As previously reported, Vice has released Anthony Van Engelen's episode of Epicly Later'd, which delves into his struggles, successes, mental breakdowns, and experiences with substance abuse.
Even his close friend and business partner Jason Dill admitted to not doing coke with AVE because he is aggressive when high on drugs. "I couldn't smoke crack with Anthony the way I could smoke crack with other friends." Dill said, "It wasn't fun is what I'm saying when I did with Anthony. It was not fun. He just got too gnarly. He turned into the Incredible Hulk."
During a skate tour, it was disclosed by Violet boss Bill Strobeck that AVE and professional skateboarder Fred Gall struggled with a severe addiction to acid.
"They had stayed up all night on acid and walked the beach. But when they came back, Freddy came in, and I was under the sheet. I looked out, and they were like, 'Go to sleep, whatever,'" explained Strobeck. "They were just acting wild, shot a bottle near my head, and then the bottle ended up in the wall, with the glass stuck in the wall, broken."
He added, "They were in a state of mind where they didn't care and were behaving recklessly. It was quite intense."
Despite past mistakes and bad behavior, Dill, Ave, and Gall have remained sober for years, thanks to their commitment to staying clean.