JC Penney Had Class
Another shot of vintage skateboard equipment from one of my favorite sources, old department store catalogs. These offerings from JC Penney were available in 1977. There’s a generic board, a Free Former brand, and two that I can’t quite make out with the name Class in it, possibly ODO Class or DDO class. (Update: Pro Class. Thanks Daymond! Pics added.) At the top the page is the venerable Roller Derby brand roller skates, a company that also made skateboards at the same time.
Larger detail of just the skateboards.
UPDATE: A Pro Class combo pack with a tail skid and a kick tail enhancer that David ODK found.
Pro Class , less than par made skateboards
Weren’t those the days!
I bought a skateboard from JCPenney in 1976.
I loved it. Would skate in the basement. I skated like nothing they do nowadays. The best ones skated in abandoned pools. I’m from the midwest so no abandoned pools. Just skated in the streets or the basement. I wanted to skate ever since I saw an article about skateboarding in a 1976 Popular Mechanics. The one I got from Penneys was orange with urethane wheels. It was stiff but started getting looser. The rubber washers or whatever that were between the wheels and towards the deck started wearing. Just did an internet search and found out it was called a bushing. I tried to adjust it but no luck. I wonder if I could have changed out that bushing. I don’t know if we could have changed out trucks on our boards. We were at the very beginning and didn’t really know the potential of skateboarding. I haven’t skateboarded since the late 70s. I just did a search and found the skateboard I had. It’s the $14.99 24in one. Would anyone know what brand it is?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/wishbook/322511895/in/album-72157594294161324/
I bought my fiberflex with carry bag when the Hobie team came to Tampa. My dad was ops manager at JC Penny’s, he took me out of school and we picked up the team at the airport. Had a blast hanging out with, Mike Weed, Skitch Hitchcock Bob Skoldburg, Gregg Weaver. Still have the board and bag.