Recognition for a Legend
/I'm very, very proud of a certain Californian G-Mat rider today.
Some of you may know of, or even personally know Henry. An extremely talented mat rider with a colossal pedigree as a surfer having been a previous Rusty team rider. Henry has a special mat which we christened the Glider XR. I built two of these to the same dims. On called Big H (a play on "Bad H") which now lives with my friend Bob Booth. The other was "Stinkles".
"Stinkles" Photo: Graeme Webster
Henry at Swamis Photo: Lance Smith
There's plenty more to read on Henry and his mat surfing in his UK Mat Surfers Here & Now interview . For now, lets get back to why I'm so proud of Henry.
I'm sure most will know that Henry has dabbled in Skateboarding over the years. When I say "dabbled" I mean that he is a bona fide legend of the sport. Seven times World Slalom Champion who competed regularly up until just a few years ago.
Henry went on to organise the Hester Series comps and famously developed revolutionary skateboard wheels. And then there's the Skatecars. And then the Snowboards...
Too much to cover in a brief blog post and that UKMS article has it from the horses mouth.
What that article does't is why I'm so proud of Henry today. I'm proud because a few days ago, Henry was inducted into the Skateboarding Hall of Fame. So well deserved for a true legend of our time and a really top guy.
What blows me away most with Henry is his openness and humility (kinda blustering hell-man chaotic humility that is of course!) Henry has undoubtedly forgotten more about skating and surfing than most of us will ever know. Still, he goes through life with his eyes and ears open and is always looking for the new stoke.
He picked up a surfmat and took glee in being a novice. Guess what... Now he's RIGHT up there.
Henry, I salute you mate. Enjoy Henry's acceptance speech and look on Planet X. Henry Hester has a few lessons for you on how to ride a surfmat.
Cheers
G