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October 28, 2008
The PLG Interview
Words: Ian Michna
Hailing from Montréal, Pierre has been shredding contests for the last decade and has a shopping list like array of medals to prove it. Recently claiming Gold at X Games Vert and 1st at The Maloof Money Cup, Pierre has been keeping Verts elite good company. For PLG, it seems like contests are just another way of naturally expressing himself on a skateboard. With super consistent runs, filled with Technical Street wizardry, Pierre is always a force to be reckoned with.
Currently living with the indestructible Jake Brown in California, I had a chance to call up PL for a quick phone interview. Fresh off the plane, we talked about the Megaramp, [almost] lighting his house on fire and the most recent Dew Tour stop, where he copped 2nd place.
Congrats on 2nd place at Dew Tour Salt Lake City this weekend. Are you satisfied with your performance?
Umm, I mean it was alright. It could’ve been better. I fell on the first two runs and sort of had to play it safe on the third run. I was in 5th place and I only had one run left. I was like. Play it sort of safe and get top 3 [pauses], or go with the banging run where I take a lot more chances. But I mean I played it safe and Andy Macdonald beat me by quarter of a point. It kinda sucks being beat by Andy Mac [laughs].
I guess that’s good for him. I haven’t seen him up there for a while
Well yeah, exactly. You know I’m happy for him; he has never won a Dew Tour. In four years of stops he’s never won.
I just wish I would have pulled the safety run on the first or second run then I could have one or two more chances to step it up and do a more banging run. But I kept falling on stupid shit. I had to keep it safe. That’s kinda what Bob [Burnquist] did too, he kept falling and then he pulled his safety run on his final run. That’s why we ended up on 2nd and 3rd because Bob and I didn’t actually pull our full potential.
How do you put together tricks for you runs and how many tricks per run?
Runs are usually 17-18 tricks. There are different formats for each event. Maloof Money Cup was a cool format. It had a pretty funny name, called the 8 ball. The 8 Ball was basically where you had 8 tries to do an 8 wall run. So it was 8 tricks. I think that’s a lot better because each run is a lot more intense and it’s shorter. You get more tries so you can try much harder stuff.
Yeah, how does that compare to the “Jam Session” format in the Xgames?
The jam session is super cool because you get a rhythm and its nonstop skating for like 15 minutes or something like that. Each skater has several 30 second runs, which I think is really good because you’re not too tired at the end of the run. The runs are kept really short and sweet. Like intense with no fillers, just hard tricks that you want to see. Instead of three runs you get like 6 runs so you get a chance to get a lot more tries and try harder tricks.
What’s really tough is doing really hard tricks at the end of your run, because you’re pretty tired and it’s a lot harder to be sharp. That’s why shorter runs are better. You get multiple shorter runs instead of less longer runs and you get higher quality skating.
Yeah
In Dew Tour we get three runs of 45 seconds. I basically plan two or three different runs. I’ll plan like a safety run and a really good run. Safety runs have basically the same structure, same tricks, I’m just gonna replace flip tricks with airs. Like I’m going to take off really hard tricks and replace them with tricks that place you on the same place on the ramp but are much easier. Like instead of a kickflip indy I’ll just do an indy air. Instead of a switch heelflip 360 ill just do a full cab.
Well it seems like whatever you’re doing its working. Just looking at your list of accomplishments since early 2000’s its crazy. You’ve been killing it.
Yeah yeah! This year has been great with the Maloof Money Cup. It was over two days. The first day was the 8 ball which I’ve been telling you about and the second day was a jam format. The two days combine (each day 50% of your score) and the overall winner of the two days won the contest. Sort of like a golf tournament where each day counts.
Each tournament basically has different structures.
That’s like 3 different competitions, 3 different events that all have different formats. Keepin’ it fresh, yaknow.
So now you live with Jake Brown in California?
Yeah yeah!
How’s that going? That sounds huge.
Its pretty crazy living with him, you never know what to expect. He almost set my house on fire last week. It wasn’t really his fault, but it sucked because we haven’t had a burner in like a month. [laughs]
I guess the valve on the burner broke and started leaking gas for like a half hour; till he decided to light a cigarette. The whole freakin’ thing just blew up and shit and we were all on the street at three in the morning, with 4 fire trucks. Luckily there wasn’t any major damage or anything, just have to get the burner fixed. But its pretty crazy, brand new house, been there only 3 years. I don’t really blame him for that, but [laughs..] he still did it. Jakes my boy though, it’s been real fun living with him. I’ve known him for a while, one of my best friends. Pretty fun place to be at right now.
We always talk about like, what if you had 10 million dollars? What would you change. And we are like, Maybe we would buy a bigger house, but we would still live together…
But you guys are making some big checks now, with the Xgames and Dew Tour. The Maloof 1st Place was like what, $75.000?
Yeah, we are making good money, but we definitely aren’t football or baseball or anything.
You got a Megaramp in the process yet?
We are working with Monster [Energy] to build a private training facility. I’ve been working on this project for like two years now, it’s taken them forever to actually come through with the budget and location and all. Their very picky. So I don’t know when that’s actually gonna happen but it’s in the works. There’s the Megaramp at Bob’s [Burnquist]. Building a Megaramp is pretty complicated because you need land and all that stuff. We are starting with a vert ramp training facility and see where that goes.
When’s the first time you actually started riding the Megaramp?
Probably a year or two after Danny built the first Megaramp. Danny Way started riding the Megaramp. When he filmed his part for the DC video he was pretty much the only one skating it. He wanted to be the first one to come out with the video part. So he didn’t really open it to anyone else.
After the video part came out we all started going out there to skate it. He pitched the Megaramp to Xgames, and the Xgames picked it up. It’s been an Xgames event ever since.
The first time you saw it and skated it were you scared out of your mind? What were your first thoughts going through your head?
Yeah it was like pretty scary. You have to be prepared mentally before you go there. You can’t be half stepping. You have to know when you get there its going to be scary. That should be expected. Be prepared and go for it. You cant really back down and let it drag like “oh, ill be back next time”. Next time, you will be just as scared, it’s not gonna change anything.
Like the rest of skateboarding, hesitation just makes it worse.
Exactly, you just want to do it and get it over with as soon as possible.
What’s your Megaramp board setup?
I ride an 8.5 wide board with a giant 16 and a half inch wheelbase. The average street board has like as 14 inch wheelbase. My vert has a 15 inch wheelbase and the Megaramp wheelbase is 16 1/2. So it’s a lot longer and wider. It feels like riding a mini snowboard on wheels. But down the 70’ ramp your going like 45 miles an hour, so you definitely want something really stable that’s not gonna get speed wobbles and shit.
I read in an interview from a couple of years ago that said you were married, but now your single or what?
I was married for a while, for about 18 months, but it didn’t work out. So yeah, the article you read that in was probably from around 2005.
What about future plans? Keep doing what your doing?
Actually sorry,.[laughs] I’m not single right now. I’m living with someone.. I’m on speaker phone… she’s in the room [laughs]
How did you meet her?
Danny Way was performing down at one venue with his band Excalera in San Diego, and I was there to watch him play. She was there because one of her friends was also performing. There definitely weren’t too many hot girls there. I saw her and she was one of the few ones, so I’m like, shit I gotta go talk to her. Just went up, said whatsup and we started seeing each other after that. She lives with me now.
Cool. Well thanks again for the time you took for the interview. Any last minute shout outs or advice?
Thanks to all my sponsors, my parents in Montréal; who I don’t see that often. My girlfriend Denise for sure and our two dogs. Yeah man that’s pretty much it. Have fun skating, be original and creative and enjoy what you’re doing!
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