The Skater
 Lonnie
Toft began riding skateboards at age 7. Since that time he has become known as
one of the premier skaters and board designers of his day, as well as one of
the most influential. Credited with inventing the 8-wheeled skateboard,
co-inventing the snow-board and influencing boarding of all types such as
wake-boarding and kite-boarding, Lonnies influence is felt in almost every
board sport of the current day.
During the 1970's and 1980's, Lonnie gained notoriety as one of the best
skateboarders of the time. He would go on to skate and design boards for Sims,
located in Santa Barbara, CA. He would also skate for Tracker Trucks, The Pepsi
Team and a host of other companies.
Toft's contributions to the skateboarding world were numerous. In an interview
with Brad Bowman about the Cherry Hill skatepark in New Jersey, Brad says of
Lonnie, "He is truly one of the most important innovators of his
generation in skateboarding and had numerous impacts on the sport, riders and
public. he did demo's religiously, often staying longer than his contract
called for talking to fans and educating parents, etc... He defined the term
'ambassador of sport.'"
The Outrageous Eight
Lonnie Toft is unarguably the Father of the Eight Wheeled skateboard and is an
inspiration to all eight wheeled skaters. A professional skater for the Sims
team since 1975, Lonnie is known for his inventive creativity both on and off
the board. Lonnie would tell others to "expand your skateboarding by
experimenting with different designs and riding techniques". Both of
these aspirations become apparently obvious when one considers the eight
wheeled deck.
 Sometime in 1973, Toft and his brother conceived the idea
for the first 8 wheeled skateboard. The first one was made from unfinished
plywood, clay wheels and roller skate trucks. By 1976 the design had progressed
to a 20" x 28" deck, Sims wheels and Bennet trucks. The deck was
finished with shag carpeting, outrageous engraving and hand-painted Lonnie Toft
trademarks. When Sims finally released the Lonnie Toft model 8-wheeler, the
first production 8 wheeler ever, it was 13.4" x 29", .425" thick
made from Canadian rock maple laminate with graphite. The width at the tail was
12.9", the kick lift 1.05" and it weighed 4.5 lbs.
Lonnie's love for the eight wheeler was ever apparent when one saw him ride.
Fluent and aggressive, Lonnie would take the eight most skaters would never
consider. As such, Toft became one of the most photographed skaters of the
time, gracing the pages of countless magazine and newspaper pages.
His passion for the eight wheeler continues to this day. Creating custom eight
and four wheeled decks from his custom shop in Northern California, Toft's love
for his creation is seen in each and every deck made. Living by his own words,
Toft continues to "expand skateboarding by experimenting with different
designs and riding techniques".
The Snowboard
Lonnie's influence went beyond skateboarding as well. Toft, along with Willi
Winkels and Tom Sims, is credited with being one of the innovators of
snowboarding. In fact, the first production snowboard from Sims was the Lonnie
Toft model.
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