Over the last couple of years Blueprint OG and ex-Zero pro John Rattray has been raising money to drive work and open conversation in mental illness, with the aim of hopefully making it a bit more manageable. The subject is something very close to his heart having been touched personally by it after losing his sister in 2011, and has been supporting the cause in various forms since then.
So for his latest project "Why So Sad?" John embarked on a mission to ride his bike around multiple countries with the added element of stopping en-route at skateparks and ramps along the way to do as many Sad Plants in different destinations as he could, with people invited to join him on the ride for parts of his journey. For his next project he has partnered up with Real Skateboards and their Actions Realized project which will support The Ben Raemers Foundation that aims to destigmatize suicide and mental health problems. And in addition to that his projects have already raised money for The Scottish Association for Mental Health, Grassroots Suicide Prevention and research at Johns Hopkins University.
The "Why So Sad?" cycle/skate adventure kicked off at Kelvingrove Skatepark in Glasgow, hitting up some gnarly Scottish spots on the way ending up in Edinburgh via Falkirk. Then picking things up again in Portland, Oregon, where a group of sixteen rode to an undercover vert ramp in Clatskanie, wrapping the whole journey up by finally executed a Lance Mountain approved Sad Plant. "Let's keep learning while pushing the conversation, and keep looking out for each other".