Inside the complex and misunderstood world of professional street skateboarding On a sunny Sunday in Los Angeles, a crew of skaters and videographers watch as one of them attempts to land a “heel flip” over a fire hydrant on a sidewalk in front of the Biltmore Hotel. A staff member of the hotel demands they leave and picks up his phone to call the police.Not only does the skater land the trick, but he does so quickly, and spares everyone the unwanted stress of having to deal with the cops. This is not an uncommon occurrence in skateboarding, which is illegal in most American cities and this interaction is just part of the process of being a professional street skater. This is just one of Gregory Snyder’s experiences from eight years inside the world of professional street skateboarding: a highly refined, athletic and aesthetic pursuit, from which a large number of people profit. Skateboarding LA details the history of skateboarding, describes basic and complex tricks, tours some of LA's most famous spots, and provides an enthusiastic appreciation of this dangerous and creative practice. Particularly concerned with public spaces, Snyder shows that skateboarding offers cities much more than petty vandalism and exaggerated claims of destruction. Rather, skateboarding draws highly talented young people from around the globe to skateboarding cities, building a diverse and wide-reaching community of skateboarders, filmmakers, photographers, writers, and entrepreneurs. Snyder also argues that as stewards of public plazas and parks, skateboarders deter homeless encampments and drug dealers. In one stunning case, skateboarders transformed the West LA Courthouse, with Nike’s assistance, into a skateable public space. Through interviews with current and former professional skateboarders, Snyder vividly expresses their passion, dedication and creativity. Especially in relation to the city's architectural features—ledges, banks, gaps, stairs and handrails—they are constantly re-imagining and repurposing these urban spaces in order to perform their ever-increasingly difficult tricks. For anyone interested in this dynamic and daunting activity, Skateboarding LA is an amazing ride.

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and sentence highlighting to engage reluctant readers! Did you know that street skateboarders perform incredible tricks by creating obstacles out of structures you might find along a city sidewalk? Street skateboarders jump their boards onto curbs and stairs. They grind down railings. They flip their boards around with their toes.

Street skateboarders use railings, benches, and curbs to do tricks. Eager readers will explore the development of street style skateboarding from the 1950s to today. They will also learn about the equipment needed to safely skateboard and the competitions in which pros compete.

With sequential photos and step-by-step instructions, this guide to a performance cornerstone—the flip trick—benefits skateboarders of all skill levels. Often combined with curb tricks and applied to such obstacles as handrails and ramps, flip tricks are commonly used as the final touch on a more complex maneuver, and, with this guidebook, readers learn the basics of such tricks while progressing toward veteran moves. A section devoted to the history of skateboarding is included with an in-depth look at the individuals responsible for the creation of flip tricks and how they came to invent this aspect unique to skateboarding.

A step-by-step instructional guide for street skateboarders on how to execute a variety of curb tricks.

Inside the complex and misunderstood world of professional street skateboarding On a sunny Sunday in Los Angeles, a crew of skaters and videographers watch as one of them attempts to land a “heel flip” over a fire hydrant on a sidewalk in front of the Biltmore Hotel. A staff member of the hotel demands they leave and picks up his phone to call the police.Not only does the skater land the trick, but he does so quickly, and spares everyone the unwanted stress of having to deal with the cops. This is not an uncommon occurrence in skateboarding, which is illegal in most American cities and this interaction is just part of the process of being a professional street skater. This is just one of Gregory Snyder’s experiences from eight years inside the world of professional street skateboarding: a highly refined, athletic and aesthetic pursuit, from which a large number of people profit. Skateboarding LA details the history of skateboarding, describes basic and complex tricks, tours some of LA's most famous spots, and provides an enthusiastic appreciation of this dangerous and creative practice. Particularly concerned with public spaces, Snyder shows that skateboarding offers cities much more than petty vandalism and exaggerated claims of destruction. Rather, skateboarding draws highly talented young people from around the globe to skateboarding cities, building a diverse and wide-reaching community of skateboarders, filmmakers, photographers, writers, and entrepreneurs. Snyder also argues that as stewards of public plazas and parks, skateboarders deter homeless encampments and drug dealers. In one stunning case, skateboarders transformed the West LA Courthouse, with Nike’s assistance, into a skateable public space. Through interviews with current and former professional skateboarders, Snyder vividly expresses their passion, dedication and creativity. Especially in relation to the city's architectural features—ledges, banks, gaps, stairs and handrails—they are constantly re-imagining and repurposing these urban spaces in order to perform their ever-increasingly difficult tricks. For anyone interested in this dynamic and daunting activity, Skateboarding LA is an amazing ride.

"Hit the streets with 200 exhilarating photographs of the worlds greatest professional skateboarders in action. In this dynamic collection, award-winning photographer Jonathan Mehring takes us from New York to Hong Kong to Istanbul and beyond as he sets out to capture the heart and soul of skate culture on six continents. Featuring stars like Tony Hawk, Nyjah Huston, and Eric Koston, Mehrings images have been published in top skateboarding magazines, and ESPN named him one of the sports ten most influential people. Now, in his first book, Mehring invites us along on his exhilarating photo adventures across six continents. By capturing these experiences on camera and including complementary images contributed by other top skate photographers, Mehring presents an exciting and artful look at skate culture around the world. With an adrenaline rush on every page, this book celebrates the joy of skateboarding and its power to inspire young people to overcome obstacleson the board and off."--Amazon.com.