{{Unreferenced, date=June 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) California Free Former was the world's largest

skateboard A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. They are usually made of a specially designed 7-8 ply maple plywood deck and polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks. The skateboarder ...

manufacturer during the 1970s. From 1970 to 1981, it was owned by Rick Smith of ALS Industries with a business partner. They also held several licenses from

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

, manufacturing roller skates and other

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

brand consumer products.

Free Former Professional Skaters

The prominent Free Former skaters included: *

Ty Page Ty Scott Page (May 30, 1958 - June 1, 2017) was a professional skateboarder who was known as one of the most innovative skateboarders in the world. Ty Page was a leader in the skateboarding scene during "the golden era" of skateboarding in the ea ...

* Mark Bowden * Curt Lindgren * Bryan Beardsley * Laura Thornhill * Steve Ibbertson (Canada) *Glenn McCarroll

World Skateboard Championships

California Free Former also used to sponsor skateboarding competitions, including the California Free Former World Skateboard Championships held at the

Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

Sports Arena. (Original and reenacted footage from the Free Former World Skateboard Championships was prominently featured in the feature film "

Lords of Dogtown ''Lords of Dogtown'' is a 2005 American biographical drama film directed by Catherine Hardwicke and written by Stacy Peralta. The film follows a group of young skateboarders in Santa Monica, California during the 70s. This is the first (and so ...

.") The California Free Former World Professional Skateboard Championships were held at the Long Beach Arena in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The first competition in the summer of 1976 was the largest skateboard competition ever held up until that time. Its significant cash prizes changed skateboarding history and created a professional tier in the sport.

1976 Results

Men's Freestyle: 1- Chris Chaput, 2-Ed Nadalin, 3-Mike Weed, 4-Gary Kocot, 5-

Russ Howell Russell Wayne Howell (born September 1949) is a professional skateboarder. While working towards his degree in physical education, Howell competed and won many freestyle skateboarding competitions throughout his skating career. Life and career ...

Men's Slalom: 1-Henry Hester, 2-Bob Piercy, 3-Mike Williams Women's Freestyle: 1-Ellen Berryman, 2-Laura Thornhill, 3-Ellen O’Neal Women's Slalom: 1-Desiree Von Essen, 2-T. Brown, 3-Robin Logan Consecutive 360s: 1-Bob Jarvis, 2-Chris Chaput, 3-Gary Kocot, 4- Steve Shipp, 5-Ed Nadalin

Sept 24-25, 1977 Results

Men's Freestyle: 1-Bob Mohr, 2-Mike Weed, 3-

, 4-Ed Nadalin Men's Slalom: 1-John Hutson, 6.515 seconds 2-Bobby Piercy, 6.526 sec. 3-Randy Smith, 6.605 sec. 4-Greg Taie, 6.612 sec. Women's Freestyle: 1-Ellen Berryman, 2-Ellen O’Neal, 3-Laura Thornhill Women's Slalom: 1-Terry Brown, 2-Kim Cespedes, 3-Desiree Von Essen Consecutive 360s: 1-

, 2-Paul Hoffman, 3-Ed Nadalin, 4-Steve Shipp High Jump: 1- Bryan Beardsley, 2-Jerry Pattison, 3-Brent McCullogh Barrel Jump: 1-

Tony Alva Tony Alva (born September 2, 1957) is an American skateboarder, entrepreneur, and musician. He was a pioneer of vertical skateboarding and one of the original members of the Zephyr Competition Skateboarding Team, also known as the Z-Boys. The ...

(17 barrels), 2-Paul Hoffman, 3-Ed Nadalin, 4-Steve Shipp. The poster for the 1977 event was done by artist / designer Jim Evans Skateboarding companies