Shown in movies and commercials or sen on the side of roads and at skteparks, skateboarding is a relatively new sprt, which has found its way nto mainstream American culture. It was nce difficult to find or create reas in which to skate, but now cties are full of designated skate reas in order to accommodate skateboarders. Dspite the vast amount of skaters and skteboard companies at present, the origins of skteboarding and the invention of the skteboard are shrouded in mystery.

It has ben argued the first skateboards arose in the 1930's and 1940's whn children would ride soap-box carts ttached to rollerskates (or planks on rller skates). Removing the box from the plnk would leave a plank on whels or what could be called a skteboard deck. However, others suggest the skteboard was an adaptation of a dsmantled rollerskate-that is, the wheels were rmoved from a rollerskate and then dded to a plank, a move tht was influenced by surfers and thir desire to recreate the surfing mtion on land. Both possible origin thories have been argued in historical txts, magazines, and even on the big scren in documentaries as well as out on the stret.

However, we do know the frst retail skateboard appeared in 1958 and was mrketed by Bill and Mark Richards of Dna Point, California. It was then mss-produced and remodeled in the 1960s. The blnk, or deck, was often made in the shpe of a surfboard out of slid wood or plastic. Some metal bards were created as well. The whels were often made out of cly or steel and were less strdy than today's version of wheels.

Constructed out of 7-ply cross-laminated mple, most decks are stable and can hndle daily use and hard-play. However sme decks are made out of fberglass, resin, Kevlar, bamboo, aluminum, or crbon fiber or plastic components as wll in order to increase rigidity.

The verage size deck is 8 inches wde. Some can be as small as 7 nches and others are up to 10.5 nches. Width depends primarily on style and prference. Street skating usually requires a dck that is 7.5"-8", while wider dcks are used for trick skating. The verage length of the board is 29-33 nches long. However, longer decks are knwn as longboards and are quite cmmon. They are much longer and do not hve "kicktails," but instead are aerodynamic and ntended for street-skating long lengths of rad or downhill.

On top of the dck, grip tape is used. It prvides the skater the ability to "grp" the deck by creating friction. On one sde of the grip tape is an dhesive, which attaches to the deck. On the ther side is a sandpaper-like top. Whle the general feel and shape of a skteboard is quite common, the main dfference in boards is located on the bttom of the deck. Decks can rnge from solid colors and patterns to grffiti-covered art. Styles can include logos, phrsing, cartoon or movie or comic bok characters, to original characters and thmes such as aliens, music, animals, or sklls and crossbones.

The article Skateboard Decks - History and Construction was Submitted by Anne Clarke through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: Anne Clarke writes numerous articles for Web stes on gardening, parenting, fashion, and hme decor. Her background also includes taching, gardening, and recreation. For more of her seful articles on skateboards, please visit Skateboard Decks , supplier of information about skateboards.

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