Exploring the Origins of the Pioneering Crew

There was no single face behind skateboarding’s origins, but there was a group called the “Z-Boys”.

 

By: Dan Gilbert

A sub-culture refers to a group within a larger culture that finds its own place. Often credited for carrying its own set of values and practices, the aforementioned group carves out its own identity and sticks to it for a large period of time, if not permanently.

In the world of skateboarding, the Zephyr Team, also known as the “Z-Boys”, were synonymous with everything we’ve come to attribute to sub-culture today. Over the years, many tales have been told about the true nature of skateboarding’s origins, however, through that time, one thing has remained constant: The Z-Boys we’re the pioneers of it all, and they were legendary.

That’s right. In the early 1970’s, it was the Z-Boys who essentially created the rebellious sub-culture of skateboarding that exists to this day. More specifically, they did so in 1973, the year that Jeff Ho and a circle of friends opened a surfboard shop located in the idyllic beachfront city of Santa Monica, California. The name? Jeff Ho Surfboards and Zephyr Productions.

Working at the shop was 14-year-old Nathan Pratt, a surfboard designer and founding member of the Z-Boys. Not long after the group’s genesis, other members were beginning to join, including the incomparable Allen Sarlo, Jay Adams, Tony Alva, Chris Cahill, and Stacy Peralta, who had already made their mark as figures of anti-establishment that ruled the surfboarding scene in Santa Monica, which earned the moniker of “Dogtown”.

You could say that skateboarding was right at home for the Z-Boys since they had the experience of operating on boards before, even using their boards to emulate popular surfing moves and come up with their own tricks. In the eyes of the public, they were innovators of a new style that differed greatly from the product that most other skateboarders were putting on display at the time. By 1975, the Z-Boys had distanced themselves from surfing altogether, deciding it was time to make a new mark in a sport that was still in its early stages.

In March of the same year, the Z-Boys made their competitive debut at the Del Mar Nationals, today recognized as the first major skateboarding competition to be held since the mid 1960’s. Considering the Z-Boys accounted for half of the eventual finalists, the notion that they stole the show at the event might be an understatement. It was all credit to their innovative style. Though they were relatively young compared to most of their competitors, the Z-Boys weren’t bothered, setting their sights on rising to the top of the skateboarding world. And that they did.

Characterized by vertical and airborne moves, the style which the Z-Boys adopted had spread over the next year, becoming a hit among skateboarding enthusiasts. During a period of drought in the mid 1970’s, a time when skateboarding had become frowned upon by society, the defiant Z-Boys took their talents to empty pools to continue doing what they loved, eventually discovering the technique of coming out of a “bowl” and re-entering gracefully.

They weren’t fully aware of it at the time, but the Z-Boys had invented aerial skateboarding. Their techniques shaped the foundation upon which future generations of skateboarders were able to build on. Ever since then, aerial skateboarding never went out of style, and remains prominent in competition today.

The Z-Boys embraced their popularity wherever they went, even going as far as appearing on the cover of Skateboard Magazine. Each member was skilled in their own right, performing well enough to be ranked among the world’s best skateboarders. As time went on, many members of the crew decided to carve out their own paths, with some deciding to compete for other companies and teams. By 1977, the Z-Boys were no longer a crew, however, despite their brief history, they are widely regarded as the most influential skateboarding team ever assembled.

Their story has been chronicled in numerous films and books, most notably the award-winning “Dogtown and Z-Boys”, a 2001 documentary narrated by Sean Penn and directed by none other than Stacy Peralta herself. It’s hard to imagine what skateboarding would be like today had it not been for the Z-Boys, but one thing is certain: what may have been written off as a hobby is now an extreme sport, and it’s all thanks to them.