![]() "He had all this opportunity, when his dad was sort of in the middle creating a roadblock to his career," said Dewitt, referring to reported instances of disagreement between Element and Huston's father. Over time, the relationships between Huston's sponsors and his father grew strained. Still a minor, Huston's sponsorship decisions and career choices fell largely onto the shoulders of his father. Huston remained dedicated to the board beneath his feet but the world around him - an adult world of contracts, obligations, communication and money - was starting to lose its center. I could make a living off of this.' My mind never even got there until I was 14 and I'm thankful for that in a way because that allowed me to stay humble and stay focused." "I never thought, like, 'Wow, I'm actually a pretty good skater. "I was so concentrated on skating and I loved it so much, that was all that was on my mind," he told ESPN. With all the hoopla that surrounded him, Huston was singular in his focus. I'd come back a few months later and he'd have a whole new bag of tricks. Src="" /> Watching him skate at that age was mind-blowing. He also had the honor of the curtain-call last part in Element's "Elementality Volume One," a video stacked with skateboard royalty from Jeremy Wray to Bam Margera. That same year, Huston earned a cover photo and a feature interview in Slap skateboard magazine. "Looking back, winning Tampa Am when I was 10, I'd say that one of the bigger things that I've accomplished in my career," Huston said. In 2005 Huston won Tampa Am, the premier amateur contest in the country. While most elementary school kids sat in classrooms waiting for recess, Huston was skating, filming for video parts and competing alongside skaters sometimes twice his age, all while being home schooled by his father. What followed was an childhood a shade different from the norm. "I'd come back a few months later and he'd have a whole new bag of tricks. "Watching him skate at that age was mind-blowing," said Falkenstien, who would travel from Southern California to Davis to work with Huston. ![]() In 2004 Marc Falkenstien, now Element's media director, was tasked with filming Huston for what would be his first major video segment in the Twigs team video, "Tricks." Nyjah and his older brother Abhi earned spots on the Element "Twigs" team, a division of Element dedicated to the sponsorship of younger skaters and the promotion of a line of smaller boards and accessories geared toward the younger market. "His family sent me this photo when he got his first box of him wearing a "Listen to Bob Marley" shirt. Ryan Dewitt, who had just become Element's team manager, remembers how young and small Huston was when Element began sending him skate products. "But Nyjah seemed to have something else." "His brothers were also really good," Kingman said. Soon after that encounter, a VHS tape of skate footage featuring Huston and his older brothers made its way to Element's marketing director at the time, Ryan Kingman. Seeing Huston's natural ability, Forbes approached his dad, Adeyemi. Huston, a 6-year-old with lengthy dreadlocks and massive talent, was hard to miss. Pro skater Reese Forbes noticed a kid who stood out. ![]() In 2001 the Element skateboards team visited a skatepark in Davis, Calif. The world around him - an adult world of contracts, obligations, communication and money - was starting to lose its center. But to get to there from here, we have to go back a little further. ![]() Huston's Street League win at that first event would propel him back into skateboarding's spotlight - a spotlight he'd been away from for nearly two years. Nyjah Huston, then 15 and a former child prodigy in skateboarding, emerged the victor. As it turned out, you'd have been wiser to take the long odds. The safe odds were on two-time Thrasher magazine Skater of the Year Chris Cole or two-time X Games gold medalist Paul Rodriguez to take the first win. Skaters the world over couldn't wait to see who would win the $150,000 top prize. 28, 2010, pro skateboarder, reality television celebrity and entrepreneur Rob Dyrdek kicked off the first event of his Street League contest series. You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser
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