Casey was a local kid who rode Apple constantly. Interview conducted via email on October 14, 2002.
I first heard of Apple when I was skating driveway ramps. One of them was Kenny Mollica's—he was the first to tell me.
Which runs were your favorite?
Most of the park—everything was a favorite. You had a little of everything there. I would say the halfpipe and the egg pool were my favorites. Those were the most challenging parts of the park, to me. The L-bowl was a warm-up, as well the keyhole.
Did you see any pros skate there?
Being a local at Apple, I had the chance to see most of the pros. Thinking back, I saw all of them. Fred Blood was a trip. As far what tricks the pros did, Eddie Elguera ripped that park—he launched these airs in the egg pool that were huge, and instead of carving the egg, he did rock 'n' roll slides from the deep-end into the shallow-end. Eddie axle-stalled the two-thirds pipe, as well. Bert Lamar was really smooth and helpful to the young skaters. Steve Olson was loving the L-bowl—I swear he spent a lot of time in there. I remember Duane Peters, because the ambulance down the road came when he took a gnarly fall in the pipe. They pretty much told him to go home—I thought that was funny.
Do you remember any Apple locals?
The funny thing about Apple locals is that when the pros came, we found ourselves buying their boards when they left. The classic of classics was when Ray Bones came to Apple—he was so smooth, we were all riding the Ray Bones board after he left. That's how smooth he was! The locals, Jeez, there's so much. Dave Bush was funny and cool—he did love Duane Peters, though. Rob Roskopp came up from Cincinnati. He could ride the hell out the park, but if you told me he was going to be pro someday, I never would have believed it. He never won any contests there—I still don't get it to this day. Chris Phillips, well, I skated against him in my age bracket all the time. He was a good skater and a good kid. There were other really good skaters like Sean Patrick, Andy, Whitney, Wayne Lyons. Kenny Mollica was truly dedicated to skating. Whenever I messed-up, he let me know. Kenny ripped the park—he beat Jamie Godfrey in one contest. Kenny was pro material.
What tricks did you do at Apple?
Things came pretty naturally. I mostly skated the pipe and the egg pool. I was doing everything from inverts in both, backside airs, layback airs and, of course, rock 'n' roll slides. I remember it was fun to carve the keyhole and the L-bowl. I launched these airs over the hip of the L-bowl—that was fun.
Do you have any funny stories about Apple?
I have a good story. There was an L-bowl contest, and I remember launching an air over the hip, then ending my run. I was fourteen years old and Wayne ran over and wanted to beat the shit out of me. I was cocky back then, but I skated that park eight hours a day every day, easily. I saw Wayne playing basketball later when I was in high school. We talked and laughed about it a lot.
Eddie Elguera when he rock 'n' rolled the two-thirds pipe—amazing.
How did Apple rate as a skatepark? How was it compared to other parks?
Apple Skatepark had a great layout. To me, it was truly one of the best parks built. I skated Cherry Hill, too. It was a trip, but seemed to be kind of a mess. Don't get me wrong, it was a great park. I skated Upland a week before it closed—the transitions there were so slow compared to Apple.
Did you ever participate in any of the am contests or overnight sessions at Apple?
I skated in many contests and did an all-nighter for a charity. I think by 1:00 in the morning, we were sleeping. I skated every contest—my favorite was the two-day contest in the halfpipe and egg. Skaters came from everywhere—it was totally full of energy. On my first run into the egg, I did a backside air, landed on my face and chipped my tooth. Kevin Tate came out, took me in the bathroom, put tissue in my mouth and told me to skate—I did and won the contest.
Do you have any other memories of Apple?
It was all fun and great, but I think about the locals. Hell, we all wanted to be pro. We skated so many hours of the day, it was sick. Some of us did demos at the fair on the 7-Up halfpipe. As far as funny things happening at Apple, Dave Bush was a riot, and stay the hell out of Charlie's way (LOL).
How did you react when Apple closed?
I was told by Ronn Dudley that Apple was being closed. I got pissed—I did not want to believe it, but my brother-in-law was in real estate and showed me the picture and the price. That's when I stopped going. I remember Dave Bush calling my house to go skate Rob's halfpipe. I just said, "forget it". Looking back, Apple was my home away from home. Kenny and I skated about a month ago at this park in Dublin. The feeling was great—we laughed and still talk about Apple. I told Kenny, "I think you skate better now than you did at Apple!" (LOL).
Where do you live now?
I lived in Maui, Hawaii, coaching sports for about twelve years, and I was also the founder of the West Maui Skatepark. I had my own skate-shop called Crazy Casey's, but it closed. I'm now married to Lisa and have three children, my son Giovanni, 11, and two younger sisters, Messina and Mercedes—who all skate now. To my fellow skaters, we should have a reunion and talk about old and new times. Contact me: rmarzetti@aol.com
