The skate pioneer will teach you everything you need to know over 16 courses.
We all have a lot more time on our hands because of the coronavirus. So, what better way to make use of it than by picking up a new skill, like skateboarding? And if you are going to finally learn how to pop an ollie, what better teacher than Tony Hawk.
The legendary skateboarder, and easily the defining extreme sports star of the early X-Games era, will teach a new course on the sport for MasterClass, according to a press release. With the help of his son, Riley, and protégé, Lizzie Armanto, the 52-year-old will teach users everything they need to know to carve or grind with confidence.
The icon’s MasterClass, entitled “Tony Hawk Teaches Skateboarding,” will consist of 16 courses covering everything from basic maneuvers like stopping and turning to more advanced vert ramp tricks like the Madonna and the McTwist. And while the majority of the content in each lesson is instructional, each starts off with an anecdote from the pro skater’s decades-long career. And just in case you’re wondering, Hawk won’t teach you how to pull off his most most famous trick, the 900-degree spin he landed for the first time at the X Games in 1999, but he will walk you through what it felt like.
While you should be able to try a kickflip or two by the end of the course, Hawk says it will be about more than just skating. “Skateboarding is a lesson in perseverance, a lesson in self-confidence and a lesson in belief,” he said in a statement. “I hope my MasterClass can show members that you don’t have to be a pro skater to carry these lessons with you for life.”
Hawk’s course on skateboarding is one of more than 85 currently offered by MasterClass. Other courses of note include, “Gary Kasparov Teaches Chess,” “Lynnette Marrero and Ryan Chetiyawardana Teach Mixology” and “Steve Martin Teaches Comedy” among many other. Unlimited access to all of the company’s classes is available for a yearly lump sum of $180 (which works out to $15 per month).