Longboarding

[telemnemonics]

Fun to watch, indeed.
The music bed appeared to borrow generously from Ben E King's Stand By Me

SHE was delightful to watch, oh yes.
Never saw anyone dancing on a board like that, but had it been a dude I don’t think I would have stuck with it to the end.

 

[trapdoor2]

Got my first skateboard in 1964 "Sidewalk Surfin'". Wish I'd had at least gloves... Helped my brother (his "gofer") build a longboard in 1963, he was a surfer, Imperial Beach, CA...had a foot-long gash in his leg from when he tried to up the performance of his longboard by sharpening the skeg. Took a lot of stitches!

FF to the 1990s when my brother had 4 kids: stairsteps. Got a modern skateboard and was teaching them to ride. Stepped off stiff legged and his knee exploded. Set off airport metal detectors after that.

Our favorite niece (Miz Diane's side) just had to get in-line skates as a kid (30yrs ago) and Uncle Marc (me) had to help her, so he got a pair too. I skated on 'regular' skates since I was a little kid. In-line skates was very different. Thankfully, nobody got hurt (though I skint my palms again).

 

[Whatizitman]

Sadly gathering dust in the garage these days.

 

[Stanford Guitar]

 

[Stanford Guitar]

Here's a good tech page on longboard differences.

Technology

rayne.com

 

[Willie Johnson]

Don't listen to the can't or shouldn't do it because of age. Sure, my 60s isn't same as 30s but without bifocals I can still do it. Wear a helmet and some body protection. Same helmet, pads, gloves and shoes that work for bike riding work for the board.

I don't know that much about the gear. A friend had a board to lend. I think mine in the avatar pic here is an Arbor brand and it's more stable than the one I got for free.

My daughter runs an Arbor complete. I have a pintail shop deck with big Tracker trucks and some old Sartori Movement wheels. I don't ride it a whole lot, but go for the occasional hill bombing session around the neighborhood.

 

[Cornelius TX]

Update: went to the local park basketball court the other day and just did big figure eights across the court to practice turning and pushing while my daughter rode her scooter. Lots of fun! My biggest challenge is learning to lean into those turns. I may get new bearings at some point, also.

Building a land paddle this weekend, and may try that, but don't intend to ever do anything much riskier than local trail in the early morning.