In 1999, Tony Hawk landed the first(?) 900, a trick where the skateboarder makes two-and-a-half horizontal spins in the air before landing. Hawk was 31 at the time, which means that today, the legendary skateboarder is 48 years old, and believe it or not, he is still able to land the insanely difficult maneuver.
Yesterday was the 17-year anniversary of Hawk’s first successful 900, so in a video posted yesterday by RIDE, Hawk decided he should see if he still has what it takes to pull it off. Heading to the half-pipe, Hawk tells the camera, “I’m going to try a 900 today, because I feel like I can. I never thought I’d be doing this at my age, when I was young. I really didn’t think that was a possibility. But I’m still going, and I’ll keep going until the wheels fall off, I guess.”
Hawk also said this would likely be his last time attempting the 900, so he had to make it count. It took a few tries and many falls, as the video documents, but after a couple minutes of in-video time, he pulled it off gracefully. It’s amazing that a man who helped shape video games with his eponymous series can still do things in real life that are tough even in a virtual environment.
Watch both the 2016 and 1999 attempts at the 900 above, and let us know what type of athletic feats you imagine yourselves doing at nearly half a century old. If you’re picturing yourself doing something like this, well, we admire your confidence.
Image: TimothyJ
