By Jack Voight, Sports Editor
Catch him skimming on a hot summer day, surfing the most recent hurricane swell on a fall morning or hitting up the skate park on a nice midwinter evening. But do you know where else you can find senior Brady Green? It might not be at your favorite surf break right around the corner.
This past summer, the surfer and skimmer took a trip for SkimUSA (an organization that runs competitions across the U.S.) to Japan for two weeks to compete against other skimboarders from Japan in a skim competition. Green has competed in SkimUSA competitions since he was 5 years old – and just a few weeks ago, Green announced he was turning pro in the sport.
Green and two other kids from the East Coast were selected to compete against Japanese locals. They were selected for their attitude outside of the competition, school and, of course, how good they were at skimming.
“I’ve known Brady for about six years,” said Victor Enriquez, a Virginia Beach native who is the Virginia Co-Director for SkimUSA. “I met him through the contests and just skimming in general.”
Becoming immersed in a completely different culture is mind-boggling as it is, but add competing against locals in an international skimming competition? As soon as Green touched down in Japan, he knew he was going to be in for a mind-blowing Japanese vacation.
“When we first got out of the plane, all the cars were different, the language barrier was insane,” Green said. “If you didn’t use Google Translate, then you couldn’t speak to the cab drivers and tell them where to go.”
Green skimmed his way along the entire east coast of Japan, passing through landmarks such as Mount Fuji and visiting cities like Tokyo.
“He was a pretty big star over there,” Enriquez jokingly said. “After he finished competing everyone started emulating his style, so to say.”
Green also noticed an age disparity between him and some of his other competitors in Japan, something that isn’t common on his OBX beaches.
“The average age for a skimboarder is 36 over there,” Green said. “People don’t start skimboarding until they’re, like, 30. There was a guy that was probably better than me and he was 50 and he does kickflips and stuff.”
Despite less-than-perfect skim conditions (and good waves distracting him), Green finished second in the pro division and fourth in the men’s division. Competing in the pro division gives Green the opportunity to earn money and prizes depending on how well he does in competition.
And on top of skimming and surfing, Green also skated some while on his trip to Japan, and it wasn’t just a regular trip to the park. While visiting a skate park, a clip of Green skating was seen by a pro skater, and he skated with Green for a short session.
“I got to skate with the best skateboarder in Japan,” Green said. “That was probably the coolest part (of the trip). He was insane.”
Green’s love for board sports will continue as he travels around the globe in the near future. Prior to Japan, he had already been on several trips to California, and he plans to be traveling over the winter for more competitions.
“I’m going to either Brazil or Mexico in December,” Green said.
Who knows where you’ll find Brady Green the next time you look for him.
Junior Jack Voight can be reached at [email protected].
