Landing the 900: The moment Tony Hawk became a legend | Rewind the '90s
NARRATOR: In 1995, Tony Hawk wins gold in the first X Games and goes on to dominate the decade. In 1999 he cranks it up a notch, attempting a never before done trick, the 900.
HAWK: A 900 is a two and a half spin rotation sort of summersault in the air, holding onto your skateboard. The thing that makes it the most challenging is that you are blind to your landing zone twice.
DUNCAN (over speaker): Yeah, 900!
HAWK: I had no plans of doing 900 at X Games. I think it was the onsite announcer, Dave Duncan that said, "Oh let's see that 900," 'cause he knew I'd been trying it.
DUNCAN (over speaker): Run back, Tony's got a shot at it. Can he do it?
HAWK: And so I just started trying it more to appease the crowd and to appease Dave on the mic, like, here's what it looks like.
DUNCAN (over speaker): 900! 900, this could be it. Oh. The closest one. (cheering) We're not worthy.
SEMIAO: When he'd go up and start flipping it was like... (gasps). (sighs).
HAWK: Something inside me just said, "You're either making this or they're gonna cart you off of the ramp to the hospital," those were the only two endings to that night for me.
DUNCAN (over speaker): Tony, Tony, Tony, Tony, Tony, history in the making.
SEMIAO: The 900 was revolutionary 'cause it had never been done before. My heart was in mouth. I didn't want him to be taken away in an ambulance, I wanted him to land it.
HAWK: At one point I thought it wasn't possible and it was just like, I wasn't gonna give up. (cheering)
SEMIAO: And when he did it, that pure shock.
HAWK: When I made it, I saw all my peers rushing towards me and it was like that, that made it real.
SEMIAO: And that's how you achieve legendary status. It was big for the X Games, it was big for Tony Hawk, it was big for skateboarding, like today we'd say, "It went viral," you know, and, and that was, was really a seminal moment. (cheering)
DUNCAN (over speaker): What you got to say? How do you feel right now?
HAWK (over speaker): If it weren't for you people, I would have never made that, I swear to God. (cheering)