WHERE DO YOU RESIDE? San Diego, California

NICKNAME: Knoop Dog

SPONSORS: Nikita, Osiris, Tracker, Emerald City, and my mom and dad

SKATE HEROES: Danny Way, Lance Mountain, Peter Hewitt, Adrian Demain, Neil Blender, Lester Kasai, Bob Burnquist, Christian Hosoi, Tony Trujillo, Steve Caballero, and, of course, Cara-Beth Burnside. Also, all the young rippers skating out there these days--they're inspiring, and they are the future.

MENTORS ON YOUR PATH: I have had different mentors throughout my life--each have influenced me in different ways and at different times. At one time, my college advisor, Halide Salam, who is a painter from Bangladesh and is also a Doctor of Philosophy, was a mentor to me; she gave me influence and direction with my art. She taught me how to really tap into my skills as an artist, and I learned how to better channel my creativity. I learned how to incorporate the relation of time and space into my collages and drawings, and I grew as an artist on a whole with her encouragement and direction.

When I was younger and living in Cuba--and for the first time really learning how to skate--a guy named Rido was a mentor to me through skateboarding. He was a cargo worker at the Guantanamo Bay airport, and he loved to skate when he wasn't working. He used to build big quarterpipes and launch ramps for all of us kids in the neighborhood. He taught my friends and I everything: lip tricks, airs, power slides, you name it. If he hadn't of done all that for us back then, I may not be where I am today with skateboarding.

And, of course, my parents have been constant mentors to me throughout my life. They have always given me good advice, and have always taught me to follow my heart. They have shown me that anything is possible if you put your mind to it.

TOP FIVE THINGS TO DO WHEN YOU'RE NOT SKATING:
1. Surfing
2. Planning my next adventure
3. Drawing or creating something
4. Watching "The Price Is Right"
5. Taking pictures with my camera
6. Trying not to wreck my car, trying to hold down a job, and trying to stay uninjured

FAVORITE SKATE VIDEOS:
1. Future Primitive
2. Public Domain
3. Any contest footage from 1982 to 1988
4. Black Out
5. Tony Trujillo's part in In Bloom

TOP FIVE NON-SKATE MOVIES:
1. Dances with Wolves
2. Footloose
3. Spartacus
4. The Big Lebowski
5. Old School

FAVORITE THING TO SKATE: I like to skate bowls and vert a lot--actually, I like to skate anything with tranny, whether it's built to skate or not. I like to go fast.

FAVORITE SKATE SPOT IN THE U.S.: There are really too many to pick just one. Top picks include Tony Hawk's ramp, the Clairemont bowl, the Chuckatuck bowl in VA, all the cement parks and bowls I have skated...and all the other places I can't remember off the top of my head that I have had fun sessions at with fun skaters. Good energy is the key for a good session.