Interview by Marshall Smith
Photographs by Aaron Bransdon
M; Whats up Kev, how are you?
Sorry this has taken almost a year to do, I've been slack with Dustie2.
K; Yoo man I have been good, yourself?
Nah no worries, we got there in the end haha.
M; That's great to hear, I've been good aye.
Going to try get some regular content flowing for this thing.
Do you have some basic info for the Dustie2 readers?
K; Word dude, good to hear! Yeah for sure my full name is Kevin Austin.
I'm 22 years old and i live in Sydney, Australia.
M; I honestly don't remember in my scootering career (if you can call it that haha) that you haven't been riding. What keeps the fire burning for Kevmaht? What keeps you stoked on scooters?
K; Yeah dude I have been riding for a while now and dont plan to stop anytime soon either.
I think the Friendly crew has definitely had a large part in keeping me stoked as there is always people to rid with or go film. I think what gets me really stoked though is working on video parts. For me I just want to make as many video parts as i can and that has been my focus for a long time. Working on a video part is my favourite form of self expression.
M; I definitely see the dedication you have for that form of scootering. When ever I'm out riding with you, you put so much work into getting the trick or line perfect. Do you consider yourself a perfectionist when it comes to filming?
K;Yeah man I would definitely say I'm a perfectionist when it comes to filming haha. I usually in vision the trick to my best ability so most of the time i end up filming the same clip 2-3 times over until I'm satisfied. I think it's good to set standards high and I think that brings the best out of me for sure.
M; It shows in the footage you put out in the last two years, are you working on some new stuff at the moment?
K; Thanks dude! Yeah for sure I'm always on the grind. The project I have been working on as of recent is my River Wheel Co part, which i have been filming since June 2016. I actually tried to get my ender yesterday but the cops showed up just in time to ruin the day haha. All I need is one last clip so expect that to be dropping in the near future.
M; Getting the boot always sucks let alone on your ender. I'me exited for new Kev footage as I'm sure most people are. You've been on River Wheel Co for a while now, how did that come about?
K; Yeah dude absolute worst man haha, I got hit up by (Matt) Mckeen shortly after my Downside Scooters video part. I guess him and Andrew (Broussard) were hyped on my riding and chose me to represent them in Australia so I couldn't be more stoked!
M; That's the go Anna, you went to a few different countries to film this part. What would you say was your favourite and why?
K; Yeah man I travelled a bit this last year and even in 2016. Favourite place for sure would have to be Singapore, it's just loaded with spots and so much variety. Been back twice now and I think i'll keep going back so long as I'm scootering haha.
M; Seem like there's so many untouched spots in Singa.
Being from Sydney, one of the biggest scooter scenes how has it changed over the past 5 years or so and where do you think it's headed?
K; Yeah dude I think a lot of Singapore will remain untouched for years to come. Yeah Sydney is pretty crazy. Over the last 5 years the 'street' scene has definitely developed a lot and the next generation of shredders are definitely giving us old dogs a challenge to keep up. Working at Scooter hut I have seen the growth and I hope it continues to grow for years to come. There's a lot of smaller crews within Sydney poppin' up which is really good to see as well.
M; Sounds like the scene is pumping.
Can you give us some of the musicians/ bands you frequently listen to?
K; Yeah dude it's really promising. Wow where do I even start haha. Music is a big part of my life but if i had to narrow it down to artists, I'd have to say Neil Young and Kevin Parker. I'm sure a lot of riders do the same but I;m a big fan of video part songs, they for sure get me hyped to ride most.
M; What about outside the sport?
What does Kevmaht do in his down time?
K; I'm pretty heavily involved in scootering and I have based a lot of my life decisions around being able to scooter as much as possible. When I'm not riding or working I just like to get in touch with nature and music. I love bush walks and live music and if I'm not indulging in those I would just be hanging with my girlfriend.
M; Do you ever hit the blue mountains up for bush walks?
I remember doing the sickest walks there when i was like 7 or 8.
K; Duuude that's my go to! The Blue mountains is in Sydney's back yard so I make it out there as much as possible. When you're in Sydney next I'll be sure to give you the best tour guide experience.
M; Damn, I've gotta get to Sydney soon for that tour.
You and a couple of the Friendly dudes recently rented a house, now I've seen jadlad (Jarrad Smith) cook a stir-fry on instalive. Who would you say is the best cook? and whats the beer of choice for the fridge?
K; Come through Marsh, welcome at mine anytime! Yeah dude with Jarrad and Aaron (Bransdon), soon to be Jon (Archer) too. Beer of choice would have to be Coopers Green but that's started to die out. Nowadays it's what ever 6 pack is on special on the back of a Coles receipt haha. Jarrad can be a good cook but there has been some horror stories. Aaron has some real good dishes but he hasn't cooked ma a meal in a while so i think I'll take the title for this one haha.
M; Yeah oath, I definitely need to get back to Sydney in the near future. I think we've got enough stuff, anything you'd like to add?
K; Yeah word send it my dude! We cab keep it at that. Shout out to Friendly lads and Sydney for keeping it real haha
