Throwback Thursday: PROTO Team Rider: Dylan Kasson

Talk about a throwback.. Dylan joined Proto over 6 years ago, and this video came out around 2009. It was a hit when it dropped, and it really opened peoples eyes when it came to Dylan's riding. I'm sure Dylan doesn't like this video, but I know a lot of people, including myself, still do. Now a days Dylan rides for Tilt, after making the hard decision to leave his sponsor of over 6 years, Proto. I'm interested to see how riding for Tilt will affect Dylan's riding. They apparently have a lot of new products coming out in the near future.

Dylan Kasson - Welcome to Tilt

Yep, the rumors are true.  Dylan Kasson recently swooped a spot on the Tilt team after leaving Proto.  He's always been a part of the crew, be it from riding in California with Tyler, Erik, Monky, and Josh, or in the Midwest with Josh, Tom, and myself, so it was really a no-brainer.  His welcome edit is SD footage from over the past year.  Word on the street is that he has an HD part as well, to be released as a full part in Tilt 2.

Inside the City: Columbus

Columbus is the capital of the great state of Ohio.  It has had a small scene for a number of years, centering around Westerville skatepark.  Today there is a small but solid crew of riders hitting the streets around the area.  I recently spent a week there myself for a filming trip, and we decided to film an Inside the City to show everyone what a day downtown would be like.  While the downtown area itself isn't very large or rich with spots, the surrounding neighborhoods are packed with more spots than you can hit in a week.  It's always a good time in Columbus so if you ever get the chance to visit, I suggest you do so.

Dylan Kasson: Satori x Sky High

Living in the wintry Midwest, Dylan can't always film out in the streets.  So, for this video to mark Satori's move to being sold exclusively through Sky High, he went to his local indoor and got some clips.  Good clips, I might add.  Oh and he's also on the Sky High team, this is kind of an intro video to announce that too.

Throwback Thursday: PROTO Team Rider Dylan Kasson

Having been in the sport as long as I have, I've had the privilege of seeing some riders who were just starting out, and are now some of the best in the world. Dylan is one of those riders, and his start was no easy one. He faced a lot of adversity over his opinions and thoughts on the sport and the riders in it, and in his early years his riding was nothing to marvel over. That all seemed to change really fast though. It almost felt like Dylan was feeding off the people bashing him, and just started progressing crazily. For me, it was this edit that came out around 4 years ago where I just couldn't ignore Dylan's skill anymore. I still enjoy watching this edit from time to time.

Dylan Kasson Satori

That's right, Dylan is off Boxes and on Satori now.  This is all footage from over the past year.  As usual, be on the lookout for more Satori promos, still several more coming down the pipe.

Proto Scooters- Armageddon 2012- Part 7: Dylan Kasson

Dkass had the ender part in Catalyst, and the question on everyone's mind was whether or not he would claim that spot again in Armageddon.  Turned out he had the 2nd to last part, with Chema, riding on the momentum he'd gained from being in the states, taking the banger section.  Anyway, Dylan's part is good so you should watch it.

Half A Decade in Scootering- An Interview with Dylan Kasson

Dylan Kasson, pro rider for Proto, Boxes, and Freestyle Depot, has been riding scooters for a really long time.  In addition to riding, he has also been a photographer for a long time.  Since he was first sponsored by Proto, he has been taking photos of scooter riders for a book called "Half a Decade in Scootering".  Featuring photos from 2008-2012, Dylan's project captures pro riders during their time away from the video camera, moments that the public rarely gets to see.  He already put out some sample photos, and now the book is available to buy on Blurb.  I hit him up to get the full scoop on the project, read on-

Jordan Jasa:  Your "Half a Decade in Scootering" project is something that hasn't ever really been done before.  How do you think it will be received by the community?  How does it feel knowing you're one of the only people to document the beginnings of scooter riding?

Dylan Kasson:  I know many people in the scooter community aren't art oriented, so there might be certain details that will be missed. I am not bothered by that because I know they can appreciate the legends that are part of this book. The things the people have done speak so much that the photographs wouldn't even need to be good. I am so grateful to have been accepted into a circle of the most dedicated scooter riders in the world. It is always a pleasure to document this because they deserve it.

Can you explain about the format of the book, where to purchase, how much it will cost, etc?

The book is 10x8, softcover, and one hundred fourteen pages. You can purchase it on Blurb for $60. Just type in Half A Decade In Scootering in the search bar. There are twenty photos for each year so there is a total of one hundred photos. There is text explaining what was going on in each year so the reader gets a feel for what it was like when the photos were taken.

From the photo excerpts you posted on your website, you can definitely see a progression in scooters themselves (from old A Razors to one piece decks and bigger parts all around).  Was that something you thought about?  There are few people who remember or were even around for the days before custom parts were really a thing, and I'm sure there'll be kids wondering why the people in the photos aren't riding full aftermarket setups.

I always knew it was important to be taking photos of what was going on when I was around the scooter guys. I knew the scooters would look completely different and they will look completely different than they do now in the future. 

So like I said, the scooters progressed, tricks progressed, the sport in general progressed.  Do you think your photography progressed?  I know your camera of choice has, how many different cameras were used over the five years?

My photography has changed. Towards the beginning I was taking a lot of traditional riding photos but then I sold all my flashes and that type of gear and wanted to pursue lifestyle work. I wasn't interested in taking riding photos anymore because there wasn't any thinking involved. I don't have anything against scooter photographers they are a necessity and do a great job, I just didn't want to sit under a handrail all day. My camera setup reached the peak in 2011 when I started using a 35mm point and shoot camera mainly. This was the perfect camera for what I was doing. It was quick and easy, and I had one with a high quality lens so the photos were always sharp. I maybe have gone through ten cameras throughout this project, mostly film. I only shoot digital now though (since the beginning of 2013).

When you're taking a photo of a person, or scooter rider, is there a message you're trying to portray?  Do you just randomly point the camera at someone, or do you wait until just the right moment to get the shot?

I want to show how they are and how scootering is in that moment. Most riders are uncomfortable around me at first because they don't know what I am taking pictures for. In the beginning people would ask and I would say I was working on a five year project about the history of scootering. They couldn't grasp that back then and neither could I. Eventually when they realized I was working on projects they completely loosened up and me taking pictures is like I am not taking pictures, just hanging out with them and riding. There inst any posing anymore. Once people see this book they will realize even more what I was going for. There are certain people that I enjoy working with because they are so easy to photograph. They just naturally present moments and then allow you to photograph them. There are re occurring people in the book and these are the people I came to be most comfortable with.

How many different riders do you think are featured?  Drop some names for the hype.

Matt Dibble, Max Caldwell, Alex Peasley, Andrew Broussard, Elmer Ferreiras, Jon Reyes, Stevon Wilson, Brandon Kilbury, Tyler Bonner, Dan Barrett, Greg Cohen, Steven Sanchez, John Mattes, Alex Steadman, Corey MIggs, Tommy Napolitan, Aj Storcella, Steven Sanchez, Brian Murphy, Anthony Bustos, Eric Magray, Evan Yamada, Tyler Wheeland, Brandon Ricabono, Josh Young, Matt Mckeen, Tommy Daddano, Jackson Manzie, Aaron Bransdon, Stefan Hefner, Robert Mcmoran, Conor Davidson, Eric Ostrom, Addison Mcnaughton, James Gee, Blake Bailor, Chema Cardenas, Jon Zegarra, Jon Knudston, Issac Miller, Jordan Jasa, Thomas Obadia, Javier Trepat, George Louis, Jeff Mroz, Jon Archer, Kirk Svenson, Matt Rittler, and Colin Snoek. They have all impacted scootering in some way and me as a scooter rider. Everyone of these people I thought was so important that I needed to document them.

So you wanted to document the early history of the sport.  Do you ever get bummed because there weren't many people to document what you were doing?  Do you wish there were more photos of you when you had your wild mane of a beard?  Cause I do (hahaha).

I have plenty photos of myself. I am always weird when it comes to publishing them in projects because I haven't taken them. I feel bad for calling them my own. I am working on another project called the scooter camera which is a lot more personalized than this, but I would like to think you can feel my presence when interacting with these people in the book. I am known through the videos and photos of riding scooters and that is what is important to me. When it comes to my personal projects that I create I usually don't include myself.

You've been a ton of different places to ride.  What are some areas that are featured?

New York, California, Ohio, Australia, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, Arizona, and Pennsylvania.

Would you ever make single photos available for print?

I already have some of the images printed out much larger than the book, and am always willing to make prints of any of my photos available for print at any size.

Where do you think you'll be in the next five years?  You going to make another "Half Decade in Scootering"?

I have kept on shooting in 2013 so I am just going to keep going. This is still important to me. I don't know where it will take me, maybe another history book. I am looking to start doing this commercially for scooter magazines because I haven't seen it done well. I did some photos for the first issue of Dialed and I felt like it really tied the whole article together about San Francisco with the riding photos somebody else shot. So if any magazines are looking for some unique content that non riding photographers couldn't get, let me know.

Lets wrap it up.  Anything else you'd like to add/thanks/shoutouts?

PROTO scooters, Boxes Limited, Freestyle Depot, Hella Grip, Tilt, Hooks n Eyes, and ADVCT. All of my friends have good companies. Thanks to everyone who was in this book it was such a pleasure to photograph you. Without the riders scootering wouldn't be the unique, exciting thing it is.

Once again, if you missed the link to buy the book, get it on Blurb.

Dylan Kasson- Half A Decade in Scootering

Dylan Kasson, in addition to being a rad scooter rider, is an equally rad photographer.  Over the past six years, he has been collecting photos of scooter riders throughout his travels.  He is coming out with a book of these photos, including 20 for each year since 2008.  He put up five from each year on his website for the internet to view.  There's a lot of history to be seen, check it out for a glimpse of what the early Proto days were like, to some highlights from last year.

Note:  This is not to be confused with the Scoot Camera project, which is still going strong.

Dylan Kasson Streets of Chrome Photo Contest

Proto/Boxes/FD rider Dylan Kasson is also a super good photographer, and is in this contest to win a sweet new camera.  Click the above picture (his entry) or this link to go to the website where you can vote.  It's on a 1-10 scale, so you can vote his picture a 10 or 8 or whatever you want, preferably a 10 so he has a better chance of winning.

PROTO Scooters - Dylan Kasson Armageddon B-Sides

These B-Sides are kinda creeping me out.  Makes me wonder what the actual DVD will be like, are we gonna see the team walking around like zombies at the end?!?  Judging from these clips Dylan wouldn't have a problem surviving the zombie apocalypse, he'd just hop over them haha.  Hyped for his part for sure.

Dylan Park Clips for Boxes Limited

Yeah, Dylan loves the Park.

Check out these clips he got for Boxes Limited.

Freestyle Depot- Introducing Dylan Kasson

 Thats right, Kassonova got on FD, joining Tyler Wheeland and Stefan Hefner.  No big surprise there really.  No big surprises with the footage either, just straight up shredding like we've come to expect from Dylan.  Except maybe the clip at :28, going hard on the stairsets haha.  Cannot wait for his Proto Armageddon part, which I've heard is completely done already.




Visit www.FreestyleDepot.com for all your scooter related needs.
www.freestyledepot.com
www.facebook.com/freestyledepot
2460 South Santa Fe Ave. Suite B Vista, CA 92083
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New Proto Wheels at FreestyleDepot

FD recently got some new Proto wheels in, including new Dylan Kasson Sig Wheels. Check em out on the flyer below, and head over to FD to grab some.

www.freestyledepot.com

Boxes Update + New Dylan Kasson Boxes Promo

Boxes Limited apparel is proud to release it's newest offering of product. Highlights include the new Dylan Kasson signature tee, Matt McKeen's signature Street Pirate graphic now available on a regular t-shirt as well as the 3/4 baseball tee, and our Catcher hoodie which is made out of lightweight t-shirt material!

to view all product details, visit www.BOXESltd.com and don't forget to check out their facebook for up to date content! www.facebook.com/BOXESltd

The Almanac East Coast Tour Edition

The Almanac East Coast Tour Edition from Proto Scooters on Vimeo.



"Dylan Kasson went to New York City to film for the next PROTO DVD with Elmer Ferreiras. After New York Dylan, Elmer, and Greg Cohen tripped down to Richmond, Virginia to ride with Matt Mckeen. This video is behind the scenes from the real filming. Filmed with a iPhone4 and a Flip Ultra HD."

The Almanac #9

the almanac #9 from Dylan on Vimeo.


DK's latest videoblog finally dropped.  This one contains me wallriding a snow plow, an appearance by the infamous Yemish, and Andrew Broussard jumping a motorcyle (well, not exactly but you'll see what I mean when you watch it).  Dylan spent his spring break filming on the east coast so you can expect another almanac with more scooter rider antics soon.

Dylan Kasson's Scooter Camera.

Dylan Kasson:  Scooter rider or 50's farmhand?
Photo by Tom Hoying.

 Proto and Boxes rider Dylan Kasson, in addition to being a really good scooter rider, happens to be an awesome photographer. He's been doing photography for quite a few years, and even goes to school at the Columbus College of Art and Design for photography (but will be transferring to a new school next fall). He has his own website (dylankasson.com) that showcases some galleries of photos he's taken. His latest project involves photography and scooters, and you can follow its progress at http://scootcamera.tumblr.com/. I was fortunate enough to be the first to participate in it. But what exactly is it? I asked Dylan to shed some light on the endeavor.


Jordan Jasa:  So what exactly is this "Scoot Camera" project you are working on?

Dylan Kasson:  I am sending a camera around the world to scooter riders. They will take two photos and then ship it on to the next person. During the downtime on scooter trips all of my friends that scooter are really distant from each other. The only thing really connecting us is the internet. I want to bring a more physical aspect of it. There is a large, but close knit community that are called scooter riders. With this project I can use all of their combined effort into creating something great. I want to bring together scooter riders across the world. With this it doesn't even have to be in person. I can unite people through one common goal.

Can you explain how you got the idea for this project?

I saw somebody do it on a online forum called skateperception, but not to this extent.


Can you tell me about the camera being used? Anything special about it?

It is a Olympus Stylus Epic loaded with Kodak Portra 400 35mm film. I didn't want to choose that crappy of a camera but also not too nice of a camera. If it gets beat up I am not too worried but it can still produce quality images.

The Scooter Camera.

How are the camera's recipients chosen?

Most of them are people I am close friends with. I don't trust a random person with the camera because if they mess it up all the work is ruined. If a random person contacts me I do background research before I send it to them. If there are a lot of people in the same area I try to choose whoever it seems like could take the best quality photos. I don't want to give the camera to 5 people in one area because they would all take pictures of the same thing. I am trying to cover the whole entire world so I cant be wasting my time in one place. If you feel like you are able to participate send me a email at dylankasson@gmail.com

How long do you anticipate the project to last?

At first I thought I was just going to do one roll of film but I realized its going to take a lot more than that. Its not that the project is moving slowly, everybody who has got the camera has been able to shoot and ship it to the next person within one week. If this schedule can be kept with the list of 20+ people it will be a long time. Something like this cant possibly be done quick.

When the camera has returned to you, what are you going to do with the photos?

Definitely put them up on my website. This project is for scooter riders, not for me. Whatever everybody that participated in it wants to do I will do. If that is a gallery showing of it, then I will do that.

Nothing like this has really been done in scooters. Do you think the idea/blog will catch on?

Hopefully the feeling of unity will catch on. Things like this cant be done by many people because it would be the same idea. I am just trying to give back to scootering in a way nobody has done before. I make video parts to give back and promote scootering. This is just another thing I am glad to do for it.
 ____________________________________________________________________________

 Also check out the Almanac videos interview Dylan did with us. And once again, track the Camera's progress through its tumblr.

Boxes Limited - Recycled

Boxes decided to toss up all the promos into one big edit. Now that's how you recycle. So sick to see the whole Team riding in one edit. Really makes you understand how well represented Boxes Limited is. Great watch.

Dylan Kasson "The Almanac" Interview

It started about a year ago, and all it took was a Flip camera. That was when Dylan started producing the Almanac videos. Since then he has built quite the following of people that enjoy watching the videos, and it's only continuing to grow. To be able to get an inside look at some of the stuff these guys get into is almost impossible to not enjoy. I recently caught up with Dylan Kasson to discuss The Almanac.







So when did you decide to start doing videos like this? Was there any
specific reason?

Dylan: I saw a lot of people in the skateboard world doing it. Mainly a photographer named Joe Brook. He would make edits with a point and shoot camera every time he would go on filming trips with skate teams. They were called fatbacks. These videos were so interesting because I feel like most people are sort of "actors" when they have video parts, even with the lifestyle footage it is highly glamorized so it is nice to see the absolute truth.

Yeah dude, I really get that last part. Now for those who don't know what are all these videos filmed with?

Dylan: They are filmed with a standard definition and high definition flip
camera and a iphone 4.

I feel like these videos show a different side to the sport. A lot of the
riders featured in the videos are known for being some of the sports top
riders, yourself included. Though in the videos, you get to see everyone
pretty much just chilling, and get a better feel for who they are. Would you
say that's true?

Dylan: Yes of course. Even though we take filming real clips very seriously,
there has to be enjoyable moments in between. But when the real
cameras come out its a completely different attitude.

The first ever Flip video Dylan made.

california flip cam edit from Dylan on Vimeo.

We see a lot of Tyler Wheeland, Yourself, and Alex Steadman in the
videos. You guys are all obviously pretty close friends, how fun is it to
get together with these guys and film some of these clips?

Dylan: We all just work so well together. Whenever I go out west if it is
that crew I get so much stuff done and have the funnest time possible.

There have been a lot of riders featured in the various different Almanac
videos. From Jordan Jasa, Josh Young, and Tommy Daddano, to Lil Jon, Evan
Yamada, and even Jackson Manzie. Are there any guys that you want to get
into the Almanac videos in the future? Or is it more of a, "Whoever I'm
with at that time" kind of thing?

Dylan: It is more whoever I am with. I don't take these edits to the point
that I would seek things out to be in them. That is what makes them
good, the lack of planning at all.

The Almanac #5 Midwest Style

the almanac #5 from Dylan on Vimeo.

While these videos aren't as popular right now, they are definitely going
to be soon, and already are with a lot of people. What do you think it is
about videos that just honestly show a bunch of randomness from various
people, that have people so interested?

Dylan: I think one of the only reasons is that a lot of people look up to the
people in the video so if they put out any type of video whether it be
riding or not people are going to watch it. It is hard to understand
why some things in the videos are funny because they are inside jokes
only the people in the video know, but I mostly make the videos so we
can all look back on it and laugh.

In one of these we get to see you shoot some guns. And there have been
quite a few other moments, where you had to have been glad you had the
camera on you. Do you just keep it on you at all times? And have there been
any moments that you wished you would have had it on you, but didn't?

Dylan: I carry my flip camera everywhere with me. Absolutely no exceptions.
When I am in California we have multiple backup flip cams because we
have smashed a few. When it is dark out I switch to my iPhone because
it has a light on it.

Since this is about to get posted up on ISB, would you be stoked, or not
stoked at all, to see kids start imitating or creating their own "Almanac"
style videos?

Dylan: They already have. When I was at the San Diego competition this year
some little 12 year old kid came up to me and told me he loved the
almanac edits. This blew me away because I thought me and the people
who were in the edits were the only people that watched them. I like
to watch other peoples edits though. It is cool to see something
inspired by something I started and then people build on that. I think
my only concern is one that people have about my videos, they don't
understand some of the jokes but that is inevitable. I know Jordan
Jasa makes some good flip cam edits for sure though.

Damn dude that's sick. Do you got any last words you want to say to anyone who has watched, or is about to start watching these videos?

Dylan: Don't take these seriously they are made for a good laugh.

The Almanac #8 West Coast Style (4:16 - 4:27 TWhee = lol)

the almanac #8 from Dylan on Vimeo.

Dude I don't know about you guys, but I kind of want to dig up my old Flip cam and go film a bird or something. Keep checking Inside-Scooters for all future Almanac videos, cause we will be posting all new videos as soon as they drop, here on ISB.