(theme jingle plays) (tape humming) (skateboard rolling) - [Alec's mom] See if we can catch some good footage here.

(skateboard clattering) (upbeat electronic music starts) (people cheering) - [Announcer] Yes, Alec Majerus getting a standing ovation.

(smooth pumping music) - I just got back here last week.

I only come back in the summer and trying to get the pool going, but it's just green 'cause all of this rain, and I've added hundreds of pounds of chemicals.

So, I don't really know what to do.

I'm not a pool guy, I need a pool guy.

So, if there's a pool guy out there, hit me up.

I got my first skateboard on Christmas, actually, and it was like a cheap Walmart board.

And, me and my brothers, we all got 'em.

And we went outside instantly and shoveled the driveway and started trying to skate, but it was still too icy.

So, we were like slipping around on the ice.

I was eight.

(skateboard scraping) I really liked growing up in Rochester just because it was just so safe.

It was a really good place to be as a kid.

My mom would just drop me off at the skate park all day and me and my friends would skate around, filming each other.

- Like, I don't know, we were little, little, probably like 12.

Met like him and a bunch of other close friends.

Rochester's, it's not a small town, but I think when we were that age there was like just over a hundred thousand people here and there was maybe 20 people that skated and 12 of 'em were like our age.

So, it was kind of like, we were like default friends, especially by the time we could drive and stuff.

It was just like, oh, I see you at the skate park, you're our friend.

We're hanging out.

- [Person On Tape] Oh, the first try!

(crowd cheers) First try right?

- First try - First try (upbeat rock music) (music stops) (car rattles) - Rochester Mayo Clinic's a super big thing.

And so pretty much everyone's parents worked there.

My mom was a nurse and she would work from seven in the morning to seven at night, and so I'd come to work with her.

And then, I would skate from here to the skate park.

- [Dana] What about your dad?

- Well, my mom and dad were divorced, and I lived with my mom, so.

'Cause I would skate street all around here.

The security guards hated me and sometimes I would come inside to go meet my mom to ask her for like five bucks for Taco Bell or something, you know.

And so, I would get in there and I'd get in the elevator and sometimes security would follow me into the elevator and follow me up to my mom's floor.

And then my mom would just be like, "What are you guys doing?"

Like, "Quit following my son, he's just here to see me."

Yeah, they didn't like us 'cause we would run from 'em.

They'd come out on their Segways chasing us and we would just run around the block.

It was pretty funny.

This is where I had to go to probation as a kid.

Had to come pee in a cup every week for like six months.

When I was little I played soccer, you know, and my soccer coach would put me on the sideline.

And then, I'd grab my skateboard and I would start skating and then he would get mad at me for skating.

He'd be like, "I'm not gonna put you back in if you're messing around on that thing."

And I was like, "All right, good.

Don't put me back in then I'm gonna the skate park."

And, I never played any sports again.

I didn't really like authority growing up.

I wanted to be on my own and have my own wave.

- [Young Alec] Come on Mom.

You film too much.

- [Alec's Mom] No, I don't film too much.

- Yes, You do.

I mean, mom, you can't film when I'm putting it on and stuff.

- [Present Alec] My mom was stoked on me for skating at first, but then once I started getting addicted it and doing it all the time, I remember her telling me, "There's more to life than skateboarding."

And, I'd be like, "No there's not.

I'm gonna become a pro skater someday."

And then eventually one day, I think she started to believe me - When he was, oh gosh, I don't know, nine maybe.

He went to a camp in Cable, Wisconsin called Lake Owen.

I drove him up there and left him and it was hard to actually leave him, because he was a little fearful.

But, he did so well at the camp.

When I picked him up, one of the camp instructors said to me, "The Force is strong in this kid," and I'll never forget that.

- My mom's bumper sticker is pretty funny.

Proud parent of a skateboarder.

- [Alec's Mom] Hey.

- Hey.

- I'm still trying to decide how I'm gonna display these.

- This one's one of my favorites, where it's like the van cartoon.

- Did you watch that show?

- What, Scooby Doo?

- Yeah.

Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.

- [Shaggy] Hey that was Scooby.

Hey Scooby Doo.

(Scooby barks) Hang on Scooby, we'll save you.

- I worked 12 hour shifts and it was tough, you know, I mean to pay for trips initially and things, I would just put it on the credit card and we'd just go.

And luckily, it's a good thing I did because we almost didn't go to the competition in Arizona.

At this competition, there were kids from all over, even some from different countries.

And, here's Alec from Minnesota.

You know, just very an unlikely participant, and he wasn't wearing the right clothes, he wasn't wearing the right shoes.

All the other parents were like, "Who's that kid?

Who's that kid?"

And, he ended up winning the competition.

That was really the first time we realized that hey, you know, I think he's gonna excel at this.

(dramatic music) - [Interviewer] What's coming up for Alec Majerus in the future?

- [Young Alec] Hopefully I'm going to Las Vegas to skate with the pros and that should be fun.

Hopefully I do good.

(high-paced dramatic music) I am trying take you to this rail where it's like the... it was like the first time I've ever gotten the magazine and stuff.

Like, Taylor actually shot the photo.

- I was eating dinner one day with my family and he called me and he is like, "Dude, I'm about to grind the Kellogg 32 rail."

It's like a middle school in Rochester.

And something we looked at and was like, "No way anyone's ever gonna like do this."

So, I grabbed my stuff and I ran and he did it.

- You know, so like a lot of times I would get on and grind to like here, and if I didn't feel comfortable I would just jump off and run down the grass.

- [Interviewer] Yeah.

- And then when I was on it really good, I would just take it all the way.

- Volcom, one of his sponsors bought it and ran a full two-page spread in Thrasher magazine.

- I used to collect all the magazines that he was in, even if it was just like an ad.

It's kind of funny that I had Thrasher magazines coming to my house.

And, they did just this brief interview with him with also some notes from some of his idols.

Geoff Rowley, Louie Lopez with little notes, kind of welcoming him to California and to the the skate world.

♪ Got sunshine on my mind ♪ Give me more, give me more, give me more ♪ ♪ Sunshine ♪ Yeah, California Dreamin' ♪ Sunshine ♪ That's all I need (cat meows) - Yeah, you tell 'em.

This is Mary Jane.

Yeah, her brother Tarzan is around here somewhere, but he's probably running the neighborhood.

This is Balu.

He's a crazy guy.

Got him from a skate park when he was two weeks old.

We're buddies.

He's crazy.

I moved out here like a week after I graduated high school and only a few days after I turned 18.

And then, when I was 19, Flip turned me pro and now I'm 29.

So, it's been 10 years since I officially turned pro.

These are some X Games medals that I've gotten: A bronze in 2014 in Austin, and then a Silver in Minneapolis, and got a Gold here in California.

My favorite is definitely the Minneapolis one, 'cause the memories behind this one was insane.

- [Announcer] Clearly the fan favorite out here at US Bank Stadium, the Minnesota native, Alec Majerus... - They were like, "Oh, you're gonna have a lot of people coming to this, huh?"

I'm like, "Yep."

And they gave me 50 tickets to give to my friends and family, and they all got to sit front row, like right next to where I was skating, you know.

So, I could like talk to 'em all in between my runs, and it was just like so, so much fun.

My grandma was there, only time my grandma ever seen me skate, I think.

This is a storage zone, kind of, that I use for all my skate stuff.

Have quite this collection of shoes.

I go through a lot of shoes, so... Adidas hooks it up pretty well with shoes, which is nice.

Rails are probably my favorite thing to skate, 'cause it's just so fun.

Like, you have to wax it a lot of times, you know?

But then, once you wax it, it grinds so good and you're just like, and sometimes you almost go faster once you get on the rail.

Like, you gain speed.

Because, when your trucks show on the rail, it makes that noise.

Just feels good, you know?

Like, this thing's little, but it's long so it's fun.

But, look.

Look how fun this looks.

(Alec grunts) - [Friend] Good bro?

- [Taylor] You good?

- All right.

- [Alec] I've been hurt a lot.

I've had four really bad concussions, Two knee surgeries, four ankle surgeries.

I've broken my wrist three times.

This one twice.

Broken my foot many times.

I just get hurt all the time.

Yeah, as a little kid it doesn't hurt as much.

You know, as you get older you weigh more, and you have all this arthritis, and breaking bones and stuff hurts a little more.

This is kind of like my little workout zone, I guess.

This thing, power plate, this thing's awesome.

It like loosens everything all up, you know?

So, I do stretches on it, and stuff, when I'm really sore, and you can just like feel it making your blood flow.

That's the good stuff.

Kinda a little recovery zone.

I made this ice bath just with a chest freezer, just silicone the edges, fill it up with water.

But, I like it to get really cold.

And then, the sauna, this is a great recovery tool.

I use this thing every single day.

Loosen up the muscles, sweat a bunch, good for the body.

I feel like skating is just a way of life where you're constantly looking at the world.

I'll be driving, and I'll like see something, I'm like, oh, and I'll just like, "Oh I gotta turn around and go look at that."

You know?

And, so I'll whip around real quick, and go look at it.

And then, maybe there's like a big crack, and I'm like, ah, this spot sucks.

You can't skate it, you know?

But, at least I looked, you know, and sometimes you'll find a spot where you're like, "Oh, this is awesome."

And then you hit up a filmer and a photographer and go back next weekend.

(mellow music) As a pro skater, we have to film these video parts.

It's like, a video to show your skating, you know?

It's usually about three minutes long.

It's... Usually you pick a song, it's like your favorite song, you know?

And it... You want the video to last as long as a song and to have some good B-roll in there to show some personality, and all your favorite tricks that you like to do.

In the weekdays, I try to just skate at skate parks to like practice and just get my muscles ready, you know?

And, just keep 'em strong, like stay fit.

And then on the weekends, I go street skating when all the businesses are closed.

(crowd cheers) Dude, I was at my homie's wedding last month.

Like, there was a bunch of people there that I'd never met before, you know?

And, there was this couple that was like, 'cause we had all been kind of vibing for a little bit.

And then all of a sudden the, the lady just goes, "Oh, like what do you do?"

And I was like, "Oh, I'm a pro skater."

She's like, "That's what you do for work?"

And I was like, "Yeah."

She's like, "What?"

And, it almost like seemed like it made her mad.

Like, she got upset.

She was like, "What?

That's not a job."

And I'm like, "Yeah, it is."

And then, they're like, "Yeah, but like, what's the... Like, how long is that gonna last?

You know?

Like that's not very, that's not gonna last very long."

And I was like, "Yeah, I mean probably not, but I've been doing it since I was 15.

Like, making money since I was 15 and I'm almost 30 now and I still got a few more years in me, for sure.

And I'm really enjoying it.

How long is your job gonna last?

You're not guaranteed to have your bank job forever either.

And like, I bet you're not having as much fun as I am."

- [Dana] I'm recording.

Tell me something about the water.

- Water's pretty nice.

Lotta fishies.

Kinda cold.

Can't hold my breath very long.

Not a strong swimmer.

(upbeat guitar music) [Alec humming, wax scraping] This wax smells good, too.

When you wax stuff, you just get this good smell going, gets the vibes going, you know?

I don't think anything here has been waxed for like a year.

It's all rusty.

(somber electronic music) (children say goodbye) - Bye.

Have a good one guys.

- It's just fun.

It's like, you just, I don't know, it just feels good.

And, anytime I'm stressed out, I go skate and it's instantly when I get on my skateboard, everything else kind of falls away.

You get like a break from reality, kind of.

(somber electronic music continues) Like, I'm so thankful that I grew up a skateboarder, just because of like the way it made me look at the world and the lessons it's taught me.

'Cause, I feel like it's taught me a lot of patience, too.

'Cause, I mean there's skate tricks that you try for years, you know, it takes so long to learn some stuff.

And, that's okay.

It's okay to take time, you know?

And, that's how it is in life.

As long as you just keep trying, youll get it.

First time street skating, first video we ever made street skating.

(Young Alec exclaims) My mom's across the street coming to pick me up and she pulled up right as ate (beep).

She's like, "no more of that."

It feels like a whole lifetime ago.

It doesn't even feel like it was me, when I look at it.

("Right Back Where We Started From" plays) I used to love that song.

- Right after he graduated high school, he kind of just asked me like, "Yo, like I'm gonna move to California, you should come with me."

And, I was like, "No question in my mind I'm not gonna go."

I loved Long Beach, I loved living with Alec.

It was sweet to like live with your best friend and your brother from when we were like 21 crazy kids to being almost 30 in the same house.

And, like looking back on all the things we did in that place when we were young, and who we are now, and all the stuff that got us there.

- I had all my friends here from Minnesota, there was probably eight of my homies from Minnesota who also moved out.

And then, in the last decade they slowly moved back one by one.

And so now, they're all back in Minnesota.

And so now, I just really like to spend a lot of time there, too.

So, I just bounce back and forth.

Yeah, it's kind of lonely out there now.

I saw my homies move back here, now.

It's all right.

Sometimes I feel like a little bit of seclusion is good every now and then, you know?

'Cause then I can go out there and just focus on just skating.

No distractions, you know?

And then here, I got a lot more distractions, a lot of homies to hang out with.

A lot of craft beer to drink, a lot of good food.

And then Cali, I'm just so bored.

I just skate all time.

- Good luck fishing, if you guys go.

- oh yeah, you gotta do.

- I can't even do it.

What the (beep) was that?

- It's like Star Trek.

That does work better.

- That's a better one.

- I gotta admit.

- Yeah, this one works better.

- There you go, folks.

- Thank you, sir.

(lighthearted music echoes as group chats) (lighthearted music continues) - Hey Alec, you ready?

Ooh, good.

One day.

I think he was like four years old.

I couldn't find him, and I went out in the yard and he had climbed, I don't know how high, up in this tree, way up at the top and he was like four years old.

Terrified me.

And, I knew at that moment he was a daredevil.

Yeah, I used to go and watch him skate and I would sit for hours, and he wouldn't leave until he accomplished the tricks that he had- - There was a lot of "One more try" - Set up to do.

- “All right, last try.” - Yeah.

He'd be bloody, you know, his elbows would be bleeding and I'd be sitting there, "Come on, we have to go, we have to go," and "No we can't leave until I get this."

This picture is from an event just a few years back, and it was also Mother's Day, and he got second place in that one, so.

That was fun.

- I would like to maybe start my own brand someday, and start sponsoring younger kids, and, kind of, do what was done for me.

And, it's cool now 'cause there's more girls skating.

When I was younger, you would never see girls at the skate park, and now you see girls skating, which is cool.

I go to a skate park and I'm instantly friends with a whole group of people that I've never met before, just through skating.

It doesn't matter like your age.

Like, I'm friends with little kids because of skating.

I'm friends with old guys 'cause of skating.

I'm friends with people who don't speak the same language.

It's awesome.

Like, we don't know each other that well.

But we have such a mutual respect for each other, because we both love the same thing.

Skating is kind of like an art in a way, in my head.

'Cause, some people skate so differently than other people.

You know, like maybe one person likes to jump off things, and one person likes to just do cool spins and stuff, and some people are just super smooth with it and don't do a lot of tricks, but they just go really fast and they're super smooth.

It's like a different outlet for everybody.

I figure, I have a unique lifestyle where, like, I'm allowed to do what I want, kind of.

Like, I don't really have anyone telling me to be anywhere, you know?

And so, I should take advantage of it and just explore as much as I can, while I can.

♪ Our brakes get taken on the run ♪ ♪ And our fates are not where we came from ♪ ♪ And I shout like I don't leave my love ♪ ♪ There's a fire in my chest ♪ You know, burning hotter than I've ever known ♪ ♪ It's tough feeling hot alone ♪ So, I keep moving I gotta go ♪ Going going gone ♪ Yeah, I keep moving, I gotta go ♪ ♪ Going going gone ♪ Our brakes get taken on the run ♪ ♪ Then, our fates are not where we came from ♪ ♪ But, I'll shout like I don't need my love ♪ ♪ And, I'll keep moving.

I gotta go ♪ - This program is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and the citizens of Minnesota and Mark and Margaret Yakel Juleen, on behalf of Shalom Hill Farms.

A retreat and conference center in a prairie setting near Windham, Minnesota.

On the web at shalomhillfarm.org.