By Nick Shields
Just over a year and a half ago Robert and I started filming together for what would become this new solo part. I would pick him up and stuff my Prius with his flatbars, pole jams, and wheelchair and we’d go to a spot that he had in mind. The good thing about filming with Rob is that he always has a spot in mind and it pretty much always works out on the first trip there. It doesn’t take him too long to get his clip either which means he can stack multiple in one day which happened on many occasions! Some of the tricks, like the double grind down the thirteen stair in the beginning, were just me and him on the sesh. I stood at the bottom of the set holding the camera and thinking to myself, “What do I do if this goes wrong?” Luckily that never happened, Rob knows his limits and capabilities well. On many tricks, like the clip on the bowl at Memorial skatepark, I was worried about the rail slipping when he hit it but sure enough it went smooth as always. It’s a funny thing filming Rob’s chair skating, we like to think as skateboarders that we see the world and it’s architecture different than the average pedestrian but Rob sees that and a whole lot of other spots that only he could hit. Many things typical skaters would walk right past Rob could get a banger on, that’s one of the funnest things about making this part for me, briefly seeing the world through his eyes.
Follow Rob on Instagram @thesix1nineschair_man