Dogtown and the Z-Boys

Pool Skating

When did skateboarding jump into popularity? This is a big question that cannot be given in one answer. Skateboarding has had many different jumps and spikes in their popularity but the one that really got it off the ground was the Dogtown days. These were the days before skate parks and street skating, it was a time of hopping fences and skating drained pools during the major droughts in California. This is when skating really made it out to be a sport when it gained widespread popularity. During this time contests for skateboarding were just making an appearance. Making this evolve into a legitimate sport when you are starting to see contests, sponsors and major companies. So to answer this large question for many people, in the 70's with the appearance of the Z-Boys is what really grew the popularity and support for this ever so growing sport. Although it can be debated that it had more of a major growth in the late 90;s or early 2000's, without this time when skateboarding made its arrival, this sport would not be seen how it is seen today.

Evolution of the Skateboard

"Lords of Dogtown"

Skateboarding as a community is not the only thing that has evolved but the evolution of the skateboard itself has taken a major turn. The skateboard has constantly been changing since the day it was invented to the present day one that we are currently using. When the skateboard had been invented it had been for the use of surfers who needed something to do when the surf was flat and this is why they started with the design of a smaller surfboard shape with big jelly wheels that were meant for smoother riding. The image to the right from the movie "Lords of Dogtown" which was a movie about the skating scene and its uprising as a sport.But now the look of a skateboard has totally evolved and there are many different choices of how you want it. There are many different styles and options now for skateboards, but the most popular one is the concave oval shape and can range from 5-7 plies of wood and the wheels have become much smaller and harder. This shows how sports evolve as wholes and not just pieces. This can be applied to almost every sport such as surfing and even football and baseball.

Skating Through Time

Disqualifying the Official, 1995

The way people had viewed "skaters" in the mid 90's was much a much more rational view, according to Beal, B. who wrote the journal "Sociology of Sport Journal," who describes there acts as "Covert behaviours of resistance." (Image to the right).

This has been the main outlook on skaters from the birth of their existence until now. The general public has had the image of a skateboarder as a resistant troubled teenager who does abide by the rules set down. After all that many skaters have gone through to help change this and put our image in a different direction, this is still what how we are looked upon. Many people still have this idea but in reality, most of us are making many attempts to improve this. But even though the majority of the population is taking positive action in the community, the negatives are always the ones that have a more serious impact. It is like the situation of the "one step forward, two steps back." At this rate nothing will change and all the efforts made by so many will be lost.