ESPN.com: Mark, it's been a minute since a lot of people have heard from you. What have you been up to lately?
Gutterman: Currently, I am living in Portland, Oregon with my lady and working full-time as a cook up the street at a local cafe -- preparing a good and proper breakfast for the masses, an all-around cure for the weekend hangover type of place. Not bad. I'm constantly surrounded by bacon, which is good, and bad? No, just good. A life without bacon is no life at all, as the old proverb goes. Anyways, when I'm not working at the cafe I ride my skateboard as often as possible. I also have a darkroom set up in my basement and that is where I spend a lot of time as well.

Garric RayStreet gap ollie in Portland.

For a long time you were living in southern California, but decided to move up to the Pacific Northwest. What made you want to move? I'm guessing that you got over the skate industry a little?
It would be difficult to describe the circumstances that have lead me to where I am now. But, I suppose, I was tired of the skateboard scene and the whole scene in general. To me, at the time, Los Angeles was one big sinking ship and, perhaps, still is -- just waiting to crumble into the Pacific Ocean at any given moment. So, naturally, I felt the urge to leave as often as humanly possible. But for whatever reason, no matter where I was, I soon realized a longing to return to that dirty city. I guess it's the combination of smog and sunshine, or just plain restlessness on my part. Either way, for the better part of the past four years I've been moving from L.A to Montana to Portland back to Montana and then back to L.A again. Every which way, at any random order. At present, I feel settled in Portland but, then again, the girlfriend and I have tentative plans for moving down south. So I guess that proves my restlessness point. I'm not entirely sure of anything. I tend to lean towards living in the present as often as I can.

While you were living in Montana you ended up getting really hurt at a local skate park and ruptured your kidney?
That is correct. The doctor used the word, "shattered." I shattered my kidney. The MRI showed my kidney divided into four separate parts. Most importantly, the bleeding was contained and there was no need for surgery. I just had to lie in a hospital bed for a week hooked up to morphine which was controlled by a button that I could press every six minutes. I almost lost my mind -- not being able to move. The nurses that came into my room at all hours of the night and day would have me recite my full name and birth date aloud every single time. It makes you feel robotic and inhuman. They know damn well who you are because you haven't moved an inch in three days. But I guess everything is about liabilities these days.

At any point did you ever feel that you had to skate a certain way to keep your sponsors happy? In your early years, you were typecast as a 'handrail skater,' and then at a certain point you decided to skate a little bit different, which I'm guess lead to some mixed reviews from people and your sponsors?
I never felt I had to skateboard a certain way at any point. And I don't think it was a conscious decision to change the way I skateboard, those things just happen naturally and if they happen unnaturally it's obvious at first glance. Now, I'm not exactly able to dictate which side of the line I fall on to the outside observer but I do know that I didn't wake up one morning and decide to skate differently. It's more of a gradual process that is sparked by several interests and inspirations. I can say that Nate Broussard was and is an inspiration, the guy can push down the middle of the street and do a kickflip and it would be the best thing around.

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Garric RayGutterman, b/s smith in Portland.

Has anyone ever told you that you have really bad luck? Every company that you've ridden for has gone out of business at some point. I've got to say that in some aspects that's pretty impressive.
Nobody has ever told me that I have really bad luck -- at least not in that context. But now that you mention it, I guess it is a bit curious that almost all of the companies that I've skated for went out of business. Perhaps there is some sort of evil curse looming over my head or diligently waiting around every corner of opportunity. I did punch out the review mirror in my car once, maybe I have obtained seven years of bad luck. Has it been seven years yet? I can't recall. In all honesty, I consider myself fortunate to have been involved with so many different companies and people over the years.

Even your last video part that you filmed "Feel Free" is no longer online because the music you used wasn't licensed. But I'm pretty sure out of everyone out of that video, your part is the only one you can't watch online.
Yep, there's that evil curse I mentioned. I suppose you can't use good music for your own interests, display it in public and not pay a cent to the record label or whomever -- you just can't get away with anything anymore.

Your last board sponsor was Ethan Fowler's company Bummer High. What's the story with getting on with Shimizu and Fowler? I know a lot of people really liked that company, but it disappeared without an explanation.
Ethan called me completely out of the blue. I had never met or spoken to him before. I believe Chris Pastras had mentioned something about me to Ethan. Needless to say, I was more than willing to skateboard for his company -- just based on the simple fact that it was Ethan Fowler and I grew up watching him skateboard. Shortly after, I was living in Montana and not entirely interested in skateboarding, so my involvement with the company just sort of faded away -- not ending on a good or bad note, just ending.

I am more motivated now than I have been for quite some time -- almost too motivated.

--Mark Gutterman

Do you have any plans in store for 2012? Rumor has it, that Stereo and Adidas have been flowing you some product lately. I'm guessing that you've been motivated to try and get things going again?
All I want to do is skateboard and mess around in the darkroom, and that is exactly what I am doing. So, things are going well. I can definitely say that I am more motivated now than I have been for quite some time -- almost too motivated. It's annoying and becoming somewhat of a problem. I can't even sleep-in, I just wake up and I'm ready to do things -- productive things, like cleaning and exercising and wandering around aimlessly pondering how I could be more productive. It's terrible. So, I guess the new plan, or better yet, resolution for this year is to seek some medical attention on this matter and, hopefully, get prescribed some serious medicine. If you know a good doctor please contact me, thank you. Ohh and thank you to Stereo, Adidas and my comrade Garric Ray, they are all good people.