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SKATEBOARDING

SKATEBOARDING. Skateboarding first achieved widespread popularity in the United States during the

1960s. Manufactured to resemble miniature surfboards, early skateboards were plastic with slippery, clay wheels. The introduction of wooden decks, precision bearings, and urethane wheels over the next decade gave skate-boarders greater control and speed, allowing them to perform increasingly complex maneuvers both on vertical ramps and in the street. Although skateboarding's popularity waned in the late 1970s, the early 1980s saw the emergence of an entire skateboarding subculture with its own magazines, music, aesthetics, and jargon. Today, skateboarding is a multimillion-dollar industry attracting top athletes and media attention around the globe.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Brooke, Michael. The Concrete Wave: The History of Skateboarding. Toronto: Warwick, 1999.

John M. Kinder

See also Sports.