In 1982, Cyndy Pendergast wrote in to Thrasher with photos of her female skate crew from Chicago. Cyndy would go on to be a legendary skater from The Turf skatepark, competing and often beating the local guys in pool and bowl, and it’s thanks to fellow skater Marla Rainey, who preferred to be behind the camera that this crew and Cyndy, in particular, was documented.
In the October 1982 issue of Thrasher it was written: “Betty Hunt… since she got tired of seeing only male skaters in THRASHER Cynthia Pendergast of Chicago, Ill, forwarded pics of her and “the girls” skatin’ some of their local spots like Rockfords’ Reservoir, Evanston Banks and various pools. Cindy [sic], Marla, and Sharon are tired of reading about Illinois skaters complaining of no skate spots. Yeah! Let’s hear from more women skaters out there.”
Only one photo by Marla was published, showing four of her fellow skaters, but I was fortunate to be in touch with Cyndy, who sent the batch! Cyndy said that this spot was “the wave” near the Chicago Aquarium. Cyndy is wearing the Flyaway helmet and her friend, Sharon is in the Protec helmet. Cyndy said that Sharon was particularly good at skating vert and also enjoyed longboarding.
Photos of Sharon (Zalewski ?) in Chicago 1982 by Marla Rainey
Cyndy reported that, “We lost one board to Lake Michigan and a diver brought it up out of the water for us, we had a blast there with the free wave.” And like a typical photographer, “Marla seemed to mostly want to take pictures of me skating which is why I have so many. She almost never wanted pics taken of her… she was into cameras and skating.”
Photos of Marla Rainey (elusive photographer!)
It was also noted that Sharon had a brother who ran a skateshop in Chicago “on the north side, not too far from Rainbow Skatepark,” which must have been Windward Boardshop. The store was founded in 1982 by Lester Zalewski and a ripping female windsurfer name Jackie Butzen in Chicago’s Lakeview neighbourhood on Clark Street.
The shop was also near the “Rainbo Rink” which was 4836 Clark at Lawrence Street next to the Kinetic Playground on 4812 Clark (same building). “The Rainbow” was briefly a skateboard park, and Cyndy was on their official skateboard team!
The site was most widely remembered as an ice-skating and roller-skating rink, even showcasing wrestling matches for a time! The section of the building that became the music venue (Kinetic Playground) was originally the Rainbo Gardens ballroom and featured a wide range of musicians from B.B. King to Led Zeppelin, Canned Heat, Janis Joplin, Fleetwood Mac, Grateful Dead, Jethro Tull, The Who, The Animals, and even Fugazi. Sadly, the building was demolished in November 2003 and became a condominium – The Rainbo Village. There’s a Flickr album showing the final days of the Rainbo as a roller-skating rink.
The crew of skaters weren’t a formal girl gang, as Cyndy mostly skated with the guys at The Turf throughout the 1980s, but she appreciated those times skating street and natural banks with her female friends when she couldn’t make it to a skatepark.
Cyndy was appreciative of how there’s more media attention around women in skateboarding today and said: “I keep hearing from young skaters how women’s skating is just picking up now and I am like, naw, we were there back in the 70s, 80s, we’ve always been there skating… this is not new for women. I tell them what is new is that you are now hearing more about women skaters.”
I highly recommend reading Cyndy’s full bio, available here to get a full picture of this skater (and way more photos!) and the adversity she overcame during a seemingly dark period in the skateboard industry that rarely celebrated or encouraged female skaters, let alone a badass queer skater who refused to grow out her hair to appease to California-based sponsors!
Meanwhile, over at Thrasher an initiative was launched in 1984 called “The Betty Hunt,” which was intended to encourage female skaters to send in photos and make their whereabouts known. There were some skaters who followed through, but I suspect not everyone wanted to be scrutinized by the readership or editorial team of Thrasher. Fortunately, Bonnie Blouin came along to fill a void and make history as the first female columnist for this iconic magazine.
Reference:
Pendergast, Cyndy. Email conversation. October 27, 2024.
Womxn Skateboard History 