Longboarding/Skateboarding thread.

[Gil Bang 25,907]

On 9/27/2020 at 2:49 PM, wd40 said:

had one of those little plastic boards when I was a kid.  there was a condo complex up the street with a lot of long, squiggly sidewalks to cruise, and some shallow stairs to float down.

never owned a longboard.  but used to do a little bit of it on my Santa Cruz shortboard.   I'd picked it up during my early post-divorce wild days when I was stuck in Leander with no money and nothing to do but fish, mtb, and take naps.  

anyway, there's a street forming the northern boundary of Walnut Creek Park with a big hill.  I used to carve my way down that until I just had too much speed to hold the turns (sliding just didn't seem like a great idea), and would take the last hundred feet or so just straight down.  it would bottom out and go back uphill to a dead end to slow back down.  just the perfect spot for that sort of thing.

my neighborhood had one hill, at the very back.  pretty mellow; but on a skateboard, it was plenty fast.  about 6 turns I could rail all the way to my house where I'd just bail out onto the grass.

went out to Ramp Ranch on 29 some, back then.  learned to drop in there and play in the 1/4 pipes.   got put on a project out in Sunnyvale, discovered a real skatepark near my hotel, and got better.  shortly after that, Austin built its first concrete park down by the IRS.  would get there right at sun-up, before all the kids woke up.  couple times, there was another old guy there sweeping and skating the pool in the dark with some cheap little LEDs clipped to the bill of his ballcap.  fuckin crazy.  good skater, tho.

now all I do is ticktock up and carve down my longish, curvy driveway.  good core workout.  lotta fun, esp for the investment.

I'm guessing that plastic board was a "GT".  

They were sold everywhere.

[Gil Bang 25,907]

In my early teen years, I spent 3-5 days/nights every week at the skatepark.  

I lived near the legendary "Pipeline".  Started with a Logan board, Bennett Pro Trucks, and Kryptonics.  Went through several more, including a "Pipe Wrench" and a "Pool Tool".   Finally settled on an "Alva".   Tony Alva still makes them here in San Diego. 

[BBQ2Bayou 807]

On 9/30/2020 at 3:27 PM, Gil Bang said:

In my early teen years, I spent 3-5 days/nights every week at the skatepark.  

I lived near the legendary "Pipeline".  Started with a Logan board, Bennett Pro Trucks, and Kryptonics.  Went through several more, including a "Pipe Wrench" and a "Pool Tool".   Finally settled on an "Alva".   Tony Alva still makes them here in San Diego. 

I had one a little like this. 

[Gil Bang 25,907]

9 minutes ago, BBQ2Bayou said:

I had one a little like this. 

are those Tracker trucks? 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

They look like Thunders to me. Blurry photo, so possibly also a generic/department store type, but they're not Trackers - hanger is too beefy. 

[BBQ2Bayou 807]

That wasn't mine. I had Independent trucks and PP wheels and bearings IIRC

[Gil Bang 25,907]

On 10/1/2020 at 7:25 PM, Prepuce of Doom said:

They look like Thunders to me. Blurry photo, so possibly also a generic/department store type, but they're not Trackers - hanger is too beefy. 

IIRC, trackers came with shitty plastic/composite plates.  If they broke, you could mail them in and get aluminum replacements.  

Am I remembering that wrong?  

[Gil Bang 25,907]

On 10/1/2020 at 7:33 PM, BBQ2Bayou said:

That wasn't mine. I had Independent trucks and PP wheels and bearings IIRC

Man, I remember the bearing wars.  "German" bearings were the shit.  You could also by cheaper jap bearings, "IKS".  The IKS bearings had plastic sidewall deals, where the germans were steel.  It didn't take long to figure out that you could pry off the plastic caps of the IKS and make them a bit faster.  Of course, you lost lube and gained grit eventually, but for a short while, that was the shit. 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

31 minutes ago, Gil Bang said:

IIRC, trackers came with shitty plastic/composite plates.  If they broke, you could mail them in and get aluminum replacements.  

Am I remembering that wrong?  

Nope - you're correctly thinking of Tracker Sixtrack Ultralights. 

Without these silly giant copers, they were decent enough trucks (great in terms of lightness), but they weren't nearly as durable as Indy's. And Indy's turn better. 

Edited October 3, 2020 by Prepuce of Doom

[smuggs 9,350]

Beautiful day in Lake Charles. Daughter and I took a ride this morning, got burgers on the grill and Ozzy’s Boneyard razzing the neighbors.

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

Recently went down the youtube rabbit hole of "do a kickflip" with Eric Coston.  That is fun, feel good series.  Very good distraction material.

 

 

 

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

 

[TwiceHorn 31,435]

On 10/2/2020 at 10:39 PM, Gil Bang said:

IIRC, trackers came with shitty plastic/composite plates.  If they broke, you could mail them in and get aluminum replacements.  

Am I remembering that wrong?  

No, I don't think you are.  The OG Trackers did have some kind of black plates, compared to others that were aluminum/metallic.  What Prepuce posted must have been some second or third gen versions.

In my recollection, decks of approximately the width of a standard "trick" board today, were called "slalom" boards and were flat or maybe had a kick tail.  Other boards were considerably narrower.  Trackers were preferred for that type of board (came wider), while ACS and Independent were preferred for the narrower boards and were regarded as more durable.

I don't recall the plates having a breakage problem, but my peers and I exited the skate space a year or two after premium-type components and boards reached Dallas.

These were OG Trackers, but black plates, probably polymer as Gil notes.

These were ACS, usually narrower, but characterized by the flat with text.  Don't recall black plates.

Late 70s "slalom" board, narrow-ass trucks though.

Simms, Powell-Peralta, and Juice wheels.  The bearings they came with were touted and discussed.  Swapping out bearings wasn't a thing.

Edited October 19, 2020 by TwiceHorn

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

^^^Your era of trucks are roughly two generations older than the the plastic Tracker baseplates from the '80s.

You're part of the first wave of purpose-built equipment. An OG. 

I've got some gear from your era. I'll post pictures eventually... 

 

Edited October 19, 2020 by Prepuce of Doom

[TwiceHorn 31,435]

13 minutes ago, Prepuce of Doom said:

^^^Your era of trucks are roughly two generations older than the the plastic Tracker baseplates from the '80s.

You're part of the first wave of purpose-built equipment. An OG. 

I've got some gear from your era. I'll post pictures eventually... 

 

Yeah, I can't say it was all-new, but it was certainly a new-new thing in Dallas, Texas.  There was a fairly limited selection of stuff.

I do vividly remember trackers then having black baseplates, and that triangular piece was distinctive.  I had a friend with a Bahne slalom board, wide Trackers, and Simms wheels.  I was spec'ing a narrower, more conventional deck with ACS and Juice wheels, but never pulled the trigger and lost the thread.

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

New Shrike came in last week.

 

 

 

 

Not used to top mount yet.  Neighbor and I went out on some different mild "hills" (really just some streets with declines, but these boards pick up speed pretty quickly) yesterday.  Had that thrilling moment of having to commit because reached a speed I couldn't footbrake.  We lived and didn't wreck, so that was a pretty damn fun day.

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by MC Fresh Breath

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

You might be MC Fresh Breath, but you post pictures like MC Orange!

Yeah, the biggest adjustment to a top mount is not jamming your push foot down too far accidentally if you have the muscle memory of a higher deck... 

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

Strange, the pics show up for me.

Edit: crap, apparently only on tapa.  I failed.

Edit 2: Geezus, I can't seem to link imgur stuff anymore.  Oh well, if you're bored, here is the link.

Edited October 20, 2020 by MC Fresh Breath

[mr.goodkat 464]

[mr.goodkat 464]

part of my collection . saw skate thread and i wanted to participate 

 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Nice!!! 

What's the story with the Alice? The shape looks unusually narrow at the nose, but maybe it's just the angle. 

[mr.goodkat 464]

thats a jeff grosso cease and desist deck it has a little more shape than the original . the rag doll is the original shape . most are reissue. a few vintage 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Ahh, gotcha. No wonder it offended my sensibilities!!! (Just kidding......mostly.) 

I've been more or less out of the collecting game for about 10-15 years. I could spot most of the SC reissues, but I steered clear of the whole C&D thing back when it bubbled to the surface. That was around the time when I got out of the scene. I had about 120 decks at my high point (mixture of my old riders, used, NOS, and reissues) but ended up selling off most of the reissues to pay for speeding tickets. 

Here's most of my collection as currently "displayed."  Hanging them is on my list of things to do around the house, but they're going up on the wall of the staircase to my basement, so that's a bit of a challenge, plus they're plaster walls, so yet another wrinkle. 

Edited October 26, 2020 by Prepuce of Doom
Nards dangle

[mr.goodkat 464]

cant wait to see them up !!! the c&d stuff is ok there are reall only~3ish boards that are interesting imo . i started skating in 86 so this obviously shows .  iam at 74 including my old deck from 98 and my rider now and a few doubles . profit.

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

 

 

 

Worked a bit on the both hands down (first slide he teaches in the video) off and on lately.  Of course, some days it feels like even my foot braking is an adventure.  Guess that's the hazards of an old trying to learn a younger person's sport.   Anyway, when I bend over it looks more like a 'v' with my legs not pushed out as far as they do here.  Guess more flexibility work is in order.

That fun thrill I had last weekend of going fast (for me) down some hills with the neighbor has apparently influenced another neighbor to maybe join us.  These dudes are like some of you on here--experienced skateboarders from their youth, so perhaps I'll learn some things with them.  At any rate, holy crap maybe a crew!

 

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

On 10/26/2020 at 12:32 PM, mr.goodkat said:

part of my collection . saw skate thread and i wanted to participate 

 

Thanks for the participation!  Good stuff.

 

Do you still ride or mainly collect?  Or both?  

[mr.goodkat 464]

2 hours ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Thanks for the participation!  Good stuff.

 

Do you still ride or mainly collect?  Or both?  

mainly collect but i have a board 

[smuggs 9,350]

New shoes just arrived.

 

 

[ETHorn 15]

My daughter is featured in this article/video.

https://www.dallasobserver.com/arts/women-skateboarders-in-dallas-form-an-above-average-group-11935754

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

Was out boarding in the neighborhood yesterday and waved and said hi to a person getting into his truck. No biggie, I always try to be polite, it’s a friendly neighborhood.

I cross the street into another neighborhood and I notice the guy I waved at is following me in his truck. I stop and he rolls down his window.

Me: How’s it going?

Dude: you just started skating recently, right?

Me: (laughing) is it that obvious?

Dude: Well, but recently, right?

Me: yeah, for sure...got really into it around May.

Dude: Every time I see you it inspires me, man! I am pushing 50 and skated forever starting when I was around 14. Been thinking about getting into it but worried about being too old for it. But I see you out there and I get all excited. It’s so cool to see.

Me: Awesome! Thanks for the kind words man, come on out sometime!

That was a very cool exchange, and if he does come out, it will make the 3rd dude in the neighborhood that this has happened with. I love this kind of thing, and this welcoming world of skaters.

/csb


Tapasuck

[Gunsup 56]

What's the consensus on Ehlers longboards?   I'm wanting to get a longboard after not riding since I was a kid and have been looking at different boards.  I don't need a tier 1 board, and the components of the drop down I'm looking at (just for cruising only) look decent-Bear Grizzly trucks and Blacks bearings, etc.   Most of the stuff I've seen on Ehlers boards is fairly positive.

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

Sorry, dude, not keeping up well with thread I started, lol.  

I have never heard of them.  I'd look into the /r/longboarding daily thread and ask there, though.  Helpful folks.

 

As for me, well, snow came in this weekend.  I would say time to switch board sports, but the mountain doesn't open until Dec. 9.  So a month of limbo/getting fat.

 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Yeah, no idea here, either. 

But I would personally recommend a board a little more on the stiff side of the stiff/flexy spectrum, especially if you're a great big fat person. 

[Longboard Horn 40,287]

I'm into longboarding, hence my username. Will post pics of my board when I get home from work. 

[Longboard Horn 40,287]

On 11/3/2020 at 3:23 PM, Gunsup said:

What's the consensus on Ehlers longboards?   I'm wanting to get a longboard after not riding since I was a kid and have been looking at different boards.  I don't need a tier 1 board, and the components of the drop down I'm looking at (just for cruising only) look decent-Bear Grizzly trucks and Blacks bearings, etc.   Most of the stuff I've seen on Ehlers boards is fairly positive.

I have a Santa Cruz longboard. Handles really well. 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Four of my five currently assembled riders, plus the rig I've set up for the Doomlet to nudge him into the tribe. I don't want to push him too hard though - my dad pushing me into golf too much is part of what drew me to skateboarding in the first place... 

L to R:

Rayne Hellcat, Crails, Seismic Blast Waves 

Afroman Hustler, Tracker Dart 184s, Shitbird Shitfires

Powell Peralta 1991 team deck, Ventures from ~1984, Alva Hardcores

Paisley Gary, Indys, Powell Raybourns

(Doomlet's) SMA Natas reissue, Indys, OJ IIIs

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

 

[TexasEd 8,066]

On 11/3/2020 at 3:23 PM, Gunsup said:

What's the consensus on Ehlers longboards?   I'm wanting to get a longboard after not riding since I was a kid and have been looking at different boards.  I don't need a tier 1 board, and the components of the drop down I'm looking at (just for cruising only) look decent-Bear Grizzly trucks and Blacks bearings, etc.   Most of the stuff I've seen on Ehlers boards is fairly positive.

I have a drop down (Yocaher) and the only thing I would warn you about is that you can/will bottom out on some drops like off a sidewalk. Even the blue reflectors in the road to mark fire hydrants are close to the bottom of the board.  I think this makes it more stable and gets you a lower center of gravity but you can't carve as tightly because the sides or your heels/toes hit the ground when you turn too tightly.

[956 Worldwide 34,696]

I skated a little bit as a kid and also did a bit of surfing and later a lot more paddle boarding, so I wanted to pick up something for my landlocked life. Got an affordable Ten Toes pintail cruiser and have been enjoying learning the ropes a bit. Mostly just easy cruising and carving down some mild hills. Thinking about upgrading to a Santa Cruz.

Downside is that I live in an urban environment with mostly cobblestoned sidewalks. The park near my place has a nice walking and riding path that I use most of the time. When the weather is nice I spend a lot of time waiting because the last thing I need is to bowl
over a pensioner dog walker or a little kid on a bike. A good chunk of the path is too narrow to carve at all so you have to watch speed and periphery.

Upside is that my six year old comes on her razor scooter and says I’m the “coolest daddy at the park.” And the setting can’t be beat....

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Moving shit around in the garage and figured I'd post a shitty picture of a bunch of wheels. 

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

RIP.   Enjoyed his videos on youtube.

 

Quote

The bodies of all four men who were on board a small airplane that crashed into Þingvallavatn lake, Southwest Iceland, on Thursday, were located in the lake last night, mbl.is reports.

Quote

Josh Neuman, 22, American influencer and skateboarder. Since the age of 12, he had been creating YouTube videos and had more than a million followers worldwide.

https://icelandmonitor.mbl.is/news/news/2022/02/07/bodies_of_victims_of_plane_crash_found_in_lake/

[dieucla98 2,942]

Any DIY'ers? Buddy of mine skates and shares the woodworking itch. We've made a few boards under his label (BYO grip tape). Also done a surf board and wake board. Probably never doing that again...

 

 

[dcbc 14,465]

Well, I've posted my skates here and I was going to find a Maherajah skateboard picture, but it felt disingenuous since I don't own it.

 

So here's a "longboard" I do own.  Recreational version of their race ski.  84" long (1.5" sidecut) and will smoothly run at 45 mph on a 150' line.  You can't even hear the boat and chop makes almost no difference.

 

 

Edited February 8, 2022 by dcbc

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

Decided I want to learn to ollie at age 51.

 

[texasdago 7,563]

Got my son a new set up for Christmas... ended up getting him a popsicle version of the screaming hand deck from Santa Cruz, some nice Independent trucks and Bones wheels.  He loves it.  

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

 

 

Was sorry to read about this.

A bit more details on the instagram page that I can't embed here.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca295C2vC6B/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

[gsoda3 3,245]

I too bought a longboard during the pandemic. Never skated before. Used to rollerblade a lot growing up (hockey). I feel like I'm going to die every time I'm on the board. My balance is terrible. Is carving the best way to maintain speed on level ground?

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Big, narrow wheels in the perfect durometer for your surface with quality bearings is the best way to maintain speed on flat ground. 

[MC Fresh Breath 4,074]

On 3/11/2022 at 7:18 PM, gsoda3 said:

I too bought a longboard during the pandemic. Never skated before. Used to rollerblade a lot growing up (hockey). I feel like I'm going to die every time I'm on the board. My balance is terrible. Is carving the best way to maintain speed on level ground?

Hey dude, first off, welcome to the club!  

Very similar to you as to when I started getting into this.  I really enjoy the landyachtz videos (I don't own one of their boards)  :

 

 

 

 

For me, practicing foot stopping over and over was key to getting comfortable.  You really have to bend your knees more than you think.  Then the more you skate, the more you'll get comfortable with speed.  I know, duh, but the thing to keep in mind is those of us who take it up as adults are different than adults who "get back into it."   No muscle memory to go back to, and now that we're older, our progress is slower.  So during warmer months I try to set an 'every day' goal of getting on the board.  Maybe some days its just 10 minutes.  Other days shoot for an hour.  But every day, a little something.

In terms of stopping for a long time  every time I went out, I would just start out with get going, stop under control.  Repeat.  Add a little speed and you can use the foot drags to slow down w/o stopping all the way.  Have fun!

Edited March 14, 2022 by MC Fresh Breath

[Prepuce of Doom 21,052]

Slide gloves are indispensable for braking if you find yourself going faster than is prudent to footbrake.