Lennie Burmeister talks Clash and skating for the love of it

Germany's resourceful skateboarder has played a key role in this year's Clash tournament in Berlin

Lennie Burmeister is a busy man. This year has already seen him take part in numerous skateboarding tours across the world, finish building a skate park with friends, and star alongside friend and colleague Christoph ‘Willow’ Wildgrube in the acclaimed Short Stories film, All In. Now comes the innovative German skater’s latest project: helping to redesign the street course and bowl at Berlin’s major contest Clash 2011.

Reworking Clash

"I made my first mini ramp when I was 13"

“With the street course, it was just a little bit of editing – a small piece there, a little bit here, a little change there,” he reveals, giving a hint at what people can expect from the rejigged layout. “It’s going to be more interesting for the riders – they’ll have more possibilities to skate compared to how it was. I think it’s way more smooth to ride. It’s a little faster, but it’s also better for more people because I tried to put the routes more in a circle, and there’s not much crossing anymore. I think that’s better.”

Designing courses is something that has been part of Burmeister’s life since the day he started skating. It was, however, something he became involved with out of necessity. Growing up in the German countryside, places to skate were virtually non-existent, so the young hopeful took matters into his own hands. “From the first moment, we started to create our own ramps to have something to skate. My parents live in an old farmhouse – they’re not farmers but they have this old house – and there’s a huge barn there. When I was 13, I was starting to build ramps inside. I made my first mini ramp when I was that age, and then went on to construct more and more.”

It just goes to show that it’s possible to triumph in the face of adversity, and that a perceived lack of something can be turned around to become a source of strength and resourcefulness.

The art of course design

If it hadn’t been for his need to innovate and design, this huge talent might not have become such an active force in designing new parks, halls and courses. “It’s something I really like to do because you can be creative and think of a form,” he explains, beginning to sound more like an artist than a skater. “And in the end you can skate it afterwards, which makes it something you do for others and yourself, and that’s really more important for me. It’s so much fun.”

"It’s really part of my style that I try to skate every corner of a park"

Furthermore, the fact that he’s been designing courses and obstacles from the off has meant he’s had insight and imagination when it comes to skating that others might not be privy to. “It’s really part of my style that I try to skate every corner of a park and always try to see different transfer possibilities, or something small nobody sees, or a new way to skate something.”

Inspiration for designs is taken from favourite skating spots the world over. Burmeister soaks up the best bits of each city on his many travels, and works them into his various projects. “I’ve been on tour to so many places all over the world, and I get to know different spots that I like, and I try to build them into the park. For example, there was this one spot in Abu Dhabi that we loved to skate – we went there so many times – and I tried to build it into the park. You get your influence from the streets, and maybe from other parks. It’s something I try to bring in.”

New talent at Clash

One of Clash’s big draws is the fact that amateurs can enter the competition via a series of wildcard rounds that are open to anyone. This makes it a more democratic event, and one where unknowns can make a real impression – a potentially more exciting proposition than a simply elitist spectacle.

“In the past few years, everybody’s become more all-round,” he says of the recent talent he’s witnessed. “Back in the day, there were always these more technical guys. But nowadays, young guys can skate anything, and they can do it on the first go. I like it a lot.” However, he’s concerned that too many young hopefuls are getting into skating for all the wrong reasons, and that this misplaced attitude can lead to disillusionment. Skaters who don’t have fun won’t last.

"Skateboarding is something you should have fun with, and which should be a lifestyle, and not like something you should take as a career.”

“I see a lot of guys having that problem. Sometimes it goes so far, they stop skateboarding, or they just go when there’s a camera on or photo stuff happening or a contest taking place, and you never see them just having fun with friends. I think if you do that for too long, you’ll be out of the game. You’ll get frustrated. It’s becoming more and more like that, especially in the US and the big markets, where everything is about money, and the kids get this idea they could be professional. It’s more like it’s becoming a sport with a career. I think it’s a bit dangerous because, in my eyes, skateboarding is something you should have fun with, and which should be a lifestyle, and not like something you should take as a career.”

An enduring passion

This is one skater who’s clearly still having the time of his life – and who has an undying passion for his craft, as witnessed in the aforementioned Short Stories film. “Most of my friends liked the film because they see themselves in the story; they struggle to have money to skateboard. So there was a lot of positive reactions to that – ‘that’s the way I’m feeling’ or ‘I’m not a skateboarder but I ride BMX, and it’s the same for me’ – it was really interesting… it was cool.”

Financial struggles and frustration aren’t enough to make him lose sight of his core values, and looking further down the line he’s adamant that skateboarding will always be his life – in one way or another. “For everybody comes the moment when you cannot compete with all the guys, and maybe your body isn’t working that well anymore. If you’ve been in the game so long, it’s hard to give it up – but for sure, you have to. I was asking myself for a long time, ‘should I stay in this world of skateboarding or should I do something completely different?’ But in the end, I’m so in love with skateboarding that I have to stay with it. I hope I can create more parks, and do the managing thing, and push new talents, and create new stuff for the next generations and give something back. That’s for sure something I want to do.”