As you may be aware, Arisa Trew from Australia, at age 14 became the first female skater to perform a 900 in vert last week! Moments after her feat was accomplished, I received an invitation from WithIt Girl, which is a long-standing skateboard-oriented website since the early 2000s.
They had received Arisa’s photos and video footage through the Vans marketing team. A collaboration was proposed to do a history feature related to the awe-inspiring 900, and I was game!
The 900 is squarely tied to Tony Hawk’s legacy and several other men who have pulled it off, or came close. I was hesitant to focus on their activity, especially since there has been literal blood, sweat, and tears shed by badass women and non-binary vert skaters to open the doors for someone like Arisa to accomplish a 900 today.
My brief article is a summary of some of those ground-breaking skaters, organizations, publications, and contests organized by women to elevate vert skating for girls. And while I don’t tend to delve into contemporary skateboarding activity, I figured Arisa’s 900 and the legacy of her predecessors was reason enough. Plus, Arisa truly is taking things next level… 720s, Switch McTwists, and now the 900. Mind blown.
Check out the full article in WithIt Girls!
And, here are links to the bios from within the archive of primarily 1970s and 1980s skaters, with many more coming into the 1990s and 2000s:
Vicki Vickers, Kim Cespedes, Terry Lawrence, Brenda Devine, Jana Payne, Leilani Kiyabu and Kim Adrian, to name a few, who were ripping in vert!
In the late 70s and early 80s, Pattie Hoffman, Cara-beth Burnside, Lisa Forman, Leigh Parkin, Peggy Turner, Sandy Chadbourn, Sue Smith, Cindy Whitehead, and Denise Danielson, were among those persevering.
Through the 1980s, Cyndy Pendergast and Bonnie Blouin were ruling out east, Lori Rigsbee captured the hearts of many, and due to Lynn Kramer’s Equal Time zine, we witnessed the progress of Stephanie Person, Sue Hazel, Michelle Ticktin, and Nathalie Richter. And when Cara-beth scored the cover of Thrasher in August ‘89, that was next level!
This is just a smattering of women and non-binary skaters who have and continue to progress in vert, not to mention the line-up of fearless groms hucking themselves and supporting each other like a proper hype team. Thank you all!
Womxn Skateboard History 