Free Grip #7 with Colin Sharp from Commonwealth Skateboarding

In this edition of Free Grip we chat with Colin Sharp of Commonwealth Skateboarding in Portland, OR.

Photo by Bailey Walker.

So you have been involved in a ton of NW skate stuff, what are your job title/s for people who don't know?

I guess, Co-owner Unheard (Bacon and Portland Wheel Co. being fully owned by Unheard) and Co-Owner of Commonwealth Skateboarding. Also on the Board of Directors for Skaters for Portland Skateparks non-profit.

That’s a ton of stuff, respect! So, where did you grow up and how did you get into skateboarding?

I grew up in Tokyo and started skateboarding in 1986. I moved to the States when I was 16 and if it wasn't for skateboarding, moving to a new place in the 10th grade would have screwed me except I instantly found other skaters and you know the rest.

What an experience. What was it like growing up in Tokyo?

I didn't know any better, the culture shock was coming to the US. Everyone here was huge and loud. We didn't get exposed to this culture outside of visiting the Bay Area in the Summer for a couple of weeks...

That’s a trip. And then once you've moved to the states what does that look like?

Went to Sonoma State University in Northern California and didn't skate as much my first year although my roommates were skaters who eventually stopped skating... There was a small period in the early 90's when I would go skate but parks were few and far between. Tried to find mini-ramps and would travel down to Derby in Santa Cruz or any other parks that were popping up. One notably was Santa Rosa Skatepark where the young Trujillo, Jon Minor, Joel Price and others grew out of (some names i remember from back then) Junior Year in college, I met Ethan Bettencourt who was super into skating and got me back into full blown skating. Driving to spots, finding and building mini ramps etc etc.

After College I moved to the City and ended up commuting to Silicon Valley to do sales for Software companies. Ethan came and visited me (this is about 23 years ago) and said he was starting to spray paint boards back in Cayucos CA, (he was working as an electrician) under a brand called "Bacon" and asked if I would be interested in joining him to build the brand. I think he wanted my money more than anything but I obviously said yes. 

So that's how Bacon began... So how did Bacon (and you) get to Portland?

A few years into Bacon, my wife and I decided to move up to Portland since we were going to start popping out kids and we just weren't going to be able to keep up with the Jones'. I eventually brought Bacon up to Portland and ran it out of my small back room, garage. That eventually turned into Unheard Distribution, since we were selling other people's products, starting with Type-S wheels, Jessup Grip. Coda Skateboards, Tribute and some other stuff. Moved from the back into a small warehouse down the street and DIY'd Brooklyn St. Skatespot next to our little warehouse, ended up renting another warehouse around the Corner and built a 36' wide Mini ramp with extensions, had some contests (Unheard Mini Ramp invitational). The DIY got demo'd so we moved the warehouse to another space, skateboarding started getting finicky and our brand slowed down. 

Right on. That gives some history on the move to Portland, Bacon Skateboards and Unheard Distribution, but then where does Commonwealth come into play?

Around this time, Jen Sherowski started Commonwealth over on Hawthorne and had Evergreen Skateparks build the indoor concrete spot. It was very simple and basic. I believe eventually Jen was over the management and work that goes into that... because paying to skate is a tough gig and really only applicable in the winter months. The park can be dead during the summer since everyone is skating outside, but the rent is still due.

Photo by Bailey Walker

Yeah it's hard for indoor parks in the NW, that's why we have so few. So how did you get involved with it?

Jen sold the business to a guy named Matt Collins  who was interested in starting a shoe store and it was a good fit for him to have the retail and the skatepark. I ended up downsizing our warehouse situation and moved close to Commonwealth and invested a little bit of money into the park to have a little ownership and connection. I liked the concept but was still focused on Unheard, Bacon and my day job running a software company.

The pandemic destroyed the indoor park for obvious reasons. The windows got smashed in from protests, Portland was a real epicenter for all of that activity. About a year ago, I moved on from the software company, to continue with Unheard and Bacon. Matt was over the park. It can be over trying to keep a skatepark and skate shop open. I decided to buy him and his partners out and give it a go 10 months ago. We've grown the business, hired a really good merchandiser/ buyer and got a beer and wine license. This raised the age of the customer significantly which helps bring people who have jobs into the store. 

Damn, that's a hell of a story to get here. I had no idea about a lot of that, but it's really rad how much you've been a part of locally. I suppose it's probably been helpful to be an outsider watching the park/shop operate for a while and see the problem areas, and then come in with an outside perspective to try and solve some of the indoor park / shop issues. How has your relationship with skating evolved in relation to Commonwealth so far?

I don't skate as much as I used to, both from a time perspective and a physical perspective... I do skate still but as you get older you lose tricks and the slams just hurt more. I can't afford to be nursing an injury and continue to bounce around the office or shop with the same enthusiasm.

Photo by Bailey Walker

We have an indoor miniramp and some little features at the shop Grit City Grindhouse here in Tacoma, but we don't have a proper indoor park in Tacoma right now. I’m a bit jealous haha. When I look at the NW overall it seems most of our skaters who have 'made it' in the industry have come up skating indoor parks like skatebarn, ATS, etc. It seems having that community and the ability to skate all through winter is super important to progression. Can you tell us your perspective on that?

Skateboarding well takes skateboarding often. Its like anything else, if you play the drums all day, every day, you'll end up becoming really good. It rains here a lot and unless you have the ability to ride your skateboard consistently, it will be come hard to get good at it. A lot of skaters will turn to snowboarding in the winter but that takes money which most people don't have.

Progressing is really just time on the board, pretty simple. Who’s ripping in Portland that we should know about?

I'm bias but we have our own brands and guys who seem to keep getting better like Tim Coolidge and Johnny Turgesen on Fixer. Nick Peterson doesn't seem to slow down and is a fan favorite, including one of my favorites. Emile Laurent 'grew up' at Commonwealth and seems to be doing well with Polar and that crew... pretty cool to see. If you haven't seen Binger skate, he'll blow you away. There are a lot of rippers down here, it seems like everyone rips. Tons of names who are really rad and it's good to see them all progress and find companies that support them. Unheard sponsors one guy and that's John Morgan. If you haven't see him skate burnside, it's pretty unique.

Being biased is what this whole thing is about haha. Any local Portland videos people should watch new or old?

A lot of the Polar videos have Portland street stuff which is always rad. Cal's Pharmacy (Kyle Reynolds) and crew just put out a video last year called "Land" Fixer just came out with their video called "Turn it sideways".

Well we could probably do several separate interviews on all you do with Unheard, Bacon, etc, but to respect your time I'll end it there for now. Any final thoughts? Anything we missed? Anything you want to promote?

Stoked on Commonwwealth growing and becoming a place where all skaters can hang out, skate a little, drink a beer and just become a destination for all. Portland skating can be cliquey and I hope Commonwealth can snuff that out.

Hell yeah, thanks again dude!

Go visit the park and shop and follow Commonwealth on Instagram.

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Cody Wilber 'Cleanspotting' 35th North Part