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Famous Skateboarders

by Samuel Wayne in Legacy Articles

You’ve probably heard every one of their names before. Their the reason you first picked up a skateboard. Pro skateboarders, famous skateboarders - Skateboard icons. If you’re an avid skateboarder, or you plan to be one someday, you should get familiar with these guys:

Tony Hawk. Pro Skater Tony Hawk (born May 12, 1968) is most famous for being the first skateboarder to land a 900 and the second skater to land a McTwist. Tony has his own skateboard company, a TV production company, clothing and shoe line and over 10 video games published by Activision. Tony no longer competes, but he still performs occasionally. He’s married and has four kids.

Shaun White. Better known in the snowboarding world, Shaun White AKA The Flying Tomato (born September 3, 1986) is famous for bringing home medals in every Winter X Games since 2002. When snowboarding season is over, he swaps his snowboard for a skateboard and dominates the competition. Shaun has tons of sponsors and is featured in two video games.

Ryan Sheckler. Sheckler (born September 30, 1989) has been skateboarding since before he was two years old! By the time he was six, he was practicing tricks 22 hours a week in his back yard. Ryan Sheckler turned pro in 2003 after winning many prestigious competitions such as the X Games and the Vans Triple Crown. He’s stared in several movies, has his own reality TV show on MTV, and is sponsored by top companies like Oakley, Red Bull and Etnies Shoes.

Bob Burnquist. Burnquist (born October 10, 1976) turned pro at just 15 years old. He’s probably most known for winning the vert competition at the 2001 X Games. He received a score of 98 – the highest score given at the games for the skateboarding events, beating out skateboard icon Bucky Lasek. Burnquist is quite the trickster, pulling off incredible tricks and winning trick competitions.

Steve Caballero. Caballero (born November 8, 1964) is known for creating a trick called the Caballerial. He’s been on the cover of Thrasher magazine, appeared as a playable character in four Tony Hawk video games, and has been a member of several punk bands. He enjoys painting, collecting toys, and riding motocross.

Bucky Lasek. Bucky (born December 3, 1972) began his skateboarding journey at 12 years old, all because someone stole his bike! He turned pro in 1990 and became one of the most consistent skateboarders in competitions. He’s known for pulling off incredible tricks that other skaters only dream about. Bucky has collected ten medals from the X Games, and several titles from popular tournaments like the Vans Triple Crown and Gravity Games. Bucky has appeared in a few movies, been a playable character in the Tony Hawk video game series, and is sponsored by companies like T-mobile, Element, Wendy’s, and Rock Star Energy Drinks.

Now that you know about some of the many skateboarding Icons; get inspired, go out and master the basics, learn all the tricks. You may become a skateboarding icon yourself someday.

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Run the strap across the top width of the paddleboard to the other side of the board, underneath the rack bar, and back along the width of the board. There it will meet the clamp end, and you will tighten appropriately. Tie off the excess strap and give your paddleboard and the straps a couple of pulls to make sure nothing is loose. For cars without roof rack bars, securing the roof rack straps is a bit more straight forward. The front straps and back straps each extend from both sides of the car. Pull them up from each side over your paddleboard and secure the plain end through the clamp and tighten. Repeat for both front and back straps, once again giving the straps a couple of pulls to double check. Don’t overtighten your straps. Avoid damaging your paddleboard by wrenching your roof rack straps too tightly around it. Different paddleboards are made of different materials, but you can crack fiberglass or other board materials if you pull your straps too tight. 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