It’s only been about 9 years since I first became aware of the Ski Skate, and now at long last, I can add a second post on this ancient relic. Check out this promotional flyer from the toy company that made it. I say toy company, but they seemed to split their product line into the categories of subpar sports-training and unofficial Star Wars glom-on products like the Force Beam and the Force Missile. One is essentially a light saber, and the other is a pneumatically launched rocket that looks vaguely like a TIE Fighter with “The Force” grafted onto the product name. If they love skiing, skateboarding and surfing, they’ll love the Ski Skate™! Trust them, they are from LA.

Fresko Shoes is a company that sells shoes and beachy-stuff to tourist traps next to oceans. They’re out of Florida, but I found this plastic skateboard in Pacific City, Oregon. It’s actually a pretty cool design. If someone had thought of this in the 70’s they would have sold the crap out of (another round of ) plastic skateboards. Remember, for those kids not near sizable hills and skateparks, a plastic skateboard with a good set of open bearings was a perfectly serviceable skateboard. I rode one for years, and.. uh, look how I turned out?

A trip to the toy store almost never disappoints when looking for Skate and Annoy fodder. One of the Kryptonics license holders makes some plastic skateboards that are near Penny board quality, the wheels have decent bearings and they spin quite freely. The trucks are tight, but they have a little room to loosen built in already. The deck design, namely the kicktail and off-putting concave could be better, but it’s not an abomination. At $40, you could do worse when shopping for a beginner who just wants to roll. (UPDATE: Looks like a Mojo Pahse III) Then there’s this Disney character board with Jake and the Neverland Pirates that appears to be molded in one piece, trucks included! Almost ready to ride right off the injection molding machine, just add bearings and wheels.

When this came up for auction I made myself stop following it because I was trying to save money and my basement is already filled with all kinds of bullshit. Now I’m kicking myself because it sold for only $40, although I think shipping was something like $20 if I recall correctly. Still, for the money, this is the kind of bulshit I should have added to my collection. On the surface, the board is nothing special, but on closer inspection the truck and wheel combination is pretty interesting. It’s got 60’s style Chicago Trucks with the sheet metal baseplate, and yet it has 70’s era urethane wheels. Then there’s that awesome color sticker with a hotdog skateboard that says “Frankly the Best.” The icing on the cake is the 2 color screen printed graphic on the box. They were really giving this thing the hard sell. – Thanks to David Maes for the tip.

Ah, the Long Rider! I first became aware of the Long Rider back in 2005, but only saw a couple small pictures. In 2009 I uncovered an ad for a Long Rider in the Montgomery Ward catalog from 1984. Since that time, I bought one from a reader named Dan Kite who saw it on the site and offered his up for a very reasonable price. I marveled over it, and then I tried riding it a few times but the bearings were sort of shot. Long Riders are sized for (ahem) much smaller riders, so it sat in my basement for a couple years. Recently I picked up one on eBay that Matthijs tipped me off to. It came in the original packaging and it was essentially brand new. Bonus! It was in a different color from the one I already had. So I jumped on it. We had a philosophical discussion about the purchase the other night before we went to the Briefs show. Both my wife and Grover were puzzled by why I spend any money on these things. The answer? I buy them because they are magical and weird!

The Cami Three Aces (Tres Assi) model, a six wheeled, three truck plastic skateboard made in Italy at some point in the late 70’s or early 80’s most likely. Actullay, that top graphic makes me think it’s 80’s or possibly even later. I’ve been on the lookout for the six wheeled plastic skateboard as seen in this post. I think the side by side truck configuration is more rare. I’ve seen the three aces configuration on more recent boards. And then there’s the Wheelie Board. Finding a 6 wheeled plastic skateboard on the internet is tough, you’ll turn up endless Penny board knockoffs and collections of regular wheels without an actual board. So who knows if I’ll ever find the right one. Meanwhile, what about the Three Aces? Pretty damned cool, although $200 bucks is a steep price for a plastic board, but it is pretty rare. What I need is more disposable income. – Thanks to David ODK for the tip.

I’ve seen skateboards with logos for all kinds of drinks, including Pepsi, Coke, Mountain Dew and Sobe , but this is the first time I’ve seen an RC Cola skateboard. This particular one made by Super Surfer. They actually molded “Me and My RC” onto the top deck. The Super Surfer imprints on the bottom and trucks are cool as well. I can’t tell if those are plastic trucks or not. The baseplate is metal, but the trucks look like they might be plastic, although I don’t remember plastic trucks showing up until the 90’s. (UPDATE: They are indeed metal trucks.) Maybe this artifact isn’t as old as the seller claims. But then again when was the last time anyone heard the slogan “Me and My RC,” or Royal Crown Cola, come to think of it. UPDATE: Thanks to Daymond Dodge for pictures of his own RC Cola board and KC for the RC Cola TV commercial.

If I didn’t know better I’d think this was a gag from GVK. The ad copy is absurd. “The ol’ Mersedes Bends Skatboard Factory?” Seriously? Even if “skateboard” wasn’t misspelled, that would still be a bit much. Twenty dollars will buy you the hottest skateboard you’ve ever seen. Star wheels designed by freestyle champ Ed Nadalin normally sell for $79.95 each (yes, each) but through this ad you can get a complete set for only $12. That’s an amazing 97% discount! Pre-designed configural CAMBER-FLEX? They make a big deal about including sealed bearings, so you know it must be 1976, and it is. Volume 3, Number 1, which is the October 1976 issue of Skateboarder Magazine. My best friend in grade school nada plastic board with a Mercedes logo relief on top, but no name visible anywhere. It always impressed me as a kid. We all called it the Mercedes Benz board. I’m surprised Skateboarder agreed to print this advertisement, it would be the same thing as Thrasher running an ad for Nash…. Oh wait, they actually did that all the time.

A Flex-trol skateboard, apparently the first one on the Interwebs, as I couldn’t find a single image of one anywhere. I’m guessing the name is combination of “flex” and “control.” Yeah I know, wild guess. This skateboard is fitted with a tension and torque control bar. The trucks are held at a fixed distance by the bar and as result: Has a sharp turning radius. It takes less lean to do a turn. Fewer skid-outs. The control bar tends to keep all 4 wheels on the ground during maneuvers. Board flex is controlled. As the flex increases, the board stiffens. This eliminates any “mushy” feel. Manufactured by the good folks at A.E. & Co out of Tarzana, Ca. I’m tempted to look it up and see if that patent ever got awarded. List of possible subtitles for this post: It takes less lean to do a turn. Fewer skid-outs As the flex increases, the board stiffens? Danimal picked this up recently at a Good Will!

How to stay relevant in a world where you came up with an original (isn) idea and everyone has copied you, and Chinese manufacturers are flooding the market? Christian Hosoi has a model out on Penny skateboards. Looks pretty damned cool, and he shreds that thing. Video after the jump.