In the mid 2000's, Myspace was everything. It was the first internet platform that dominated our lives, and its influence bled into almost every part of culture, skateboarding being no exception. Myskate, a Minneapolis video that capitalized on the ubiquity of the proto-social network, didn't just have a unique gimmick – it was also a really good video.

Upon realizing that it's been 10 years since the video's release, we decided to catch up with the video's creators, David Fink and Kevin Chartrand, to get the inside story on how Myskate came about.

So, why a Myspace-themed skate video?

David Fink:
So back in early 2006, I moved into a skate house and we were out filming every day. We began compiling footage and naturally wanted to make a skate video. I can’t recall exactly how the concept came about, but MySpace was all the rage at this time. I remember having some convo with Dan Narloch at 3rd Lair one day about doing a video and I feel like the idea sparked then. From there, the details just flowed and we created a theme around it. There’s a good chance Kevin Chartrand could’ve imagined it too, he was behind a lot of the video’s creative. He was also really high all the time and often that’s just how these things work out.

Kevin Chartrand:
Myspace was poppin' when we were filming/editing back in 2006-07. We didn’t really have a theme for the video in early 2006, I’m fairly sure the idea came during a brainstorm sesh at the Lair. If my long term memory is still working properly, I believe it was Ian Sherman or Kyle Henkler that came up with the idea to make it Myspace themed. I was in charge of making all the titles and intro animations to go along with the theme of the video.

Who filmed with who?

KC: It was pretty much 2-3 crews of dudes. We would go out on group missions to get clips from time to time but a majority of the time Pat Dykstra and Ian Sherman would film with D-Fink or Bobby Dupre. Davis (Torgerson), Neil (Shipe), Pat (Gallaher) and Dan (Narloch) pretty much stuck together filming themselves or with Phil (Schwartz). Phil actually produced the whole Dane Vaughan / CJ Tambornino part 100% himself. CJ filmed like 7 clips on his birthday, a few months before the premier and Dane sent a bunch of his clips he got in Florida. Phil came to us with the offer to produce their part pretty much last minute, hence the “New Friend Request!” animation before it. Tom Rohrer would film with everybody pretty much.

Davis Torgerson, backside 180 nosegrind revert.

Did you guys have any idea that these guys (Davis, Dane, Pat) would go on to be who they are today?

DF: At the time, I thought they all had potential to do something great with skateboarding, but Davis to me, seemed like he just ‘had it’. Obviously it worked out for him, but it’s also incredible to see where skateboarding has taken Dane, Pat & even Tom too. The talent pool was deep in that video.

Whose part was your favorite to film?
DF: Probably Ian Sherman because you never knew what was going to happen, but it was about to be entertaining. He’d try some hammers for hours while getting broken off and then on the other hand, quickly do a trick down something you’d never seen him try before. He was real dedicated though and the part ripped. #myneckhurts

Whose is your favorite to watch today?
KC: PG (Pat Gallaher)’s part still goes in, even though the song is kind of annoying at this point.
DF: Pat Gallaher: the skating, the I-Path’s, his steeze, the ender – it’s still so fun to watch.

Whatever happened to Pat Dykstra?

DF: Patrick is doing well, I still talk to him now and then. He moved out to Colorado not long after the MySkate days and kept skating. He actually put out this solid part for a local Colorado video during that time. From there, he moved to Florida to attend college & graduate school, but don’t think he was skating much by then. Most recently, he’s landed in Chicago for a new job and has been back on the board a bit!

Kevin Chartrand and Pat Dykstra the night of the premier.

Any good stories from the after party?

KC: I just remember 300+ people coming to 1066 and me being more worried the cops were coming. I ended up getting super slapped due to the fact I only had ramen noodles to eat that day, so memories are kinda scarce. I do remember Tabari had a nice photo taken of him passed out in our bathtub with puke all over that he made us scrub from the internet. When I started remembering again it was about 3am and a small squad was over still raging including a young Mike Munzenrider. Shout out Munz, that is dude married AF now and has a kid.

An original copy of the video, still sealed in 2017.

DF: Well, we definitely partied back at our house, 1066, but there is one other good story. Kevin and I were still finishing the video with only a few days until the premiere. I’d compiled the parts individually, but Kevin was still rushing through all the graphics animation. He was editing off of a shitty desktop Mac and you could tell it was taking a beating with all the processing. Nonetheless, the final edit was successfully exported on the afternoon of the big day.

The premier went great and we’re back at 1066, celebrating late into the night when all of a sudden I hear Kevin loudly cussing at this computer. He’s in his room, looking at a blank screen as it won’t turn on – it’s fried. The Mac had done its’ final work when burning the DVD earlier in the day and then gracefully passed while we’re at the premier. Kevin was irate, but then realized we’d caught a huge break, knowing the alternative outcome. So, we decided to let it be, worry about it tomorrow and go continue partying. Timing is everything my friends.