For Tony Hawk, the Skateboard Is a Canvas
I STARTED skateboarding because I never fit in with team sports. I was so energetic as a kid, and skating became my outlet. It was like finding a blank canvas.
TONY HAWK
President, Tony Hawk Inc., Vista, Calif.
AGE 41
NUMBER OF BONES HE HAS BROKEN 3
FAVORITE VACATION SPOT Tavarua Island, Fiji
FAVORITE MOVIE STAR Benicio Del Toro
You can skateboard however you want, any style. You don’t have to listen to a coach or rely on a team. I played basketball and baseball but never felt that I was improving. But every time I skated, I got better at it.
When I started, the industry was relatively small, and there weren’t many competitions. There was no governing organization. To reach a professional rank, I simply checked the box on the form for professional instead of amateur. To enter competitions today, you need the support of sponsors and you have to qualify.
In the early 1990s, interest in skateboarding dropped off, and royalties and sales of goods I had licensed decreased. It was a difficult time financially. I learned that I loved skateboarding even if I didn’t get paid for it. I knew this all along, but that period really put me to the test. It also taught me to be self-motivated and to appreciate what I had.
In 1992, I started Birdhouse Projects to sell skateboards. In 1998, I started Hawk Clothing and later sold it to Quiksilver. I also started Tony Hawk Inc. that year, and it now has five divisions: merchandising, endorsements, events, film and digital media. In 2002, I arranged the first of the Boom Boom HuckJam tours that feature BMX bikers, skateboarders, motocross athletes and rock bands.
I’ve had people question whether I’m a real person. Parents have said they think I’m a video game character. We just released a new video game, Tony Hawk: Ride, which has a skateboard as a controller. Selling hardware is not easy because people are under the impression they’re going to have to upgrade it at some point. Our challenge has been to convince them that it’s not the case with this game.
I didn’t attend college, but I’ve never regretted it because skating presented such a great opportunity. I traveled extensively. I experienced so many things that I otherwise wouldn’t have, and I was exposed to so much culture.
I’m not saying that everyone should skip college, but I learned so much that I feel I’m self-educated. When my high school classmates were trying to figure out what they were going to study, I already had a career and a house.
I still come up against the attitude that skating professionally is a bad influence on kids or not a viable career option. I do my best to prove the naysayers wrong. There’s also a lot of pressure associated with the title of professional skateboarder. No matter where I go, people expect amazing feats. If I go to a public skate park, kids will sit down and expect me to entertain them.
I don’t think in terms of being an icon; I think about being a role model to my own kids. If what I do transcends that, fine. But I’m not trying to present an image that’s not me.
I took my 1 1/2 -year-old daughter on the media tour for the video game last fall. It was fun to have her along.
I see some of myself in my sons. My 8-year-old has learned that the brick finish on our house can be used as a rock-climbing wall. Recently I heard yelling outside. I found him clinging to the side of the house 10 feet off the ground. He couldn’t get down and wanted me to catch him.
Several years ago I started a foundation to build free skate parks in low-income areas. Kids use them from sunup to sundown. Our endorsement can help cut through the red tape in communities. So far we’ve had a hand in creating 450 parks.
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