The history of the Dark Slide

Where does this term actually come from and who came up with the term Dark Slide? We are going to investigate!

Those who dive into the history of the Dark Slide will initially come up with skateboarding. Mark Gonzales has the first jump to his name, which was in 1991. He took his skateboard in his hand and jumped it upside down to reveal the griptape.

Rodney Mullen has the first Dark-Slide landing to his name. He made a back flip before sliding over the rail. This was in 1993 and was then called a half-flip Dark Slide, but now it is called a Dark Slide.

Where does the name come from?
Many names that we encounter in kite surfing originally come from skateboarding or wave surfing. The name Dark Slide also comes from the skateboard scene. The term refers to the color of the griptape, which is usually dark. Because during the trick the board is visible at the bottom and here the griptape is most visible.

At Kitesurfing (also read our blog about the origin of kitesurfing) you also see the bottom of the board when someone does a Dark Slide, but the boards are often cheerfully colored and do not live up to the name. This also applies to skateboarding nowadays.

What is a Dark Slide, or how is this trick performed?

When skateboarding, the skateboarder reverses his board over a rail or edge. Either he has his board upside down on the obstacle. When kitesurfing, the kite surfer glides upside down with his board through the water and often he or she also holds the board by the rail. Because the kitesurfer’s feet are strapped on his board, the board is not completely reversed, but he or she sails through the water with the tip reversed. Very cool to see, by the way.

Video how to

The video of Kitesurf college explains how to do the dark slide. “Don’t try this at home but on the water”