The amount of large scale tattoos adorning CrossFit athletes these days is growing almost as fast as the sport itself. In my own pursuit of self expression through tattooing I found a tattoo artist on the same road I was traveling.
In the heartbeat of Denver there’s a man with a magic hand backed by an imagination so transcendental that even shaking it is likely to send impulses of creativity to your soul. His humble spirit encompasses your energy as a majestic calm takes over your nerves when you meet him. It’s as if the tip of his tattoo needle were made of destiny. Josh Wrede is not the man you appoint to simply give you a custom tattoo. He’s the man you ask to uncover the armor that’s already there, unveiling the warrior within you.
When he’s not pouring all of energy into his art you can likely find him at CrossFit Verve throwing around a ridiculous stack of bumper plates. Strength is his specialty and bumper plates are his serenity. His charismatic smile and love for a holistically healthy lifestyle is contagious.
On the CrossFit scene, he’s been infusing his sorcery on such legends as Chris Spealler, Tyson and Miranda Oldryod, Matt and Cherie Chan, and Pat Sherwood. After spending a great deal of his 20’s on the road guest spotting the Vans Warped Tour several times, he continues to tattoo Hardcore and Punk powerhouses to include, but not limited to; Hollywood Undead, Atreyu, Escape the Fate, The Sleeping, and Every Time I Die. He trains with the best, tattoos the best, and tattoos with the best. He’s rested his wandering spirit at Kaze Gallery in Denver, CO for now tattooing alongside artistic genius. It is the driven that inspire this humble, soft spoken man to keep challenging himself in every aspect of his life.
Wendy Spin (WS): Thank you so much Josh for taking time out of your schedule for this interview. How long have you been tattooing, and how did it all start?
Josh Wrede (JW): My pleasure Wendy. I was in high school and my Mom was a body piercer at little hole in the wall tattoo shop. I spent a lot of time drawing, so she asked me to design a tattoo for her. The owner wanted to see more of my artwork and later asked if I’d be interested in learning.
My mom had a lot of tattooed biker friends that would come around the shop. To be honest I thought most of them were gross. I knew then I wanted to get away from that environment, but the opportunity to create art for people was exciting, so I hung in there. After a few weekends of drawing tattoos for the boss to tattoo on people I was hooked! The idea that people wanted to wear my art for the rest of their lives was indescribable. It was such an honor and a huge responsibility. I’d never had such purpose before and I was instantly consumed. I was only 16 when I first started, and it took me a few years to really get focused. So I’ve been tattooing full time for 12 years now.
WS: How would you describe your personal style of tattooing?
JW: It’s funny after all these years I still have a hard time answering that. I’m currently trying to focus on large scale tattoos, so there is a heavy Japanese style influence. I don’t only tattoo Japanese themes, but their style of design has a way of complimenting the shape of human body. I try to create tattoos that move with you. I want them to look like they are part of you as opposed to just on you. I also try to create a tattoo that is going to hold up to the test of time, which is bold designs, with clean solid outlines. I take the principals of traditional eastern and western tattooing and apply them to my designs.
I want to create tattoos that catch the eye. For instance, if you were doing 60mph on the freeway and looked over for a split second to see a guy standing on the side of the road. I’d hope you could say, “did you see that guy’s dragon tattoo?”
WS: Athletes are showing up to the CrossFit Regionals and the Games with more and more tattoos every year. Any guesses why so many tattooed physiques adorn the sport of CrossFit?
JW: Well I think people get tattooed for all kinds of reasons. There is a difference between getting a quick little memento and getting heavily tattooed. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with little tattoos. I have lots, but I’m doing full coverage work on a lot of CrossFitters, and I see a lot of heavily tattooed CrossFitters.
I can’t speak for everyone but there is this commonality we all have as CrossFitters. It’s as if we make this conscious choice to take a different path in life. We’re not going to follow the masses by eating fast food and watching T.V. We want more out of life and we are willing to push ourselves to the limit on a daily basis to achieve our goals. No matter how bad it hurts or how bad we get our asses handed to us, we show up again and we fight. We are not the average person and the same can be said about someone that is heavily tattooed.
Although we all come from different walks of life and we all have a different story, there is no doubt that you have to earn your tattoo. Getting tattooed 10 plus hours isn’t for the weak minded, or the delicate of heart. We are making a statement by being tattooed to stand apart, the same statement we make by being a part of this CrossFit movement.
WS: How long have you been doing CrossFit?
JW: It’s been a little over 3 years now.
WS: What is your CrossFit story? How did you get introduced to it?
JW: I decided to make a serious lifestyle change when I turned 30. I decided to give up the partying and focus on what is most important to me; my art and my health. I was doing these bootcamp workouts when I first met Matt Chan. He came in to the shop to get his first tattoo. He was telling me about CrossFit and I remember thinking to myself it was probably nothing compared to my bootcamps. Matt invited me to come and try out a sample workout. I showed up thinking I was really going to impress them. I think I was about 30 wallballs in when Cherie told me I better stop for a minute because my lips were purple. I struggled through the rest of the workout and hit the floor. I felt like I got my ass kicked and my lunch money taken. Needless to say I signed up that day!
WS: What types of WODs do you enjoy doing the most?
JW: I have to admit that my eyes light up when I look at that whiteboard and see a 1 rep max for any type of powerlifting movement. Those are the rare occasions that I stand out in the class, but I enjoy working on my weaknesses too. There is something really humbling about having a 100lb girl right next to me overhead squatting double what I can do. There have been so many moments where I have accomplished things I thought I’d never be able to, and I cherish every one of those.
WS: I hear a great deal about artists having back problems and joint problems. Do you feel CrossFit has helped you keep up physically with such a demanding profession?
JW: Yeah, I think it’s crucial. I sit in a chair or stand bent over, hunched, and twisted for 6-10 hours a day. We spend countless hours in positions that cause serious wear and tear on our bodies. Not to mention tattooers usually opt for fast food because time is money. It’s generally a pretty unhealthy life style. If you’re not careful it can end your career. It could be through slipped discs, carpal tunnel, or good ole obesity.
I was about 40lbs overweight before I started working out and eating better. I had a pinched nerve in my lower back. Some days it hurt so bad I couldn’t stand on one leg to put my pants on, I’d have to sit down. I was pretty depressed and on a dark path. As trite as it may sound, CrossFit has truly changed my life! I don’t have any aspirations of competing in CrossFit, I chose my path 16 years ago. I’m dedicated to tattooing, it’s who I am. However, I want to be able to be healthy enough to tattoo as long as I can. It’s so important to have the core strength to hold myself up in a healthy body position while working for hours at a time. CrossFitting for an hour a day, getting my heart rate up, and to eating real food is very important to me. I went from 25% body fat, to 15% body fat. I feel healthy and strong mentally. I’m focused and sharp, but best of all I can put my pants on standing up!
WS: Is there a difference between tattooing the general public and tattooing a CrossFitter?
JW: Without a doubt! I tell my CrossFit clients this all the time too. They have the mental discipline to deal with pain for extended periods of time. Plus, you never meet a boring CrossFitter, so they keep me entertained. It’s a lot easier on me to tattoo fit people because the skin is already tight. CrossFitters are generally nicer to look at and we all know CrossFit isn’t cheap, so I know they’re not broke!
WS: Josh that’s hilarious. Forgive me for laughing. I have spent a fair amount of time hanging around tattoo shops and I know exactly what you mean. Okay, next question: describe what you like most about CrossFit?
JW: It’s the sense of community in CrossFit that I like most, without a doubt. You have this room full of people that were at one point total strangers, and they’re in there pushing themselves, and each other to become better people. You could have the top athlete in your gym crushing a workout while everyone is blown away and cheering them on, or you could have a guy that’s 100lbs overweight, brand new to the gym just fighting to get 10 pushups on his knees. We are going to cheer just as loud because we are all there for the same reason. We want to better ourselves and help better each other. It’s such a beautiful thing to me and I‘m so happy to be a part of it.
WS: What is your most memorable moment thus far in CrossFit?
JW: I’d have to say it was last year at the 2012 Games. I was out there with the rest of the Verve crew to cheer on my coach and friend Matt Chan. By this point I had spent countless hours tattooing him telling each other embarrassing stories, and getting to know the guy. There are few people that I truly admire as human beings and he’s one of them. He’s dedicated to what he loves and he genuinely cares about others. That’s a rare quality these days.
So it was the rope climb/sled workout on Saturday, right after a 300 yard shuttle sprint. It was 5 rounds of 20 ft rope climb and 20 yard sled push. I don’t remember what that thing weighed but it was heavy! By the second round most guys couldn’t push it more than 5 yards at a time. They were throwing their whole bodies at that thing and it was hardly budging. After the 3rd round guys were slowly walking back from the ropes just barely holding on. I was standing on the sideline with my crew, all of us just screaming at the top of our lungs for Matt, and no exaggeration, he was the only guy in that entire workout that jogged back from the rope every time! He didn’t get a running start for the sled, he just walked up to it, calmly picked it up, and pushed it the entire 20 yards, every round without stopping. It was so unreal! He beat everyone by over a minute. To have a person that you’ve seen train so hard pour his heart out like that is breathtaking, and to be with a group of friends all celebrating together was such a great feeling!
WS: What are your goals as you move forward in your profession, and with CrossFit?
JW: I think I can answer those both these questions together. I’m going to continue to push myself beyond the limit of my abilities on a daily basis. There are no pinnacles in either, so I’m going to continue to work as hard as I possibly can to better myself as an artist, as an athlete, and as a person for as long as possible.
WS: Thanks again Josh. It has been such a pleasure to meet you. Now for the most important question: How can ink interested CrossFitters get in touch with you?
JW: I’m currently based in Denver CO, and I travel the states regularly. I generally have about a 10-12 month wait for new projects. You can visit my website www.jwredetattoos.com or reach me at joshwrede@gmail.com
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