10 QUESTIONS FOR TONY HAWK
By Jeffrey Ressner
Legendary skateboard champ Tony Hawk helped turn a California street sport into a global phenomenon. Now 36, Hawk is also a successful businessman, having built an action-sports empire that encompasses best-selling video games, DVDS, equipment, apparel and an arena tour called Boom Boom HuckJam. Hawk spoke with TIME's Jeffrey Ressner from the Cayman Islands, where he performed at the opening of Black Pearl, the world's largest concrete skate park.
WHAT'S THE MOST DANGEROUS THING YOU'VE EVER DONE? I jumped between two seven-story buildings in Los Angeles, launching from one rooftop to the other with ramps. When I was standing on top of the building, so many questions came into my head that I'd ordinarily never think about: What if my wheel falls off? What if the seam of the ramp comes up? What if it's wet in one spot? It really messed with my confidence.
ANY TRICK STILL ELUDING YOU? I have some goals and moves I still want to do, but nothing really death defying in terms of jumping a new distance or height. It's more about new ways to skin my body and my board and make that all connect. I'm way past the point of throwing caution to the wind. The one move I'd still like to do is an ollie 720, which is a double spin in the air without touching the board with your hand. I can do a 540 but never figured out how to keep my board on my feet for that extra half a spin.
GIVEN YOUR SUCCESS, HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN STREET CRED? Honestly, I always keep the focus of what I do on the skating itself. I've turned away plenty of endorsements and promotional opportunities when the basis was not around skating. Quality skating will always be at the forefront of the image I project, and if I start sucking, then I don't deserve any of this stuff, and I won't be out there promoting it.
DO YOU STILL GET ON YOUR BOARD EVERY DAY? Almost every day. It's strange getting to a certain level where your life revolves around skating but you're not actually riding your skateboard. I do a lot of things centered around skating that don't require me to jump on my board.
YOU HAVE THREE SONS. DO YOU DRAW ANY LINES WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR SPORTING ACTIVITIES? I want them to follow their own paths in whatever they choose to do. For the most part, they have a pretty good idea of their limitations, except for my 3-year-old, who is absolutely crazy. I honestly believe skateboarding isn't dangerous enough for him. He'll jump off anything and try anything, and if he gets hurt and he's bleeding, he's only upset if it means he can't try it again.
YOUR WIFE MUST LOVE THAT, OR DOES SHE? Basically, as a parent, I just try to keep him alive. I try to give him some pointers and sense of mortality, but for the most part I try to keep him from killing himself.
SHOULD SKATEBOARDING BE AN OLYMPIC SPORT? At this point, the Olympics needs skateboarding more than skateboarding needs the Olympics. They desperately need a cool factor and younger viewers. Skateboarding has all the makings of an Olympic sport and has more participants than many of them.
YOUR BOOM BOOM HUCKJAM ARENA TOUR STARTS IN JUNE. IS IT NASCAR FOR TWEENS? I'd liken it less to NASCAR or a Monster Truck show and more to Cirque du Soleil. It has a lot of choreography, and it's visually exciting--it's showcasing our sport as entertainment, not competition. And it's not just for the younger generation--it's one of the few events that dads and sons can equally enjoy.
WHO HAS BEEN YOUR MOST SURPRISING FAN? I was a nominee for some award, and Ed Bradley introduced me by mentioning the name of a skateboard trick I invented called stalefish. When you're a kid and you think of a silly name like that, you never imagine a host of 60 Minutes will ever present it in a serious tone.
WHAT'S YOUR WORST SKATING-FASHION FAUX PAS? There was a scary neon movement in the '80s, and I was a participant in that. If there's anyone I blinded with my outfits back then, I'd like to apologize to you now. o