Skateboarding seems to come and go with each passing generation.
It experienced its genesis during the 1960s and 1970s, dipped toward the end of the ’70s, fought back in the 80s, and went through its golden age in the 90s and early 2000s.
Those golden years of skateboarding are when legends were born, and we witnessed some of the greatest skaters in the short history of the sport.
These old-school skaters helped to shape the sport of skateboarding and played a massive role in making it what it is today.
Who are the Best Skaters of All Time?
Who are the best old school skateboarders of all time? It’s a question that is sure to trigger a debate among skaters of all ages.
But while the ranking of these old school skaters is certainly a debatable topic, it’s hard to dispute which names deserve to be on this list.
With that said, let’s look at a list (in no particular order) that includes some of the best skateboarders of all time.
And before you complain about certain omissions, just remember that this is by no means a complete list!
Tony Hawk
Known as “Birdman”, Tony Hawk is one of the greatest skateboarders of all time and was instrumental in introducing the world of skateboarding to a new audience.
He was the first to perform the “900”, has helped to create hundreds of skateboarding parks around the world, and also endorsed his own series of video games.
In fact, during the early 2000s, every teenager and young adult got into street skateboarding as a result of the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater games.
Hawks won dozens of major skateboarding competitions, launched his own company (Birdhouse Projects), foundation (Tony Hawk Foundation), and clothing lines, and came to define post-2000s skating.
How Old Is Tony Hawk?
Tony Hawk was born May 12, 1968 in Carlsbad, CA. As of 2021, he is 53 years old.
How Tall Is Tony Hawk?
Tony is 6’3″ tall.
How Much Is Tony Hawk Worth?
It is estimated that Tony Hawk’s net work is $140 Million Dollars. He is the wealthiest and arguably the most famous professional skateboarder.
Where Does Tony Hawk Live?
Tony Hawk lives in Encinitas, California in San Diego County.
Jason Lee
These days, Jason Lee is best-known for his acting. He has been in a few cult films (Dogma, Mallrats, Chasing Amy) and also played the titular role in My Name is Earl.
But before he became known as an actor, he was regarded as one of the best skateboarders in the business.
Not quite on the same level as Tony Hawk, but a top skater, nonetheless.
Jason Lee teamed up with Chris Pastras to launch Blue Skateboards, which then became Stereo Skateboards.
Why Did Jason Lee Stop Skateboarding?
Jason retired from professional skateboarding in 1995 to pursue acting. He made this after his first movie Mallrats.
How Good Of A Skater Was Jason Lee?
Jason was an advanced skater during his peak. He was well-known for this kickflips, tailslides, and 360 flips among other street skating tricks.
How Did Jason Lee Make His Money?
Jason Lee made his money acting and with this skateboarder company Stereo Skateboards which he founded fellow skater Chris Pastras. His estimated net work is $20 million.
What Movies Has Jason Been In?
Jason Lee has been in dozens of movies and TV show dating back to 1991.
Some of his better known movies include: Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Jersey Girl, and Alvin and The Chipmunks.
Bam Margera
Bam Margera made a name for himself as a skater towards the tail-end of the 1990s, when VHS tapes circulated showing him performing crazy stunts.
Those tapes eventually morphed into Jackass and introduced the world to eventual superstars like Steve-O and Johnny Knoxville.
Despite becoming best-known for his stunts and his association with Jackass, Bam Margera remained an incredibly talented skateboarder and is often regarded to be one of the sport’s most influential.
After all, how many youngsters watched his stunts and immediately went out to buy a skateboard and copy him?
How Old Is Bam Margera?
Bam Margera was born Brandon Cole Margera September 28, 1974 in West Chester, PA. He is 42 years old as of 2021.
How Much Is Bam Margera Worth?
Bam’s network is estimated to be $20 million.
Where Is Bam Margera From?
Bam is from West Chester, Pennsylvania. Today he owns two houses in West Chester.
Is Bam Margera Married?
Yes, Bam is married. He married Nikki Boyd in 2013 a year after they met. They were married in Iceland at the Random Hero Festival in the Reykjavik Art Museum.
Mark Gonzales
Mark “Gonz” Gonzales is one of the most influential street skateboarders of all time and actually introduced many skaters to street skating.
He is an artist as well as a skateboarder and he has his own skateboard company, known as Krooked Skateboards.
Gonz was the first skater to ollie the Wallenberg Gap in San Francisco, CA. You can see him do it in the video below.
Does Mark Gonzales Own Krooked?
Gonz launched Krooked Skateboards with the Deluxe company in 2002.
Is Mark Gonzales Goofy Or Regular?
Mark’s natural skateboard stance is a goofy foot.
What Age Did Mark Gonzales Start Skating?
Gonz started skating when he was 13. Just three years later at age 16, he was featured on the November 1984 cover of Thrasher Magazine.
He subsequently joined Vision Skateboards as a professional skateboarder.
Does Mark Gonzales Kids?
Mark is married to Tia Gonzales and has one daughter with her.
Where Does Mark Gonzales Live?
Mark lives with his wife and daughter in New York City.
What Does Mark Do Now?
Mark stays busy as an artist, writer and poet.
Danny Way
Danny Way is a fearless old school skateboarder known for his epic skating stunts, including jumping the Great Wall of China.
He was winning contests before he was 13-years-old and spent the early years of his skateboarding career breaking records.
Danny has been awarded upwards of 20 awards and achievements including: being named “Skater of the Year” by Thrasher magazine in 1991, winning a gold medal at the X Games in 2004, and winning the “Big Air” Gold medal at X Games XII in 2006.
How Old Is Danny Way?
Danny Way was born in Portland, OR on April 15, 1974 and grew up in San Diego. He is 47 years old as of 2021.
How Many Injuries Has Danny Way Sustained?
Danny has been injured a number of time. He broke his neck in 1994 and has had at least 13 operations.
Is Danny Way Married?
Danny Way is marred to Kari Way with whom he has three children. Their names are Ryden Way, Tavin Way, and Rumi Way.
Rodney Mullen
Rodney Mullen was one of the best freestyle street skateboarders in the world and won his first major event when he was just 14-years-old, before scooping dozens of other titles in later years.
He invented many modern skating tricks and is considered by many to be the father of skateboarding.
By all accounts, he’s a pretty humble and modest guy, which is always good to hear.
How Old Is Rodney Mullen?
Rodney was born August, 17, 1966 in Gainesville, FL which makes him 55 years old.
What Tricks Did Rodney Mullen Invent?
Rodney is credited with inventing a number of street skateboarding tricks including: The flatground ollie, the kickflip, the heelflip, the impossible, and the 360 flip.
How Much Is Rodney Mullen Worth?
Rodney has a net worth of approximately $30 million.
How Tall Is Rodney Mullen?
Rodney is 5’11” tall.
Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta was the number 1 ranked skateboarder in the world by the time he was 19.
Within a couple of years, he was one of the biggest names in the history of the skating.
He founded Powell-Peralta with George Powell and later formed the Bones Brigade, which led to creations like the Bones Brigade Video Show.
How Old Is Stacy Peralta?
Stacy was born October 15, 1957 in Venice, California. He is 63 years old as of 2021.
How Much Is Stacy Peralta Worth?
Stacy Peralta has a net work of about $10 million. He has made his money as a professional skateboarder, filmmakers and business man.
What Films & Documentaries Has Stacy Peralta Worked On?
Stacy’s first film credit is from 1985’s movie Real Genius in which he played a Shuttle Pilot.
He has also directed, written and/or produced a number of skating and surfing movies including: Dogtown and Z-Boys, Riding Giants, Lords of Dogtown, Pipeline Masters and Bones Brigade: An Autobiography.
Here is Stacy Peralta in Real Genius.
Rob Dyrdek
Dyrdek created the Street League Skateboarding event, a massive street skateboarding competition that helped Dyrdek to generate a huge net worth.
He hosted Ridiculousness on MTV and has also featured on several other TV shows.
Although he’s very well known in the skateboarding world and has done a lot for the sport, many have branded him as a sellout and he’s not the most popular old school skateboarder on this list.
Still, he has been very influential and clearly has a passion for the sport.
How Old Is Rob Dyrdek?
Rob Dyrdek was born June 28, 1974 in Kettering, Ohio. That makes him 47 years old as of 2021.
How Much Is Rob Dyrdek Worth?
He has a reported net worth of 110 million dollars. Originally known as a professional skater, Dyrdek has amassed his wealthy as a former professional skater, entrepreneur, actor, producer, and reality TV personality.
Who Is Rob Dyrdek Married To?
Rob married Bryiana Noelle Flores in September of 2015.
Bryiana is an entrepreneur and model with an estimated net work of 3 million dollars.
Bryiana was born July 21, 1991 in Salinas, California making here 30 years old as of 2021 and 17 years younger than Rob.
She is 5’3″ tall.
Rob and Bryiana have two children together: Kodah Dash Dyrdek who was born in September 9, 2016 and Nala Ryan Dyrdek who was born on December 29, 2017.
How Tall Is Rob Dyrdek?
Rob Dyrdek is 5’7″ tall.
Who is the Oldest Pro Skater?
It depends on who you ask, really, and what sort of level you focus on.
A lot of time has passed, and while it’s nice to imagine that Jerome Defraitus is still skating at age 105, statistically and factually…that’s probably not the case.
Tony Alva is still going strong as he approaches his mid-60s but there are lesser-known skateboarders out there that are in their 70s.
If we had to pick one old school boarder that would likely take the title, it would be Russ Howell, who is 71-years-old at the time of writing and has been skating for many years.
