San Leandro CA – Skate History: Jerry Hsu returns the the cover of Thrasher Mag

Photo: Colen

“Jerry Hsu returns to the cover of the mag with a tech-gnar masterpiece–nollie backside 180 to fakie 5-0.” (Thrasher 2016)

Jerry Hsu has long been a legend in the game, but the cold hand of age grips us all and can take even the most talented out of the spotlight.

Hsu, in 2016, at a young 37, continued to impress us with his innovative style and creativity. The Hsu style is a beautiful thing to witness, with the explosive pop and impact reduction of Amazonian Jaguar, his skating his unparalleled to most. If you are unfamiliar with this particular trick, let’s break it down.

First off, we are approaching a decent rail. 6 stairs with a nice flat top rail. This trick is nollie, so we are already starting at a disadvantage… then we are popping backside 180, which is blindside to the rail. When you are approaching a handrail, it’s already nerve racking, but when you are popping blindside to a handrail, it is 100 percent trust in your own ability. As if all of this was not enough for Hsu, he had to land into a position that takes perfect precision and accuracy, the fakie-5.0.

This trick is not for the faint of heart, it’s a dragon of sorts, that many of us chase but not all will capture. Those skaters who have this trick can make it look so easy and smooth. They can float it into a line between effortless flip tricks and steezy lip tricks, or they can hammer it down a solid handrail or hubba. But for those of us who do not have that trick, it will always be a magnificent fire-breathing dragon that will forever be out of our reach. Kudos to you Mr. Hsu. Kudos.