Rodney Mullen - Freestyle Contest Oceanside 1986

Rodney Mullen run from a freestyle contest in Oceanside 1986

[@jacobwilldoit3921]

Never seen someone so comfortable on a board.

[@amuroray9115]

He was born on a skateboard.

[@TheGeekwad]

Imagine following that

[@dougkuerschner1735]

Thank you Rodney for basically every skate board trick ever.

[@colbyholmes4310]

Fuckin right

[@TheAnimeist]

All these decades later, and that run could still win freestyle contests today.

[@been_rly_n2_paragliding_lately]

His board control is unparalleled, and he did it all with a nearly flat board. The evolution of skating is so interesting, and he's responsible for like 90% of it. Truly one of a kind.

[@P3t_s0unds]

Facts. Although I'd argue 95%

[@TheAGCteam]

Holy fuck.. This is a whole nother level..

[@st7728]

A perfectionist, passionately obsessed with skate tricks, this will never happen again in skateboarding, one of a kind.

[@ForTheOmnissiah]

I wish it would. I don't skate anymore but I still follow the scene. Freestyle skating is so unexplored, and there is so much potential there. We need a super-human to compare to Rodney, but I hope for that person to come along.

[@zenmindstate110]

I’m still watching this in 2022 I hope I’m not the only one. Like this up if you still here let’s keep this video alive always.This will always be one of my favourites, one that clearly shows Rodney is a master/manipulator in the Physics of Skateboarding. No one still has yet to master their craft in the same way as Rodney Mullen? Who else has complete board control, creativity and ingenuity to invent and redefine skateboarding, and have more simply just mastered their craft. Man’s a wizard and should be remembered forever when people think of skateboarding.

[@chesspunk489]

Begging for likes is lame dude.

[@TonySpotlight]

2023 going strong. This was the best years of skating and I was all for it!

[@TonySpotlight]

@@chesspunk489you’re lame dude

[@brasstacksboxing409]

Best board control ever. There will never be another like him.

[@beyondlevel7866]

I always thought Rodney Mullen should have had the same success Tony Hawk did. Not enough people know this dude.

[@erdniealinik]

yep, very underrated considering he is literally the father of skateboarding

[@punswala]

He's had major success!! Just not in the publics eye. 1 point in his life he was the co-founder of world industry and sold his shares for 10's of millions. He's doing just fine.* Also co owner of Almost company

[@hanzflackshnack1158]

He stopped competing because he wanted to give young skaters a chance. He never wanted money or fame he just truly loves skating. He invented so many tricks it became unfair and he wanted young people to have a chance to shine. Truly a great guy. My friend challenged him to a game of SKATE at Burnside. He was so happy to see my friend hitting kickflip underflips, darkslides, Casper flips, no complies... Rodney won (obviously) but he was so happy to see my friend hitting difficult tricks it didn't even seem like Rodney wanted to win. He was proud of the new generation. Cool guy

[@johndlc1983]

The 80s and 90s are the golden era of everything.

[@user-wc7gi2jz7s]

i can see that theese are not only my words !!! Just like you said / i said so like a couple of months ago = glad im not alone ))

[@tylerm968]

This footage should be preserved. I know that not everybody is into skateboarding, but this footage has high historical significance for the sport.

[@jwizdum2103]

Def should be in a museum of some sort

[@L1VE3V1L]

This is complete and utter mastery. No skater has ever been as impressive as Mullen. Even people who don’t give a shit about skating are captivated.

[@bad_boy8269]

The 80s were a beautiful time

[@Kept939]

Rodney Mullen is without a doubt the godfather of street skating

[@kazuhirala]

What’s wild is most people can’t even do a majority of his moves this till this day. Bravo

[@NihilHS]

The fact he linked them all together and as far as I can see made only *one* mistake is unbelievable. I couldn't agree with you more. The mastery is on another level.

[@plexyglass429]

Ikr? Rodney Mullen has always been in a league of his own

[@concernedfriend.9329]

I hope this guy know that in 2022 8.5 million people have watched him do this and every single one of them were amazed.

[@sIacker]

Rodney Mullen isn't just a random guy, he's the grandfather of modern skating

[@markmullen1852]

Rodney is 1 of a kind. Nobody could compete with him. He invented so many tricks it's ridiculous. A true pioneer.

[@coolerthanafrieza4726]

Thank fuck someone recorded this!

[@samoinsinno279]

in what other sport would a guy from 40 years ago be leaps and bounds better than anyone in the current era? literal absolute legend savant

[@JJFX-]

I've always said the TRUE greats of nearly every individual skill with a high ceiling are some of the most humble people you'll find. You have to be willing to accept there's always room for improvement and put in that work for nobody but yourself. Mullen, Hawk, Shawn White, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Efren Reyes, Tom Brady, Novak Djokovic, and the list goes on... Those walking around telling everyone they're the best at have major self-confidence issues that will bite them sooner than later.... with few exceptions.

[@jacksonvreal_904]

Kelly Slater comes pretty close. It's different but he's been ripping for 40+ years and is still winning contests against the best of the best

[@2haveitall1]

Dude was decades ahead of his time.

[@kevinyates5519]

This dude basically invented every flip trick we do today. So much respect and love for his innovation and contribution to skating. He changed the sport forever

[@cometcollector1264]

This is why Rodney Mullen will go down as the best skater in history for me. Not only did he create some of the most iconic skate tricks, but this performance is still incredibly mind boggling 35+ years later.

[@coolbrotherf127]

The crazy part is how consistent he was. He barely messed up any tricks.

[@RevanMartinez]

He missed one trick and made like 300 others

[@BLKKING05]

I love the fact that an 11 year old video of a 36 year old recording Is still popular today with new age skaters and old school. Skating truly Is versatile

[@MaxRubyMetin2]

I was Born with Rodney mullen and first games like pro sketars with him. A legend

[@xn0n_999]

those tricks are just as killer today, and who knows where skating would have evolved to without his influence.

[@BLKKING05]

@@davidmccallum3950 I mean, I'm 16, came here from the love of skate history. Every decade said the same thing, "skateboarding will die soon" since the 1960s. Never happened, never will.

[@BLKKING05]

@@davidmccallum3950 Eh, maybe. Alot of people I know In school enjoy It. As long as Flat Surfaces, a Board, and Creativity exists, It will never become less prevalent anytime soon

[@BLKKING05]

@@davidmccallum3950 Plus, It's an Olympic sport. BMX was said to be dead too... In 1991.

[@DUKEHadToDoItToEm]

An absolute legend, the greatest street skater of all time, invented half of the worlds known street tricks, won't ever be touched

[@javijuberiasluque5079]

And that's probably one of the best skateboarding performances ever filmed..

[@Tropicsca]

The 80s looks like best era to ever exist in the universe

[@SeaOrcRonnie]

They were. Just enough analog technology to make things fun but not enough to distract you from pursuing fun like this.

[@Underhills]

It was. I'm a witness to that.

[@moos5221]

sure had the best taste in clothing colors

[@shagcali]

His skill and talent at this point in time is mind blowing. I don’t even know if anybody can pull this off in 2022.

[@dailydissent6076]

Skaters are just now entering into Mullen land after all these years. We're seeing more and more great skaters tap into what he invented decades earlier. Truly amazing his impact.

[@nenhumnome4149]

No one can. Just look at today's champions on freestyle skating, they are not even close to Rodney even with all modern equipment and the internet to help learn faster than ever before.

[@guillo888]

Little did this kid know how he will be credited with inventing most of the base tricks of today's modern skateboarding as well as the shape of the modern skateboard. Rodney Mullen... A living legend.

[@sleepytigger1]

Growing up in Gainesville I had the opportunity to meet him several times (and watch him skate). He is one of the kindest, most modest person I've ever met.

[@PM_kingCB]

Understanding that an Ollie in flat ground had never been done before this man is crazy

[@igorcywinski7477]

Can you explain me how did they do tricks without ollie? I know that Mullen invented flatground ollie but how its possible that fristyle existed without this basic trick ?

[@dogbot55]

@@igorcywinski7477 the way that the other tricks were performed was different. They didn't pop and lift the same way mostly, you can see it in how most of the flat ground tricks he does are done

[@atodamadre3197]

The only way I can figure out how some of these moves happened is by slowing the video down. This stuff is lightning quick. I was so obsessed with guys like Hosoi and Cab in the 80s and never gave Rodney enough respect. The whole time he was a pioneer for what skating would evolve into and he had no idea.

[@coolerthanafrieza4726]

He's goated dude

[@TangentChaos]

no joke! I identify with him a lot, he really inspired me. So much so I made my first board an Almost. :)

[@christinemurray1444]

He's a living cheat code. Those 80s boards were HEAVY. The guy nails everything so effortlessly. Plus he invented most of the stuff you've seen here and more. Genius.

[@Snadwicj]

The board he’s using is a freestyle board. They’re a lot lighter than your average 80’s board. Freestyle boards are thinner and smaller than what others were using at that time

[@gennaro4941]

This is over 35 Years ago..and this is still better than what i see from Skateboarders in 2022...that's insane!!.. This guy is a legend...

[@nonomanrectoris9412]

He did practically invent street skating!

[@The-nn6kr]

40 years later and still no one can touch this guy.

[@DennisBjerregaard]

This would still beat most skaters in a competition today

[@Ez_Brzy]

It's 2021 and it is still mind blowing what he could do with a skateboard.

[@ceosturdy4465]

Rodney Mullen is unarguably the best skater to ever exist. Dude was doing impossibles with a cruiser board. Wicked to see how effortless he does it, not To mention none of these tricks existed yet or werent really out there. Ik for a fact no one in the 80’s was doing flat impossibles or kick flips. shoutout to the Skate father 🦾😎

[@jonathandantonio649]

Mullen is one of those rare talents that is so superior to all others around him that it seems entirely superhuman.

[@friendlyplayer92]

True

[@meteorheartofficial]

"Just another day" How beautiful the irony? It was history in the making, it was an Icon of modern day culture at the beginning of his career, it was a philosophy, a way of life, and for Rodney, it was "just another day".

[@thatsmallrockshop]

I want my 80's back 😫 😩 😪 😢

[@lucaswilkens5240]

The board is like an extension of his body. He has such good control.

[@yvonnegabin467]

As he said practice, practice ,practice. this guy is my insipiration.

[@grizzlywhisker]

I miss the 80's and 90's. A totally different world.

[@MK-su6eg]

I miss those days too, especially living in San Diego and north county Cali ! It was a good time! Peace and Aloha from Hawaii

[@ButchLotus1]

Absolutely insane how ahead of his time he was. That’s probably the first time a tre flip or 540 shuv was filmed in contest.

[@gabereiser]

This is how street skating started. This man, right here. GOAT. The Mullen. The inventor of the kick flip, heel flip, 360 flip, 50-50 no hander, primo, impossible, and so many many tricks.

[@ericduminil]

Flatland ollie, too.

[@jacksonvreal_904]

@@ericduminil @gabereiser did he invent shuv its, 360 shuvs and bigspins too? I'm assuming yes but don't know for sure. tyia

[@ericduminil]

@@jacksonvreal_904 Sorry, I have no idea. Rodney invented flatland ollies and many other tricks based on ollies. But shuv its, 360 shuv and bigspins are all possible without ollie, so they might have been invented by others.

[@80sFreestyle]

@@jacksonvreal_904No. he did not.

[@andrewheino1644]

Hard to say he isn't the best street skater of all time for all around technical tricks. He basically invented more than people can do.

[@jaxonmoon9815]

I cant believe later on in an interview he said that he was playing it safe all those years ago in competitions. Makes you think what he was really capable of.

[@dw2261]

Literally every single street trick done today started with this man. The god father.

[@TampaTec]

1986 or 2022 that's still impressive.

[@Demi-kid]

I was at the spot where he preformed over the summer. I could just feel the skate life in that place.

[@chris2kostya]

Me too

[@waynehumphries6970]

Godfather of street skateboarding Ollie, kick flip, 360 kick flip and dark slides all Rodney

[@wanderinwolf3804]

and straight up heavy spins. You don't see anybody doing those spins like he does nowadays. mostly around me is transition skaters and don't really have many street/freestyle skaters around where I live. Even with videos I watch on youtube, nobody is really doing spins like that anymore.

[@wss2191]

Caspers, primos, impossible. The guy practically created every trick, a god

[@unknown_individual7050]

And the list goes on. He made the words and people like Gonz wrote poetry with them. The Godfather of all that is present in street skateboarding.

[@stephaniestone1012]

Mullen don’t get talked bout as much as he should or the way he should…dude was insane talented and jus as creative

[@leonidasenetanya]

That’s because it goes without saying. It’s just a basic fact.

[@n0tk0sher]

Still is.

[@lucasscott_94]

this statement may be extreme, but Rodney is truly one of the most talented people of all time. a true artist.

[@TheClassicWorld]

This is clearly true. I just went through some of the best athletes of all sports, and Rodney came out on top.

[@lucasscott_94]

@@TheClassicWorld doesn’t surprise me. his skill alone sets him apart, but his INNOVATION man…

[@sonofthefather4371]

Rodney Mullen is the best skater of all time the true Godfather of skateboarding.

[@Chris-liwymi]

man he has to be the greatest of all time hands down. pulling this off in 86? thats insane.

[@whatdothlife4660]

I'm pretty sure it's unanimous in the skating world that Mullen is the best of all time.

[@71Chevelle1989]

Lol he is, he practically invented street skating and the kickflip single handedly came from him

[@TacoTuesdey]

watch some of his videos from the 90's when hes on a more modern board. hes insane

[@Chris-liwymi]

@@TacoTuesdey I will have to

[@Oliffin]

What a legend. In 2022 no one can do this

[@Taterhead-wh3im]

You can tell he was actually just having a lot of fun while skating it just wasn’t about winning he actually enjoyed it

[@bigwon5883]

I don't skate, know nothing about it, but I've seen it enough to know how talented this dude is. Incredible.

[@chkrbrdvans]

The 80’s was a decade of culture shock….it was amazing! Rodney was one of the most gifted skateboarders to ever ride.

[@TJ-ej6zb]

At first I was like, what a pretty combo of early skating, and Olympic style ribbon twirling; then he starts throwing these crazy flip tricks. Okay, I’m humbled. This video is legendary.

[@btdcam2405]

I bought a skateboard because of this video

[@buck_maize111]

This is mind blowing now!!! Imagine in 86 🤯

[@johananav218]

That was the most incredible thing I’ve seen

[@Pillowcase]

Theres something so zen about the way he moves. Its just pure grace.

[@alexweddle8219]

It's the smoothest transitions of skating mastery

[@tyharris3263]

nollie 5 shuvs, flat impossibles and nollie gazelles in the late 80s a madman !!

[@ergopropterhoc]

mullen basically invented flat ground skateboarding, including the flat ground ollie, ollie impossible, and gazelle flip

[@Coleman_H]

He invented most kickflip and heelflip variations on flat ground. He would do a trick one way (360 flip) then learn the opposite (laser flip) and so on. Same with the shuvits, he would learn it backside and frontside

[@kenmasters2231]

the 80's just had this vibe like there was something in the air and i didn't even grow up in the 80's.

[@jimbosmith6327]

The 80s were THE BEST.

[@carramrod8232]

80’s and 90s were incredible

[@Steve_643]

Good thing for skateboarding someone introduced Rodney into him to it as a kid. It wouldn’t look the same today without what he did.

[@Punch_Rockgroin]

Tony Hawk is one of the biggest names in skateboarding, but even HE will tell you Rodney Mullen was one of the best to ever do it.

[@noor-rx1ij]

Tony was the vert king, Rodney the street king.

[@stevengray8663]

I'm not a skateboarding fan but how could you not be impressed

[@redrobotmonkey]

There is nobody that can do that today.

[@monte2115]

Just watched the documentary on the Bones Brigade and this dude had to have been 20 years ahead of his time. Absolute savant.

[@AkaruLanfear-on3mp]

Really because i still watch xgames and havent seen this level of talent last year.

[@FunTimeStudios82]

This might be the most impressive skating I’ve seen

[@ameliah3496]

I started learning how to skate last week and now my recommended is filled with skate videos lmao

[@dallinferguson994]

Seriously mind blowing. He makes the THPS games look realistic by comparison. Superhuman, I swear.

[@leroyc5866]

2021 still here watching how crazy this is more impressive as time goes on

[@etxkevin7452]

He was so far ahead his skating is STILL impressive 36 years later!

[@ViNNYDICEnice]

Is there anyone more impactful to modern skating then Rodney? He literally invented everything at a time where so many people had no idea what they were even looking at.

[@DestroyerTV]

I've never seen most of those moves before. This is like the human max potential on a skate board

[@erbsndspoices]

Rodney Mullen pioneered street skating, and skating as a whole would not be what it is today without him.

[@Dimaz42]

Rodney Mullen was born to skate.. his creativity and the ability to pull it off were next level, even till this day 😁

[@victorstriga]

35 years later and this footage continues to inspire new skaters every day...

[@anthonyhutchins2300]

How is it even possible to be so innovative... I respect people that create new things. It's hard to see something when it's not there.

[@kalibkukus8888]

The fact that he was doing 360 shuv it’s and double kick flips and even a big spin in the 1980s blows my mind.

[@Crushthebuzz]

The 80s seem so much more than fun than nowadays

[@irishrover9332]

Everything was, ain't hard to beat 2022. Social Media ruined the world, all changed after 2010 MAINSTREAM NARCISSISM

[@InsectAlien]

It was absolutely , the golden decade

[@Star_Sn1per]

This is an amazing freestyle even by todays standards

[@R0ndras]

Considering he is still the best in the sport. Yes.

[@chriztianhusher8401]

Do not get me wrong tony hawk, and tony Alva drop in on bowls and verts was awesome but rodney mullen god of skateboarding. Blows my mind the style he has and it's so unique.

[@TheHipHopVlog]

I mean, yeah, he paved the road for modern street skating.

[@fafafooey4126]

Mullen is the king of street and tony is the king of vert. Both did amazing things in their own way.

[@cagnazzo82]

So thoroughly 80s. The vibe in this video just feels good.

[@elefantrising]

The goat. His tricks in 86 are impressive today.

[@ScottK-op2gx]

One of the best videos on KZbin.

[@itsnicksharpbro]

One of the most important people for this sport. Dude is timeless.

[@djcrazy8578]

I've never seen anybody today even do anything like this n its great!!

[@EternaIWait]

I'd be amazed seeing some of these tricks now, let alone 36 years ago, as fluid as he's able to do them. He's the goat.

[@JKaiserable]

Rodney lightyears ahead of his time.

[@bluecafe509]

This shit is cooler than anything you see today.

[@Mackem_uk]

Yep real talent.

[@thatsmallrockshop]

So was the music

[@steveford9294]

This is still mind blowing 36 yrs after the fact. The balance and board control are next level, in my mind he is still next level. The younger skaters that have not seen this need to , it adds to the full understanding of his greatness. I watch this and can see how he still does a lot of this on modern street boards. Meeting him in 2010 in Denver was a. Crown jewel for me along with two signed decks. I try to emulate his dedication and tenacity every time I skate. Watch this video then watch his Liminal video to bridge the gap and see the amazing progression and talent. Forever grateful for Rodney!

[@pomegranatekat2061]

I have never seen a man look so comfortable on a board

[@deltalima5806]

Dude how am I JUST seeing this for the first time? This is amazing

[@wazzzzzzzzupppppppppp3007]

skateboarding legend who invented the fliptricks. =) Rodney Mullen

[@thomascrocker8214]

80s and 90s were so pure

[@dhunter9705]

I've seen this probably 100 times, and I still can't help but watch it again when it shows up in my feed.

[@Sirmellowman]

So important to skateboarding, he created the backbone on which the entire sport rides on now days.

[@farmonious420]

Love the crowd's reaction to an olie. The base of every street trick now. Revolutionary at the time.

[@hr-g4640]

he invented it