio, California. After high school I took some classes at College of the Desert while working nights at the Haus of Pizza as a dishwasher.
I got my first longboard Christmas of 2007 courtesy of my mother. It all started out on Mat Stevens’ hill. We would ride down carving back and forth; trying to go fast without killing ourselves. A few months later, we saw a video where kids would have their hands down sliding on their longboards and that’s when the gloves came into play. When the gloves were introduced to me that’s when I think I really started longboarding. There’s a thrill I get out of sliding sideways. It’s almost like spinning out of control while still controlling the board and your body- if that makes any sense – not to mention the ability to slow down or stop while traveling at high speeds. When I got my first pair of gloves I found myself bombing down Highway 74 in Palm Desert, trying to catch as much speed as I can. My favorite places to skate locally are Highway 74, Suicide Hill (the name speaks for itself) and Racquet Club Drive in Palm Springs. I’m looking forward to riding hills all over the country with sk8rMike and sk8rWrek. My favorite board is a px2 from Powerhouse Roadboards although I would like to hop on a px1 for a while. It seems easier to slide with a shorter board, while the longer board provides more stability at high speeds.
