Skateboarding San Francisco

Until the 1990s, skateboarding was perceived as a suburban, niche activity in Southern California, surfing on sidewalks. Today, it has surged into a global, urban, youth culture phenomenon. Defying easy definition and traditional classifications, skateboarding can be both a sport at the Olympics and an underground subculture, a way to connect with other skaters and surfaces, and also a means of self-discovery through movement in space. Much of skateboarding’s 21st-century appeal – embracing diverse communities, creative approaches to the city’s built environment, music, fashion, slang, trick choice and style – come directly from San Francisco. Skateboarding San Francisco explores how a local activity made global impact. San Francisco has always been and remains a lodestar for skateboarders worldwide, where challenges are seen as appeals, surfaces beckon play, and whose lore is celebrated through the city’s characteristic concrete and evolving, vibrant communities.