Wolfgang Ray "Confidence is Key"

Getting to know Division Brand's Secret Weapon

13 Mar 2017

First spot of the day after a long drive. Opposite ice down a perfect rail.

Photos and Interview by Cooper Brownlee Intro by Chris Bracamonte

Wolf is one of those guys who's riding speaks louder than his words. More so because Wolf is one of the most soft spoken and polite person i know. I met Wolf a few years back at Santa Clarita Skatepark and he caught my attention not only with the magnitude of his tricks but by how smooth he made them look. When i introduced myself to him i found out quickly that he was going to be a good friend from that point on. About 6 months later i had invited him to go on a road trip to the San Francisco Bay Area with three other guys and myself. On that trip i really got to know Wolf and how laid back he really is. Not once did i ever hear him complain about what spot we were at or where we were eating. Flash forward 4 years and several trips later and the only thing that has changed is his bag of tricks. Wolf's style is timeless and an absolute privilege to capture on video. I hope everyone gets a chance to ride with Wolf and experience what a awesome person he is. - Chris Bracamonte.

Have you always lived in Palmdale, CA?

Yes I have, all 21 years.

How long have you been riding for and what got you interested in BMX?

I've been riding about 10 years. What got me into riding was my dad. He rode BMX and dirt bikes so I got into it right away. Plus my neighbours rode and had dirt jumps up the street.

Give us a sketchy story from Palmdale…

A few months back me and some friends were hanging out in the parking lot of the skatepark and a truck rolled up and three dudes hopped out and robbed my friends at gun point. Luckily they didn't take anything from me and we were all okay.

Any plans to move out of Palmdale?

I'd love to haha, but my budget’s tight.

What’s been your favourite roadtrip so far and why?

My favourite trip has to be my trip to Australia. It was the best just cause the adventure of going to a different country just to ride. Plus visiting and riding with Cooper and all the dudes was so fun.

Sure this spot has been thrashed, it's probably been done but you can't pass up a photo of Wolf putting out a good looking t-bog.

Any random stories from the AUS trip ? Or anything about the culture that tripped you out being form America?

My trip went pretty smooth. I thought it was gonna be a lot different and be trippy but it was pretty chill. The money was different to get used to and I kept thinking we were gonna get T-boned by other cars driving on the other side of the street haha.

Chris Bracamonte seem to take you under his wing a few years back, how did you meet Chris and what’s it like filming with him?

I met Chris like 3 or 4 years ago at Santa Clarita skatepark, and ever since then we've been meeting up and filming. It's always been pretty natural filming with him he's an awesome dude! He's also like the first person to film me so we know each other pretty well!

Have you had many injuries whilst riding? I remember you messing up your hand pretty good?

Yeah a few years back I slipped off a switch feeble just warming up and jammed my finger and it dislocated. But fortunately that's my only major injury from BMX… knock on wood! I have broke my wrist and pinky finger just doing dumb stuff as a kid.

I know you have to travel a fair way for a day of riding fresh spots, does it motivate you more to make the most of your day out riding?

Yeah for sure! I always try to make the most of riding good spots cause we don't have much, especially good down rails. But also since we don't have much, I have fun riding anything, sometimes we find ourselves sessioning a curb for hours haha.

"Snce we don't have much, I have fun riding anything, sometimes we find ourselves sessioning a curb for hours."

Flyout opposite whip to kick off a creative line at a unique spot.

Whats you favourite kind of spot setup?

My favourite spot setup would probably be a ledge to Manuel pad spot those are always fun, or about a 10 stair not to crazy down rail haha.

Everything you do on a bike looks good and after watching you ride here in Aust. it was clear you don't believe in bitch runs before hitting a rail so the confidence is on point, but is there any tricks or set-ups that give you a hard time mentally?

The biggest thing that usually scares me is big steep rails, and setups were it's usually do or die haha. And confidence is key.. I'm pretty good at knowing I'm gonna be able to do something and I'm good at knowing when I shouldn't go for something, it's better to live to ride another day haha.

Which riders inspire you the most?

Right now it would have to be Dak. I just love how he rides everything so smooth and stylish. I watch his videos everyday pretty much.

We heard you're low key a trailboss, is this true?

Haha, A trailboss not at all. But I grew up riding dirt jumps pretty much until high school. I love trails and always will haha.

Tight curved pegs 180.

Are you working on any video projects at the moment?

Yes I am, I recently finished that split video with Trent McDaniel and currently working on finishing my individual video. Both for Division Brand.

What inspires you to start filming another video project?

What inspires me to start working on a new video part is new spots! I like going to different areas and spots it pumps me up to film and try something new. It's sick to see a finished video, it also makes me want to start filming for another!

You've recently made the change to a coaster after being one of the dudes who kept rocking a cassette for a while, Why the change and do you think you'll go back?

I don’t know really it just hit me one day that I wanted to try something different. Now that I'm used to it I don't really see myself going back, I've been digging it.