Xtremly Sad: Tony Hawk filed for divorce from his wife Lhotse Merriam

Tony Hawk filed for divorce from his wife Lhotse Merriam on February 4 in San Diego, California.

"We have made the difficult decision to file for divorce," Hawk and Merriam said in a joint statement February 7. "We remain deeply committed and loving parents to our daughter, and out of respect for that responsibility we ask that people honor our family's privacy during this important time of transition. Thank you for your understanding."

The couple has a two-year-old daughter, Kadence, and married on the Fijian island Tavarua in January 2006. It was the third marriage for Hawk, who was married to Cindy Dunbar from 1990 to 1994. Their son Riley, 18, is a street skater who rides for Lakai, Birdhouse, Quiksilver, and Theeve. Hawk was married to Erin Lee from 1996 to 2004, with whom he had sons Spencer, 11, and Keegan, 10.

Hawk is presently in Abu Dhabi, where he attended the Laureus World Sports Awards on February 7 and is scheduled to open the "Real Action Heroes" event this weekend, coinciding with the opening of the V8 Supercar Championship. Today he is scheduled to do a skateboard demo at Ferrari World, the largest indoor theme park in the world.

Skateboards make it to the Freakin' Smithsonian

With a vintage 1980s-era skateboard belonging to Tony Hawk, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History has begun a collection of artifacts focusing on skateboarding and skate culture.

"Skateboarding is a sport that highlights the inventive and entrepreneurial spirit of our nation," said Brent D. Glass, director of the Washington, D.C.-based museum. "Tony Hawk strongly embodies this spirit, and for this reason I am pleased that his deck launches our collecting initiative.

"Smithsonian press releaseTony Hawk donated a 1980s pro model skateboard by Powell-Peralta to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

Hawk, 42, donated the pro model by Powell-Peralta after skating on it at the Quiksilver All '80s All Day Vert Jam, held at Surf Expo in Orlando earlier this month. Wearing 80s-era garb, including a flyaway helmet, fluorescent Jams and knee high-socks, Hawk performed inverts, McTwists, and Madonnas. And just like the old days, he won against a field that included some former competitive rivals such as Christian Hosoi, Mike McGill and Kevin Staab.
"It is one of my personally used signature decks that I saved from 1987," Hawk said by e-mail, referring to the donated board. "I rode it briefly back then but dismantled it for some unknown reason and kept it through the years. The trucks are original Tracker magnesiums and the Lapper is one of few still in existence. The wheels, however, are relatively new."

Adapting to the old board was not easy though. "It was challenging because the tail is much wider than anything I've ridden in the last 15 years, the wheel base is shorter, and it has no nose," Hawk said. "My front foot came off many times during practice because I would slide it too far forward."

Hawk said the Smithsonian inquired through his foundation about acquiring one of his boards."I was excited, but confused as to why they wanted a retro board instead of a modern one," he said. "But now I understand; it is a time capsule that represents a significant era in skating."

Hawk's board is the first artifact in a broader collection focusing on skateboarding and skate culture by the museum's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, according to spokesperson Kate Wiley. The museum is interested in the material culture of skateboarding, including archival items, equipment, technology, tricks and other paraphernalia such as video games.

Wiley said interest in skateboarding grew out of an exhibition from 2009 at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian called Ramp It Up: Skateboard Culture in Native America. The Lemelson Center already has a collection dedicated to snowboarding.

The graphics on Hawk's deck feature a familiar image from the 1980s, with the skull of a hawk superimposed on an iron cross. It was designed by Powell's in-house artist, Vernon Courtland Johnson (VCJ), who helped create the skull and bones imagery common in skateboarding.

"Skaters have always been known to be unique and artistic, so the lifestyle encompasses much more than the physical act," Hawk said. "It has influenced art, music and fashion, and helped to redefine sports in our country."

Hawk's board will join a 1978 Honeycomb Pool Board donated by Stacy Peralta, and another Powell board in the museum's permanent sports collection.

Wiley said the museum has no plans to display the boards yet.

Watts Skatepark Battles Opposition

The Watts Towers, is a collection of 17 steel spires hand-sculpted from pipes, rods, wire mesh, tile and glass over 34 years, represent one of the safe and neutral zones in the gang-plagued district of Watts, Calif., in southern Los Angeles county. Because of the Towers' neutrality, a city councilwoman, with help from the Tony Hawk Foundation, wants to build a skateboard park there. But several outspoken members of the community, who consider the Towers a hallowed and historic place, oppose the idea.

"We're shovel-ready and waiting on the community to make some decisions," says Miki Vuckovich, the executive director of the Tony Hawk Foundation.

Since its inception in 2002, The Tony Hawk Foundation has donated grants totaling more than $3 million toward building 444 public skateparks across the United States. Much like rec centers of old, free, public community skateparks provide a safe and legal space for youth to engage in positive physical activity and social interaction. Several famous skaters from disenfranchised communities -- including Stevie Williams, Terry Kennedy and Theotis Beasley -- have been vocal about skateboarding's positive influence in their lives, and attribute their success in great part to the sport.

Tony Hawk himself is a supporter of the project at Watts. "To provide a positive alternative to the challenges that face the community, I've joined a coalition of community and business leaders to create a landmark skatepark that will give Watts youth a place to be active, creative and enjoy their sport," Hawk said.

Councilwoman Janice Hahn (L.A.'s 15th District is behind the project) has helped build several other skateparks in her district and she's vehement about the positive impact they make. "Our young people need more after-school activities that keep them off the streets," Hahn told ESPN. "Kids in Watts grow up in a gang culture. We're hoping these kids won't join a life of crime -- instead, they'll become skateboarders in their spare time."

Total funding for the skatepark has reached $355,000. The Hawk Foundation has contributed $80,000 and has received a grant from the Annenberg Foundation for $275,000. This is the first skateboard project supported by the Annenberg Foundation, which funds everything from arts and education to animal services.

Groundbreaking is expected to take place in the spring, and the first community meeting regarding the new skatepark was in July, when Hahn spoke with members of the Watts community who are opposed to the park's proposed location. "We suggested alternative locations for the skatepark -- namely Ted Watkins Park, which is a quarter-mile away" says Janine Watkins, who lives across the street from the Towers and is vice chair for the Committee for Simon Rodia Towers in Watts. "We're trying to find a win-win situation. But we're being stonewalled by the county."

Other community members agree. "These towers are sacred. They're one of the major works of architectural sculpture of the 20th century," says Edward Landler, a filmmaker who created a documentary about the Towers. "The community has no objection to a skateboard park, but it should be in the appropriate place. It's like putting a skatepark in front of the Notre Dame cathedral or the approach to the Taj Mahal."

The Towers are listed in the National Register of Historic Places, and just last week, the City of L.A. gave $150,000 to the L.A. County Museum of Art to restore the Towers.

There are a handful of skateparks in Watts, but Vuckovich says they aren't accessible to everyone. "People who didn't live in those particular projects didn't skate [at the existing parks in Watts]," he says. "We didn't see a centrally located skatepark [that was] not controlled by a particular faction. We want to build a skatepark where all skaters are welcome."

Courtesy of Tony Hawk FoundationThe design for the proposed Watts Towers skate park. "This design really takes into consideration how the community may want to utilize this space," says Tony Hawk Foundation's Miki Vuckovich.

Capt. Phillip Tingirides of the Los Angeles Police Department told the L.A. Times that the Towers is one of few safe, gang-neutral places in Watts where they could build a skatepark, adding that that nearby Ted Watkins Park sees less police patrol.

Landler says that's ridiculous. "Rather than supporting and enhancing the gang neutrality of Ted Watkins Park, a place designated for athletic recreation, Councilwoman Hahn and Captain Tingirides seem to be trying to force a skateboard park on to the Watts Towers site against community wishes," Landler wrote in a response to the Times.

This thought process isn't unusual: City planners often think that by building a skatepark in areas that report high rates of violence, it may help to curb the problem and provide kids with a more positive way to spend their time. But there's been plenty of gang violence reported within close proximity to skateparks.

On Aug. 18, three people were shot at a skatepark in Las Vegas, and the suspect was thought to be affiliated with a gang. Last January, a Long Beach skatepark was named after Vans-sponsored skater Mike Green, who was killed in a drive-by there in 2005. And in 2007, 20-year-old Derek Wilson, who was allegedly a member of Chicago-based gang called Fork, was arrested after firing a semiautomatic handgun at a downtown skatepark in Spokane, Wash.

The Watts skatepark design is essentially an urban plaza for skaters and BMX riders that can also be used for public gatherings like concerts or markets, and park builders say that kind of design can make the difference between a safe park and an unsafe one.

"We can't really say that a skate plaza equals no crime," says retired pro skater Kanten Russell, who is the principal for Action Sport Development, a San Diego-based design firm that builds skateparks. "But a properly designed and planned facility with good visibility, good lighting and no fencing will create a positive environment that's good for the community.

In the end, everyone involved in the Watts park is trying to do right by the community. Vuckovich contends, "There's a lot of space there -- the skatepark can go anywhere. It doesn't have to be right up against the Towers. We're here to support what the community wants to do."