When most people think of skateboarding, they tend to think of California kids cutting up the concrete on sidewalks and in empty swimming pools.  They certainly don’t tend to think of the East Coast, and New York City, as a skateboarding mecca.  But it is – the East Coast, and in particular New York City, offers awesome skate parks and side streets, and has been home to some of the best and most passionate skateboarders around.

New York City skateboarders have always been about breaking new ground – especially since the original skateboarders in the 1970’s didn’t have the same skate parks nor did they get the same attention as their West Coast comrades.  So East Coast skateboarders took to the streets and the local parks, and were jumping on handrails, skating park benches and ledges, and having urban, “guerilla-style” skate competitions before it was cool to do so.  Some of the early pioneers, as we call them here at Triple 8, were folks like Rodney Smith and Bruno Musso, who founded SHUT NYC skateboards (http://www.shutnyc.com/), Steve Rodriguez of 5Boro (http://www.5boro.com/), and Andy Kessler/Soul Artists of Zoo York (http://www.zooyork.com/). 

Some favorite NYC skate spots – add your own by clicking on the map below:
Astor Place
Battery Park
Fed Ex
Brooklyn Banks
Brooks Brothers
CBS
Chase
Chinatown manual pad
Court House Drop
Dag Park
DLJ
Fuji Building
Houston Park
Newport
Paine Webber
Red Benches
Saint Patrick’s Cathedral
South Street Seaport
Time & Life building
Tompkins Square Park (aka The TF)
Union Square
Veterans Memorial
Ziegfield Movie Theatre

View NYC Skateboard Hot Spots in a larger map

For more on the history of NYC skateboarding, check out the sick documentary Deathbowl to Downtown (http://www.deathbowltodowntown.com/).

Learn to Skateboard in NYC: http://www.uptownskateschool.com/

UPDATE: the fine folks at Skatepark Directory just launched a new version of their site. Help them get the details on your local spot.