Tempe History Museum Receives Phoenix New Times ‘Best of Phoenix’ Award for ‘Dry Surf – Local Skateboarding History’ Exhibit - AZPX

‘Dry Surf: Local Skateboarding History’

Did you know the world’s first skate park was in Tempe? Tempe History Museum’s current exhibition, “Dry Surf: Local Skateboarding History,” is a colorful and fascinating look at the role the sport played in the culture of the Valley in earlier decades. Local skateboarders, led by AZPX Skateboards’ man about town, Rob Locker, have loaned the museum some of the coolest skateboarding equipment, photos and assorted artifacts we’ve ever seen. Thanks to Locker and Senior Curator of Collections Josh Roffler, “Dry Surf” oozes retro cool and may inspire even the most sedentary museum-goers into strapping on some pads and dropping into the nearest empty pool. On display through January 2026, there isn’t a finer collection of skateboarding ephemera under one roof in the world right now.