Cool Hunting

"Five million in five years." That's CreateAskate founder Paul Schmitt's goal for his DIY skateboard building program aimed at students.

The skateboard industry veteran, who built a rep from his '80s board company Schmitt Stix, launched the offshoot non-profit CreateASkate program few years ago, educating students in principles of math, art and—perhaps the most important of them all—hard work. Aspiring young skateboarders benefit from hands-on construction, starting either rough from a square, angled board or from an already pre-cut board.

In addition to building skills, students gain other lessons as well, first convincing classmates to petition teachers to sign up for the 10-hour program and promising to raise the $20 cost per participant. (Fifteen goes for the board and curriculum and the rest goes towards shipping, sandpaper, art materials and sustainable efforts, like planting trees to offset the wood used in the boards.)

With the full support of Fuel TV, which is giving him his own booth on the current AST Dew Tour to demo his program and a current push to find sponsors (namely corporations that could help out with the supplies used to make the boards, like Home Depot or Turtle Wax), Schmitt seems well on his way to reaching his numbers.

To see video of CreateAskate in the classroom, head to the website.