Tina Trefethen

The classic photos of Tina Trefethen performing “freestyle gymnastics” on her skateboard are iconic representations of skateboarding in the 1970s. While Trefethen was graceful (and flexible!), she loved the adrenaline rush of racing. And, according to her bio for the 1976 NY World Masters program guide she was a champion Hang Glider, winning the 1975 World Hang Gliding Championships in Austria at age 17, who also enjoyed gymnastics, skiing and surfing.

It’s no surprise that Tina was athletic and would become a dare-devil considering that her mother, Joan Trefethen Alford became renowned as a pilot, flying military surplus aircraft in her teen years. She also built from scratch her own plane thanks to Ray Stits’ plans that she bought for $3.00, while raising her third child, which was Tina. Apparently, she was the first woman to build her own plane, “welding the fuselage framework in the driveway, gluing spars in the living room, overhauling engines on the kitchen table, and appearing on TV from New York for I’ve Got a Secret.”

I imagine that Tina must have grown up in a home that supported her independence and athleticism, including her pursuit of skateboarding.

The photos of Tina (below) were taken by Jim O’Mahoney for Skateboard* magazine’s handbook called, Freestyle Skateboard Tricks where Tina is shown performing the “women’s maneuvers.” The goal of the book was to showcase tricks that could then be judged in terms of difficulty at a competition. In an article for Juice Magazine, O’Mahoney lamented that by the time the handbook came out many new tricks had been invented, and skateboarding kept progressing at a rapid rate. (*Note: this was a single issue – not Skateboarder).

Trefethen also competed, and in May 1975 at the Huntington Pier City Contest she came 2^nd in women’s Slalom behind Denise Shaw, as well as the Freestyle event. Her success resulted in an appearance on the Perry Como show in 1975, the Lake Tahoe Holiday special, along with Desiree Von Essen and Robin Alaway.

The following year, May 1976 Tina took third in the Magic Mountain Masters Women’s Slalom event. There’s a photo of her in the July 17th, 1976 newspaper, The Daily Journal (Franklin, Indiana) stating that she was the defending champion of the National Skateboard Championships, and her performance would be broadcast on CBS Sports Spectacular. Tina’s bio would also be included in the Complete Book of Skateboarding (1976) by Laura Torbet.

In the November 1977 issue of the National Skateboard Review the contest results note that Trefethen placed 2^nd and 3^rd at a two-part contest in the Banked Slalom event (Women’s 17-22) at the California State Championships in October.

And then, in June 1978 at the age of 21, Tina sadly had a terrible accident at the fourth (and final) Signal Hill Speed Run. She clocked the fastest speed for the women’s division at 57.69 mph in the “skatecar” class but after the finish line she crashed into a pole because of mechanical problems.

Tina suffered a near-fatal injury, breaking her wrists and ribs, and in an article from the San Pedro News Pilot (June 12, 1978) it was noted that there was a laceration of her lung, which meant a portion had to be removed during surgery at Long Beach Community Hospital.

Decades later, in an article for the Signal Tribune (February 1, 2013), she explained how emotional it was watching the race afterwards on the big screen for The Signal Hill Speed Run (2013) documentary. “It’s very amazing I’m alive! I appreciate every day! I wonder, ‘What if that never would have happened to me?’” When the film premiered in January 2013, Tina attended and looked radiant in the photos.

Fortunately, Tina was not deterred and continued her hang-gliding, and like her mother, Joan, flying small planes.

Note: the article “She glides her way to fame” was from the Daily Breeze newspaper in Torrance CA, November 11, 1975, where Tina said that while she didn’t know where skateboarding and hang-gliding would take her in ten years, “I’ll always be flying. It’s the best thing I’ve found yet.”

The Skateboarding Hall of Fame acknowledged Tina as a 2021 inductee, in a fantastic tribute by Jim O’Mahoney who described her as a multi-talented world-class athlete. Check out the video montage with more photos of Tina.