Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Rad Dad’s Club – Interview with Glenn Scott


rad dad's club crest logo
As life evolves many of us end up in strange places we never thought we would when we were younger. Parenthood is one of these unknown realms. When you’re young, who even has time to think about that stuff. When parenthood does happen, it’s nothing like you thought it would ever be like. Time gets away on you and it can get harder to make time to do a lot of things you once took for granted, like skateboarding and catching up with crew. That’s when small local crews of like minded individuals such as the Rad Dad’s Club can be a real life saver. And in some cases I mean that very literally. 

The Rad Dad’s club was formed by Glenn Scott a few years back. Here’s a Basement Skate interview with Glenn to let you know what it’s all about and get all the Dad’s out there motivated to keep rolling.

Rad Dad’s Club – Interview with Glenn Scott


AHA: Hey Glenn, it’s been a while, where are you living and what are you up to these days?

Glenn: Living in Melbourne with Wifey and Daughter. Managing Logistics for The Red Cross and doing RDC on the side…

AHA: The Rad Dads Club (RDC) started up a few years ago, tell us how that all came about?

Glenn: Started in 2010 when I became a Dad. The original concept was to have a “family day” at the skate park where Rad Dads would bring their kids and partners to the skate park and make a day of it. Instead of leaving the Wife and kid at home, we hit skate parks that had playgrounds next to them. Potty from skateboard.com.au provided a BBQ the first time we did it at Newport which added to the good times…
We did a few after that around Australia, low key, but then it just evolved into more of an International Skateboard Community with friends from all over the world wanting to get involved. 

And of course whenever you start something as a skateboarder you instantly want t-shirts, so that was the next stage… Now it’s sort of turning into a label and we’ve definitely changed the landscape from just skateboarding to just Rad Dads doing whatever they do to get involved with their kids etc and literally be a RAD DAD!

AHA: There are a few heavy hitters when it comes to Aussie RDC members, want to name a few?

Glenn: The Aussie Dads that first got involved were just friends who were down like Davo, Mapstones, Reesy (first person with a RDC tattoo), Anton, Andy Murphy (drew the logo), Simon from Convic, Hank my brother obviously, all the BAULKOS, Manly Crew, Nowra Boys, Canberra Lads and so on… Big crew, too many to name… And it’s good now that’s its growing to people I don’t personally know.

AHA: There are also some legendary pro skateboarders from overseas
involved, who are they?

Glenn: The first OS guys were ex-Pats like Al Boglio, Mike O’Meally, Andrew Brophy etc and just recently we’ve been getting some rad new followers/members like Tim Gavin, Mark Appleyard, Jeremy Wray, Pat Channita, Hosoi, Cab, Tony Hawk, and a few Musicians and Surfers too which is rad… Once again, without going through our followers the crew is building each week which is rad.

You have been producing quite a few videos for RDC, where did those skills come from?

Glenn: Ever since I first did my knee when I was 15 (5 surgeries later) I picked up a video camera, so I’ve been filming for 30 years now (shit!) and I love it… I do some corporate stuff sometimes too and I love making movies with my Daughter who’s actually won a couple of “Kids Film Festivals” with some of her movies, which is so good… Filming Skating and Music is easy to me because they’re the 2 things I’ve been passionate about my whole life. 

But the RDC Trick Tips just happened one day hangin’ out with all the Baulko’s at Cherrybrook Skatepark and I asked Davo to do a Chink Chink and it took off from there… It’s a challenge getting everything into 59seconds, but I enjoy it.

AHA: You’ve been making some T-Shirts and Schooner Glasses, what else is in the works for RDC?

Glenn: Yeah, Tees will always be a staple part of our range and Beer Glasses was a no brainer, but we’ll have some Caps & Hoodies coming out soon and I’m just gonna try and come up with more original stuff. You can get a T-Shirt anywhere, but really good Wallets, Key rings, Bags etc are sometimes hard to come by and trying to make them look a bit more “mature”, for lack of a better word… Stay tuned!

AHA: There’s not a time I can remember that you weren’t on the Sydney skate scene, when did you start skateboarding?
Glenn: Haha, yeah I’m an old dog for sure… I started skating by stealing my older brother’s board when I was 10. And I think I got my own board the following year. Some piece of shit from Kmart, but I remember my first pro Board was a SIMS Kevin Staab Pirate Face. So good… I loved that thing. But yeah, was around the skateboard scene for many years in Sydney. 

Started skating Street, like we all pretty much do, then someone built a Mini, so we skated that, then a Vert Ramp, so we skated that… I always wanted to be able to skate everything and my favorite skaters have always been people that can skate everything. 

Industry-wise I started Criminal Skateboards in the 90’s and also started working at SMP Clothing where I helped turn it into the best Team Australia had for quite some time… Dudes like Margaritis, Cuzza, Kaehne, Fowlie, Bonham, Duncombe, Corbin, Reesy and more. Team was tight! And a few Rad Dads came out of that group too.

AHA: The Baulko’s were a force to be reckoned with, who are some of the prominent skaters from that crew that are still having a roll?

Glenn: Well I think everyone is having a roll still, just depends how often. Pretty much everyone has kids now too, so it’s probably more about rolling with the kids than hitting the streets with the boys! Davo is still killing it! He was definitely our little prized possession from out West. OG Baulko’s were Me, Hank, Mullet, Russ, Wally, JohnBoy, Rocksy, Davo, Frex & Fish and then a younger crew came through like Jono, Beastman, Lachlan and the Cherrybrook Crew. You’ll always find a skateboard in the boot of everyone’s car that’s for sure.

AHA: What are some of your favorite skate spots from over the years?
Glenn: We had a couple of little gems around Baulko. KFC Wall, Medico, Castle Hill High, Quakers High, Westpac 3-flat-2 was one of my favs in The City. But I guess all our “frequent” spots were St Mary’s and Fairfield SkateParks and Keirle Park in Manly… That’s where people started to notice us. We always traveled in a pretty big group too.

AHA: Are you still skating much, are the knees holding up?

Glenn: Knee (left one) hasn’t held up very well for years, but I still have a roll with my daughter… Actually going through some rehab at the moment because the arthritis in my knee is getting pretty bad making it almost impossible to skate! But bike riding helps that too. I’m never gonna say that “I don’t skate anymore”! I’ll always roll no matter what. Tricks are pretty limited these days though.

AHA: The RDC can be a great way to highlight social issues for Dad’s, what are some of the issues you have been involved with promoting?

Glenn: We get involved with “R U OK Day” each year. I’m trying to do something a bit bigger this year… I have a couple of our Rad Dads who run a Non-For-Profit called “2 DADS” and we’re always involved with them and what they do for different Mens Charities and Social Clubs… Just trying to spread the word that being a Rad Dad is about being there for your kids! 

It’s not necessarily about whether you skate or not. I have Footy Players and Musicians that don’t do any board sports that are RDC members, but they know at the end of the day it’s about being a “good” Dad.

AHA: If you could give one piece of advice to any skateboarders out there about to become a Dad, what would it be?

Glenn: Skateboarders, Non-Skateboarders, whoever… My biggest piece of advice is PARENTING IS A TEAM EFFORT! Dads don’t babysit, it’s called parenting!
When RDC was just for people I know I actually denied some Dads that wanted to buy tees off me because I knew them and they were NOT good Dads! I don’t want someone representing the brand that is shit to their kids…

That’s the opposite of what we promote. I’ve met “Dads” that just don’t have time for their kids and I always think to myself “why did you have kids in the first place”. You gotta treasure the little bastards and mold them into the adults you want them to be…

AHA: Thanks so much for taking the time to have a chat, anyone you want to give a shout out to?

Glenn: Cheers man, it’s been good… I wanna shout out The Baulkos of course, My brother Hank and Davo who have gone through some serious shit in their personal lives and have proven what amazing Dads they are. 

My Dad, Frank Scott Snr for being an absolute inspiration and teaching me how to be a Rad Dad and anyone that takes the time to read to their kids, take them where they want to go and who is fine to sit there and suffer through some terrible Movie or TV show just to keep your kid happy… You’re doing a great job! Follow us on Insta and FB.
Cheers AHA…

rad dad's club round logo

Are you a rad Dad? Want to know more? Check out the RDC Facebook Page, trick tips and clips on the Tilt Channel TV YouTube page or pick yourself up a T-Shirt or Schooner Glass here.

This article was written by me for Basement Skate's blog you can check out the original story and other skate posts here.

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