I said, ‘That’s what I want to be, a Christian.’” “It was like almost when I wanted to be a pro skater, when I first tasted skateboarding. “That’s when my journey began,” Hosoi said. “I need a lawyer! I need an attorney! I need bail!”ĭespite his apprehension, Hosoi picked up a Bible a few days into his incarceration. “What’s God going to do for me?” Hosoi remembered telling her. Hosoi’s then-girlfriend Jennifer - now his wife - encouraged him to remain optimistic and told him to put faith in God. He was placed in a windowless cell in Hawaii, where he was told he would spend the next 10 years. In January 2000, reality caught up to Hosoi when he was arrested for carrying a pound-and-a-half of meth aboard a flight from California to Hawaii. From there, Hosoi tried “every drug under the sun,” including cocaine, acid, Ecstasy and, eventually, methamphetamine. When Hosoi was 8, his father introduced him to marijuana. Even though he was underage - as he was for most of his career - he could get immediate access to any nightclub. Hosoi grew close with pro skateboarders Tony Alva and Jay Adams, and graced the cover of Thrasher Magazine several times. His biggest competition was Hawk, who was around his same age. He learned to skateboard at a Marina del Rey skatepark and turned pro at 14. In the memoir, Hosoi recounts his life as a youth skateboarder and celebrity. Wednesday, Hosoi will sign copies of his book at Barnes & Noble, 7881 Edinger Ave., No. Now 44, he’s come out with a tell-all autobiography, titled “Hosoi: My Life as a Skateboarder Junkie Inmate Pastor.” At 7 p.m. The skateboarder known for his “Christ Air” move has since reformed himself as a Huntington Beach resident and pastor at The Sanctuary church in Westminster. Hosoi’s fame brought him a lot of money, parties and girls, but he also rode his board into a downward spiral of substance abuse that eventually landed him in prison.

Long before he was legally old enough to drink, the skateboarder nicknamed “Christ” was a stud on the pro circuit who was touted as an emerging rival to the legendary Tony Hawk.

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