According to history, no one can exactly determine on when the official born of Skateboarding in the world is. They say that even between the 1940 and 1950, there are already people who had been doing such outdoor activity, particularly those who are in the surfing category. Of course, these use surfing boards and later on, the advent of the on-land skateboards began to manifest.
When talking about the first skateboard manufacturer in the world, history revealed that the Makaha Company is responsible for this achievement back in 1963 through the effort of Larry Stevenson. He is a famous hall of famer in the skateboarding industry and his company successfully manufactured different quality skateboards as well as longboards on the board for the past 50 years.
As detailed through skateboardingmagazine.com, Stevenson produced many skateboards during that time and their shapes appeared like surfing boards. He built and designed the units for better concrete driving and riding experience. Makaha is also the first ever company to adopt the use of clay wheels and not the usual metal wheels. They reason is that they believe that the clay wheels provide better maneuvers and the rider can move smoothly.
On that same year, Stevenson continued his success when he designed and created the first professional skateboarding unit in history. To make it more significant and meaningful, he named the unit to Phil Edwards whom they recognized as a legendary surfer in the world.
In year 1963 also, the popular skateboard-maker became the major sponsor of first-ever skateboard competition held in Hermosa Beach, California. According to the published information online, there are almost 100 competing skateboarders that time and it was a successful event, which gave way to other huge skateboarding contests worldwide.
Due to the remarkable achievements of the company, the Makaha skateboard team also became part of different special gatherings and mall promotions. The team even appeared in a popular TV show, the Steve Allen Show that time.
According to the information shared through surfwriter.net, the team composes “Baby” Dave Rochlen (first Makaha Commander), Jim Ganzer (successor of Rochlen) and other talented skateboarders namely Jimy Fitzpatrick, Danny Schaefer, Woody Woodward, Joey Saenz, Torger Johnson, Bruce Logan, George Trafton, Squeak Blank, Greg Carroll, John Fries and Danny Bearer.
These people are the best and young skateboarding competitors that time.
Because of the continuing success of the company in producing the best skateboards in the world, there are fake manufacturers that started to imitate their units. They did this illegal manufacturing in order to gain money using the name of Larry Stevenson.
Nevertheless, they failed to pull down the good reputation of Makaha.
Larry once again proved his worth in the skateboarding industry when he designed and invented the “Kicktail” back in 1969. This is actually a vital part of the skateboard (sloping incline) to provide balance control and allowing the exact landing on the ground with the feet of the rider. His invented “Kicktail” started the production of more innovative skateboards these days because they utilized it as the best pattern for an improve performance.
To date, Makaha is consistently producing high quality longboards and skateboards, which are suitable for different types of riders. Meaning, they have units for grownups, teenagers and even enthusiastic children out there.
As explained through warehousekateboards.com, Makaha manufactured the perfect boards for different levels of skills that assure remarkable durability and flexibility. For professional riders, they will definitely appreciate the fast riding experience and the excitement that these products can offer them.
Despite the death of Stevenson on March 25, 2012 at the age of 81, his company and his inventions remain the most trusted options today.
images credit: Flickr & Pinterest
