Tag: Skateboard History
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Steffi Weiss
Steffi Weiss (Wolter) was a competitive skateboarder in the early 2000s who received significant attention after a series of solid contest results and was even described as the “German Elissa Steamer.” Obviously, a huge compliment and while German skaters like Nathalie Richter came before her, Weiss was the first pro female skateboarder in Germany, so…
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Renee Tantillo
In the late 1980s and 1990s, Renee ‘Ne’ Tantillo started skateboarding and became a Riot Grrrl. She was featured in a Venture Trucks ad as an “average kid” in the September 1987 issue of Thrasher, but the ad itself was a contradictory mess. It reads, “Who the hell are these little dudes? Where’s the pros?…
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Julie Cheng
Julie Cheng appears briefly but successfully in a handful of contest results in the late 1970s. She is listed in August 1978 as a Pro Rider from Citrus Heights, CA by the International Skateboard Association, riding for Cal. Pro. In the November 1977 issue of the National Skateboard Review, Cheng places first at the California…
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Brenda Devine
Brenda Devine started out competing as an amateur in the spring of 1978, but soon became selected for the very first Powell skateboard team, as their first sponsored female rider. She rode for Powell for a year-and-a-half, just in time for her first pro event. Brenda came third in Women’s Pipe behind Terry Lawrence and…
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Cherry Skateboards
Cherry skateboards was a female-run board company sponsoring women riders, founded by Emily Oliver in February 2003 to April 2009 with support and product design by Shodie Lyon. They were based out of Breckenridge, Colorado and filled a void in a time when mainstream skateboard companies were still hesitant and resistant to consider developing diverse…
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Robin Logan
Robin Logan was raised in Hermosa Beach, California by her mom Barbara along with three older brothers. She watched Brian, Bruce and Brad surf and skate everyday, and at four-years old Bruce set her up on a skateboard. Robin shared in Skateboarder that, “When I was seven, we would do demos in department stores… Bruce…
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Celebrity Skaters
There’s no doubt that skateboarding is cool, so it’s inevitable that celebrities are going to want to give it a go. Over the years, we’ve seen an interesting mix of actresses take part and I have to ask, who “wore it better?” The most surprising actress has to be the elegant Katharine Hepburn, and it’s…
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Edie Robertson
Edie Robertson from Santa Barbara was inducted into the Skateboarding Hall of Fame in 2019 for her diverse skills across all skateboarding disciplines and competitive results in the 1970s. Born in 1962, she was just a toddler when skateboarding first appeared, but she was ready to roll into the second wave, trying out her friend’s…
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Wendy Bearer Bull
As the only female member of the Makaha Skateboard Club, launched in 1963 by Larry Stevenson in West Los Angeles, Wendy Bearer Bull represented and became an early skateboarding role model. Note: The handstand photo is from the Los Angeles Herald, August 28, 1965, and Wendy is age 13 She started skateboarding alongside her brother…
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Mystery Skater – Laurie
According to The Guardian, these photos are of “Laurie” at Hermosa Beach, CA practically levitating off her board (which is a baffling photo in itself) and then being hounded by a cop in Redondo Beach. The photographs are by Spot who was a musician / photographer living in Hermosa Beach and became known as a…
Womxn Skateboard History 