Ozzie Ausband, co-author of the skateboarding photography book, Back in the Day, shared a bit of history of swimming pool "badges" on his Instagram feed:
Some pools have a small round plate beneath the diving board where the electrical wiring for the pool light is attached. We call them badges. These are highly coveted by pool skaters everywhere. Salba always had a rule that you had to help drain the pool and frontside grind first wall… Then you could take the badge. I've also seen Salba apply that rule to the deathbox and witnessed the ensuing battle between Salba, Reuler, Toby and whoever else was chomping that day. We always thought that taking a badge just to take it wasn't so cool. You had to earn it. Whatever the case may be, they are amazing things to see and collect. Just do it right. 🐠 Find it, drain it, grind it, claim it.
Image: Instagram
