A skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a poly urathane coating used for making smoother grinds and stronger durability, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The modern skateboard originated in California in the late 1970s. In time, it became a pastime for surfers when the waves were lax. By the mid 1980s they were mass produced and sold throughout the United States.
A skateboard is propelled by pushing with one foot while the other remains on the board, or by pumping one's legs in structures such as a pool or half pipe. A skateboard can also be used by simply standing on the deck while on a downward slope and allowing gravity to propel the board and rider. If you ride with your right foot forward, you ride "goofy"; if you ride with your left foot forward, you ride regular.
Recently, electric skateboards have also appeared. These no longer require the propelling of the skateboard by means of the feet; rather a electric engine propells the board, fed by an electric battery.
There is no governing body that declares any regulations on what constitutes a skateboard or the parts from which it is assembled. Historically, the skateboard has conformed both to contemporary trends and to the ever evolving array of stunts performed by riders/users, who require a certain functionality from the board. Of course, the board shape depends largely upon its desired function. longboards are a type of skateboard with a longer wheelbase and larger, softer wheels.
