Behind the Scene: Mike Bennett I-view @ Woodward - 07/08/29

For Be-Mag’s second feature of the summer on Camp Woodward, we had the opportunity to sit down with camp visiting pro and inline director, Mike Bennett. Mike has probably spent more time at Woodward than any other rollerblader, having nearly completed his 8th full summer at camp. Mike first came to camp while touring with his old skate sponsor, K2. “Prior to coming to Woodward the tour had been everything but skating,” recalls Mike. “It was at that point that I realized I would like to stay at Woodward.”

Unlike most of the other visiting pros and action sports directors at camp, Mike lives at Woodward year-round – which may explain his ability to lace unexpected hammers in every park at camp (though one cannot overlook Mike’s nearly 16 years of skating experience).

While Mike went pro on vert in 1998 he now mostly skates park and he has been known to seek and destroy monster rails when given the chance. Although Mike still goes huge on occasion, he has been a little more prudent in the past year or two as his responsibilities have undergone significant changes. “I will always have some ideas in my head, but I have to hold myself back a little bit every now and then,” says Mike. “I don’t have health insurance at the moment [Mike severely broke his ankle 3 years ago and faced a $28,000 medical bill] and it’s hard to get ahead right now while attempting to support my family.”

Mike got married to his wife Lora this past spring and has a 5-year-old stepson named Stevie and a daughter due to be born October 20th. “It has been a blessing,” says Bennett. “Being married has really helped me balance my everyday life in so many ways.”

While Mike’s soon-to-be newborn baby is perhaps the biggest change he has ever faced to his personal life, he has witnessed numerous significant changes to the atmosphere and structure of camp in his years at Woodward. “I think change is one of the best things about this place,” Mike says. “Gary Ream [owner of Woodward] has always put new things into camp to keep it fresh. Multiple new parks have been built such as Cloud 9, The Rock, The Street Plaza, and [there have been] changes to all of the existing parks.”


-huge 360°

“My Job as a Woodward employee has also changed a lot,” says Mike. This year is Mike’s first as an inline director, having spent the previous 7 summers as a visiting pro. Mike also started taking on key management rolls dealing with the marketing, advertising and year round maintenance of camp, as well as managing the skate shop. “It has been difficult to find time to skate with the kids as much as I want to this year…when I get the chance to skate I try get more out of each session.”

Bennett has also noticed substantial changes to the inline industry in his years at camp. “When I was younger rollerblading had so many amateur contests. The ASA and NISS organizations were booming attracting new kids, media, and outside sponsors to the rollerblading industry. I really feel that this was important in keeping rollerbladers interested and involved within the industry. With time we have all seen the ASA amateur circuit and N.I.S.S. dissolve and fizzle out.”

These general changes seem to manifest themselves in particular at camp: “The amount of inline campers has gone down over the years, but skateboarding numbers have gone through the roof,” observes Bennett.

Despite these trends, Mike remains optimistic about rollerblading and its relationship with Woodward – “I think Woodward is keeping rollerblading interesting for all of the amateurs,” he says. Woodward runs the Playstation Am Jam contest tour, as well as hosting the finals at Woodward East, which boasts one of the biggest prizes for any amateur contest [$5,000 grand prize and a full summer at Woodward or Woodward West]. “Woodward and Woodward West have also hosted many of the AIL events and have played a major role in helping Richie Velasquez [inline director at Woodward West] support the youth of rollerblading,” says Bennett.

It is this kind of support that Mike thinks will help foster the next generation of pro rollerbladers. In fact, Woodward has been a starting point for many current pros – Jeff Stockwell, Adam Killgore, and Ross Anthony, to name but a few.

Although Mike recognizes that corporate sponsored events like the Playstation Am Jam are a vital part in supporting and advancing rollerblading, he does not overlook the small, yet important things about camp. “There is a great batch of core staff that comes back year after year to create a great atmosphere for the kids,” says Bennett.

No doubt these same staff make Woodward a great place to work as well. Whether he is fishing with fellow visiting pro Jimmy Hake, dealing with Ross Anthony’s shenanigans, or having video game shoot outs with inline instructor Phil Gripper, Mike always tries to make the most of camp with his fellow staff members.

And though Mike’s demanding position at camp sometimes makes his life at camp challenging and less care-free, it is perfectly clear that he loves Woodward and plans to remain there for some time: “Woodward is simply heaven for rollerbladers; there are sessions and contests with a bunch of rollerbladers and more things to skate then your local city. Why wouldn’t you want to be at Woodward?”

Words: Bernhard Isopp
Photos: Jeff Brockmeyer


-Cross rocket 360 over the Cloud 9 spine

Tags: iview mike bennett woodward