Skateboards before the 50's

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Jani Soderhall
ISSA President 2011-2024
ISSA President 2011-2024
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Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2002 2:00 am
Location: Sweden, lives in France
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Skateboards before the 50's

Post by Jani Soderhall » Thu Feb 12, 2015 10:58 am

Great articles on the precursor of the skateboard as we know it:

"Most skaters know the commonly accepted story of how modern skateboarding was invented and popularized: In the 1950s, surfers who wanted to experience the sensation of riding waves on concrete started to disassemble roller skates and attach them to wooden boards.

Surf shops and manufacturers began producing skateboards to capitalize on this newly forming market in the early 1960s. These boards looked like small surfboards. Skateboarding’s popularity expanded and by the mid-60’s skateboard manufacturers were pulling in millions of dollars, and the story goes on through decades of ups and downs and eventually arrives at today.

However, ample evidence exists that suggests the skateboard might be a much more historic instrument than it is usually considered to be – more than just surf bros in California."
http://www.jenkemmag.com/home/2015/02/1 ... kateboard/


And check out this article from NY Times 1893 !!
Kids have been causing a ruckus on their rolling toys for at least a century. An article in the NY Times from May 21, 1893 bears the headline “DANGEROUS SPORT IN BROOKLYN: Coasting on Lincoln Place May Some Time Lead to Loss of Life”. In the article, neighborhood kids are said to have:

“…gathered on Lincoln Place with little four-wheeled carts, on which they have coasted down the middle of the street. Several minor accidents have occurred, but no bones have been broken yet. The momentum with which the boys roll down the asphalt pavement is equal to the speed of a railway train, and there are many narrow escapes from collision with the street cars on Seventh Avenue…

…The sport is exciting, but it is extremely hazardous and dangerous. The coasters pay no attention to the protests of the people who live along Lincoln Place. The presence of a policeman on the street who would confiscate the dangerous little carts would no doubt avert the occurrence of a fatal accident, which sooner or later will happen.”

Thank you Bryan Emery for the article and also to Jack Smith for posting a link on FB to the slalom community.

/Jani

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