Skimboarding and skateboarding have at least one thing in common: They are not easy on the body as you age. Falls on hard-packed sand, much like concrete, tend to steer people toward more forgiving sports as they get older. But at 56 years old, Tony Hawk is still riding half pipes with ease, so what’s the worst that can happen during a little skimboard session?
Hawk linked up with skimboard pro Brad Domke – best known for his monster, finless tube at Puerto Escondido – to go for a skim session in the birthplace of the sport, Laguna Beach, California. He said he hadn’t touched a board in 10 years and even that was just messing around in Carlsbad with his kids.
For not having skimmed in so long and being part of the 50-plus club, Hawk wasn’t half bad – getting on the board right away and hitting some little waves rolling in. Although he did make a misstep on one attempt that resulted in a scraped knee on the sand.
“First day back, a little rusty but it was super fun,” said Hawk. “Shake off the dust and go for it. I forgot how much it kind of hurts when you go knee-sliding into the sand. That was something I didn’t consider when I decided to come back to it.”
Who’s next up for Domke’s retired legends skim sessions? Shaun Tomson. Tomson commented on the post, “Going for it! Great to see,” to which Domke responded, “Let me know when you’re ready to get our slide on Shaun! I got you.”
