Tony Alva
Skateboarding's First Icon
Before there was Tony Hawk, the 1970s skating scene featured a man who would greatly influence the boarders you see today. This man was Tony Alva, one of the original Z-boys, who were once fictionally portrayed in the 2005 motion picture, “Lords of Dogtown.” Alva, a Mexican-American, turned down other skating companies at the age of 19 to start his own, Alva Skates, which he still operated today. His company was the first to be run by a professional skateboarder.
Alva Skates also were the first to use plywood for skate decks.
The aforementioned Z-Boys formed in 1972 and featured Jay Adams and Stacy Peralta in addition to Alva. Following the notoriety he received from that three-some, Alva went on to win the first ever World Championship of Skateboarding in 1977.
In that same year, Alva set the bar for professional skaters by achieving a record breaking barrel jump in the Guinness book of records. Alva is also one of the first to try aerials and front-air jumps. During the 1980s, Alva formed the “Alpha Posse” which featured many notable skaters of the decade like Chris Cook, John Thomas, and Jeff Hartsel.
While his popularity may have died down a bit in the 1990’s, he was not forgotten by the so-called “X-Games Generation.” In 1999, Alva was awarded the X-Games Life Time Achievement Award by Tony Hawk. Alva has also been featured at the Sundance Film Festival for his role in the 2002 documentary “Dogtown and Z-Boys.” He even has been noticed in the fashion world as he was recognized as one of I-D Magazine’s”100 Most Influential People in Fashion.” Alva is truly a legend, and one of the first entrepreneurs of skateboarding.
Tony Alva still skates and surfs daily in addition to operating Alva Skateboarding Company in Oceanside, California.
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