The 2016 Skateboarding Hall of Fame awards ceremony found itself a bigger home this year at the Grove in Anaheim with support from Steve Van Doren and Vans. With all of the added square footage, the glitz and glam level was heightened with spotlights, backdrops, laser beams, movie screens and security guards making you think you were at an Oscars’ level show. Once check-in was complete, we were whisked into the pre-game outdoor zone where skateboarding luminaries and fans interacted and talked story while libations were dispersed in copious amounts.
Once it was game time or, in this case, dinnertime, everyone found the reserved table to which they were assigned and supper was served. We were honored to be invited to join our great friends at the Powell Peralta table to share in the evening’s festivities. Without skipping a beat, SHOF host, David Hackett, took to the stage all dressed in black ready to set the pace for the highly anticipated acceptance speeches soon to follow.
The festivities began with a re-induction of Tony Alva and Bruce Logan who were given new and improved trophies to commemorate their inclusion into the HOF back in 2009, although T.A. commented that he preferred the old wood and wheels version he was awarded back in the day when the Skateboarding Hall of Fame was originally hosted at the Vans Combi Skatepark in Orange, CA. Heartfelt speeches were given by both TA and Logan, and the night was off to an outstanding start.
Next up was the first of the Icon awards, which this year was presented to Powell Peralta who is now 38 years deep into supporting the skateboarding family. Regrettably George Powell and Stacy Peralta were not able to attend as they were out of the country taking care of business. Steve Caballero and Michael Furukawa accepted on behalf of everyone in the Powell Peralta family. Caballero, always the consummate professional, nailed his speech within the allotted three minutes given for each inductee. Yeah Cabbie!
The next Icon award went to Mofo, who is considered by many to be a literary force, influencing a culture of misfits and renegades with his no-holds-barred approach to journalism defining the Thrasher Magazine ethos in the 1980’s. He showed gratefulness and humility during his speech, which for a man never short of words just went to show his sincere appreciation for the honor.
Following Mofo was none other than Mike Muir of Suicidal Tendencies who was introduced by his older brother and Hall Of Famer, Jim Muir. It would be difficult to explain how much this award meant to both of the Muirs, but they both broke into tears during their speeches. In Jim’s words “No one can ever say the Muir brothers aren’t sensitive.” The crowd showed its appreciation and support with hoots and hollers as the two Dogtown royals have now both laid claim to a coveted Hall Of Fame award.
Following Mike’s speech, there was a musical interlude, for the first time in the Skateboarding Hall Of Fame History, with none other than newly crowned Hall Of Famer Mofo and soon to be inducted HOF Salba. They appropriately dedicated the first song to our fallen brother, Taters, and it was an amazing performance. Later in the evening, Salba’s band Powerflex 5 rocked the house followed by a late night gig with The Dickies.
In order to not make this write up as long as the awards show, let’s just say that every inductee had their shine time in the spotlight. Skip Frye was a class act, Ty Page was a total inspiration, Salba spoke his mind, Elguera couldn’t have been happier, Ellen Berryman, Cindy Whitehead and Jen O’Brien represented for the ladies, Tommy Guerrero was ambivalent yet grateful, and Ed Templeton gave the best speech of the night….
This just about sums it all up. Ed Templeton’s speech…
“Thanks to IASC and the Skateboarding Hall of Fame for this honor, and to the people who voted. It’s exceedingly gracious of you. And thanks to Justin Regan at Vans for hooking up the table. From “Retardo-Foot” to the Hall of Fame, who would have guessed? Thanks to Deanna for her support. I would be nothing without it. I was recently given the TransWorld Magazine Legend Award and, in my speech, I thanked literally every person who has been part of my journey along the way. It took about 20 minutes to get through, so I will spare you hearing that list again. The people know who they are, and my gratitude to them is limitless. I just want to thank those people again for taking a chance on me, through business, through sponsorship and in friendship. I see skateboarding as a continuum. Just as life evolved from microorganisms crawling from the salty brine, branching out, adapting and changing to the environment, so did skateboarding. Skateboarding mutated from surfing and evolved and unfolded into what it is today, and we’re still only at the beginning because the very people who mutated it from the waves to the sidewalks are still alive and sitting at these tables in front of me. I started skating at a time where I was able to witness and even take part in the birth of street skating. When I pushed as fast as I could and lipslid a bench, I was trying to copy Chris Miller skating a pool. There were no other examples. The kids standing around doing flat ground hand plants in the mid-80s were imagining they were Jeff Grosso stalling an epic sad plant on a vert ramp and the kids flying off jump ramps wished they were Christian Hosoi stylishly soaring through the sky maxing out a Method just like they saw in the magazines. Of course with visionaries like Gonz, Natas, Mike V and Tommy G, street skating evolved quickly into its own thing. Through great fortune, both physically and psychologically, I was able to stretch my pro career for 22 years, through a few different eras, before a severely broken leg at age 40 retired me. In this whole scheme of things, I’m still just a tiny blip on skateboarding’s timeline, so to be plucked from the multitude of worthy contributors for recognition is the biggest honor of my life. I was asked a question in an interview recently about the inspiration and influence I may have spawned through my artwork, skateboarding and Toy Machine bloodsucking skateboard company. My answer was that it makes me feel happy that I could act as a conduit – a torch passer in the skateboarding continuum. I feel like it completes the inspiration pipeline – from people like Gonz, Tobin Yelland, Don Brown, Thomas Campbell, GSD, Blender, Miller and many others that inspired me – and passes it down to these young people who in turn will take and tweak those influences into their own creations and pass them down to the next generation watching them. It’s not about me. It’s about what we created together as a team and the things we leave behind for others to see, the videos, photos, ads, zines and skate graphics that only make sense or mean anything to fellow skaters. Skateboarding is this beautiful microcosmic world we have all created for ourselves. Skateboarding became my parents – abusive at times, but essentially supportive. Sometimes you get grounded and other times you get taken to Disneyland. Being inducted into the Skateboarding Hall of Fame is Disneyland on crack. I have been a faithful believer in skateboarding’s power to transform a person’s life. Ever since I picked up a skateboard I have been surrounded by a community of creative, driven, tough as nails, psychopathic non-conformists that have altered my life in “mostly” positive ways. This community is my family. I thank you all for this incredible trip.”
Congratulations to all of the 2016 Skateboarding Hall of Fame inductees!
1960s Skip Frye
1970s Era One – Ty Page
1970s Era Two – Steve Alba
1980s Era One – Eddie Elguera
1980s Era Two – Tommy Guerrero
1990s Ed Templeton
1970s Female -Ellen Berryman
1980s Female – Cindy Whitehead
1990s Female – Jen O’Brien
2016 Icon Awards: Mörizen “Mofo” Föche, Powell-Peralta, Suicidal Tendencies
Words and photos by Dan Levy
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