Mike McGill

Mike McGill is an American skateboarder, born on 2 September 1964, best known for inventing the McTwist, an inverted 540-degree mute grab aerial, a transitional trick that combines a front flip with a 540-degree rotation. He first performed it on a wooden half-pipe in Rattvik, Sweden, in 1984, and then at the Del Mar Skate Ranch's concrete bowl, called The Keyhole, when he returned to the United States. He was inspired by Fred Blood, who had performed a 540 on roller skates, and only a few professionals could land the trick when it was invented; Lester Kasai was the second skateboarder to land it after McGill. In a 2004 Thrasher article he recalled that after a couple dozen tries in Sweden he landed one with speed, then performed it for the crowd about four feet out from the wall rather than halfway up it.