People knew little Mark "Gator" Rogowski would explode into the scene after he won the 1980 Vans Offshore Amateur state finals. By 1984 Gator was shredding with the best, Hosoi, Hawk, Lance Mountain, Steve Caballero....these guys were the rockstar's of skateboarding and Gator was right there with them. He had a very charming personality which added to his overall fame. Hell, he was even a stunt double for Christian Slater in the 1989 film 'Gleaming the Cube'. Sadly, by 1991 Gator would make the worst decision of his life. He decided it would be in his best interest to beat, rape, and strangle to death a beautiful young girl. Brandi McClain was Gator's long time girlfriend. They met at a skate show in Arizona in the summer of 1987. By 1990 Gator started to become irrational and obsessive, Brandi couldn't take it anymore, so she left him. This made things worse for Gator, he would break into her home, call her new boyfriend's and leave them death threats, he would even show up at her work place and threaten her directly. One night Gator got a call from Brandi's friend Jessica Bergsten. Gator and Jessica had not spoken for years, but she had just moved to San Diego to follow her modeling career and felt comfortable enough to ask Gator to show her around the city. Jessica and Gator spent the day together on March 21st, 1991. Two days later her parents reported her missing....and she remained missing. Gator Struck Jessica repeatedly over the head with a vehicle anti-theft device, "The Club". He then dragged Jessica into his apartment where he raped her, placed her inside of a surfboard bag, and put his hand over her mouth and nose until she stopped breathing, he then buried her in a shallow grave out in the desert. What a way to get back at your ex, by killing her best friend. By this point in time Gator was completely shot. He was overridden with guilt and his mental state was rapidly declining, so much so that he had decided that maybe God could save his soul, thats when he became born again. After confessing his crime to a spiritual advisor, he decided it would be best just to come forth, Jessica's body had already been found but was unidentifiable. Gator was given a 31 year jail sentence, he will be eligible for parole this year. If you would like to know more about this case, I highly suggest the 2003 documentary 'Stoked: The Rise and fall of Gator' ....From pro skater to pro scummer, I hope Gator has to sit in jail for every second of his 31 year sentence.
Skater on Skater crime is absolute heartbreak for the skateboarding community. Steve Matus, Danny Way, and Josh Swindell decided to go to a bar in L.A., have a few drinks and just shoot the shit. Thats when they ran into Keith Ogden, a pro skater from Michigan who was out in L.A. visiting a friend. Ogden was also one of the first openly gay skaters. He could tear it up too, that is until he took a hard spill and fractured his skull. Keith was warned by his doctor to take it easy as any blow to his head would result in brain damage or instant death, regardless Keith still wanted to go out and have fun. He never expected that three of his own would be involved in his brutal beating death. This is a very touchy subject in the skating community. Josh Swindell was the only one convicted even though Danny Way and Steve Matus were present. I will not go into details but it is known that Swindell was a homophobic mother fucker who was seen kicking Keith Ogden in the face four to five times. It is also known that Swindell took most of the heat in order to protect Matus and Way, personally I do not think Steve or Danny were involved with the beating, but why they did not step in to stop it is beyond me. The only people who know the true story are the ones that were there, maybe one day we will know the absolute truth about Keith Ogden's death.
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Keenan Milton was solid gold. He would be an amazing skater today. Keenan attended a 4th of July party during the summer of 2001. He had a bit too much to drink and sadly fell into a swimming pool and drowned to death. He Switch kick flipped a triple three once. I can only imagine the crazy shit Keenan would be busting out today if he were still alive.
Pepe Martinez was and still is an east coast legend. Everyone who knew Pepe absolutely loved him, there was not a bad beat in his heart. Pepe had fallen and suffered from an awful skull injury. This injury is what would lead to Pepe's death. After having a stroke Pepe knew his time was running out, thats when he decided to get back out there one last time. While casually riding his board he suffered from a brain aneurysm and fell down a flight of stairs. Pepe always had a positive outlook on life right up until the end, he knew his time was short but that wouldn't stop him. True Til' Death.
I feel this depressing blog is about to come to an end. To all the skaters of the world that tragedy has fallen upon, may you rest in peace.
Rest in Peace Keenan, Pepe, Keith Ogden, Shane Cross, Black Mike, Harold Hunter, Phil Shao, Jeff Phillips, Jay Buck, Kit Erickson, Tim Brauch, Mike Cardona, Brendan Kerr, Justin Pierce, and every other skater out there who has died a tragic death, pro or not. You are all missed greatly.
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