If you've been skateboarding for any great length of time (over 30 years or so), 2020's Skateboarding Hall of Fame inductee Rick Blackhart hardly needs an introduction. However, this Nor Cal badass is one of those lifelong skateboarders that kept pushing himself on all terrain in front of him and garnered a quite bit of media coverage and attention over the years.
His namesake wheel designed, marketed, and sold through NHS, Inc. was highly popular and successful towards the end of 1979. But the skateboarding industry hit an abrupt speed bump at the close of the decade and Rick's short lived pro model with Tunnel Skateboards never got into a production larger than 200 which were produced by his close friend and mechanic Kevin Thatcher. Additionally, Blackie's pig sized pro model never made it into production and the marketplace due to this untimely industry collapse.
However, Rick kept on skateboarding and never gave into letting his passion become a thing of the past. He went on to collaborate with his friends and cohorts at Thrasher magazine to work on his monthly column Ask The Doctor for many years, and he continued to consult with Ermico Enterprises with design for Independent Truck Co. Rick's involvement and influence within skateboarding continues to carry on today and we're proud to have him join us as one of our esteemed lifers.
This Blackhart Modernized Stripes skate deck is exactly the shape that Dr. Rick rides today and it functions great on all terrain with its balanced design. Get down on your friends mini ramp, enjoy some boardslides at the local curb spot, shred that backyard pool just a a short drive away, or hit up the local skatepark. With numerous possibilities, it's all good, fun skateboarding on this Blackhart designed shred sled!
Specifications: Manufactured by PS Stix, Inc. with 7-ply maple construction and finished with routed edges on top and bottom. Heat transfer graphics on the bottom with screen printing in red on the top. Limited numbered editions of 65 and personally signed by Rick Blackhart with a white paint pen the top of the deck.
Measurements: 32" long by 8.875" wide, 6.625" tail, dual 15" and 15.5" wheelbase and a nose length of 5. 75" and 6.25" respectively. Truck holes are drilled in the modern size (2.125" apart) to allow for retro trucks and keep choices unlimited when setting up this deck.