Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2 will renew the name of the “mute grab” to honor the creator of the move, Chris Weddle.
Tony Hawk took to Instagram to explain the reasons for the change, naming the inventor of the move. When the grab was originally named in 1981, it was debuted by Weddle, who is deaf. The trick was so named after the skater on a roundabout and eventually wrong. The community at the time “referred to him as the ‘quiet, dumb boy,'” Hawk explained in a recent social media post.
“That became known as the dumb air, and we all went through it together in our naive youth,” he continued.
As the years passed, Hawk continued talking to Weddle – who is still skating – about the trick and its origins.
“He has been very gracious in his response, but it is obvious that another name would have honored his legacy because he has a hearing but no speech is lacking,” Hawk said.
Check out this post on Instagram
For almost 40 years we have shamelessly referred to this trick as the “dumb” air / grab. Here’s the backstory: around 1981, a deaf skater and Colton skatepark local named Chris Weddle was a prominent amateur on the league circuit. The “Indy” air was just made & named, so one suggested that the grip with the front should be known as the “Tracker” air. Others argue that Chris was the first to do so, so it would have to be named after him. They called him the ‘quiet, dumb boy.’ That became known as the dumb air, and we all went through it together in our naive youth. In recent years, a few people have reached out to Chris (who is still skating) about this trick and the name it was given. He has been very gracious in his response, but it is obvious that another name would have honored his legacy because he has listening function but no speech is lacking. I asked him last year because I dived into trick-or-treating and he said he would rather have called it the “deaf” than “Weddle” flu when given the choice. His exact offer to me was “I am deaf, not dumb.” So while we begin the upcoming @tonyhawkthegame demo release, some of you may be able to change a name: The Weddle Grab. It will be challenging to break the habit of saying the old name, but I think Chris deserves the recognition. Thanks to @darrick_delao for being a great advocate for the deaf community in action sports, and for being the catalyst in this renaissance process. I told Chris tecently and his response was “I’m so stoked!” And then he shot this photo yesterday in celebration. : @yousta_storytellers_club
Weddle told Hawk that he ‘would rather call it the’ deaf ‘than’ Weddle ‘flu when given the choice,’ because he was not in the first place. And so, ahead of the upcoming games, the trick will be renamed to “The Weddle Grab”, much to Weddle’s approval.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2 will be released on September 4 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PC. There will soon be a demo, which our reviewer described as “the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater I remember.”
