Where would Tony Hawk be without the 900?
Well, according to The Perfect Storm via STORIED he'd not only be eternally frustrated, but many might not realize Tony was battling the idea to quit competitive skateboarding in 1999 as a whole.
It was an insane era in skateboarding, to say the least. Everything was new again, commercialized as hell, mega contests—skating was gigantic—and Tony Hawk was unarguably at the forefront of it all.
But amongst all the bright lights and big bucks, a few select skaters were tirelessly (desperately) chasing the 900. For ten years, Tony was just waiting for a call from one of his piers saying, "Hey, so-and-so did it." But as we know, that was never the case.
The doc obviously touches on this, but the fact that Tony accomplished this 10+ year trick battle on live national television during X Games in San Francisco literally made all the difference.
For the first time, millions of viewers saw what really goes into skateboarding—the passion, the determination, the camaraderie.
And most importantly, the perseverance.
Shortly after that, Tony Hawk Pro Skater (THPS) was released and a whole new generation of skateboarders were born.
It was undeniably the biggest moment in skate history. It was a groundbreaking moment in sports history...just in general. He had done the impossible, and we were all there to see it go down.
The best part? Tony is still chasing that same dream (and still happily hurting himself along the way). He's the best to ever do it. And he always will be. Simple as that.
Video / STORIED
