3 days ago
Tony Hawk, pro skater, pays surprise visit to Smithers, B.C.
One of the world's most recognizable athletes has paid a surprise visit to a small B.C. mountain town, population 5,000.
Tony Hawk, who revolutionized skateboarding with several new tricks and helped popularize the sport through his athletic performances and a line of video games, is in Smithers, B.C., in the province's northwest, to help celebrate the expansion of the community's skate park.
"Hey, what's up Smithers? It's Tony Hawk. Someone told me there's a skate demo happening at your new park?" he said in a video posted to social media. "That's pretty cool, I may have to check it out."
The Smithers Skate Park Society has been advertising a "pro skater demonstration" to celebrate the completion of the park's expansion but had not previously revealed who would be involved.
According to the society, Smithers — located 661 kilometers northwest of Vancouver — was the first community in B.C. north of Kamloops to have a dedicated skate park, first opening in 1996, and has been working over the past several years on a major expansion, at a cost of nearly $1 million.
The expansion includes new features for skaters, such as an eight-foot bowl, as well as lighting, benches and signage.
The celebration, which includes a demonstration by Hawk, as well as learn to skate events, will be underway all afternoon Thursday.
