How to Learn Vert History

It may be only an urban legend, but it is said that the first vert skateboarding was done in the early '60s when an inventive Californian emptied his parents' swimming pool. For roughly the next decade, pools or similarly curved surfaces offered skateboarders venues where they could "carve" their runs. Then commercial skateboarding parks and competitive half pipes replaced pools and vert went extreme as carving was replaced by "Houston, we have lift off." Learn about vert's history.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Start your study of vert history by first taking a tour through the origins of the skateboard. "The Concrete Wave: The History of Skateboarding" by Michael Brooke is a classic book in this regard.

2. Check out any of the numerous skateboarding websites to explore other historical resources related to skateboarding's early evolution from roller skates nailed to orange crates into expensive creations of fiberglass and high tech ball bearings.

3. Familiarize yourself with the difference between street skating and vert skating. Develop an appreciation for what "catching air" means.

4. Read about one of vert's legends, Tony Hawk.

5. Understand the role that the X-Games have played in promoting the sport.

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