{"id":2071,"date":"2001-11-06T20:39:19","date_gmt":"2001-11-07T04:39:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/?p=2071"},"modified":"2026-03-03T08:59:03","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T16:59:03","slug":"the-story-of-iron-cross-art-and-steve-godoy-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/the-story-of-iron-cross-art-and-steve-godoy-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"The Story of Iron Cross: Art and Steve Godoy Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Way back 1987 we had the good fortune to interview Art and Steve Godoy for issue number 6 of Skate and Annoy. Somehow they had seen a copy and had given us positive feedback, especially concerning Neil’s infamous “Hate Page.” We did a good interview with some silly questions, and even let them vent on their own “Hate Page.” Cut to 2001. Neil and I were talking about the zine and Neil wondered what the Godoy brothers were up to. Unbeknownst to him, I had already scoured the internet and had come up with two e-mail addresses via their respective tattoo parlors. As a way of jump-starting the new print issue of Skate and Annoy, Neil got in contact with them and with Art and Steve’s help put together the opus before you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Editor’s Note:<\/strong> This was written and originally posted in 2001, and as such the images are ridiculously low resolution becasue most people were still using dial up modems<\/a> at the time. We have replaced some of them and added a few new images since the original publication date. At some point we may get around to replacing the rest with larger versions, but don’t hold your breath.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In case you’re wondering what the hell happened to these guys before and after the last industry crash, wonder no more. Read it all., it’s fascinating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

History<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art and Steve Godoy. Background, skate history\/pro models<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art and Steve were born in 1967, which makes them 35 years old for those of you who aren\u2019t good at math. Art is older by 10 minutes. They were born in Mexico, then moved to Venezuela where their sister was born, moved to Puerto Rico, back to Venezuela then moved to Chicago in 1973 because their mom\u2019s from there. Then they went to Lancaster PA with her, and it is there they started skating in 1976. They went through most of their school years there and in \u201982 they got kicked out of school and had to go live with their dad in Mexico City. When he moved to Dallas, they went with him. That\u2019s when they got sponsored. Art got on Zorlac and Gullwing and Steve was on Powell and Tracker. They used to skate with Jeff Phillips, Dan Wilkes, and Craig Johnson every day. Their dad then got transferred to Hong Kong and they ended up going back to Lancaster to finish high school.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy-kryptoad\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

On the night of graduation, they were on their way to Dallas to live, even though they didn\u2019t have anywhere to stay. They lived in their Chrysler for about 9 or 10 months in 1985. They had just quit Zorlac and were both riding Tracker Trucks and Tracker boards until they had something concrete with Kryptonics. You may remember this ad with them doing doubles\u2014 Art doing a backside air over Steve doing a frontside invert. That was at the height of their poverty. They were, according to Art, wearing \u201csome gay clothes. When we got on Krypto, this company called Action East wanted to pay us to wear these brightly colored shorts and so we did\u2026only cuz it meant gas money (heat at night) and food. We were also wearing retarded Haro pads. Haro said they were gonna pay too, never got a dime, those things started to smell like shit right from the start too\u2026did ya see the red shoes we had on? I believe they were red, those weren\u2019t even Converse, they were Payless \u201cpro wings,\u201d only $5 and the soles were like cheap cardboard, just goes to show ya we were broke. Some funny shit!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy-oldboards\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

They turned pro in \u201986 with the combined Godoy \u201cheads\u201d deck on Kryptonics.The brothers had no say in the shape of their deck: it was the generic Atlantic Skates shape.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo: Texas Skateboard Museum<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Then Kryptonics released a second Godoy brothers model that was VERY short lived. It had \u201cPinocchio\u201d looking guys with mittens on, and the names read \u201cArthur and Stephen Godoy.\u201d They had input this time, so it was a custom, stinger shape, but they left Kryptonics shortly afterwards. Art explains: \u201cNo, we were never kicked off any company we ever rode for. Weeft, they were very new at having pros ride for \u2019em and were being \u201ccoached\u201d by Larry Balma. See, after the 70s, the board division became the responsibility of Atlantic Skates and the wheel manufacturing stayed in Colorado where they always were. We had the 2-headed model which wasn\u2019t our shape, it was just a generic shape they used for all their decks. So we were bummed, and that\u2019s when the really rare \u201cpinocchio\u201d deck came out \u2026by that time, we were over it and were in talks with Skull Skates. The board shape thing and sharing ads with ams\u2026we weren\u2019t into that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"ironcross\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

So in late \u201986 they joined Skull Skates, and moved to Cardiff, California shortly later. They had a combined model on Skull Skates, with both a full- and mini-sized model. Same gargoyle graphics on both. It\u2019s probably their most famous deck, and their best seller. In early 1988 they left Skull. Art got on H-Street and Steve got on Circle A (Bob Schmeltzer\u2019s company). Art had 3 decks on H-Street. The first had Japanese-looking graphics that featured a whale coming out of the water and eating somebody. He then had a full-size deck on H-Street with a fish on it, and a mini model with a sea serpent. Steve\u2019s Circle A deck was a full size only. Cool graphics, a guy made from smoke coming out of a candle with these two skeletal dogs under him. In late 1988 Art and Steve left their companies to start their own\u2014Iron Cross Skateboards. Art and Steve both had two individual models on Iron Cross. These were their last pro models. The Godoys today are sponsored by PoolSchool skateboards, Fury trucks, Spitfire wheels and Vans. Steve\u2019s son, Knox, is sponsored by Baker skateboards and is one of the best young street skaters in the world. According to Art he is a foul mouthed yob. I guess the apple really doesn\u2019t fall far from the tree, but if he has one ounce of the integrity and ability of his dad and uncle, he will be a great person as well as a great skater. What follows is the uncensored story of Iron Cross Skateboards from the mouths of Art and Steve<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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\"ironcross-ad1\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

How long was Iron Cross around?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the end of \u201988 until about \u201991.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whose idea was it to get the company together?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art: Mine and Steve\u2019s and Owen Nieder\u2019s idea originally. We all used to skate together at McGill\u2019s and came up with the idea and plan. It all came together real quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"ironcross-ad2\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Why leave a successful company like H-Street?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was glad they gave me a chance when they put me on H-Street but at the time before ICS started the pros on the team weren\u2019t being treated fairly, there was a lot of favoritism going on because the emphasis was turning more to street. Schultes had enough, Eddie Elguera was getting fed up, Planet Earth was starting up through them. Danny Way, who was always cool as hell was turning pro, we were into that but some of the others weren\u2019t… so the major changes didn\u2019t leave much hope for the old vert guys\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"ironcross-ad3\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Why start a new Company? What was the idea behind Iron Cross that made it different?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the time there were pics of skaters being gangsters or bringing other non-skate related, lame lifestyles into the picture. People making silly faces and acting really lame in ads, (no skate shots in ads) and making lots of money. The market was similar to today\u2019s\u2014young kids, 13\u201314, buying most of the decks and what kind of influence is a skater with a gun in an ad? Lots of the idea behind ICS was very serious. With all the politics going on internally pre-ICS with the companies we rode for, and the state of the industry at that time\u2026 the way Trans World was trying to clean up skateboarding and companies that didn\u2019t stand for what we stood for, how could we keep riding for somebody else and co-signing all their stupid shit? This attitude goes back to the Zorlac days. Look at all the tattooed skaters today\u2026 that\u2019s the way we wanted it. What happened to proving yourself with nothing else but skate merit?<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"ironcross-ad4\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

How did the funding come together?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We met with Tony Magnusson and Mike Ternasky (the owners of H-Street who Art skated for at the time) and they said, \u201cOK, we\u2019ll produce and distribute and pay you guys a royalty until you get on your feet.\u201d So they funded a lot of it\u2026our board sales were never so hot and we didn\u2019t have the cash to do something on a large scale, so we needed them. For advertising and distribution mostly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who were the pros on the team?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art Godoy, Steve Godoy, Owen Nieder and Justin Ashby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did the others get on the team, what ams were on there?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

People got on the team by us seeing them skate. They all ripped! The ams we had: Jeff McCowan, these two little kids-Brian Dvorak and Koby Newell, Tim Tillman, Jay Hitt, Dave Stanley, Carey O\u2019Brien (Australia), there were more\u2026they all got treated like pros\u2026when they got on the board company, they were automatically hooked up with Airwalk shoes, Cutter Trucks (if they wanted \u2019em), Venture trucks, Spitfire wheels\u2026we\u2019d send ams to contests and give \u2019em $ to spend\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"ironcross-ad5\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

How many different decks did you make?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In \u201989 we had 6 models: 4 pro models, a street deck and a mini ramp deck. Nothing in \u201988 cuz thatwas H-street for me and Circle-A for steve. The next year, \u201990, the \u201989 models were still sold and we were waiting for the \u201990 decks to start production. That was the soldier for me and the sickle weasel deck for steve. Those never got produced, nothing more than some rad prototypes. We had lots of other things planned, helmets with a spike on top, clothes, we were tinkering around with truck ideas\u2026tours, we had some doors opening in South Africa for tours in which we\u2019d surf cool spots, a video which would be totally un-rated because the content was gonna be crazy, showing the activities at the ICS headquarters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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\"ironcross-ad5\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Who did the graphics?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve, Art, and Justin Ashby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tell us about the graphics.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art\u2019s deck in \u201989 had a lizard on it, then he went to a tin soldier in \u201990. Steve had a bird on his model in \u201989, then went to a crazed monster with swords in 1990. The monster was the \u201csickle weasel\u201d\u2014he was in a Sega Genesis game \u201cGhouls and Ghosts\u201d which we used to play at the ICS headquarters in \u201989\u2013\u201990 everyday.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy2-ironcross1\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Nieder\u2019s graphic was an old man, right? What about Ashby\u2019s?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yeah, an old man, that was the 1990. I can\u2019t remember the other. Justin had a pig with a helmet on, it was rad.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy2-ironcross2\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Owen Nieder? The name is familiar but I can\u2019t place what company he skated for before you guys.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Owen rode for Madrid. He was a local at Del Mar, he skated so fuckin\u2019 smooth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did a Justin Ashby deck actually get released? I never saw the graphics advertised for that one and I know he was kind of a fuck-up.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy2-ironcross3\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Yeah, it came out, in fact it sold real well, we don\u2019t even have one of those decks left. Justin was rad, he had this drinking problem but no matter what, he could skate like a motherfucker. We used to surf everyday at Cardiff reef and some days were huge. Justin had been drinking the night before and would paddle out the next morning, still all fucked up on a long board and rip! It\u2019s not that he was fucked up one time and he was out, it\u2019s not even the fact that he was fucked up, it\u2019s the shit he did when he was fucked up. We could tell ya some funny stories man, that house we lived in\u2026 the headquarters\u2026so rad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How about the shapes?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy2-ironcross4\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Everyone who had a model drew their own. Amateurs helped with the shapes of the non-pro model decks. Lots of the team had their own shapes, we had Dave Bedore who did Uncle Wiggley\u2019s wood shop, cutting out all these carbon\/graphite and Kevlar 5-ply decks with Hell concave for the team guys. Most of \u2019em were verticalists and they rode the experimental decks, those decks wouldn\u2019t last on the street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What were sales like?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Great at first, 1000 the first month, 2000 the second month, 3000 the third\u2026 Then it dropped and sort of leveled off at a six or seven hundred. Due to the season, board sales were seasonal then, not sure what it\u2019s like now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What mags did you advertise in?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thrasher, PowerEdge, and some little zines.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy2-ironcross5\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

How much industry stuff did you have to do?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As much as we could stand\u2026 trade shows\u2026 it was all on our terms though. We were lucky we had H-Street pushing it, they were huge. The industry was all about phoniness, a lot of \u2019em would kiss each other\u2019s ass and then talk shit later. \u201cCall me, I\u2019ll hook it up!\u201d Ya call \u2019em and they didn\u2019t wanna know ya! We always kept our word, right to the end. So we would do as much industry shit as we could stand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What was it like for you guys who had been industry outsiders for so long to now be insiders? You still had scars from being dicked around by all of those companies, and then suddenly you were \u201cone of them.\u201d That must have made some of those guys uncomfortable. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yeah exactly right, cuz even though lots of the guys in control of the direction skating would go (magazines) were cleaning up skateboarding, there were still threats. They knew what would make money; pink shirts, bangs combed over one eye. For the industry, it was good, look at how big skating is now\u2026but nobody knew how to take us, nobody understood us because we never talked to anyone. Just cuz you\u2019re not conforming to their image of skaters who love skating, dressing like them, wearing those lame clothes, they couldn\u2019t see ya as an example for the kids. Even though we never did drugs or drank and we were tattooed but were skating everyday, traveling on our own cash, living in our car, homeless for a year through a winter\u2026 to the \u201980s skate image, this spelled \u201cvagrancy.\u201d We could never be phony. This was \u201creal\u201d and I guess people felt threatened cuz we were unpredictable and we don\u2019t fuck around.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy2-ironcross6\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How did the money get worked out? Did you get all of the IC revenue, or did it go right to H-Street? Did H-Street deal with the distribution etc?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, it was a licensing deal. We said, \u201cyou can make \u2019em and distribute em and pay for ads and we\u2019ll take all the orders, just until we get on our feet.\u201d We gave it a year in the contract so basically, we got a high royalty, at the time like $4.00 a deck or $5.00, can\u2019t remember exactly\u2026 but since we started with no money of our own cuz we couldn\u2019t afford it, it was the only reasonable thing to do. The first few months of checks were great and we should have put it all into a wood shop and become self-sufficient. That plan was on the back burner because we wanted to get the team out there and have a strong showing first so the later checks would be huge and then we could implement our plans\u2026 but how were we to know things would go the way they did? Guess ya can\u2019t trust anybody.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy3-ironcross1\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

What does this ad mean?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ad was in retaliation to Fausto (Independent) sending us a letter to stop our logo and company\u2026 The maltese cross is public domain. In the letter, they said that any likeness to the indy logo is a colorable imitation\u2026 then if that\u2019s the case, so is theirs. I don\u2019t think Fausto and them knew about the letter, I just think they have a law firm who looks out for them and gets bootleggers. How did our logo look similar? We were homeless then in that photo. It was taken in 1986 three years before Iron Cross, in Dallas when we had just quit Zorlac and were in talks with Kryptonics. That lake in the background is Bachman lake, the clown ramp is to the left of where we are standing.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy3-ironcross2\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Is that why you stopped using the cross and went to the eagle logo?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NO, the letter from the lawyer\u2014NHS\/Fausto, came during the first month of ICS being in business. See when ya put ads in mags, you submit \u2019em and then two months later, they appear in the mags. We changed to the eagle for the 1990 catalogue. You did something new each year, not like today, new graphics every month. There weren\u2019t enough skaters buying boards to be able to change graphics all the time. Though the skull and bones logo was the best selling sticker of 1989, that\u2019s what H-Street told us! It was gonna appear on everything but we kept the skull cuz it was cool as hell.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy3-ironcross3\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Did the IC team all live in one house? What was that like?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not all the team, just Tilman, Justin, me & Steve and sometimes Jay Hitt. Oh yeah, and Rolando (from Australia) It was crazy as hell, I can\u2019t get into all the things that used to go on\u2026in the winter, it gets cool at night, we were living in Cardiff (North San Diego) where the ICS headquarters was. The new hell concave samples of all our decks had just come in and the whole house had some. Me, Steve and Tilman went fuckin\u2019 around and we get home late and the house was full of smoke. One of the bills was late and it was a weekend and the power couldn\u2019t be turned back on until monday so the house was cold and smokey. We found Justin and Jay hanging out by the fireplace burning Tilman\u2019s brand new deck with trucks on it and wheels all melted\u2026Tilman got so mad! That was one small incident, the girls, and other shit that went on we can\u2019t talk about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you try to recruit any other pro skaters for the team?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Danny Way was considering it, Schultes wanted on, we asked Jason Jesse but Santa Cruz was making him lots and he was under contract.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy3-ironcross4\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Did you do demos across the country? Favorite memories?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Demos during Iron Cross, just in Toronto & Australia. Memories are too many to name just one but the shit that went on at the headquarters was the best. I\u2019ll tell ya one. We got these BB guns and when we ran outa BB\u2019s we found that the cactus spines on the little cactuses in front of the house with balls on the base of them fit perfectly into the guns so we used to shoot each other with them. Well, Justin was passed out one night and we were playing \u201cSquat team,\u201d (ambushing each other with the spine-loaded BB guns) and I think it was Tilman who decided to shoot Justin with \u2019em, so he went right up to Justin\u2019s face, like a foot away and shot him. It went in like a 1\/2 inch, he didn\u2019t move, so he kept shooting him in his face, like 8 times, the next morning, we got up to surf, we only lived 2 blocks to Cardiff reef, so while we were sitting in the line-up, who paddles out? Justin! He had picked out the cactus spines and had these huge bumps all over his face, like giant mosquito bites and he just goes \u201coi!\u201d (That\u2019s how he talked, he\u2019s from Brighton), like nothing happened, he probably thought he just fell\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

You mentioned demos in Australia and Canada. You didn\u2019t tour the U.S? How were the tours? How long were you there, where did you skate, how were the people, how was the food\/nightlife etc? Was it like being a rock star with groupies etc?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy4-ironcross1\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

We didn\u2019t tour the U.S. on any company\u2019s bill, they all had different priorities. We went in our Chrysler, we would go places and just show up and hang out with the locals and skate. No hype or advertising and to get paid, on company bills, we went to Canada and Australia, so fun. Canada was rad. We had lots of fans cuz Skull Skates was big here and at one point, we had a model by them, so a year or two after Skull, we still had fans in Canada. Australia was great, we saw the New Christs, one of our favorite Radio Birdman \u201coffshoot\u201d bands and skated with some really cool guys. Borgy and one eyed Chris\u2026 They were gnarly, like a skate gang. They took us to all these places to get girls, see bands and skate. We saw shit that most of the other pros on that tour would never see, just cuz our image and lifestyle matched these guys. We have been all over Mexico skating too, from \u201979\u201383, Guadalajara, Mexico City, and several small towns in between, coastally\u2026 surfing and stuff. We were born there and speak the language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Was there pressure to enter\/do well in contests to promote the brand name?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy4-ironcross2\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Never through our career did we feel pressure to do well in contests, not for Iron Cross anyway. In the previous days, we didn\u2019t train the way others did, working on their lines and shit. We just skated. H-Street wanted me to, and Circle A didn\u2019t care if Steve did and we tried, but training and stuff like that takes all the spontaneity out of skateboarding and we felt that it made ya a skate robot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did Iron Cross end?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the end, sales were low but the organization was still ready to go. We had spent so much on ams and other promotion that we didn\u2019t put enough away to start our own distribution or woodshop. That was our fault so we tried to clear out the stock we had by selling what we had at our headquarters directly to the kids \u2014 a sort of \u201cICS club deal.\u201d In the end we never really got the full story. I guess Mike Ternasky, Magnusson\u2019s partner, was planning Plan B to fuck Tony. Ternasky was the businessman: he was responsible for all the goings-on\u2014paychecks, company business moves, who they\u2019re gonna promote. Tony Magnusson was mostly concentrating on beating Tony Hawk in contests, so he washed his hands of certain responsibilities. Knowing that Ternasky was that way, we should have seen it coming that we were on the outs. Soon the stock was gone not only from our headquarters but from the H Street warehouse. They went behind our backs and sold all of the remaining decks as completes to price club stores for $20 each and our graphics were put on cheap Action Sports decks. We lost a lot, we trusted them, so we didn\u2019t feel that we should be on the lookout to get squeezed out, we did graphics out the ass for them, big sellers too. We were going, \u201cwhere\u2019s the loyalty?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So do I have this straight? You went to bed one night the co-owners of a skateboard company, and you woke up the next morning and found the company and all of its stock was basically gone? You must still be pissed at Mag and Ternasky.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy4-ironcross3\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Fuck yeah, and mad at ourselves too cuz we didn\u2019t have the financial means to go after them. We don\u2019t understand business ethics like stepping on people on the way up the ladder. We had so many people who were ready to take matters into their own hands so we could wash our hands of the dirty work but we aren\u2019t that way. We figure people get theirs sooner or later. See, those guys had such a good thing going and I was actually proud that I was affiliated and Steve was too, cuz we could do whatever graphics we wanted for H-Street and they loved \u2019em all. God damn, this interview is bringing up all kinds of small but funny memories. Symbolism in graphics, hidden statements around the end of riding for H-Street, then anyways, they fucked each other over and important other people as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Were you sad when the whole thing folded, or was the business part of it becoming a drag?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy5-ironcross1\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The business part of it was rad. We could have done that part of it forever. We were sad because, as it was through most of our career, we put our whole life into everything we did. And for the industry to decide who\u2019s getting blackballed cuz of who you ride for or whatever, is totally biased and unfair. It really makes ya question what you\u2019re doing and who you\u2019re doing it for. It took a while after the skate career folded to adjust to skating for ourselves, just for fun because when you\u2019re around skaters who think they have so much to prove, you get the same way. The industry was fucked. We get respect NOW, lots of the tattooed skaters know who we are, it feels good to be recognized and to talk to tattooers who were skaters once who go, \u201cI started tattooing cuz of you guys, I looked up to you guys when I was a kid learning how to skate.\u201d At least we made a mark, if skating is a lifestyle, why was there so much focus on competition results? The \u201cjock mentality\u201d makes money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What did you guys do for cash after Iron Cross closed down?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"godoy5-ironcross2\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

We had been tattooing for 5 or 6 years by then so we could make a little dough here and there. Knox was born and Steve was ordered to pay child support, only after ICS folded, he was givin\u2019 lots of money and time to support Knox. When the company folded, Knox\u2019s mom saw her \u201ccash cow\u201d disappear so we got jobs making armor for the government so we could have proof of income for the child support people. We got custody of Knox a few months later and raised him since he was 3. We also did more skate graphics: John Schultes Dogtown model, Steve Claar G&S, and many others later. Andy Macdonald Human skateboards in about \u201994. We used to do lots of surf company graphics too \u2014 O\u2019Neil, Quicksilver, Pirate Surf. We have also done tons of special project stuff\u2026 airbrushed a 1950 Pontiac for Sony Music\u2019s Social Distortion promo\u2026 Offspring shit, Godzilla, tons of shit too for Capitol records\u2026 Less than Jake promos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you keep skating or did you give it up for awhile?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fuckin\u2019 industry left a bad taste in our mouths so we sort of stopped skating solidly for 6 months. We still skated but to go to the park all burnt out from 10 hour days was hard and to see everyone still making \u201cfree\u201d money, made us sick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tell us more about the job you had making armor for the government.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy5-ironcross3\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

We had jobs at this factory which got multi-million dollar contracts with the U.S. government to do research and development in \u2018ceramic armor\u2019 plating for tanks, helicopters and shit. We made armor for the B-1 bomber, the Apache and Black Hawk Helicopters under the seats so the pilots wouldn\u2019t get their ass blown off, the Space shuttle\u2019s nose cone tiles so it could pass through the earth’s atmosphere and not burn up and some tanks. Steve was the powder processor and I was a machinist. It blows us away that we made the tiles for those planes, helicopters, tanks, and the Space Shuttle. These tiles we made could stop different sizes of projectile fire but if ya dropped them on the floor, they would shatter. It was called Ceramic but it wasn\u2019t like dishes or pottery. It was more like lava that had hardened and then machined. We used to make Boron Carbide, Silicon Carbide, Al 203. We were exposed to these cancer-causing, fibrosis-causing chemicals and powders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Art, how did it come about that you moved up to Vancouver? It must have been tough leaving your bro after all those years.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy5-ironcross4\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

I ended up in Canada cuz I came up here to see my chick and thought that they could use a tattoo shop worth a shit, so I saved up lots of money, like $6000 and when you convert it to Canadian money, it\u2019s like $10,000\u2026and the shop kicks ass. Everyone in the shop is good and cool as hell. I married her. Not something I thought I would ever do cuz we used to fuck so many girls but she\u2019s cool. Yeah, it was tough, it still is. To have someone around you don\u2019t even have to explain how ya feel to cuz they feel the same way is priceless. Being twins is the best. But I saw opportunity and took it. He may come up soon to open another Funhouse\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did you get hooked up with Ricki Rachtman, and do you still skate PoolSchool stuff?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We met him at the H.B., Master\u2019s division contest, a few years ago, he told us about his company and we said “Sure, we\u2019ll ride your stuff.” He\u2019s cool and he\u2019s a good friend to hang out with. He had his day too, y\u2019know. It\u2019s hard to be out of the industry you know so well and have to sort of assimilate into the real world. We still ride for him. Poolschool is great. We were supposed to get our own models but money is tight for Rikki right now so whatever\u2026if it happens, cool, if not whatever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(The Godoy’s have since models released on Cold War Skateboards, and later Factory 13)<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy6-ironcross1\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

What Iron Cross stuff do you still have?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t have any Iron Cross stuff besides one Art Godoy, one Steve Godoy, torn up t-shirts and that\u2019s it. The shit\u2019s so rare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are Owen Nieder and Justin Ashby doing now? What about Ternasky and Mag?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Owen\u2014still skates, runs a silkscreen business. Justin\u2014in Africa building resorts, still skating, this info is from one year ago so I don\u2019t know his current status. Ternasky\u2014dead, got killed on his way to Plan B. Years ago. Magnusson\u2014owns Osiris, still skates, snowboards\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who was the biggest scumbag you had to deal with? Who was the coolest?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As far as what? I think Ternasky ended up being the worst. There were many more, why do you think we rode for so many different companies? Not all were \u201cscumbags\u201d some were just weak and didn\u2019t see skateboarding to have the potential of WWF like we did, they were so conservative and weak. The coolest? Easily Matt and Robert Davis from Graphics Lab in Kokomo Indiana. They did all the stickers and still make stickers for our tattoo machine coils. MoFo was cool too. We weren\u2019t into all the phoniness and bullshit and we considered all the people involved inconsequential.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy6-ironcross2\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Favorite Band?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radio Birdman is our favorite band. We play with Deniz Tek who is the founder and guitarist from Radio Birdman, play bass and Steve drums, we\u2019re called Deniz Tek and the Golden Breed. We\u2019ve been Birdman fans since \u201983 so playing with Deniz is a dream come true. Steve would say the same thing. \u201cHit \u2019em again\u201d is a great Birdman song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gator and Hosoi in prison?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gator and Hosoi\u2026 lame. Hosoi wasn\u2019t as bad but drug addicts are drug addicts and they never get better so fuck \u2019em.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What about Knox? (Steve\u2019s son)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy6-ironcross3\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

We raised him since he was 3 and he\u2019s cool and punk and funny, he knows all the inside jokes and can swear like a truck driver as well as be mannerly, hard to believe he\u2019s gonna be 13 in January. Knox\u2019s mom had problems and has been out of the picture since he was 3 and she has no rights to see him. We got custody in court. Knox is Steve\u2019s but both of ours cuz we raised him. Named after the singer of the Vibrators, who are friends of ours, they stay at the house in Long Beach when they play in town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you guys still hang with Jason Jesse? You were tight with him, right?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yeah, we were tight, still friends. We haven\u2019t seen him in a long time. His mom delivered Knox, she\u2019s a midwife. We got into some funny shit together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s your favorite place to skate now, and who do you like to skate with? Pools or ramps?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Always like skating with Lance at the Combi pool at Vans in Orange. That\u2019s where Steve skates. Been getting into pools because it\u2019s like catching up on an aspect of skating that got interrupted by the death of skateparks and a pro vert ramp riding career\u2026 so pools, skate park pools, cement.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy6-ironcross4\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Favorite tricks? Just from looking at photos it appears to me that Steve is the invert guy and you are the ollie guy. Right or not?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Right, but we both do good inverts. Steve did the gnarly frontside inverts, like 10 feet across\u2026he\u2019d fly about 5 feet before he planted his hand and land 5 feet past! I like ollies and lien airs. Steve likes frontside inverts and andrechts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you two compete at everything, or were you cool with each other?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was never competition, always equal. A total support system. We shared alot of shit. It\u2019s like having a best friend all the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Words?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m glad that after all these years people are still talking shit, not forgotten. We skated and annoyed just by being ourselves, honest. After all these years, we\u2019re still doing the same things, punk, skating vert, surfing and tattooing\u2026 what more is there?<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"godoy6-ironcross5\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Pic originally appeared in Thrasher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

-the end<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Way back 1987 we had the good fortune to interview Art and Steve Godoy for issue number 6 of Skate and Annoy. Somehow they had seen a copy and had given us positive feedback, especially concerning Neil’s infamous “Hate Page.” We did a good interview with some silly questions, and even let them vent on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3143,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2001\/11\/ironcross-post.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2071"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2071\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3922,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2071\/revisions\/3922"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skateandannoy.com\/features\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}