The award-winning book on the birth of modern skateboarding.
Over 1200 images & photos illustrate this 912-page unprecedented work. A Secret History of the Ollie is the winner of 7 book awards, including 3 gold medals, and was chosen as one of the Top 10 Photobooks of the Year by Mother Jones magazine. Regarded by many as "the bible of skateboarding," this is a book that should be in every home, school, and public library.
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING . . .
"The most important book in the history of the four-wheel sport."
— SURFER TODAY, July 2020
— SURFER TODAY, July 2020
"[A Secret History of the Ollie] sheds a very bright light on a revolutionary time in skateboarding."
— THRASHER
— THRASHER
"The reference point for all other skate histories going forward."
— Eastern Surf Magazine (ESM)
— Eastern Surf Magazine (ESM)
"A Secret History of the Ollie is truly amazing. It is beyond anything that has ever been published before."
— Michael Brooke, publisher of CONCRETE WAVE magazine; author of "The Concrete Wave" (Warwick; 1999) and "Skate Legends"(2002)
— Michael Brooke, publisher of CONCRETE WAVE magazine; author of "The Concrete Wave" (Warwick; 1999) and "Skate Legends"(2002)
"Recommended for anyone wanting to learn about the birth of modern skateboarding."
— Best Skateboard Books of 2020, Sportstotry.com
— Best Skateboard Books of 2020, Sportstotry.com
"A wonderful history textbook on skateboarding unequaled that will stand the test of time."
— Larry Balma, publisher of TransWorld SKATEboarding magazine (1983-1996); co-founder of Tracker Trucks (1975-present)
— Larry Balma, publisher of TransWorld SKATEboarding magazine (1983-1996); co-founder of Tracker Trucks (1975-present)
"Just started reading it . . . can't put it down. If I ever get to the point where I can afford employees at the Morro Bay Skateboard Museum it will be required reading."
— Jack Smith, publisher of The Skateboarder’s Journal
— Jack Smith, publisher of The Skateboarder’s Journal
"Everyone thinks they know skateboarding's history but what they really know is a series of half-facts compounded by hype and amnesia. This book will rewrite skateboarding history as we know it."
— Betsy Gordon, curator of "Ramp It Up," Smithsonian Institution
— Betsy Gordon, curator of "Ramp It Up," Smithsonian Institution
"When you hold this book in your hands for the first time the thing that may come to mind is the Koran or the Bible and in some ways it has become such a sacred text within the world of skateboarding and skate culture."
— STAF Magazine
— STAF Magazine
"It is seriously the best book I've read yet on skateboarding history—the intimate details as well as the broad view of the industry and pastime is phenomenal."
— Nezka Pfeifer, Curator, Sidewalk Surfing: The Art & Culture of Skateboarding, The Everhart Museum of Natural History, Science & Art
— Nezka Pfeifer, Curator, Sidewalk Surfing: The Art & Culture of Skateboarding, The Everhart Museum of Natural History, Science & Art
"Craig Snyder's work is much more than a secret history of the Ollie. It is a first-rate account of skateboarding based largely on Snyder's extensive research in boarding magazines and his myriad interviews with groundbreaking skaters, the audiences who studied them, and the photographers who immortalized them. Set against the backdrop of the sun-drenched coastal towns of Southern California and South Florida of the 1970s, this book transports readers to the era in which the acrobatics of today's X Games were born."
— H. Michael Gelfand, James Madison University
— H. Michael Gelfand, James Madison University
"A Secret History of the Ollie is a massive book packed full of details, histories, anecdotes, photographs and miscellanea about 1970s skateboarding—not just California, but also Florida, other US states and the international scene. Snyder obsessively details exactly who did what, when, and where. It is amazing detective work, and at over 900 full-colour pages, a great value."
— Iain Borden, author of “Skateboarding, Space and the City” (Berg; 2001) and Vice-Dean Education and Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at The Bartlett, University College London (UCL)
— Iain Borden, author of “Skateboarding, Space and the City” (Berg; 2001) and Vice-Dean Education and Professor of Architecture and Urban Culture at The Bartlett, University College London (UCL)
"If there was a university-level class on skateboarding history, this would be the textbook."
— David Lober, founder of Skaters Over 50, a Facebook group with over 30,000 members
— David Lober, founder of Skaters Over 50, a Facebook group with over 30,000 members
"A Secret History of the Ollie is truly a masterpiece, a book to be enjoyed from cover to cover. The stories were riveting and the pictures added so much to the story . . . It brings back a joyful time when experimentation was fueled with possibility. My recommendation is that you need to buy this book! "
— William H. Robertson, Ph.D., a.k.a. "Dr. Skateboard," former pro skater, author of “Action Science: Relevant Teaching and Active Learning,” and associate professor in science and technology education at the University of Texas
— William H. Robertson, Ph.D., a.k.a. "Dr. Skateboard," former pro skater, author of “Action Science: Relevant Teaching and Active Learning,” and associate professor in science and technology education at the University of Texas
"If you think you need 900(!) pages of 1970s-to-early 80s skate history that shows that a raging world existed outside of Southern California, then make some room for this thang."
— Bill Daniel, Texas filmmaker, artist, photographer, and skater
— Bill Daniel, Texas filmmaker, artist, photographer, and skater
"You need this book."
— Kilwag, editor, Skate and Annoy
— Kilwag, editor, Skate and Annoy
"Well done. The "On Any Sunday" of books."
— Ian Cadman, UK skater
— Ian Cadman, UK skater
"This is #&!% nuts! I cannot fathom how you assembled all of this. I lived through it and was involved in all of it, and there are still things in your book that are new to me. You can definitely be proud of what you accomplished, a master work of research. Thanks for including me."
— Jim Evans, a.k.a. T.A.Z., painter, printmaker, and illustrator; creator of the original posters and ads for Cadillac Wheels
— Jim Evans, a.k.a. T.A.Z., painter, printmaker, and illustrator; creator of the original posters and ads for Cadillac Wheels
"Positively the BEST skateboard history book I've read. You owe me sleep."
— anonymous
— anonymous
"It is the kind of book that will be timeless—25 years from now it will still be relevant."
— Phil Chiocchio, filmmaker, designer/builder/owner of Sensation Basin skatepark in Gainesville (1977-1982), and the first sponsor of Florida skateboard legend Rodney Mullen
— Phil Chiocchio, filmmaker, designer/builder/owner of Sensation Basin skatepark in Gainesville (1977-1982), and the first sponsor of Florida skateboard legend Rodney Mullen
"A Secret History of the Ollie is bolted to the floor and torqued perfect to NASA specs."
— Mark Spindler, Space Coast surfer
— Mark Spindler, Space Coast surfer
"Thank you for presenting the history of skateboarding in a truthful manner. Our Sport of Skateboarding suffered due to the selfishness of many who sought only their own rewards."
— Russ Howell, freestyle pioneer, former California World Champion, and the first professional skateboarder of the 1970s
— Russ Howell, freestyle pioneer, former California World Champion, and the first professional skateboarder of the 1970s
"Craig Snyder is a well of knowledge and I am very appreciative of his taking the time to take a look back at the history and bring it to life for those who have no clue, and for all of us who skated for little or no money—only the glory of camaraderie and raising the learning curve every time we went out."
— Edie Robertson, one of the first female pros of the 1970s, original member of the Sims Skateboards team, and the first woman to perform a no-handed aerial on national television
— Edie Robertson, one of the first female pros of the 1970s, original member of the Sims Skateboards team, and the first woman to perform a no-handed aerial on national television
A SECRET HISTORY OF THE OLLIE
VOLUME 1: THE 1970s • CRAIG B. SNYDER
BLACK SALT PRESS
Hardcover
912 pages
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1930287003
ISBN-13: 9781930287006
Dimensions: 9.3 x 7 x 2.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.7 pounds
Retail: $60.00
Printed in the U.S.A.
Hardcover
912 pages
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1930287003
ISBN-13: 9781930287006
Dimensions: 9.3 x 7 x 2.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.7 pounds
Retail: $60.00
Printed in the U.S.A.
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
• TOP 10 PHOTOBOOKS Mother Jones
• BEST IN GENERAL TRADE ILLUSTRATED 58th Annual New England Book Show, Boston
• GOLD MEDAL Foreword Reviews: Book of the Year Award in Sports
• GOLD MEDAL FAPA President Book Awards
• GOLD MEDAL 20th Annual Independent Publisher Book Awards
• BEST IN SPORTS NYC Big Book Awards
• BEST IN SPORTS Independent Press Awards, New York
• TOP 10 PHOTOBOOKS Mother Jones
• BEST IN GENERAL TRADE ILLUSTRATED 58th Annual New England Book Show, Boston
• GOLD MEDAL Foreword Reviews: Book of the Year Award in Sports
• GOLD MEDAL FAPA President Book Awards
• GOLD MEDAL 20th Annual Independent Publisher Book Awards
• BEST IN SPORTS NYC Big Book Awards
• BEST IN SPORTS Independent Press Awards, New York