The hot-selling Edirol R-09 WAVE/MP3 Recorder is the ultimate in handheld stereo recording. With built-in mics and up to 24-bit recording direct to removable SD media, the R-09 is the perfect device for those that need to capture high-quality audio on the go. As such, it’s found its way into some interesting and unlikely places, like the world of skateboarding. Recently, we chatted with Kurt Hayashi, a skateboard videographer, to discuss how he uses his R-09.

Kurt’s been making skateboard videos since he was 16, and he’s been a pro skateboard videographer since 1996. Basically, this entails traveling all over the world, shooting action video footage of the world’s greatest skateboarders doing their thing. His work has taken him all over the United States, Europe, and Asia, and to exotic locations like the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. Sounds like a fun gig, huh? He’s shot footage and done video editing for 411 Video Magazine, Nike Skateboarding, and The Firm Skateboards, and his work has also been used in MTV’s Jackass show and the Tony Hawk video game series for Sony’s PlayStation.

Based in Costa Mesa, CA, Kurt currently works for Flip Skateboards, for whom he travels and shoots footage of skateboard legends Bob Burnquist, Lance Mountain, and other Flip team members. He acquired the R-09 last year, and it quickly found its way into his routine. “Every November, we do a tour called ‘The Feast,’ and we go to about five different states and do demonstrations and autograph signings for kids,” Kurt says. “The R-09 is used mainly for interviews. On The Feast tour, I shoot a lot of interviews.” To record the audio, Kurt clips a lavalier mic on the interview subject and connects it to the R-09’s MIC jack. “We get the establishing shot—the talking head—and then we’ll lay other footage over that.” Since he’ll shoot many interviews in a day, Kurt likes the fact that he can record at MP3 quality and get lots of recording time on an SD card. “We just stick a 1 GB card in and don’t worry about the time. Each interview is about 20 minutes,” Kurt says.

Kurt loves having a handheld, portable recorder when he’s off the job, too. “I recently recorded a piano concert with the [R-09’s] built-in mics, and it sounded insane,” he relates. Additionally, he’s used his R-09 to capture some family memories: “My Dad passed away about three years ago, and my Mom had kept some of his messages on her answering machine, and we used the R-09 to record them. That was so easy. I just recorded them as an MP3, dumped it into iTunes (via the R-09’s USB connector), and burned a CD. Now, my mom can listen to it any time she wants. That meant a lot to her. This was worth [getting the R-09] right here, let alone using it for work.”

To get more info on Kurt and his videography, log on to kurthayashimedia.com. For more on Flip Skateboards and The Feast tour, go to flipskateboards.com.

For more information on the R-09, click here, or visit rolandus.com/edirol.