This past weekend, the International Association of Skateboard Companies (IASC) joined hundreds from the skateboard community in a fundraising celebration to honor and induct icons; Bruce Logan, Tony Alva, Tony Hawk and Danny Way; into the Skateboard Hall of Fame at the Vans Skatepark in Orange, CA.
“This event was long overdue and it turned out to be a truly heartwarming and monumental occasion,” said John Bernards, executive director of IASC. “Skateboarding used to be looked down upon and we were considered criminals or social pariahs – it was time for us to take a moment to acknowledge and honor those who put their hearts and souls into shaping the sport into something positive that anyone can enjoy today.”
The invite-only event was packed with VIPs from every era of action sports, including: honorees, Tony Alva, Bruce Logan and Danny Way (Tony Hawk, on tour, was represented by his brother, Steve Hawk); surf royalty, Pete Townend; vert pioneer, Lance Mountain; surf and skate legend, Jeff Ho, multi-talented boarders, Aaron Astorga, Neil Hendrix and Andy MacDonald; skateboarding pioneer, George Powell; author of the Disposable Skateboard Bible, Sean Cliver; and owner of Skatelab, Todd Huber (Skatelab, located in Simi Valley, is home of the Skateboarding Hall of Fame and Museum); amongst others.
Guests mingled and reminisced while enjoying live musical performances and competed for priceless memorabilia and high-end auction items in a bidding frenzy that was spurred on by an open bar and friendly rivalry. The highlight of the evening, however, was the official induction ceremony in which each skateboarder was recognized individually and then took the stage to speak humbly to their passion for the sport and give thanks to significant individuals in their own lives.
Bruce Logan, while accepting his award said, “Old-school skaters should always be remembered, because what they did in the ‘70s changed skateboarding forever.” Tony Alva affirmed Logan’s sentiments throughout his own acceptance speech and credited him and other old-school skaters for acting as role models, providing him with guidance and essentially with the sport of skateboarding, which brought Alva “a life of nothing but, one beautiful and spontaneous moment after another.”
As the youngest athlete to take the stage, inducted from the most current decade, Danny Way also paid homage to those before him. He spoke graciously and humbly of the industry’s collective triumphs, challenges and its sense of brotherhood by adding, “I was learning to drop-in while Tony Hawk was practicing 540s and never dreamed that our names could ever be in the same sentence someday. Tony and the others here tonight are the reason that I pursued skating, and in turn, I couldn’t be blessed with a better family than the skateboard family – it’s the most genuine community that exists and when you quit skating, it’s like you quit living.”
