The skateboard emerged from the collective ingenuity of post-WWII America, with no single inventor credited with the design. The originators may have been young soapbox racers in the 1940s that did a crap job of constructing their wagons and were subsequently left with a wooden plank nailed to four wheels after the rest of the contraption had fallen away. Or, it might have been becalmed surfers in California who really needed to surf something even if it was the sidewalk. Regardless, the first skateboard released commercially was the Roller Derby Skateboard with clay wheels, out in 1959. The 60s saw a rise in popularity for skateboarding and the toy/sport/hobby/mode of transport even made the cover of Life magazine. More and more kids were picking up boards and rolling away into the sunset. This time also gave rise to the first skateboarding contests because when two or more kids with the same toy congregate, there will be competition and one-upmanship.

Other companies—mostly surfboard manufacturers—began putting out skateboards, made from a variety of different wood laminates. Skateboards enjoyed mainstream status until the late 60s when sales dropped and surfers went back to wet surfing. The skateboard’s time to shine arrived again in the early 70s when polyurethane wheels replaced clay and made the ride a whole lot smoother. One advantage of the new wheels: not coming to a complete stop and launching the riders into the air every time they hit a pebble. Emboldened by the faster wheels, young Californians discovered the joy of empty swimming pools where vert skateboarding was born and increasingly dangerous tricks were performed. Skateboards became the ticket to a daredevil lifestyle that had the potential to maim and kill, your mother was fond of yelling as you skated away from her. The upright citizenry started giving skaters the stink eye, mainly because they darn kids flocked to buildings with steps, rails and ramps so they could practice and perform their art. Skateboards stopped being lil’ Timmy’s roller toy and became a young punk’s devil wheels. Skaters and skating were banned from many public areas, like plazas and parks, and those restrictions still hold today.

Skateboarding fell out of favor again by the end of the decade but made a comeback in the early 80s. New materials and designs made their appearance and the world fell in love with skateboards for a third (fourth?) time. Following the same pattern as previous decades, popularity waned in the late 80s, then surged in the early 90s. Up the hill, down the hill, up the hill…just like riding a skateboard.

The sport is very popular now and generates millions in revenue for event organizers and many skaters have attained superstar status even outside the skateboarding community. You still get chased off for skating down a bank’s steps and ramps but if you become a skateboard virtuoso, that bank may hand you a nice fat sponsorship some day.