{"id":686,"date":"2011-03-15T14:10:30","date_gmt":"2011-03-15T21:10:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog\/?p=686"},"modified":"2011-03-15T14:10:30","modified_gmt":"2011-03-15T21:10:30","slug":"interview-sean-hanley-an-american-lost-in-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/interview-sean-hanley-an-american-lost-in-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview.. Sean Hanley, an American lost in Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sean is the guy you always want to skate with..<\/strong><\/p>\n

He’s the first and the last guy to hit a spot all day long, everyday single day of the year with his endless smile on the face.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a few words the best buddy to have on earth!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hey Sean how are you doing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>Hey, Sebastian\u00a0! Good man, just chillin. Making some coffee and getting ready to skate. It\u2019s a nice day today\u00a0. I might need to finish this later and go skate now\u00a0!<\/p>\n

AHAHA! ok Sean, talk to you later, Have fun!<\/strong><\/p>\n


\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

..A few hours later..<\/strong><\/p>\n


\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hola Dude! Are you back?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ok, I’m back.<\/p>\n

Can you\u00a0 introduce yourself please?<\/strong><\/p>\n

My name is Sean. I\u2019ve been living for 23 years and I grew up in Neenah, Wisconsin. I was living and going to school in Milwaukee for the past 5 years before coming here. When I finished school I came here, Barcelona, to learn Spanish. I guess I\u2019ve been skating for like 13 years or something.<\/p>\n

Can you speak quickly about your story here in Barcelona?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>Quickly\u00a0? Ok. I wanted to live before I die.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Nollie backside flip, Barcelona<\/span><\/p>\n

You told me, before to leave the U.S. You’ve learned a bit of spanish, did that helped you, once you were in spain?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>No, not really. On the flight over here I was convinced that I knew it all. I remember studying and just shutting the book because I thought I had it. I think the first time I tried opening my mouth was the time that I realized I knew nothing. Since then, just little by little I started to understand what people were saying, and how to respond. That was, and still is, one of the hardest parts, just knowing what is happening in a conversation and how to contribute towards it.<\/p>\n

What was your first reaction when you add you feet on the euro ground?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>Mmmmm, that\u2019s the smell\u00a0!<\/p>\n

You’ve decided to stay living in Spain, how it is difficult to living daily in Barcelona,when you are not a native?<\/strong><\/p>\n

People just automatically know I\u2019m not from here. They call people who\u2019s appearance indicates that they\u2019re foreign, \u00ab\u00a0guiri\u00a0\u00bb I\u2019m guiri. But I\u2019m not the only one. There are people from all over the world here. That is one of the best aspects about the city for me. You can meet people from all over the world through common interests,\u00a0like skateboarding, or music, or whatever else you like.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Ollie, Barcelona<\/span><\/p>\n

how is your spanish since your gone?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>Cada dia\u00a0mejor!<\/p>\n

Did you start to learn Catalan as well?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I live with two Catalanas and I guess I can just tell the differences and similarites from Spanish. They are similar, but different. It\u2019s an interesting culture. Many of the kids that I teach tell me that Catalunya is a country of it\u2019s own, seperate from Spain. They see themselves as Catalan, and not Spanish. I didn\u2019t realize how distinct it was from Spain. I\u2019ve never had a conversation in Catalan, but maybe someday. French is next on the list.<\/p>\n

Barcelona is like a\u00a0 dream for a lot of skaters in the world, did you have some dreams who turned down?<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong>I thought it would be easier to get into the scene here. Filming and shooting photos doesn\u2019t happen as often as I thought it would. I\u2019m not really searching for it either. It just happens, and I like that better. Like how we met\u00a0! Through friends and skating.<\/p>\n

That, and the language.. It\u2019s frustrating not being able to express myself. It\u2019s a constant progression – like skating. It\u2019s like the first time landing a kickflip. You have to fail a lot. Once you land it, you feel good, and you can continue progressing from there. You have to manuever your words to have them make sense to someone. Kind of like manuevering yourelf to do a kickflip. The things that you do and the words that you say also impact others. This is important for me to understand.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Vertical Hurricane, Barcelona<\/span><\/p>\n

Downtown Barcelona, there are probably 5 skateshops, but they all look small and low budget. How can you explain that?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know how to explain that. There are a lot of people with similar ideas in skateboarding, I guess. All I know is, Hey Ho Let\u2019s Go\u00a0!<\/a><\/p>\n

Is it hard to get a sponsor in spain when you are not a native?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t really know. If so, that is understandable. Because the team managers or distributers would probably prefer to give product to people from their own country. Not use it towards someone who\u2019s not from there. I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n

Tell me 5 good things about being in Europe?<\/strong><\/p>\n

-The opportunity to experience new cultures and meet new people<\/p>\n

-The chillness<\/p>\n

-The women<\/p>\n

-The skateboarding<\/p>\n

-Learning<\/p>\n

And 5 bad things?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The loss of contact from friends and family back home. All five in one.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

From the bank right, Wall ride Backside 180 out to the bank left, and droppin the both of them, Barcelona<\/span><\/p>\n

Since i’ve met you, i’ve seen you skating hard everyday like it was your last day on earth, with a big smile on your face, what is your secret?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t have a secret. I just like it. Whatever it is. It\u2019s something that\u2019s distinct from everybody. It.<\/p>\n

What is your top 3 of spots in Barcelona?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Llucmajor<\/p>\n

Montbau<\/p>\n

The local spots where people skate and hang out<\/p>\n

And in Wisconsin?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cream City skatepark. For me, it\u2019s more about the people who I am skating with because there are spots every where in the world. The most memorable spots are those I\u2019ve shared with friends. Where it doesn\u2019t even matter what spot you\u2019re at, just that you\u2019re there.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

From the left, Nollie backside lipslide transfert to fakie on right, Barcelona<\/span><\/p>\n

Any projects for 2011?<\/strong><\/p>\n

To get more into the skateboard industry. Travel to France and Germany and continue filming for Ludo\u2019s video<\/a>. Create and market a summer camp here for kids \u2013 teaching skateboarding in English. Continue growing as a person.<\/p>\n

Something else to tell?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Do your thing. Get inspired. Live. Kronz.<\/p>\n

Thanks?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Family, friends, and everyone else. Thanks\u00a0!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sean is the guy you always want to skate with.. He’s the first and the last guy to hit a spot all day long, everyday single day of the year with his endless smile on the face. In a few words the best buddy to have on earth! Hey Sean how are you doing? Hey,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=686"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mtlmediagroup.com\/blog2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}