1) We have many members who have been through injury like yourself is there any advice you would give to wakeboarders who have no injuries as of yet? (NOT A JINX)
---------------------Ya! You lucky bastards just wait!!!! hahaha just kidding.... actually I wish I had heard this question answered a long time ago from a pro athlete. I never took injuries seriously until one happened to me. I never worked out, stretched or took time off when something hurt or didnt feel right. I have been in this biz long enough now to tell you that EVERYONE (if you participate in this sport long enough) will eventually have some sort of injury due to wakeboarding, wether it be very serious or somewhat minor. a minor injury could easily turn into a huge injury if its not taken care of. for example say you pulled your hamstring and its tight and all of a sudden you land in a position where your hamstrings get stretched to the max, most likely you are going to tear your hamstring even more, and worse case scenario you tear it completely since it was tight from you pulling it a couple days ago. then a torn hamstring could lead to a torn acl since your hamstrings are what keep your knee joints stable. this is actually the exact same situation that i dealt with in 2003.
2) Ok what is your current hair style? Spike, Flair, Rocket, or Punk Fucking Rock.
-----------------------hahahaha, I currently am rocking the usual... billy idol, punk rock, spikey hair, steez. but i do like to switch it up. I think people where probably really thrown off when they saw my new oakley ad where I had my hair all laying down.
3) Boat Speed time. You ride at a faster speed than most humans, so is riding at a higher rate of speed make the day go by faster? Do you sometimes find yourself in the future given your extraordinary riding speed?
-----------------------------Thats a funny question, it's a really weird experience. first off I ride whatever speed is good for my 90 feet of rope, so that varies behind different boats. secondly the cutting into the wake and the landings are generally all in fast motion where as all the time in between those 2 things (when I am in the air) are in super slow motion. so its kind of a delicate balance that actually cancel each other out and allow me to remain here in the present instead of shooting into the future everytime I ride.......if that happened then when I did clinics people would probably get really pissed off and be like "oh great! he has gone and done it again! how are we supposed to enjoy this if he is already into tomorrow?!" and plus it would probably make me age alot quicker, and that would suck.
4) Yeah so I’ve been a lurker on the YO Blog almost as much as I have been on yours. Are you up for a new Team of Rippers in the Industry? What are your thoughts on Justin’s progression into the wakeboarding industry?
-------------------------Well now that I just got your text back letting me know what "YO" blog means. (haha sorry justin, I didnt know.) Justin is one of my best friends and his vision on wakeboarding is awesome! I wish him nothing but the best with his new ventures into the wake industry! I remember him talking to me on the phone a LOOOOOONG time ago when I had just gotten "F'd" over by j-star telling me how rad it would be if he created his own board company and how it could change so many things when it comes to how board companies treat their athletes. Justin is pretty much the BIGGEST reason why I am riding for Liquid Force today! When he was the main video guy for Liquid Force he was always dropping little bombs in Don Wallace and Aaron Graces ear being like "Lyman is on the market now" and also "Lyman would be such a great fit on the team" and lucky for me Liquid listened and acted on it! I accredit Justin and Benny G for helping me get on board with Liquid and obviously I am thankful that Liquid Force gave me a chance and finally ended up signing me in '07'! Things have been going really well with Liquid Force, they have built me my own pro model board and it has been selling like hot cakes!
5) You dirrrty Rail Gaper. In Push Process the W2W2R….like that- WakeTwoWakeRail jump was off the charts HOT so do you have any plans to get back in that game anytime soon?
--------------------------Lets just say wait for the Wakeboarding Magazine Awards show -there might be some more hammers done on that rail that will be super fresh, just in time for the WBM awards.
6) I think I read this in Alliance, but a reader had the idea of you and Randall going head to head in a death match…I know Randall is a huge influence on you and your riding so what do you think?
----------------------------Randy is my only true idol left standing, as a rider AND as a person! That kid is seriously like a god to me. that might seem a little weird but its true. he has been riding as well as he currently does for YEARS! He was doing it even before I knew what wakeboarding was! If something like this were to go down I wouldn't view it as a "death match" to be honest that kid has some VERY hammer stuff that i dont have........YET! It would be more like an honor to do some sort of compilation with him. I have gotten the privilege to ride with him this past year out in Canyon Lake. Watching that kid ride inspired me so much more than any video I have ever seen. Watching him in real life is like going to an air show and watching F-18s fly around. Your just like "WHAT THE FUUUUUUUUUUhumnahumnahumna"!??
7) Would you consider ATL your second home? We will let you…hahaha. Did you enjoy the season opener here in Georgia?
-----------------------------HAHAHAHA, well I hardly make it up to ATL but I definitly am a huge fan of it! There are some AMAZING lakes up there! Oh and did I mention that AMBUSH is there?! Ya! They kick ass! GO BUSH! hahahaha...........ya the first stop this year was really rad! I didn't compete in it because i'm coming off my knee surgery but the amount of fans who came out to that was AMAZING! Thanks for making that what it was fans!
8) There are plenty of good riders on their way up the ladder who do not know about the sponsorship game…can you help them to understand one good thing that a sponsor can do for them?
---------------------------------Well, sponsors have athletes by the nuts and they know it! They could make or break someone as easily as how many ads they decide to put them in. Marketing is a HUGE thing for new riders. If a company really wants you they will take care of you with money AND marketing but dont settle for just whatever. If you are passionate about wakeboarding pick your top 2 companies and work your ass off to get recognized by them and let them know that you want to rep their stuff. NEVER EXPECT ANYTHING!!!!! The second you do, is the second you don't deserve a thing! Stay humble and show respect to the people who have been there before you!
9) Ok so there is a ABC/Liquid Force -Exclusive -Grind Base -Bad To The Bone -Keith Lyman board in my office right now that will never be mine how does it feel to have Two? How STOKED is it that only a few people in the WORLD will have one?
-----------------------------------------Well I sure as hell better have at least 2! They have my name on them! hahaha just playing. Ya I'm really stoked that Chuck and Liquid Force came together on that! What a rad idea! Everyone knows how saturated the "limited" products are but this is genuinely limited. Only 12 have been made and there will never be another batch made or sold again! I have 2 and 1 of them will be GIVIN away as a prize and the other 9 will be available on buywake.com and bought by some lucky kids! It really will be a true classic, because I am not planning on going anywhere anytime soon!
10) So Shawn Murray and Corey Bradley are both Members of ATLwake.com when will you grace us with your words of wisdom?
----------------------------------------ummmmmmm I dont do chat forums. there are A LOT of negative people out there and I don't need to read some of that crap they drop on some of those forums. however I have gotten e-mails from Don Wallace at Liquid Force and other people like Murray and Travis Moye and Benny G telling me to check out some chat forums because people have been posting some really nice things about either myself or just good positive words about wakeboarding on some of those things and thats rad! I mean I know and realize that there needs to be some criticism thrown out there but I just dont want to hear it. thats all. I have been known to respond to some issues that come from chat forums on my websites blog.
Thanks again Keith for doing the interview now it's Shout Out time:
-----------------------------Well I really want to thank my fans! And I would like to think that I have some of the most loyal fans. You guys are what helped me to be as big of a name as I am today! Thank you Justin Stephens and Benny G for being my 2 best friends! Not many people understand a ADHD kid and you guys have had my back since day one! Thank you Shaun Murray and Travis Moye for helping me thru REALLY tough times and Gerry Nunn for letting me ride at your house when I didnt have a boat sponsor.......OH WAIT! I STILL DONT HAVE A BOAT SPONSOR! but thank you for letting me buy your boat so I can at least pretend I have one! I need to give HUGE props to Matty Swanson and Oakley for having my back thru EVERYTHING since '03'! and Liquid Force for picking me up and providing me with a "home"! Chuck at Ambush! Thank you for having my back thru everything since 02! and hopefully the other companies I ride for will continue to support me for a long time to come: XCEL wetsuits, Kicker, and Straightline..................AND BOAT COMPANIES, IF YOU WANT ME TO HELP YOU MAKE YOUR BOATS "LYMAN PROOF" LOOK ME UP!...........................Thanks ATLwake for letting me vent! hahahaha
