Danny Way catches some *huge* air on
Danny Way catches some *huge* air on the giant ramp built for the upcoming X-Games.
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Reader comments
jkottkeAug 05, 2004 at 12:00PM
Here's an article from the SJ Merc about the huge ramp.
f5Aug 05, 2004 at 12:34PM
For those not too familiar with skateboarding, the kinds of things Danny Way is doing on a skateboard now are really mind-blowing. He basically decided to start doing maneuvers and airs 4-times larger, longer, and faster than anyone had ever done on a skateboard -- basically the same scale as what pro snowboarders are now doing. Tony Hawk gets all the media credit for being the 'jordan of skateboarding', but Danny Way has been literally creating his own reality, quietly on the side (until recently). I highly recommend checking out DC Shoe's video from 2003, The DC Video to see him in action. He also rides an oversized skateboard.
heywoodAug 05, 2004 at 12:36PM
There is no denying the sickness.
f5Aug 05, 2004 at 12:53PM
Another interesting tidbit about Way, he did a 900º a full decade before Tony Hawk (1989)...which was also recorded on video.
barlowAug 05, 2004 at 1:06PM
Most skateboarders enjoy watching street skating the most, but non-skaters love vert the most. So vert skaters end up being sponsored by all kinds of non-skateboard companies. It is amazing how vert vs. street are basically two separate career paths - very few guys these days are devoted to both. Streetskaters also love to watch Bob Burnquist and Rune Glifberg on ramps because they do a lot of technical street-like stuff on ramps. Not to contradict what I said earlier, but it is also true that a lot of street skaters do like to watch ramp skating once in a while, and the level of interest depends upon how creative the ramp design is. This ramp is really amazing and will probably please everyone, so good move on Disney's part. Notice that the street skaters have gotten to be such purists that they dropped the "skate park" event. The street skating course looks now like an extremely skateable bank parking lot, not like the BMX-style skateparks.
Overall, I'm just amazed at how sports evolve. Of all human endeavors, sports illustrate how technology, science, and social influence from others can combine to produce humans with abilities that previous generations simply lacked the imagination to believe possible. What you don't get in the video game Tony Hawk Pro Skater is that social influence from other skaters. That's the best part of skateboarding, trying to blow your friends' minds as you learn tricks together. And that aspect of the sport is present in both vert and street. Just watch the X-games and how much friendship exists between the skaters up on the ramp platform. They are genuinely thrilled to see their friends do well...
megnutAug 05, 2004 at 1:27PM
f5: "Way...did a 900° a full decade before Tony Hawk"
Really? Why wasn't that publicized, or rather, why was it that when Hawk did it, everyone claimed it had never been done before? I was at that X-Games and watched Hawk pull it off, and always thought I'd seen skateboarding history.
AdamAug 05, 2004 at 1:39PM
Sorry to interupt on all the skate commentary, but did you guys see the picture of how far the backflip has comein Moto X?
To give you an idea, here's the caption to the picture:
"Bye, bye backflip. Metal Mulisha rider Jeff "Ox" Cargola gives us a glimpse of the backflips to come. This is the scariest version we've seen yet: one-footer backflip to superman seat grab."
Are you kidding me??
Also, here's Hawk's response to the rumor that Way did a 900 first.
f5Aug 05, 2004 at 1:49PM
Megnut: I think, technically, you did see the first one pulled off clean.
However...Danny Way did a 900º in a 1989 Santa Cruz Skateboards video, I *think* it was called Streets On Fire, but I'm not sure if it was that one or one produced just after. They showed it as the last trick of the video, in super-slow motion, and they faded out just as his wheels were coming down on the ramp. So, there was speculation that he didn't ride away from it 'clean'...but he did spin it all the way around and get his wheels back on the ramp surface. whether or not he rode away, he still deserves credit, especially for how long ago it was. I remember a little later in a Tony Hawk interview in one of the skateboard magazines at the time they asked him what he thought about it, and he gave a brush-off response saying something to the effect of 'yeah that's great, but that's not really that important to me or the direction I'm going with skateboarding, etc.'. It was talked about in the skateboard realm at the time as though he'd (Way) done it, or at least gotten as close to you can to doing it before bailing at the last millesecond.
Ironic that some 10 years later when Tony pulls it off clean, he reacts almost as if he had just met god, had an orgasm, and learned the meaning of life all simultaneously, without anyone mentioning Danny's 900 from '89. Don't get me wrong, Tony's a good guy, but Danny never really quite got the credit he deserved.
GeneAug 05, 2004 at 1:56PM
I don't think it was Streets on Fire... I had that and watched it religiously. I would have remembered a near-900. But there's no denying that Danny Way is doing some amazing stuff. Though I tend to like the technical street guys--Rodney Mullen, Koston, Daewon Song, etc.
MattAug 05, 2004 at 2:13PM
Well, Mat Hoffman pulled the 900 clean on a bike, back in '89 at a contest, but yeah, I remember seeing Danny Way's attempts back then but he never rode away from them.
jkottkeAug 05, 2004 at 2:13PM
I've tapped into some latent interest in skateboarding on the part of my readership here. Excellent! (FYI, not a big fan myself, but I enjoy checking in every once in awhile.)
but did you guys see the picture of how far the backflip has comein Moto X?
I know! Wasn't it just a couple years ago that someone did a backflip for the first time and now people are doing them as a matter of routine, for movies, etc. As Barlow said above, the gap between what is possible and what we believe we can do is forever vast.
MattAug 05, 2004 at 2:17PM
Oh, and I also recommend a video from a year or two ago called something like "king of skateboarding" that I think OP sponsored it, where they asked a dozen top guys to do the burliest trick they could imagine.
Danny's plan was to pull a 360 across a 50ft gap, then do a 20ft air on a pipe. It required a gigantic custom ramp like the Disney one, and if you watch the video, you get to see him eventually get the 50 foot gap totally down pat, but he would have too much speed for the quarter. So he ended up just crusing down the landing ramp and boosting up the quarterpipe. I think in the end he pulled airs that were 17-19 feet out, just shy of his goal. But the giant snowboard style 360s across the huge gap make the segment worth it.
(Burnquist eventually wins the contest by pulling the loop air inside his custom gapped pipe, which also has to be seen to be believed)
f5Aug 05, 2004 at 2:34PM
Matt:
The king of skate was merely a warmup for what Danny pulled off inThe DC Video...he set two world records on one drop-in. He rolled in to break the distance record, a 65' gap (spinning a 360 no less), then topped it off with the height record, a 23' backside air. He stuck both of them.
GeneAug 05, 2004 at 2:51PM
Here's a photo of Danny Way's mega-ramp complete with dimensions. Insane.
Ben SaundersAug 05, 2004 at 6:32PM
Here's a nice Rodney Mullen video for your delectation...
http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/video/mullen.php
CharlesAug 05, 2004 at 9:46PM
Ok, while on the topic of big air, check out this photo of Mike Basich doing a 120ft acid drop from a heli. Click on the photo to get the story. As if this isn't cool enough, the picture is a self potrait taken with some kind of remote control for the camera!
Steven MarshallAug 06, 2004 at 1:21AM
The video must be in demand, site is giving an error. Would have loved to see that. Street or more technical stuff is aways my favourite but big crazy stuff like this is always worth a look.
anthonyAug 06, 2004 at 4:41AM
espn the magazine had a great article on danny way recently, with some great pictures. unfortunately you have to be a subscriber to see back articles. :(
rodney mullen is my favorite character in tony hawk pro skater 4. look at all the tricks he invented.
barlowAug 06, 2004 at 11:39AM
As for the controversy between Hawk and Way on the 900, skateboarders all agree that you have to roll out of a trick to have "made it". I'm sure Way would agree with that. So if they faded out the video because he slammed right after landing on his wheels, then he simply didn't land a 900.
On the other hand, the 900 is cool and all, but Hawk and Way have both done other things that were much cooler in their careers, just not as benchmarky.
iainAug 06, 2004 at 4:30PM
Anyone know if this video is available elsewhere? Is it the same one currently on Danny Way's site - under the heading MegaRamp Trailer?
This thread is closed to new comments. Thanks to everyone who responded.