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Fingerboard (skateboard)
open-in-new
<h2 id="history">History</h2><p> Fingerboards first existed as homemade finger toys in the late 1960s and later became a <a href="/facts/Novelty_item/LeG3xj2d">novelty</a> attached to <a href="/facts/Key_(lock)/5xcFqSyy">keychains</a> in skate shops.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a></p><p>In the 1985 Powell-Peralta skateboarding video titled "Future Primitive," Mountain brought fingerboarding to the skateboarders of the world. Around the same time, Mountain wrote an article on how to make fingerboards in <a href="/facts/Transworld_Skateboarding/zRwx7l86">TransWorld SKATEboarding</a> magazine.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> In the video, Lance Mountain rode a homemade fingerboard in a double-bin sink. It is widely accepted that this is where the idea for the ramp found in <a href="/facts/The_Search_for_Animal_Chin/WWMkujUV">The Search for Animal Chin</a> came from. Some consider this the earliest fingerboard footage available for public viewing. That homemade fingerboard was built from <a href="/facts/Corrugated_fiberboard/VjDFR6II">wood</a>, tubes, and <a href="/facts/Toy_train/LmIdQHp8">toy train</a> <a href="/facts/Axle/Eo5jWI3f">axles</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> </p><p>The first company to mass-produce fingerboards that weren't intended to be used with a figurine or accessories was Somerville International's Fingerboard brand. They were also the first to include licensed graphics from actual skateboard graphics with the introduction of the Pro-Precision board.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> </p><p> Although fingerboarding was a novelty within the skateboarding industry for years, skateboarding reached wider popularity in the late 1990s. Toy fingerboards became an inexpensive novelty toy and high-end collectible, complete with accessories one would find in use with standard-size skateboards.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> Fingerboards are used by skateboarders as <a href="/facts/Three-dimensional_space/KAqKWUbS">3-D</a> model visual aids to understand potential tricks and maneuvers.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a></p> <p> In 1999, fingerboarding was popular in Europe, Asia, and the United States. Although fingerboarding originated in the United States, it gained popularity in Eastern Europe. Fingerboarding evolved from a hobby to a lifestyle for some people. Fingerboarders had regular <a href="/facts/Competition/FpQaEhHv">contests</a>, <a href="/facts/Fair/sHnqj1em">fairs</a>, <a href="/facts/Workshop/Y4FvIpVA">workshops</a> and other events. Examples include FastFingers and FlatFace Rendezvous.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a> Fingerboard-product sales were estimated at <a href="/facts/%24/4CroUuPn">$</a>120 million for 1999.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="usage">Usage</h2> <p>Fingerboards are used by a range of people, from those using them as toys, to skateboarders and related sports professionals envisioning not only their own skating maneuvers but for others as well. Similar to <a href="/facts/Train/0mkFQDg9">train</a> enthusiasts building <a href="/facts/Rail_transport_modelling/Dvd8BwBg">railway models</a>, fingerboard <a href="/facts/Hobby/MH1aFd8v">hobbyists</a> often construct and purchase reduced <a href="/facts/Scale_model/YgCtlwqb">scale</a> <a href="/facts/Model_figure/lfG4twjG">model figures</a> that would be considered natural features to an <a href="/facts/Urban_area/fu9v8h5P">urban</a> skateboarder such as <a href="/facts/Handrail/QcQxTeSN">handrails</a>, <a href="/facts/Bench_(furniture)/ffh8ujzb">benches</a>, and <a href="/facts/Stairs/mmBBnteX">stairs</a> they would be likely to encounter while skating. In addition, users might build and buy items seen in a <a href="/facts/Skatepark/z9GBuLu8">skatepark</a> including <a href="/facts/Half-pipe/GBvCBsou">half-pipes</a>,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a> <a href="/facts/Quarter_pipe/GBvCBsou">quarter pipes</a>, <a href="/facts/Trick_box/8eteRdQK">trick boxes</a>, <a href="/facts/Vert_ramp/R6EVzhdA">vert ramps</a>,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14"><sup>14</sup></a> pyramids, banked ramps, full pipes, and any number of other <a href="/facts/Skateboarding_tricks/LHk26VDz">trick</a>-oriented objects.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15"><sup>15</sup></a> These objects can be used simply for enjoyment and also to assist the visualization of skateboarding tricks or the "flow" from one trick to the next (colloquially referred to as "lines"). </p> <h2 id="fingersnowboarding">Fingersnowboarding</h2> <p>Similar to fingerboarding, fingersnowboarding is <a href="/facts/Snowboarding/sub2qDka">snowboarding</a> on a small-scale snowboard controlled with one's fingers. In December 1999 the first-ever World Snowboard Fingerboard Championships was held with a cash prize of <a href="/facts/Can%24/NMSsTyIE">Can$</a>1,000.00.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16"><sup>16</sup></a> Sponsored by companies such as Gravity Fingerboards, Transworld <i>Snowboarding</i> and <i>Snowboard Life</i> <a href="/facts/Magazine/4CPK1emz">magazines</a> and others the competition featured twenty competitors utilizing a custom "fingerboard snowboard park."<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:17" href="#fn:17"><sup>17</sup></a> <a href="/facts/Tom_Sims/alot59BR">Tom Sims</a>, a world champion of snowboarding,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:18" href="#fn:18"><sup>18</sup></a> ended his run by landing his fingersnowboard into a <a href="/facts/Flaming_beverage/K0Ty27SA">flaming</a> <a href="/facts/Shotglass/VANQ5QzX">shotglass</a> of <a href="/facts/Sambuca/0VvBAAzR">Sambuca</a>; he was treated for minor burns and donated his winning prize to <a href="/facts/Surfrider_Foundation/enPVAGEJ">Surfrider Foundation</a>'s Snowrider Project and to Board AID.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:19" href="#fn:19"><sup>19</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="references-in-media">References in media</h2> <ul><li>In the <a href="/facts/Adult_Swim/79yUNDfz">Adult Swim</a> <a href="/facts/Cartoon/24v34f3m">cartoon</a> <a href="/facts/Smiling_Friends/bk7V9Cgq">Smiling Friends</a>, Pim's cousin Graham Nelly is said to be "A whiz at the skateboard" and then pulls out a Fingerboard and fails a <a href="/facts/Kickflip/Th0UzPNu">kickflip</a> awkwardly at the dinner table.</li> <li>In the <a href="/facts/Pixar/McUyzor2">Pixar</a> film <a href="/facts/Turning_Red/02U6TAFv">Turning Red</a>, one of Mei's classmates can be seen playing with a fingerboard on her desk during the scuffle between Mei's mother and the security guard. The movie is set in 2002.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Tech_Deck_Skateboarding/lCRQTC0Y">Tech Deck Skateboarding</a> is a Game Boy Color game released in 2001, based upon the Tech Deck brand of fingerboard skateboard toys.</li></ul> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Skateboarding_brands/sfGDKcSa">Skateboarding brands</a></li></ul> <h2 id="further-reading">Further reading</h2> <ul><li><i>Finger Skate Board Tricks and Tips Prepack</i> by Susan Buntrock (2000); Scholastic, Incorporated - <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 0-439-21714-8.</li> <li><i>Life and Limb: Skateboarders Write from the Deep End</i> by Justin Hocking, Jeff Knutson, Jared Jacang Maher (2004); Soft Skull Press - <a href="/facts/ISBN_(identifier)/15AdSPa9">ISBN</a> 1-932360-28-X. (See <i>Whaling</i> chapter by Justin Hocking).</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Waters, Mark (2000-03-03). "The Fingerboard Controversy: Are toy-skateboard makers promoting skateboarding or just profiting?". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2009-04-09. <a href="http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy" target="_blank">http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>"About Fingerboarding". Blackriver Ramps. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-12-27. Retrieved 2007-12-25. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20071227104547/http://www.blackriver-ramps.com/brr-blog/wordpress/?page_id=3" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20071227104547/http://www.blackriver-ramps.com/brr-blog/wordpress/?page_id=3</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Waters, Mark (2000-03-03). "The Fingerboard Controversy: Are toy-skateboard makers promoting skateboarding or just profiting?". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2009-04-09. <a href="http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy" target="_blank">http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Waters, Mark (2000-03-03). "The Fingerboard Controversy: Are toy-skateboard makers promoting skateboarding or just profiting?". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2009-04-09. <a href="http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy" target="_blank">http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Waters, Mark (2000-03-03). "The Fingerboard Controversy: Are toy-skateboard makers promoting skateboarding or just profiting?". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2009-04-09. <a href="http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy" target="_blank">http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>Hocking, Justin; Jeff Knutson; Jared Jacang Maher; Jocko Weyland (2004). " Life and Limb: Skateboarders Write from the Deep End. Soft Skull Press. ISBN 978-1-932360-28-8. Retrieved 2007-12-25.[permanent dead link] <a href="978-1-932360-28-8" target="_blank">978-1-932360-28-8</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>"About Fingerboarding". Blackriver Ramps. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-12-27. Retrieved 2007-12-25. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20071227104547/http://www.blackriver-ramps.com/brr-blog/wordpress/?page_id=3" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20071227104547/http://www.blackriver-ramps.com/brr-blog/wordpress/?page_id=3</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"Fingerboard Tuning". Fingerboardstore.de. 2007. Archived from the original on 2008-05-25. Retrieved 2008-12-25. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080525105453/http://www.fingerboardstore.de/shop/index.php?cPath=23" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20080525105453/http://www.fingerboardstore.de/shop/index.php?cPath=23</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>Mullen, Rodney (2004). The Mutt: How to Skateboard and Not Kill Yourself. Sean Mortimer (1st ed.). New York: ReganBooks. ISBN 0-06-055618-8. OCLC 55534817. <a href="0-06-055618-8" target="_blank">0-06-055618-8</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>Waters, Mark (2000-03-03). "The Fingerboard Controversy: Are toy-skateboard makers promoting skateboarding or just profiting?". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2009-04-09. <a href="http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy" target="_blank">http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:11"><p>"About Fingerboarding". Blackriver Ramps. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-12-27. Retrieved 2007-12-25. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20071227104547/http://www.blackriver-ramps.com/brr-blog/wordpress/?page_id=3" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20071227104547/http://www.blackriver-ramps.com/brr-blog/wordpress/?page_id=3</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:12"><p>Waters, Mark (2000-03-03). "The Fingerboard Controversy: Are toy-skateboard makers promoting skateboarding or just profiting?". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2009-04-09. <a href="http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy" target="_blank">http://skateboarding.transworld.net/2000/03/03/the-fingerboard-controversy</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:13"><p>Halford, Wayne; Eric SodKar Fai; Steven Moran (2000-08-03). "Roll-up halfpipe for miniature toy skateboard". Mattel, Inc. Retrieved 2007-12-25. Patent number: 6350174; Filing date: Aug 3, 2000; Issue date: Feb 26, 2002. <a href="https://patents.google.com/patent/US6350174" target="_blank">https://patents.google.com/patent/US6350174</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:14"><p>Labelson, Ross; Timothy J. Klima (19 July 1999). "Amusement ramp and method for constructing same". Pillsbury Winthrop LLP. Retrieved 2007-12-25. Patent number: 6623367, Filing date: Jul 17, 1999; Issue date: Sep 23, 2003. <a href="https://patents.google.com/patent/US6623367" target="_blank">https://patents.google.com/patent/US6623367</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:15"><p>Hull, Everett (10 December 2004). "Reciprocating plaything and method for playing". Thomas L. Adams. Retrieved 2007-12-25. Patent number: 7261613; Filing date: Dec 10, 2004; Issue date: Aug 28, 2007 <a href="https://patents.google.com/patent/US7261613" target="_blank">https://patents.google.com/patent/US7261613</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:16"><p>Stouffer, John (17 December 1999). "Snowtopia 99: Tom Sims Wins World Fingersnowboard Championships". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2007-12-25. <a href="http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1999/12/17/snowtopia-99-tom-sims-wins-world-fingersnowboard-championships/" target="_blank">http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1999/12/17/snowtopia-99-tom-sims-wins-world-fingersnowboard-championships/</a> <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:17"><p>Stouffer, John (17 December 1999). "Snowtopia 99: Tom Sims Wins World Fingersnowboard Championships". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2007-12-25. <a href="http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1999/12/17/snowtopia-99-tom-sims-wins-world-fingersnowboard-championships/" target="_blank">http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1999/12/17/snowtopia-99-tom-sims-wins-world-fingersnowboard-championships/</a> <a href="#fnref:17" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:18"><p>"Snowboarders Finally in Olympics, But Are Conforming Grudgingly", Salt Lake Tribune, February 8, 1998. <a href="/wiki/Salt_Lake_Tribune" target="_blank">/wiki/Salt_Lake_Tribune</a> <a href="#fnref:18" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:19"><p>Stouffer, John (17 December 1999). "Snowtopia 99: Tom Sims Wins World Fingersnowboard Championships". Transworld Business. Retrieved 2007-12-25. <a href="http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1999/12/17/snowtopia-99-tom-sims-wins-world-fingersnowboard-championships/" target="_blank">http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1999/12/17/snowtopia-99-tom-sims-wins-world-fingersnowboard-championships/</a> <a href="#fnref:19" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>