San Leandro, CA – Skate Industry News: Did Instagram Change Skateboarding Forever?

We used to treasure a trip to the local shop to see if a new video had appeared in the case yet… one we hadn’t devoured already.

Skate videos were more than just entertainment for my generation. Pro videos were a look into what was possible. 

My friends and I used to watch videos to see the process of the tricks, the flow of linking things together, and the severity of each spot. We used those VHS tapes as a guide to whether or not we were good skaters ourselves. We would try and mimic what we saw, or at least try and skate a spot the same size as what we saw. 

We had magazines to look at, but the videos really told the story of how the pros skated. Unless you traveled to lots of skate parks, or skate spots outside your town, those videos were the only look into how the rest of the world was skating. Which made global progression climb at a snail like crawl. 

Enter the Instagram generation. 

It’s all about the Insta edit! Instagram opened up to 60 sec videos and the world of skateboarding was forever changed. It wasn’t over night, but Instagram opened up the world to each individual and created a line of communication that is unparalleled to anything seen before. When people can see what is possible they will inevitably try to raise the bar. If someone skates a 20 stair, of course, you would have to skate a 25 stair… right? why not??!

Instagram has helped raise the level of skateboarding worldwide. Kids who might have never witnessed the majesty of a pop, flick, catch, roll away clean, can now see the very best skaters in the world in an endless scrolling feed. In the very same world that we used to patiently wait for the shops to open and where we used to trade and deal VHS tapes, you now can see the new tricks the pros are working on this very moment with a flick of your thumb.

So, next time you are scrolling through your feed, flying by someones new trick, warm up trick, or Insta edit, take a second to appreciate what your are taking part in… a period in time that will be known by skateboarders as the Insta Revolution!

words by Keith Halterman