Ty Page
Encyclopedia
Ty Scott Page is a professional skateboarder who was known as one of the most innovative skateboarder in the world. Ty Page was a leader in the skateboard world during "the golden era" of skateboarding in the early 1970s.
, a frisbee
throw away from the breakwater
. Ty’s sister, Kim, described the family’s “endless summer” life: “My dad was a huge surfer so we grew up on boards. Sometimes when the surf was good he’d say, ‘Don't go to school today. I'll write you a note and we'll go surfing.’ I really believed there was no life east of the Pacific Coast Highway.” Every summer the family lived in a camper at San Onofre Surf Club, just south of San Clemente. Life was very active and outdoors, and Ty had natural athletic ability. His mother, Donna, has said that Ty could walk two city blocks on his hands at 4 years old.
Ty began surfing
at age 12 and won the national title in 1962. He was only 15 years old when he won second place at the U.S. Surfing Championships at Huntington Beach. Ty, along with fellow Makaha skateboarder Rusty Henderson, were also members of the Wave Trek Surf Team during the early 1970s. Ty and his brother, Greg, both were active in aquatics at Redondo Union High School
and both worked as lifeguards at the San Clemente beach. When the Redondo breakwater was good, some say it was one of the best surfing locations in the South Bay. Ty and Greg were both avid surfers and displayed true talent when the breakwater was over eight feet.
at the age of 4 by Greg when he received 3 boards one Christmas. Ty later said, “I’m a surfer, and I guess I like skateboarding so much because it’s very close to surfing. Surfing is harder than skateboarding, though. Every wave is different, and you have to start out fresh on each wave. With skateboarding, a hard surface is a hard surface. Once you get your balance on solid ground, you can go from there.” At first, he skated basic surf style, attempting anything that he and Bruce Logan made up. He began bank riding in 1969 and almost all of his freestyle maneuvers were original tricks. After the introduction of the urethane wheel in 1972, Ty saw real potential in the sport as a career, so he focused primarily on skateboarding.
He entered his first skateboarding competition in 1973 at the first Del Mar nationals. He says he was really nervous and couldn’t eat for days before the competition. However, in 1975, he was a contest veteran and placed second in the junior men’s freestyle division. It was at this competition that the Z-Boys
debuted on the skating circuit. This competition was highlighted in "Lords of Dogtown
" in which Hollywood rewrote history according to Stacy Peralta
’s 2001 film about Santa Monica’s “Dogtown and Z-Boys.” The movie suggested that Ty tried to change his skate style from freestyle to a more surf style, similar to the Z-Boys; however, Ty and Bruce Logan had been skating surf style with kick-turns and round-house slides as far back as 1964, before the Z-Boys began skating.
Ty took first place at the Santa Barbara Skateboard Championships with long nose wheelies, headstands, and 360s. He continued to push limits and went on to win many national competitions. He said, “One thing I’m into is I don’t like to do anything that’s easy. In all the tricks that I do, I don’t do anything that’s easy. It’s just boring; it’s not a challenge. I’m just into the challenge of things.”
), Half-Hop, Pay Hop, Daffy (also called a Yeah Right Manual), Head Spinner (also called 360 Headstand), Foot Spin, Foot-Spin 360, Toe Spin, Toe-Spin 360, and almost every backwards footwork maneuver.
Unity Surfskate in Hermosa Beach made the first skateboard push by sponsoring Ty Page and putting out a popular, wooden kick-tail skateboard called the Ty Stix. The second generation Makaha team of Ty Page, Bruce Logan, Rusty Henderson, Mike Purpus, and Torger Johnson was put together to promote the invention that changed skateboarding forever – the kicktail
and double kicktail boards. Some say the Makaha team was the best skateboarding team ever assembled. Mike Purpus said, "The reason the Z-Boys got more recognition was because they were loud and obnoxious, while the Makaha Team just skated great and went on quietly winning contests." Ty later signed with California Free Former
, the world’s largest skateboard manufacturer.
"Mr. Incredible," as he was known, placed first in dozens of major skateboarding competitions and has been the holder of numerous surfing and skateboarding titles. He was known not only as a freestyler
, but also as a capable skateracer, bowl rider, pool rider, and as a giant and straight slalom skater.
Ty’s multi-faceted, rapid-fire technique and footwork were nothing short of incredible. After trying many times to photograph his footwork, SkateBoarder
magazine was forced to purchase a new $3,000 high-speed camera to catch him on film to publish in the August and September 1977 issues. He appeared on the cover of many national and international magazines and was frequently featured in skateboarding magazines and journals as well as Newsweek
and Sports Illustrated
.
In addition, his line of skateboards was revolutionary in performance. The Ty Page Professional Skateboards were designed by Ty himself to be different from all other boards. The boards and Ty Page Black Gold wheels were heavily promoted by Blammo Gum and California Free Formers in every major newspaper in the country.
.
In 1976, Ty performed in New York, and his exhibition attracted the kind of media coverage usually reserved for Muhammad Ali
. Ty starred in several commercials, including Sunny Delight
, Wendy's
, and MG cars
, and appeared in several movies. Ty was a U.S. Goodwill Ambassador and traveled around the world performing in exhibitions and safety demonstrations. In 1977, he was awarded the key to the city of New Orleans by the mayor. He was huge in Japan
and went there two or three times, and he was also famous in Europe, especially Germany
, Spain
, France
, and Italy
. After two spectacular tours through Germany, Ty was featured as the centerfold in the November/December 1977 German issue of Skateboard, the first U.S. skater to be so honored.
In March 1978, the California Free Former
team was featured in Cal Jam 2, skating to Aerosmith
, Heart
, Ted Nugent
and others. Ty skated to the Latin rhythms of “Black Magic Woman” as Carlos Santana
performed on stage. The show set a new record for the largest audience in the history of skateboarding – an estimated 300,000 – and was aired nationally on ABC. Ty’s half-pipe
skating was highlighted on the cover of Wild World of Skateboarding Magazine in July 1978.
Skateboard Hall of Fame.
Ty Page now lives with wife and three sons in a ski town in the West
. He skateboards and snowboards once in a while, and surfs in Hawaii
.
Family life
Ty Page grew up in Hermosa Beach, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, a frisbee
Frisbee
A flying disc is a disc-shaped glider that is generally plastic and roughly in diameter, with a lip. The shape of the disc, an airfoil in cross-section, allows it to fly by generating lift as it moves through the air while rotating....
throw away from the breakwater
Breakwater (structure)
Breakwaters are structures constructed on coasts as part of coastal defence or to protect an anchorage from the effects of weather and longshore drift.-Purposes of breakwaters:...
. Ty’s sister, Kim, described the family’s “endless summer” life: “My dad was a huge surfer so we grew up on boards. Sometimes when the surf was good he’d say, ‘Don't go to school today. I'll write you a note and we'll go surfing.’ I really believed there was no life east of the Pacific Coast Highway.” Every summer the family lived in a camper at San Onofre Surf Club, just south of San Clemente. Life was very active and outdoors, and Ty had natural athletic ability. His mother, Donna, has said that Ty could walk two city blocks on his hands at 4 years old.
Ty began surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
at age 12 and won the national title in 1962. He was only 15 years old when he won second place at the U.S. Surfing Championships at Huntington Beach. Ty, along with fellow Makaha skateboarder Rusty Henderson, were also members of the Wave Trek Surf Team during the early 1970s. Ty and his brother, Greg, both were active in aquatics at Redondo Union High School
Redondo Union High School
Redondo Union High School is a public high school in Redondo Beach, California.Redondo Union High School is a part of the Redondo Beach Unified School District....
and both worked as lifeguards at the San Clemente beach. When the Redondo breakwater was good, some say it was one of the best surfing locations in the South Bay. Ty and Greg were both avid surfers and displayed true talent when the breakwater was over eight feet.
Innovation
Ty was given a skateboardSkateboard
A skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a polyurethane coating used for making smoother slides and stronger durability, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The first skateboards to reach public notice came out of the surfing craze of the early 1960s,...
at the age of 4 by Greg when he received 3 boards one Christmas. Ty later said, “I’m a surfer, and I guess I like skateboarding so much because it’s very close to surfing. Surfing is harder than skateboarding, though. Every wave is different, and you have to start out fresh on each wave. With skateboarding, a hard surface is a hard surface. Once you get your balance on solid ground, you can go from there.” At first, he skated basic surf style, attempting anything that he and Bruce Logan made up. He began bank riding in 1969 and almost all of his freestyle maneuvers were original tricks. After the introduction of the urethane wheel in 1972, Ty saw real potential in the sport as a career, so he focused primarily on skateboarding.
He entered his first skateboarding competition in 1973 at the first Del Mar nationals. He says he was really nervous and couldn’t eat for days before the competition. However, in 1975, he was a contest veteran and placed second in the junior men’s freestyle division. It was at this competition that the Z-Boys
Z-Boys
The Z-Boys was a group of skateboarders in the mid-1970s from Santa Monica and Venice, California. The aerial and sliding skate moves that the Z-Boys invented were the basis for aerial skateboarding today.-History:...
debuted on the skating circuit. This competition was highlighted in "Lords of Dogtown
Lords of Dogtown
Lords of Dogtown is a 2005 biographical film directed by Catherine Hardwicke, written by Stacy Peralta. The film is based on the story of "The Z-Boys", an influential group of skateboarders who revolutionized the sport...
" in which Hollywood rewrote history according to Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta is an American director and entrepreneur. Peralta was previously a professional skateboarder and surfer with the professional skateboarding group, the Z-Boys.-Early life:...
’s 2001 film about Santa Monica’s “Dogtown and Z-Boys.” The movie suggested that Ty tried to change his skate style from freestyle to a more surf style, similar to the Z-Boys; however, Ty and Bruce Logan had been skating surf style with kick-turns and round-house slides as far back as 1964, before the Z-Boys began skating.
Ty took first place at the Santa Barbara Skateboard Championships with long nose wheelies, headstands, and 360s. He continued to push limits and went on to win many national competitions. He said, “One thing I’m into is I don’t like to do anything that’s easy. In all the tricks that I do, I don’t do anything that’s easy. It’s just boring; it’s not a challenge. I’m just into the challenge of things.”
"Mr. Incredible"
Ty was always attempting new stunts and going bigger and faster each time. He would make up 4 new tricks per show. He is credited with inventing over 50 new moves, including the Ty Slide, Ty Hop (also called a Pop Shove-ItShove-its
A Shove-it is a skateboarding trick where the skateboarder makes their board spin 180 degrees or more under their feet.There are many variations of the Shove-it but they all follow the same principle: The skateboarder's lead foot stays in one spot, and their back foot does the 'shove'.The...
), Half-Hop, Pay Hop, Daffy (also called a Yeah Right Manual), Head Spinner (also called 360 Headstand), Foot Spin, Foot-Spin 360, Toe Spin, Toe-Spin 360, and almost every backwards footwork maneuver.
Unity Surfskate in Hermosa Beach made the first skateboard push by sponsoring Ty Page and putting out a popular, wooden kick-tail skateboard called the Ty Stix. The second generation Makaha team of Ty Page, Bruce Logan, Rusty Henderson, Mike Purpus, and Torger Johnson was put together to promote the invention that changed skateboarding forever – the kicktail
Kicktail
Kicktails are the upwards bent tips of a skateboard deck, today considered vital to a skateboard. The front kicktail is usually called the nose while the back kicktail is referred to as the tail. Kicktails are nowadays key to maneuvering the board, especially in street skating.-History:As the name...
and double kicktail boards. Some say the Makaha team was the best skateboarding team ever assembled. Mike Purpus said, "The reason the Z-Boys got more recognition was because they were loud and obnoxious, while the Makaha Team just skated great and went on quietly winning contests." Ty later signed with California Free Former
California Free Former
California Free Former was the world's largest skateboard manufacturer during the 1970s. From 1970 to 1981, it was owned by Steve Silberman with a business partner...
, the world’s largest skateboard manufacturer.
"Mr. Incredible," as he was known, placed first in dozens of major skateboarding competitions and has been the holder of numerous surfing and skateboarding titles. He was known not only as a freestyler
Freestyle skateboarding
Freestyle skateboarding , perhaps the oldest style of skateboarding, is a type of skating that was popular intermittently from the 1960s until the early 1990s, when the last large scale professional competition was held; it would be 8 years until the next . The emphasis in freestyle is technical...
, but also as a capable skateracer, bowl rider, pool rider, and as a giant and straight slalom skater.
Ty’s multi-faceted, rapid-fire technique and footwork were nothing short of incredible. After trying many times to photograph his footwork, SkateBoarder
Skateboarder magazine
Skateboarder Magazine was first published in 1964 as a quarterly during the first skateboarding boom by Surfer Publications out of Dana Point, California. After an initial release of only four issues in 1964–65, it ceased publication until the first big skateboard revival of the early 1970s...
magazine was forced to purchase a new $3,000 high-speed camera to catch him on film to publish in the August and September 1977 issues. He appeared on the cover of many national and international magazines and was frequently featured in skateboarding magazines and journals as well as Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
and Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
.
In addition, his line of skateboards was revolutionary in performance. The Ty Page Professional Skateboards were designed by Ty himself to be different from all other boards. The boards and Ty Page Black Gold wheels were heavily promoted by Blammo Gum and California Free Formers in every major newspaper in the country.
The Big Time
At the age of 17, Ty signed with Bill Riordan, an international sports promoter. In just a few short years, Ty was earning over $100,000 a year on the skateboarding circuit. In the 1970s, skateboarding was the fastest growing sport in the country as evidenced by the 40 million skateboards sold and the multimillion-dollar support industry of protective gear and equipment that emerged. Of the 200 professional skateboarders, only a few had that kind of success; he was a true superstar. In addition to prize money from competitions, Ty had major endorsement deals. Ty was paid $1 for every Ty Page Professional Skateboard that was sold, and he was paid for appearances, commercials, movie appearances, and to test new model boards. By the time he was 19 years old, he had an oceanfront apartment and a new Alfa Romeo SpiderAlfa Romeo Spider
The Alfa Romeo Spider is a roadster produced by the Italian manufacturer Alfa Romeo from 1966 to 1993 . Widely regarded as a design classic, it remained in production for almost three decades with only minor aesthetic and mechanical changes...
.
In 1976, Ty performed in New York, and his exhibition attracted the kind of media coverage usually reserved for Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
. Ty starred in several commercials, including Sunny Delight
SunnyD
Sunny Delight is a popular orange-flavored drink, manufactured until recently by Procter & Gamble. It produced an estimated $450 million in revenue for Procter & Gamble in 2004.-History:...
, Wendy's
Wendy's
Wendy's is an international fast food chain restaurant founded by Dave Thomas on November 15, 1969, in Columbus, Ohio, United States. The company decided to move its headquarters to Dublin, Ohio, on January 29, 2006. It has been owned by Triarc since 2008...
, and MG cars
MG (car)
The MG Car Company is a former British sports car manufacturer founded in the 1920s by Cecil Kimber. Best known for its two-seat open sports cars, MG also produced saloons and coupés....
, and appeared in several movies. Ty was a U.S. Goodwill Ambassador and traveled around the world performing in exhibitions and safety demonstrations. In 1977, he was awarded the key to the city of New Orleans by the mayor. He was huge in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and went there two or three times, and he was also famous in Europe, especially Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. After two spectacular tours through Germany, Ty was featured as the centerfold in the November/December 1977 German issue of Skateboard, the first U.S. skater to be so honored.
In March 1978, the California Free Former
California Free Former
California Free Former was the world's largest skateboard manufacturer during the 1970s. From 1970 to 1981, it was owned by Steve Silberman with a business partner...
team was featured in Cal Jam 2, skating to Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
, Heart
Heart (band)
Heart is an American rock band who first found success in Canada. Throughout several lineup changes, the only two members remaining constant are sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson. The group rose to fame in the 1970s with their music being influenced by hard rock as well as folk music...
, Ted Nugent
Ted Nugent
Theodore Anthony "Ted" Nugent is an American guitarist, musician, singer, author, reserve police officer, and activist. From Detroit, Michigan, he originally gained fame as the lead guitarist of The Amboy Dukes, before embarking on a lengthy solo career...
and others. Ty skated to the Latin rhythms of “Black Magic Woman” as Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
performed on stage. The show set a new record for the largest audience in the history of skateboarding – an estimated 300,000 – and was aired nationally on ABC. Ty’s half-pipe
Half-pipe
A half-pipe is a structure used in gravity extreme sports such as snowboarding, skateboarding, skiing, freestyle BMX, and inline skating. The structure is wood, concrete, metal, earth, or snow. It resembles a cross section of a swimming pool, essentially two concave ramps , topped by copings and...
skating was highlighted on the cover of Wild World of Skateboarding Magazine in July 1978.
The Legend
Ty Page was a leader in the 1970s skateboard world. He was a true professional with a genuine interest in promoting the sport in a positive manner. He performed at safety demonstrations and consistently recommended the use of safety equipment and emphasized not riding in the streets regardless of traffic. He brought integrity to the sport and upheld an image that was good for skateboarding. In 1998, he was inducted into the ThrasherThrasher magazine
Thrasher is a monthly skateboarding magazine founded in 1981 by Kevin Thatcher, Eric Swenson, and Fausto Vitello. It regularly publishes articles , skateboard photography, interviews with professional skateboarders, interviews with and reviews of musical groups, skatepark reviews, and miscellaneous...
Skateboard Hall of Fame.
Ty Page now lives with wife and three sons in a ski town in the West
Western United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
. He skateboards and snowboards once in a while, and surfs in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.