In this edition of Free Grip, we chat with Dave Waite of 35th Avenue, one of the longest operating skate shops in the country.

So let's start with some basics, Tell us a bit about yourself, where you grew up, and how you got into skating?

Hi, My name is Dave Waite, I was born and raised in Tacoma Washington. I grew up in University place, which is a city now but back then it was a town, or suburb of Tacoma. I lived down the street from a school and often rode my bike there as a kid. I would see people of all ages doing things, semi frequently saw skateboards but wasn’t registering it was something I could do. But a neighborhood friend had a toy plastic board and we took turns riding it. At that point, it was outdated but we had no clue, so to us it was all we needed. Shortly after, his dad brought home an upgraded 70’s fiberglass board that was way faster but he never let me ride it. I could tell it turned better and cruised over rough ground in our neighborhood much smoother than the crappy ones we started on. It was maybe a couple years later when some other neighborhood kids got pro boards, and then the bug was on in our group and we all tried to get our own legit boards. They built a jump ramp and I was introduced to early launching and jump ramping, but I wasn’t even close to being able to do that. I was just happy to roll.

I’m imagining a young jump ramp Dave now. What were you most hyped on in those early days of skating?

It took a while before I learned about pro skaters, but early on it was Mike Vallely and Natas Kaupas. Some of the first street oriented pro’s. Locally though we had some rippers! Karl Zurfluh and Adam Prince both were amazing and I would just sit and watch them skate whenever I happened upon them. That was in the late 1980’s, a few people locally were so good. Also, we had a spot that was all banks that was fun to ride on, saw the first board slides and boneless there too.

And this is all happening in Tacoma area yeah? Give us some details on Tacoma for people who aren’t familiar. What’s it like living here? Running a shop? And just being a skater? 

Living here for most of my life and dealing with a lack of available skate terrain means, scraps! Rough streets, bad ledges, lots of uninspired architecture and adapting to regular everyday objects becoming a spot was the norm. Got an empty garbage can? How about a pallet? So many orange cones too. And with a skate scene being barely existent, it often felt like you were one of a few skaters left in the dark days of the early 90s. Running from a parking garage to a building overhang we just kept skating. Friends fade off, find new ones. Building torn down? New spots hopefully.

I take these experiences and do my best to encourage skaters at the shop to explore the city and see what’s there. To expand on what they consider a spot. I aspire to be friendly and inclusive to everyone who comes by. We keep waiting and hoping for some developments in the skatepark realm in Tacoma, but I often find myself on the road to experience the surrounding cities amenities.

Yeah it’s pretty crazy Tacoma is one of the only major cities in Washington without a solid skate park. That’s definitely shaped Tacoma skaters though I suppose?

Not having a quality skatepark means settling for less. Over time we get bored and would make our own spots, or make existing ones better. We had to open our eyes to the things in front of us and find a new way to use it. The skaters I grew up with suffered through winter after winter without many options for indoor skating either. The northwest is rugged, no perfect granite ground or endless plazas. We’ve always made the best of having less. Also, the average skater here might be wired a bit different than someone from up north. Maybe less concerned with trends, and really just trying to figure out a way to keep skating.

So I've watched the 35th Avenue 40 year anniversary doc that Jake Knapp made a few years ago many times, it's so good. And I believe if I'm not mistaken, it says 35th Ave is one of the oldest running skate shops in Washington State? Tell the people a bit about the history of the shop?

Yeah 35th ave started in 1977, Kyle Finn owns it still and he keeps it going for the community. It is one of the oldest in the nation, he started it out of his garage and was also one of the first snowboard shops too. Some early team riders include Ryan Anangalan, Scott Stamnes (rip) and some other local legends. Funny to say but in the 80s we were more of a sporting goods store centered around skateboarding. When I first started working at the shop in late 2001 we still had some inline skates! Definitely a different era. 

Damn, y’all were way ahead of the WKND rollerblade collab haha. In that “40” video it says you started working there in the early 2000s. When and how did you you get plugged in with 35th Ave? 

I shopped at 35th for a bit before getting a job there, just a happenstance comment about finding a job got me on part time. I slowly took over all the duties as far as buying, managing the staff and team and now running the website too. It wasn’t like I applied for store manager, eventually I was the only employee left and Kyle and I just figured it out. Shortly after we hired Jake Weger and we were set for almost 2 decades after that.

So the manager thing just kinda happened naturally, I like that. How did your position and duties evolve over time?

Kyle was happy to let me try to run things, it wasn’t talked about but just eventually I was doing all the normal managerial stuff. He always liked to go on trips and live life so I just stepped up and handled it. With Kyle it’s never planned, just saw I was working hard wanted to do it, so he handed me the reigns and let me run things. I can’t believe he lets me choose the things we decide to support without much input. It’s been really cool figuring out how things work, creating our own systems and teaching the next generation how it all works.

Running a shop in the NW has a few challenges in itself, since half the year here is gray and wet. What have been the hardest parts of running a shop and how have you dealt with them?

Managing your inventory levels is a big challenge in a small space. You have to have a good selection to get customers to come in, but if you have a few bad buys it can be some work to clean it up. For us not being in a major city, you have to have things to sell when people aren’t skating as much. Snowboard gear fills that void and that’s a whole other monster. 

I’ve been learning about employee turnover these past few years. We had a sweet spot with Jake and Josh for a long while. Eventually though things have to progress. I missed some valuable key moments, and probably should have hired all of Josh’s homies and kept the family growing. But you live and learn. 

And what are a few things you’ve enjoyed about running the shop? Are there some things that you weren’t expecting when you started?

The first couple of years it was just a job, but as you become invested in the community, you get to know everyone, see what they are dealing with, and it’s my default to want to help people. Having been through my own struggles, I would see kids who are at risk come in and be a little lost, or not getting the support at home they needed. I’ve been able to listen as a peer and having that life experience to share and hopefully give them some perspective to make better choices without condemning anyone, and actually making a difference in their lives, filled me up and gave me purpose. I didn’t have that in my life, so to be there for someone means a lot and I’ve learned to see those signs when others are searching for some help.

Also just coming across people that would be a huge part of our skate culture locally and globally. Watching kids like Simon Bannerot, Dane Barker, Josh McLaughlin find their way in the industry has been super cool too. 

Hell yeah, I would say you filled that roll for me when I was teenager. I remember you being one of the few skaters around me as a kid who weren’t partying and fucking off. You were always saying little things that stuck with me, giving me old boards, shoes and demonstrating how to just be a solid dude. What are some things you are most proud of being a part of at 35th?

Obviously Simon, Dane and Josh having some shine. Not that I did much of anything. Maybe a little advice, sharing links with industry heads to help create some awareness but mostly they had what it takes and they made their own paths. Also, just helping 35th be more recognized globally. Being around this long and dedicated to the skate scene, I don’t expect everyone to appreciate that, but hopefully there is some merit to sticking with it for coming up on 5 decades. And seeing groups of friends develop through their connections to 35th, feels so good. Knowing that the early guys are still friends to this day is cool and seeing how it gives an outlet to them for whatever it is they want to do. 

Hell yeah, a lot of good has come from 35th Ave in our skate scene. And what's up with the shop nowadays, how's everything going in 2023?

The big switch in weather is going on and transitioning to snow is always stressful, but we handle it and hopefully it snows a bunch in the mountains! Trying to line up some stuff for 2024! See how it goes.

I’ll do a snow dance for you. Besides your own of course, what are your favorite shops in the NW?

I love all our community! Seeing By and By start up, meeting Zach at Unknown and all the small shops scattered across western Washington. I don’t wanna leave anyone out! Love Noping in Olympia! The hard part is sometimes people get weird because we are all retail businesses competing for the same customers, but I try to show love to the people in our scene regardless of all that. All the shops make up a network and I’m stoked to be a part of it.

You've been skating your ass off lately, and we’ve been filming a bunch. I don't think people really know because you've been lowkey on IG. Care to share more?

Authentic skateboards video coming someday! Instagram is a weird one for me. I often feel obligated to put myself out there, as I think it’s important that anyone affiliated with the shop be into skating, because I know if people come by the shop they wonder if the people there actually skate. So I’ve shared a lot of myself over the years, probably way too much, but I’ve also had a lot of positive interactions with a lot of guys in my age range. They reach out to say seeing me skate helps get them motivated to keep doing it.

But I also reflect and realize you can only share so much, my skating is pretty redundant at times so I can feel pretty silly constantly shoving it in anyone’s face. It’s just curbs and walls mostly. I have an addiction to an app that I want to use less, and I think a lot of people feel the same way. But I’m here skating almost every day still. Believe that!

Oh I know, I’ve been seeing you stack clips every week! It’s dope, I’m excited for people to see your part. So you skate damn near every day, you tend a garden, you hike a ton and you do all sorts of shit that normal 49 going on 50 year old people don't dream of, what's the secret sauce Dave?

Discipline and consistency with your daily regimen is what I preach. Care about your habits, what you consume physically and mentally. Surround yourself with positive people who encourage you to keep doing things you love. Expand your interests, and mostly be good to yourself. Try hard every day, even if it’s tough. I make short term goals and avoid self depreciating commentary. I see a lot of folks who are much younger than me acting like it’s all over for them, but I wanna keep going, do more. It takes work though, taking care of your body and strengthening it on a consistent basis. Yeah, it’s no fun, but to keep going it’s mandatory.

Amen to all of that. Who’s ripping locally that people should know about? 

Dylan Clark is my favorite one. He makes it look too easy. I love watching Xavier and Jasper too. Also Jacob And Joey Fleischer are two brothers here who rip and always get me hyped to skate. I skate with Brandon Barber and Conrad Weiser who always have the best vibes. On instagram I see a few kids who rip from the east side. Matt Blanton and Cash, they keep it real and just skate all the time. 

Any local videos people should check out?

Everything Ian Ostrowski and Genesis put out makes me smile, always love the Theater 8 homies in Bellevue. Wish more people would film beyond an instagram clip.

Word. Let's wrap it up like the mostly skateboarding podcast with things you're "stoked on".

Stoked on the Authentic skate squad, every weekend is a fun sesh and lots of encouragement and good attitudes abound. Stoked on being out in the woods with my family, just enjoying nature and unplugging. Stoked to film with you Alex! And Mason, it’s always a smile session and love. Stoked to hear about people’s sessions and happy vibes over progression in life. Stoked to keep rolling, push myself, to be a better person, a better friend and partner, a better employee and most of all to be better at life. I just wanna give more and do more for the people in my life. 

Love it! Ok, I have probably asked way too many questions, but any final thoughts? Anything we missed? Shout outs? 

Thankful for Kyle putting up with me, same with all my employees past and present. Jake, Josh, Tim, Nick, Dade, Phil, Noah, Andrew make this shit work. I wouldn’t be doing this without all the people I’ve gotten lucky enough to be around, Eric Logan linked 35th with a whole generation of what we were known for. Thank you Jake Knapp, Matt Nielsen, Andrew Snyder, Cody Sewell, Zebb Bruiser, Luke Elliot, Logan Devlin, Kody Karnahan, Riley Kerr, Jon Colyer, Spencer Mahan, Nick Satter, Joe Rinehart, Patrick Haynes, Tom Brittain, Dane Ichimura, Joe Mcclurg, Josh Mcclurg, Matt Bennett, Rick Cooper, My Family, Dlx, Barcus Evans, Matt Roder, Brandon Gulliford, Curb Ritual Crew, Tony Croghan, Alex Cooper, Ian Ostrowski, Just Nipples crew, Andy Tomich, Steve and Mitch from DOA, Mason Burbidge, Alex Fazekas-Boone, Spencer “Noodles”, Edgar Titchenal and Jacob Roman-Melje. And everyone I forgot I love you.

I wish I could stress enough how important it is to treat people well. I made some mistakes in my life, and can’t go back but all I can do is try to be better. I got lucky and made this my life for this long. I just try to appreciate every day. To everyone who stops by 35th, reps a sticker, board, shirt, buys anything off the site etc thank you. We can’t do it without you.

Perfectly said. Thanks Dave!

Stop by the shop or support online at www.35thave.com and you can keep up with 35th Avenue and Dave Waite on Instagram.