Tony Hawk at the 2006 LG Action Sports World Tour in Birmingham, UK. © ASA

The Home of Action Sports: San Diego

San Diego’s Legacy Continues as it hosts the World Action Sports Tour

For kids across America who like to ride on a bike or board, San Diego is the dream. Endless summers, endless concrete, endless ocean and an endless supply of bros to ride with. It was these conditions that gave life to action sports in the first place. Surfing came first, while it technically started in Hawaii, San Diego was the site of its first migration to the mainland. And from surfing the waves came the desire to surf the pavement, and skateboarding was born. Sooner after, Southern California bikers began experimenting with their Schwinn stingrays, giving BMX its start in near-by Orange County. And inline skating was soon adopted by those not coordinated enough to participate in any of the other sports.

In the early days of action sports, San Diego was the site of the most progression. California’s first skatepark was built in 1975 in Carlsbad, just a few miles north of downtown San Diego. The transitions proved to be a haven for not just skaters, but bikers as well. With locals like Tony Hawk and Christian Hosoi, San Diego put skateboarding on the map. BMX’s legendary “Enchanted ramp” was the local spot for riders like Dave Voelker and Ron Wilkerson. 

Today, San Diego remains a mecca for all action sports. With perfect weather, perfect transitions and waves, and the fact that it’s the home of many of the top companies such as DC Shoes and Transworld Media, why wouldn’t it? For vert skaters especially San Diego is the only place to be with ramps like Tony Hawk’s and the Encinitas YMCA within spitting distance. That’s why skaters from across the globe such as Bob Burnquist, Jean Postec, Mathias Ringstrom call San Diego home.

It’s not all transplants, though, the city continues to churn out its own local action sports super stars. Ever heard of Shaun White? He cut his teeth in Carlsbad, just minutes from the site of the first skatepark. Other young rippers like Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins, Gary Young and Rob Lorifice also grew up skating and riding under the California sun and the tutelage of many of the best riders in the world.                                              

All this makes San Diego a very fitting place to hold a stop of the World Action Sports Tour. Even for the athletes who are traveling from across the world to get there, even though they are thousands of miles from where they live, it’s still a homecoming of sorts.

- Check out Lat34 coverage of the LG Action Sports World Tour

- Hometown Heroes: Action Sports World Tour Comes to the US

-Brooke Geery