longboarding is a specialized form of skateboarding that can be traced to oahu, hawaii. during the summer, waves in hawaii are generally much smaller than in winter time, and when the surf was too low, locals created long cross training skateboards to train or just pass the time.

for fun, they would imitate surfing moves as much as one can on the ground - it was originally called sidewalk surfing, but in 1959 the name changed to skateboarding in california. the sport was not as advanced as it is today - back then metal wheels and boards made out of plywood were common.