Independent

George Orton – 2020

Find George on social Media George Orton was one of the most bio vert skaters of the late 1970s. Born in Long Beach, California, George was a hyperactive kid with ADHD who was always involved in school sports. At age seven, he discovered surfing and skateboarding on a Black Knight with clay wheels. Around 1974, …

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Rick Blackhart – 2020

Find Rick on Social Media Skateboarding’s rude bad boy, Rick Blackhart grew up in San Jose, California, where he first started pushing wood way back in 1969 on a Black Knight with metal wheels. In 1975, he turned pro for Tunnel, and by the next year he started ripping the gigantic 30-foot diameter Bombora full …

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Micke Alba – 2019

Follow Micke on Social Media Born in the Badlands of Southern California, Michael “Micke” Alba enjoyed a career as one of the top vert pros from the late 1970s to the late-’80s. Starting out skating freestyle around 1975, Micke switched over to vert at the Bel Air Pool, the Central Pool, the famous L Pool …

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Brad Bowman – 2018

Find Brad on Social Media Brad Bowman is widely recognized as one of the most stylish skateboarders of the late 1970s. His appearances on the pages of Skateboarder magazine ripping backyard pools and skateparks comprise some of the most memorable and beloved photos of that time period. Brad’s first metal-wheeled skateboard ride–in Indiana in the …

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Eric Dressen – 2017

Find Eric on Social Media Eric Dressen was born on September 16, 1967 in Los Angeles, California and got his first skateboard at the age of eight. Only a year later, Eric was discovered by Laura Thornhill while skating a pool in Torrance. Impressed by his obvious natural talents, she introduced him to Skateboarder magazine …

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Steve Alba – 2016

Find Steve on Social Media Having stepped on a skateboard for the first time in third grade, Steve Alba would refine his vertical skateboard skills over the next few years before winning the first pool contest in skateboarding history at the Spring Valley stop of the Hester Series in 1978. From there, the man known …

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Duane Peters – 2015

Follow Duane on Instagram Born on June 12, 1961, Duane Peters (aka the Master of Disaster) is best known for being one of the first pros (along with Steve Olson) to introduce punk rock music and fashion to skateboarding. He is also credited with inventing a host of now staple tricks to the sport, including …

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John Cardiel – 2015

Follow John on Instagram Simply one of the biggest and enduring legends of skateboarding, John Cardiel was born on December 14, 1973 in San Jose, California. He grew up in Half Moon Bay and later Grass Valley. Transcending multiple generations and beloved worldwide, his “All hail Cardiel!” folklore was built not on any technical innovation …

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Cara-Beth Burnside – 2015

Find Cara-Beth on Social Media Cara-Beth Burnside is a pioneer of women’s professional skateboarding and snowboarding. Born on July 23, 1968 in Orange, California, Cara-Beth first began skateboarding around age 10 with her older brother, honing her skills at the legendary Big O Skatepark. From the early ’80s to the mid ’00s, she solidified herself …

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Fausto Vitello – 2014

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on August 7, 1946, Fausto Vitello’s influence on skateboarding could be deemed critical if only for his entrepreneurial role in co-founding Thrasher, Independent, and Deluxe Distribution. Having fled Argentina and the oppression of the Revolución Libertadora political regime with his family at age nine, Vitello was raised on Frederick Street in …

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Steve Olson – 2014

Find Steve on Social Media Credited with introducing skateboarding to punk rock at the end of the 1970s, along with being the original tester of the Independent Stage 1 truck (which was released in ’78), and whose iconic Santa Cruz Checkerboard model became the first use of full-board graphics on seven-ply laminated maple, Steve Olson …

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Lance Mountain – 2014

Find Lance on Social Media Since starring in the first true skateboarding video, The Bones Brigade Video Show in 1984, then rising with the tide of the Powell-Peralta brand as it grew into the biggest company of the massive ’80s boom, launching and running The Firm, before finally landing at Flip and Nike SB, Lance …

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NHS – 2013

Find NHS on Social Media Founded in 1973 by Richard Novak, Doug Haut, and Jay Shuirman, NHS, Inc. has grown into a veritable empire in skateboarding, consisting of a wide variety of brands, including Independent, Flip, Krux, Ricta, Mob Grip, Nor Cal Clothing, OJ Wheels, Creature, Santa Cruz Skateboards, Santa Cruz Surfboards, Santa Cruz Snowboards, …

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Christian Hosoi – 2013

Find Christian on Social Media After honing his skills with constant access to Marina del Rey Skatepark, which his father, Ivan, managed from the late 1970s to the early ’80s, Christian Hosoi got his first photo in Skateboarder magazine at age 11, and by age 14 turned pro for Sims. He then rose with the …

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Mark Gonzales – 2012

Today’s street skateboarding is a far cry from the pool-influenced riding of the 1970s from which it was spawned, and the Gonz had a lot to do with that. Mark Gonzales, the pioneering and consequently obliterating ripper of all oncoming terrain, subject to the variables in which he chose to place before his path, naturally, didn’t set out to …

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