How is professional skateboarding different from, say, professional golfing? More scabs, for one. And is skateboarding actually a sport? In Stalefish, veteran journalist and former pro skater Sean Mortimer interviews Rodney Mullen, Steve Olson, Tony Hawk, Stacy Peralta, Jamie Thomas, Lance Mountain, Tommy Guerrero, Russ Howell, Mike Vallely, Dave Hackett, Daewon Song, Jim Fitzpatrick, Steve Alba, Kevin Harris, Bob Burnquist and Chris Haslam in search of answers, and to discover what drove them and millions of other disenfranchised youth to obsession with empty pools, sewer ditches, and handrails. This book may not settle the sport versus subculture versus cult debate, but with stories of skate-induced ulcers, skatepark torture, ramp arson, trespassing, the birth of punk, and more, it captures like no other how skateboarding can derail your life in a beautiful way.