Knox Godoy
In the early 2000s, Knox Godoy was the embodiment of everything your parents likely despised about skateboarding. A fiery redhead, barely seven years old, he was a fixture in the Baker Skateboards videos, notorious for his foul mouth, exceptional skating skills, and a general disregard for authority. He was the ultimate agitator, a character who helped define Baker’s raw, rebellious image. Despite his apparent talent and early promise, Knox’s skateboarding career seemed to stall, and he eventually disappeared from the spotlight. Rumors of legal troubles swirled, leaving many wondering what had become of the enfant terrible of skateboarding. We tracked him down to discuss his wild past, his run-ins with the law, and his new venture, the skateboard brand Slight Of Hand.
Let’s start with your skateboarding background for those unfamiliar with your early Baker days.
I was practically born on a skateboard. My dad and my uncle were both pro skaters back in the day. My uncle, Art Godoy, rode for H-Street, and my dad, Steve Godoy, skated for Circle A. They even had their own company called Iron Cross for a while. They were the original punk rockers of skating, tattooed and all. I didn’t have any other toys, just a skateboard from day one.
My first sponsor was Birdhouse when I was seven. When J. Strickland, who was the Team Manager at Birdhouse, left to start Baker with Andrew Reynolds, I went with him. I was the first rider on Baker, just me and Andrew. For the next couple of years, I was a wild kid. My dad let me do whatever I wanted, and I didn’t even go to school after 6th or 7th grade.
So, basic education and then you were done, huh?
It’s funny, Danny Way once said that all you need to know is how to read, write, add, and subtract, and you’re set. I think he might have a similar level of education as me, but look at how smart he is.
Knox and O'Dell
You were raised by your dad and uncle. What about your mom?
No, I didn’t really have a female role model in my life, other than a string of women my dad was involved with. He was quite the player. But honestly, those guys saved me from a lot of trouble. My mom was a junkie, and she even kidnapped me once before my dad got me back. I don’t remember any of it, but he found me as a newborn in the backseat with no car seat while my mom was using heroin in the front. He pulled me out of that mess, so props to him for being a good person.
Any dating advice from your dad?
Oh, man… He once told me, “Never use a condom. AIDS is a man-made retrovirus, it’s fake.”
Baker Tour Video
When you were on Baker, were those guys really partying that hard?
Absolutely, man. Have you seen the Baker Tour 2001 footage? I was in that one. It was a full-on party. Me and Terry Kennedy were running around expensive hotels, causing chaos. I even caught Reynolds with a $100 bag of crack in Chicago. I punched him, he cried, and then Trainwreck flushed the drugs down the toilet. I made that dude cry a few times. I was just a little brat, constantly putting them down, and they couldn’t do anything about it.
How old were you then? Who was looking out for you?
I was only around nine. I survived on candy and Smartfood popcorn. Baker gave us a daily allowance for food on tour, but J. Strickland, the team manager, took my per diem, cashed it, and bought weed with it, leaving me broke. He was like, “Reynolds will buy you food.” So I ate whatever was around and sold skateboards for cash. The whole tour, I was living off of snacks, the occasional beer, and skating.
What about the groupies on tour?
There were a lot of girls around in those years, but I only made out with them or grabbed some boobs… basic stuff. I’m pretty sure Terry had his share, and Trainwreck was probably the biggest ladies’ man. It’s funny, you can actually see Evan Hernandez’s first kiss in that tour video. You can hear Beagle in the background saying, “Woah, that’s Evan’s first kiss!”
Do you remember Patrick O’Dell documenting that trip?
Yeah, I tortured the hell out of him. Me and Terry were little brats, and Patrick had to drive me, Terry, and Evan on part of the tour. He had a CD book full of emo music, no hip hop, which is all we wanted to hear. Terry kept testing out songs, going, “Ah, fuck this shit, cuz!” and throwing the CDs out the window. He emptied out the whole book, and Patrick was so bummed.
Baker always depicted you as an insane, annoying kid. Was that how you naturally were, or was it encouraged?
That was just me, but being around all those pros and in front of the cameras all the time, it definitely made me act even crazier.
Knox Godoy on Baker
Why did you eventually leave Baker?
There was this woman who worked for Baker, Robin, I didn’t like her, and we clashed. She was like, “Have you made up your mind? Do you want to stay or go?” I was just like, “Nah, I’ll go.” I figured I could move on to something else.
Were you getting paid back then?
I was… I’d get money for different things. Just as I was leaving, I was starting to make some money. But I was also getting paid by other companies. I had a series of Baker graphics and they gave me a $7,000 down payment and monthly royalties. I was getting about $500 to $1000 a month in royalties, which was great for an 11-year-old.
What happened after you left Baker?
I started getting boards from Alien Workshop, and then I was on Seek, who was going to turn me pro but they went out of business. After that, I was on DGK for a bit, but then Stevie Williams got mad because I sold some early release boards to a skate shop and the DGK rep caught them. From there, I was just getting boards from here and there. I was living in Long Beach, crashing on couches. I got into graffiti and that was a lot of fun. I was still only about 15 at this point, so that became my lifestyle. Weed, girls, parties, graffiti… and I was still skating, but not the way I had imagined. Eventually, I got kicked out of my dad’s house with no income, so I turned to stealing to get by.
“Eventually I got kicked out of my dad’s house with no income so I started stealing for a living.”
What kinds of things did you steal?
We would go to CVS, Walgreens, or whatever, go into the birthday aisle, grab those big Spongebob or My Little Pony gift bags. Then we’d fill them with Crest Whitestrips, razor blades, and other things, just walk out, set off the security alarm, hop in the getaway car, and bounce. We had a lady in Torrance who would buy it all off of us, so we’d make like $4,000 from three stores.
Did you ever get caught?
Never. My homies still do it to this day, but I don’t anymore. I’m chilling now, I got income, but they are professional thieves. Those were some fun times. I only did that for about a year, but even to this day, if I see an opportunity, I might still do it. That’s why my company is called Slight of Hand. I’m pretty laid-back now, but I’ve had a pretty crazy life.
What else did you do to get by?
I sold drugs for a while. It wasn’t a lot of money, but it was way better than a 9 to 5 job. Also, I knew this girl who was a total hoe. I sent pictures of her to random older guys saying, “Come drop off some cash and meet her at the Rite Aid on Pacific and Anaheim,” or whatever. I’d collect the money, and they would wait in the parking lot, but she would never show up. It’s messed up, I feel bad now, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.
That lifestyle got me into jail multiple times. I got caught for graffiti, a robbery charge, and loads of probation violations because I don’t like to answer to anyone, I like to be free. That’s pretty much what stopped me from skating, being in and out of jail so much. And my shoulder is messed up too. I’ve been in and out since I was 16, and I still am in and out. I’ve been out for about a year and a half now.
Knox sleeping
What’s it like being in and out of jail?
It’s funny, I’m making a board with Antwuan Dixon, and we were in jail together. Different dorms, though. Another time, they put Jereme Rogers in as my bunkmate. I gave him my shower shoes and showed him how to survive in jail. He was on the top bunk. I woke up and was like, oh my god, it’s Jereme Rogers. I go to the yard, doing push-ups, and he comes up to me, speaking in his high-pitched voice, “Hey…is it okay if I do pushups here too?” Then he goes, “Wait a minute…Knox? Oh my god, I haven’t seen you in years!”
Did you and Jereme get along?
Oh, yeah, we get along great. He’s definitely a bit… out there. Molly, hallucinogens, or something. He looked scared. He had all these gangster tattoos and shit, and you have to back that up when you’re in there. L.A. County Jail is one of the roughest places there is. I only saw Jereme for two days before I got transferred. A lot of people knew who he was, and they knew me too. You’d be surprised how many skateboarders are also criminals. In another spot, I ran into Adam Alfaro too.
What was he in for?
Drugs… I hope he stopped. I tried to tell him to stop. Me and that fool became like straight criminals together in jail. We’d save up our peanut butters and trade them for ramen, and then trade ramen for Klonopins with the drug guy. We’d get those pills just to sleep all day. It was funny, we’d chop up the pills and sniff them to knock ourselves out.
“I did smoke weed in jail too. People do have weed. But I’m pretty sure it came from the butthole.”
How do you trade like that?
You buy ramen and stuff from the commissary. A lot of people like peanut butter in there, so you save your peanut butters, and if you get enough, you can trade them for a Klonopin. The inmates make these things called spreads. It’s like Top Ramen with all sorts of fucked up ingredients, like Slim Jims, pickles, cheese, mayonnaise, sriracha, hot Cheetos, and dehydrated beans. They’re bomb. I still make them sometimes for fun. I’ve never done more than three months at a time, but I’ve been in and out 15 times. Once they get you in the system, it’s hard to get out. I did smoke weed in jail too. People have weed. But I’m pretty sure it came from the butthole.
Did the weed smell a bit funkier?
I think it was well wrapped up [laughs]. It’s like Cheech and Chong… “Fucking dog shit, man…”
Knox recent photo
What kind of work are you doing now?
I was a chef for about six years, doing fine dining. I can cook pretty much anything. Now I’m consulting for a skateboard brand and focusing on my own company.
Tell me about your board brand, Slight of Hand, wasn’t there a brand with a similar name back in the 2000’s?
I just changed the spelling. A lot of people were saying it like “Sleet of Hand” so I changed it. I started it independently and had issues with the manufacturer, so I had to pause for a while. But now we’re coming back full force. I got an investor and am working with Bareback, who make the best boards. My company focuses on guest pro models, all of them are cruiser boards. Antwuan Dixon is one of my good friends, so I figured why not launch it with him? We have a whole line of guest models for the next run, with all different shapes.
Looking back, are you disappointed with how you handled your career?
No, I’m not disappointed at all. Skateboarding for a living is stressful. It isn’t much fun once you have to get clips and do all that stuff. I’m happy to be starting this brand, it’s a lot of fun. It should work out, you know?
Do you regret any of the things you did when you were a kid?
Ahh…. Nah, not at all. I was a little kid. Everyone comes up to me and says, “Knox! When you were a kid, I hated you until I met you, and you’re the coolest person ever, dude!” I’m like, yeah, motherfucker, you don’t know me… They took all the craziest clips and used them in the videos, it’s just a gimmick. Don’t be a hater until you meet me.
Interview: James Lee
Top portrait photo: Sean Garrison
Special Thanks: Skately & Patrick O’Dell
