Pop an ollie and innovate! | Rodney Mullen | TED 

“No one guy is the best” - The best

He stands like he's always on a board.

I love how rodney is talking like he didn't invent 99% of skateboard tricks🤣 humble god mode

What I love about Rodney is that even when he’s just standing he looks like he’s on a skateboard. Bent legs, balanced, loaded up

The way he talks about skateboarding at 45....just like a little child..... That kind of love, even after so many years.... Now I see why he is the greatest ever

Rodney Mullen isn't a skater, he's a Jedi master with a skateboard.

That was, hands down, one of the greatest things I've ever watched. Just the way he talks, the way he acts, his mannerisms, the way he laughs like a schoolboy, the excitement and the love for skateboarding that's still there after all these years, amazing.

It’s insane how quickly he flips the switch from bubbly and chuckley to genius and serious. One minute he is the happiest man alive, next he is smarter than everyone in the room. The man is on another plane.

The way he goes from childlike excitement and incoherence to pure eloquence and wisdom on a dime blows my mind

Dude is literally the Leonardo da Vinci of skateboarding, he made 90% of today's Street tricks... His brain processes differently than the rest of us💯

How such an absolute legend can be so humble is amazing to me. He literally made skateboarding what it is today and has absolutely no ego about it. It blows my mind

Being super depressed lately… life has been hard for me. But watching a grown man with such a child like enthusiasm and energy gives me hope. Almost tears me up a little

He's more than a skater: he's an artist.

this man skates in cursive

Even though he is praised, I feel like he still does not get the credit he deserves. This man is a living legend

"There is an intrinsic value in creating something for the sake of creating it- there's this beauty in dropping it into a community of your own making and seeing it dispersed and seeing younger, more talented- just different talent, take it to levels you could never imagine. and that lives on."

Just by looking at his legs, i believe hes stood more on a skateboard in his life than on the ground.

It’s tough to truly understand until you’ve skateboarded, but his balance and coordination are superhuman.

I love how he gives this whole speech with his legs slightly bent like he lives and walks and sleeps on a skateboard. Mullen is a legend

Rodney Mullen skates like a video game in real life. Man's out here stitching together lines with manuals IRL and getting 10,000,000 points.

"Landing Primo is the worst!" -Every skater ever except one "Landing Primo is awesome I want to do it on purpose!" -Rodney Mullen

Mullen has been credited with inventing the following tricks (years included): Godzilla rail flip (1979) 540 shuv-it (1979) 50/50 Saran wrap (1979) 50/50 Casper (1980) Helipop (1980) Gazelle flip (1981) No-handed 50/50 (1981) No-handed 50/50 kickflip Kick flip (1982) 540 double kickflip Heel flip (1982) Double heelflip Impossible (1982) Sidewinder (1983) 360 flip (1983) Switch 360 flip 360 pressure flip (1983)[52] Casper 360 flip (1983)[52] Half-cab kick flip (1983)[52] 50/50 sidewinder (1983)[52] One-footed ollie (1984)[52] Backside flip (Backside 180 Kickflip) (1984)[52] Ollie nosebone (1986)[52] Ollie finger flip (1986)[52] Ollie Airwalk (1986)[52] Frontside heel flip shove-it (1988)[52] Switchstance 360 flip (1990)[52] Helipop heel flip (1990)[52] Kick flip under flip (1992)[52] Half-cab kickflip underflip(1992)[5] Casper slide (1992)[52] Half flip darkslide[52] Handstand flips[5] Primo grinds and slides

its crazy how much you can feel his passion

I’m a middle aged woman and this is the best Ted talk I’ve ever seen! This guy’s passion and energy is totally infectious! Love him.

Chad muska made skate bording cool and hip. Tony hawk made it popular. Rodeny Mullen made it possible.

He's so goofy and spacey, then he drops these knowledge bombs and amazing observations, all with this kind of barely contained enthusiasm and juvenile optimism. I can't help but be amazed at how much wisdom he has extracted from his passion and experiences. He's definitely an enigma. I can't find the words to describe it, it's just.. Yeah.

Rodney's grasp of technicality and motion on a board is on a whole other level. The way he thinks and operates is most definitely at the genius level. He was so far ahead of his time. When everybody was riding ramps on a big fat board with tons of concave he was on the street riding boards that were much closer in size and shape to the standard boards used today. A big difference was that the boards he was riding didn't have any lip on either side. They were flat. He is "The Godfather of modern skateboarding". What a hero!

I met Rodney at an event after he gave a talk. He was once of the nicest, must genuine people I have ever met. I grew up with the Bones Brigade and talking to him about that influence he had on me as a skater back then and watching the Bones Brigade movies and then going out and trying to do those tricks, he was appreciative and honored. I felt like if given the chance he would have kept talking to me for hours. It was a wonderful experience and one I will never forget. I would love to sit down and talk to him again some day!

His excitement and passion is so heartwarming and contagious.

He has litterly been skating so long his body has took the shape of riding a skateboard

I started skateboarding when I was young just because I saw one video of Rodney Mullen doing all these amazing tricks and I will never forget that. He is definitely one of my heroes and an inspiration!

This guy is such a good presenter... doesn't let the audience get in the way of his storytelling feels like he's talking to a friend

His conclusion is just downright inspirational. "There is an intrinsic value to creating something for the sake of creating it. There is this *beauty* to dropping it into a community of your own making and seeing it dispersed and seeing younger, more talented; different talent, taking it to levels you cannot even imagine, because that lives on." Truer words have never been spoken.

Rodney Mullen is hands down the greatest skater of all time. He created an entire style of skating

Yea let's go skating! 5 minutes later: It looked easier when Rodney did it.

Dude I never imagined mullen was so goofy like that. He talks like a silly excited kid! Please, more ppl like mullen in this world!

He so genuine, such a good guy, when he shows a picture of "the best skaters in the world" he just proudly says "those are my friends" made me so happy for him

Rodney Mullen is a lovely, gentle and humble human being. I wish there were more people like him.

im 25 and I've skated since I was 5. I truly believe that Rodney Mullen is and always will be the greatest skater of all time.

I Just dropped a couple of tears watching him express himself so humble, being the creator and being the godfather of skateboarding! This guy is the best ever...!!

The mad scientist of skateboarding. Absolute legend

Rodney Mullen is the reason why you press up, then down in Tony Hawk's Pro Skater.

Still the best skater of all time. No one has topped him.

Imagine telling a security guard as he's walking you off the premises: "Man, I'm gonna come back one day and give a LECTURE on Skateboarding, you watch me!!" Security guard: "Pfffffft Yea ok kid"

Rodney Mullin does to skateboards what Hendrix did to guitars...made them sing.

When you here Mullen say tre flips are basic that's how you know he's the godfather

The childlike joy and enthusiasm for this thing he's done for decades is pretty inspiring.

There will never be another Rodney Mullen. On or off the skateboard. He is and will always be one of a kind. National treasure

I'm 52. I still skate.Since 1975. I am freaking GLOWING right now. Thank you Rodney.

I love how excited he gets when he sees he's own tricks.. its like its not even his lol

It is literally impossible not to smile when listening to this guy talk about skating. He is the sweetest dude ever.

Rodney seems a little nervous on the stage but doesn't realize what what a king he is. I seriously love this guy. He was instantly my favorite skater when I got THPS3 and a board for Christmas back in 2001 when I was 7. They had those 411VM videos on that game, and that was the first time I saw legitimate skateboarding videos. I would watch Rodneys part 5 times in a row every day for months. His style always blew my mind. We have the same birthday. I hope I can meet him some day, I just want to give him a hug and let him know that he was important for my life even though I don't skate like him. I try to apply his approach, ingenuity, and kindness to my life. If I made a list of role models, he's in the top 3.

5:52 onward discussing the Primo. He literally says the FALLS are so fun. This man sees failing something as EQUALLY fun as landing it. That the JOURNEY to success and innovation is just as fulfilling as the REALIZATION of it and culmination of the work. Imagine if we all took that into our hearts and ran with it. That failure was to be CELEBRATED, not mourned. I love this man with all my heart. God bless you Rodney. Thank you.

Who's excited to play as Rodney Mullen in the new THPS 1+2 ?

This guy is a poet! The way he uses his words and the way he explain things are like.....magical! Go Rodney! I'm not at by any means "skater" guy but man...this guy is awesome!

"These basic tricks, 360 flips, we take that, we make it our own and then contribute back to the community the inner way that edifies the community itself". "There's some sort of beautiful symmetry, that the degree to which we connect to a community is in proportion to our individuality, which is what we are expressing by what we do". He's describing what street skating means, and how we become one with our environment, our city. This is a very big reason I love skateboarding so much. It is the best and only way I know to truly feel your environment or city from the core. He definitely gets it. Rodney Mullen is one of the truest to Skateboarding! He has greatly influenced and shaped skateboarding. Your mark on the world Rodney will always be realized, know, and respected. Thank you.

As he’s talking about skating and not even on his board he’s subconsciously loading up for the tricks he’s thinking about. The man is a true master.

Most organic human I ever did see. Made me cry.

Rodney Mullen is the creator of all tricks that has came..and still to this day at 53 or 54 years old still killing it and motivating us to continue 🤘🏼

I love how excitable and passionate he is about skateboarding. He just goes on and on and I'm enjoying every second of it

You know all those tricks that you can do in the game tony hawk's pro skater? The stuff where you can put together like a 20 piece combo that seems impossible in real life: Kickflip to manual to grind to hard flip to manual...... this guy can actually do that stuff in real life.

How can one guy be such a fucking secret genius? He comes off as a total surfer dude and then you listen to him in an open forum and he just spits out pure intelligence. It is remarkable. Truly one of a kind.

Never expected to hear such an inspirational, heartfelt talk here. I mean the guy is so good at public speaking, he draws you in with his quirky character then delivers some truly deep insights and shows off his awesome intellect. What a treasure!

This man is a true genius. We must listen to what he says. Practicing these things just make you better in your craft. Master the basics and innovate. And then innovate again. And then innovate some more.

Good lord, Mullen has an excellent vocabulary and skill for forming sentences that make it easy for the audience to understand. His speech flowed like sophisticated butter. Absolutely one of the greatest athletes of our time. A true virtuoso.

He's still a fun, goofy kid in a 50 year old body and the wisdom that comes with it. #BeLikeRodney

He is so humble, it’s hard not to love this guy

loved seeing Rodney ride out on stage like that he’s a legend!

Rodney Mullen must have just about the most incredible inner ear in the world. His sense of balance... wow.

Luckily, one Rodney Mullen is enough, because this world surely will never see another. I don't know if it's his slightly off center personality, his amazingly honorable thoughts and ideas, or his beautiful view of the world that makes me appreciate him so much. I just know that I do.

one thing about Rodney that no one gives him credit on is how well spoken he is, he's able to communicate his emotions and feelings in a such a way that make them easy to understand.

I remember seeing Rodney mourn for the first time and my eyes almost popped out of my head. What he was doing in the early nineties when I first started skating was unheard of unthought of unseen. And that resonated in so many kids of the generations to come that you have 13-year-olds winning a x games gold completely dismantling what everyone thought we knew about skateboarding and it all started with people like you so thanks a lot man you're great!

Rodney and Tony are so different but still both so awesome in their own ways.

if you wanna catch a glimpse into how insanely good this man is... actual pros in current tournaments can't pull off even a tenth of what he did 20 years ago the tricks he calls 'basic' or 'no biggie' take skaters from weeks to months to learn, and most don't even bother because they're aware of how difficult they are

i have never heard somebody talk so passionately about something. you can just tell they’re in love with it. it’s always so delightful to see

He's a very very special human. Crazy how he transformed skating in so many ways.

seriously, his voice. It is just so real it is hard to believe

18 minutes felt like 18 seconds. What a spellbinding person, magical.

This talk definitely puts a smile on your face, I’ve been skateboarding for over 50 years and I still love it, and he is amazing😀

Love Rodney - got to sit and chat with him at a screening of the Bones Brigade doc in Montreal a few years ago. He’s an incredible artist in every sense of the word and a genuinely good human being.

everytime i would play tony hawk pro skater i would pick Rodney, his unlockable videos were mindblowing to me.. such a legend.

This is possibly one of the beautiful, honest and insightful talks I have ever had the pleasure to watch. Rodney speaks so eloquently, and conveys thematic analogies of which I would expect from a linguistic expert. I could ALMOST see this man beaming with childlike delight in the true art he created, and the rippling and evolutionary effects thereafter. Love how much emphasis he put on the importance of creating/becoming part of a tight-knit community, where respect and humility thrive. I clicked on this on a whim, and was expecting a half-witted approach to lecturing and lots of “uhmmmms”, “like’s”, etc. What I got was a sense of peace and tranquillity knowing that people like Mr. Mullen exist and create. He sees beauty in the art of taunting with physics, and pushing the craft forward...Anyone who has contributed so much to a cause, and changed the way the world perceives it is a true pioneer. I’m just stoked seeing his delight in the art as it moves forward. He seems like he has never pushed down the inner child, but has instead nourished and challenged it. He still has that spark I so often see gone in the eyes of most humans. Sorry for the long winded comment,but that made my day. Be well. Stay well.

Ive always loved rodney ever since i was a kid, his excitement for his sport is super contagious, it makes me happy to know that people like rodney are out there in the world.

When a savant aspie finds their tribe amazing things can happen. Love his energy and enthusiasm! Inspirational for all

I just read that old skateboarders never die, they just loose their bearings.

This makes me cry. This is the beauty of skateboarding. I can’t explain it.

I grew up skating with my friends and looking up to guys like Rodney so much. Now, I still skate when I can but I also work in Cyber Security and Development. So its so wild to hear Rodney talk with so much passion about the overlap between skating and open source and hacking. Truly an awesome guy.

What a gentle, humble soul. I was never in to skateboarding, I enjoyed watching it but never did it. I always had a ton of respect for Rodney though and got a ton of enjoyment watching him skate.

Wow he's so happy and enthusiastic about his sport and its infectious im smiling

the way he talk shows how much he loves skateboarding . the best ever

i liked how he drew the line to "open source" when it comes to sharing, re-inventing and sharing again. That is the core. Skateboarding is learning the basics and everyone copies from everybody, but then you add your environment, your needs and wants and give it your own spin. Maybe its great, maybe its garbage, but it is a "contribution" for the future generations who may pick up on that. Its never ending.

As someone who started skating a bit later than most, seeing Rodney act so cheerful and enthusiastic about skating even after all these years is just so motivating to keep at it and get better

What a genuinely wonderful human being Rodney is.

Rodney always was my favorite character in the games, you could tell by his video that he skated very different. I dont know why, but I always thought he was a serious man in real life. I was so fucking wrong, he has an amazing view about life also.

i love how passionate he is about this, you can tell by the tone of his voice

What appears to be a goofy fun dude on the outside.. is also a deep, philosophically minded human version of Yoda and a complete creative genius.

We need to save his head so he can be in the future like futurama.

My god, so inspiring and I don’t even skate. This speaks to me in so many other contexts, it’s hard to explain. Such an amazingly well put together talk.

There's nothing more wholesome than the living legend talking about his legacy. Rodney Mullen, this world knows who you are. Thank you for sharing your art and knowledge with the rest of us, humble man.

I came on thinking this would be an interesting talk about skateboarding but not relevant to me, and came out thinking this is the most important talk I've ever seen in my life. This man is a creative genius, and anyone working on something creative would be wise to sit down and listen carefully to what he's saying.