Chico Brenes

Chico Brenes
Born Rolando Brenes[1]
Nicaragua
Nationality Nicaraguan
Occupation Professional skateboarder, retail shop owner
Children Alejandro Brenes, Maya Brenes,

Chico Brenes is a professional skateboarder from Nicaragua whose stance is regular-footed.

Early life

Brenes was born in Nicaragua and illegally entered the United States (US) in 1985 when he was nine years of age.[1][2] Brenes has explained that during the Contra war, his mother had been shot in the face and had entered the US, as she urgently required surgery. Brenes traveled by bus with his aunt and uncle, who both eventually relocated to Miami, Florida, US, to reunite with his mother.[1][3]

Brenes was introduced to skateboarding around 1988/1989 when he observed other young males skating on a quarterpipe ramp; Brenes' first proper board was a Bryce Kanights signature model when Kanights was with the Madrid company; Brenes purchased the used board from another young skateboarder for US$15.[1]

Professional skateboarding

After disseminating his first "sponsor-me" video tape (produced and edited by Brenes himself), the young Nicaraguan skateboarder received attention from established companies: "After that, I started getting boards flowed from companies like 8Ball and Real. But all it ended up taking was for Jovontae to make one phone call. I remember him going across the street from Embarcadero to that phone booth right there. He made the call and just like that, I was on World."[1]

In 1992, at the age of sixteen years, Brenes became a professional skateboarder—he celebrated his twenty-year anniversary as a professional skateboarder in 2012.[4] Alongside Daewon Song, Daniel Castillo, Shilo Greathouse, and Jovontae Turner, Brenes was an original member of the World Industries team, his first sponsor,[5] and appeared in the now-famous Love Child video.[6]

In June 1997, Brenes appeared on the front cover of Thrasher magazine executing a trick known as a "backside tailslide", after first traversing a gap.[7]

In 2011, Brenes released a shoe model with one of his major sponsors, DVS Shoes; the shoe was released on Cinco De Mayo (May 5) of that year, in recognition of his children's heritage, as they are half-Mexican. Brenes stated in the period prior to the shoe's release date, "This is probably the best shoe I ever helped design for DVS. I really like the way it looks, feels and skates. Sometimes it's hard to get all those things in a shoe. I'm stoked that we were able to pull that off. Try them; I guarantee you will love them."[4][8]

In a 2011 interview, fellow professional skateboarder Diego Bucchieri (also known as "The Butcher") informed Brenes that a flip trick, named the "Chicoflip", is named after Brenes—the trick is a "nollie backside heelflip".[3]

Sponsors

As of March 2013, Brenes is sponsored by Chocolate, Independent Trucks,[9] LRG,[5] DVS,[10] Remind Insoles,[11] Autobahn,[12] and Central.[1]

Central Skate Shop

In 2009, Brenes decided to "[give] back to the country that helped make him who he is" and he opened the Central Skate Shop in the Nicaraguan capital of Managua. He aimed to provide affordable skate equipement for locals and to use his celebrity to push for the construction of local skateparks. Brenes' cousin runs the shop, the country's first-ever skate shop,[1] while Brenes himself manages the purchase of product in the United States to ensure products are not counterfeit.[2]

In late 2012, Brenes led the LRG clothing skateboard team on the "El Gallo Pinto" skateboard tour that visited Nicaragua. Team riders such as Billy Marks, Tommy Sandoval, and Tom Asta performed at live demonstrations in a series of events that was warmy welcomed by the country's skateboarding fans, as such tours are a rare event for Nicaraguans.[13]

Personal life

Brenes is a father of two[14] and has revealed that he is most mistaken for a person of Mexican descent.[3]

Videography

  • World Industries: Love Child (1992)
  • World Industries: New World Order (1993)
  • FTC: Finally (1993)
  • Chocolate: Las Nueve Vidas De Paco (1995)
  • Girl: Mouse (1996)[15]
  • Chocolate: The Chocolate Tour (1999)
  • Girl: Yeah Right! (2003)
  • Chocolate: Hot Chocolate (2004)
  • DVS: Skate More (2005)[16]
  • 411VM: Volume 14, Issue 4 (2006)
  • DVS: East Infection Tour (2007)
  • DVS: City of Dogs (2007)
  • LRG: How We Roll (2007)
  • Streets: LA (2007)
  • LRG: LRG in Australia and New Zealand (2008)
  • DVS: Summer Bailout Package (2008)
  • DVS: Dudes Dudes Dudes (2008)
  • LRG: Monkeys and Marbles (2009)
  • DVS & LRG: Chico Brenes "THEN" Collection (2009)[17]
  • DVS & LRG: Chico Brenes "NOW" Collection (2009)[18]
  • DVS: Videography Collection (2010)
  • Girl/Chocolate: Der Bratwurst Tour Ever (2010)
  • LRG: Give Me My Money Chico (2010)[14]
  • Girl: Unbeleafable (2011)
  • Girl/Chocolate: Pretty Sweet (2012)[19]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Chops (2011). "The Chrome Ball Incident for ABD #8: Chico Brenes". Already Been Done. Already Been Done. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  2. 1 2 Josh Brooks (11 September 2009). "CHICO BRENES: BACK TO NICARAGUA". ESPN Action Sports. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 "Three Minutes with Chico Brenes" (Video upload). SBCSkateboard.com. SBC SKATEBOARD CANADA MAGAZINE. 21 September 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  4. 1 2 Chris Nieratko (21 April 2011). "CHICO BRENES: 20 YEARS DEEP". ESPN Action Sports. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Chico Brenes". LRG. Lifted Research Group. 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  6. ↑ "World Industries - Love Child (1992)". Skately. Skately LLC. 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  7. ↑ "June 1997". Thrasher. High Speed Productions, Inc. June 1997. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  8. ↑ "DVS | CHICO DE MAYO" (Video upload). DVS Shoes on Vimeo. Vimeo LLC. March 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  9. ↑ IndependentTrucks (23 July 2012). "On the Spot with Chico Brenes" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  10. ↑ "Team". DVS Shoes – Skate. Sequential Brands. 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  11. ↑ "Team". Remind Insoles. Remind Insoles Inc. 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  12. ↑ Jason Rogers (2013). "Pro SC Series – Chico". Autobahn Wheel Shop. Autobahn Wheel Co. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  13. ↑ Blair Alley (18 September 2012). "LRG GALLO PINTO TOUR". Transworld SKATEboarding. Bonnier Corporation. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  14. 1 2 StorfyChime (23 May 2010). "Chico Brenes - Give Me My Money Chico - LRG" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  15. ↑ OnTheProgram (6 February 2008). "Chico Brenes - Mouse - 1996" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  16. ↑ alexherrick15 (2 January 2009). "DVS - Skate More - Chico Brenes" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  17. ↑ PodiumPictures (30 June 2009). "DVS & LRG Chico Brenes "THEN" Collection" (Video upload). YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  18. ↑ PodiumPictures (3 November 2009). "DVS & LRG Chico Brenes "NOW" Collection". YouTube. Google, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  19. ↑ "Chico Brenes skate videos". SkatevideoSite.com. SkatevideoSite.com. 2005–2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
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