Michelle Matta (Overin) of Canoga Park near Los Angeles had a flurry of activity in November 1977 when she appeared in both Skateboard World as well as a 6-page feature in Wild World of Skateboarding magazine at age 14.
Michelle was a graceful Californian freestyle skater, riding for Maxwell and Pepsi, and while there’s emphasis on her beauty, she could hold her own performing technical skills. Her favourite tricks included “hand stands, hand springs, 360s, walk-the-dog, space walk, daffys, and two-board maneuvers.”
Photo: Jim O’Mahoney of Michelle from June 22nd, 1975 at the Northridge Skateboard Jam
In her interviews Michelle explained that she received her first skateboard in 1975 for Christmas, which was clay-wheeled, and her twin brother also took up skateboarding.
Her first contest was the Northridge Jam competition where she placed fourth with Andra Malczewski taking the win. “My friend had talked me into going. I competed on a clay wheel board which made everyone’s eyes pop out… My hand spring was really my best trick,” which makes sense since Michelle had a background in gymnastics.
Michelle was dedicated to practising and improving. “I go down to this elementary school. It’s just flat pavement and I practice on my style. My brother and my friends tell me what looks good and what looks better when I have my hands in different positions.” Fortunately, she got a new board when she placed first at a small outdoor contest in Long Beach, which was sponsored by Skateboarder magazine among others, and she was asked to be sponsored.
Photos: Steve Reyes
Michelle then took a first place at the San Diego World Championships, which she regarded as her biggest accomplishment and was soon competing against Laura Thornhill, Robin Logan and Desiree Von Essen.
Photos: Marc Margulies
Maxwell Skateboard Team became her sponsor, and she started out performing in demos around the U.S. like Arizona. Matta wasn’t keen on slalom, preferring freestyle and bank riding. Margulies wrote that, “Until the skateparks opened, her local skating spot was a drainage run-off called Happy Hollow… Michelle would like to be well known, making some money, getting free equipment and skating on a top team. Who wouldn’t. But Michelle Matta is well on her way to getting all her wishes.”
In fact, the Maxwell Team gave Michelle an opportunity to travel and tour Northern Europe at age 16 where she performed skateboarding demos in Sweden, Denmark, and Germany. The Pepsi skateboarding, her biggest sponsor, then allowed her to travel further afield to Japan and Hong Kong.
In a video from 2017, Michelle was still cruising in her 50s including some of her freestyle tricks. “I still love the sport. I still am stoked and encouraged by the young women that I see doing it, and it just really makes me proud of the sport for women in general, to have the courage and empowerment and support that they have now in skateboarding is just phenomenal. When I skateboard, I feel like the creative side comes out in me. I love to dance, I love balance, I love motion.”
Michelle wasn’t phased by comments from people telling her not to get hurt or break anything, considering her age, but that seemed to just motivate her more because there eventually will come a day when we all become less mobile. Her mantra in the video was, “If you don’t use it, you lose it, so embrace life and it will embrace you.”
References:
- Editor. “Freestyle Form.” Wild World of Skateboarding. November 1977, pp. 34.39.
- Margulies, Marc. “New Faces: Michelle Matta.” Skateboard World. November 1977, pp. 68-69.
- Nicole, Natasha. “Freestyle: a skateboarding film.” YouTube. 2017.
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