Congrats on turning pro! How does it feel to see your name on a board?

TJ: Thank you very much! It honestly feels like a dream come true… I’ve worked hard my whole life to get here, moving house to house, state to state, & doing whatever it takes to get to where I wanna be. And now that I’m here, it feels amazing!!

When you woke up the next day from being surprised on turning pro did you feel any different or do you still feel like the kid from Whitby that just loves skating?
TJ: I did feel a little different, but it honestly has quite hit me yet… I think it will when I see some kid riding one of my boards or seeing them on a wall in a skateshop!

What are you working on next? Any videos or magazine coverage in the the works?
TJ: I’m starting to work on a part for the next RdS video; I think the deadline is end of Summer 2015. For mags I’m just trying to shoot as many photos as possible and see if something good will come out of it!

Any shout-outs?
TJ: I’d like to give a MAJOR SHOUT-OUT to everyone who has ever helped me to get where I wanted to be In this life: from 905 Indoor Skatepark to OZ Days… Every Canadian distribution, all of the families whose houses I’ve lived at for short times… all my sponsors from past to present: Blind Skateboards, Redbull Canada, Nike SB, Red Dragons, Bones Wheels, Tensor Trucks, Diamond Hardware, Grizzly Griptape, OC Ramps, & Action Sports Law Group… I’d like to give a shout-out to Bill Weiss, Ryan Decenzo, and all my friends back home in Whitby! Also, Wade P, Scott Power, Jordan Moss, Mark Colquhoun, Vernon Wells, Davey Hughes… and to my father Big Rick, thank you for always being there for me!

Lastly, any advice for a kid out there who has dreams just like you did?
TJ: My advice is to always keep pushing for what you want in life, and to always have a smile! Be happy having nothing and you’ll be happy with everything! Oh, also remember why you started skating!! WOOO!

What is your first graphic and does it mean anything special?
TJ: My first graphic is of a pack of wolves, it means more to me than anyone could ever imagine. I have a tattoo of a wolfpack on my ribs and for my first graphic Weiss thought it would be rad to use my tattoo as inspiration for the artwork…

What are you looking forward to most as a pro?
TJ: The one thing I’m looking forward to most is trying to get into the contest scene, try to make a respectable name for myself as a professional Canadian skateboarder.

You seemed to have a ton of coverage lately from your Concrete interview, TWS AM issue, Thrasher Heads, and Berrics Recruited… do you ever rest?!
TJ: Haha!! Well I’ve been hurt for the last three months… because of my injury, I’ve been resting a lot lately. Despite that, last month was out almost everyday filming and trying to shoot as many photos as possible. I want to make sure I keep the ball rolling with everything…