Guest Writer: Lillian Mclean
Whether you’re five or fifty, anyone can learn how to skateboard. Skateboarding is one of the most enjoyable recreational sports out there, plus it doubles as a complete workout! Skateboarding is a physically demanding sport, so before you attempt advanced tricks, you’ve got to go through the basics. We’ve come up with this guide to help you out.
What you need:
A quality skateboard
Don’t go to Target to buy your first skateboard -- you’ll need something sturdier than that. Head down to your local skate shop, Never Ever Boards, and pick out a skateboard that works for you. Invest in one that uses durable and quality skateboard bearing to ensure smooth and safe skateboarding.
Safety Equipment
Helmets and knee pads can be annoying, but since you’re still learning, it’s expected that you’ll trip and fall a lot. Protect yourself by wearing elbow and knee pads, a helmet, and long-sleeve shirts for added protection. Investing in safety gear is a lot less expensive than paying for hospital bills.
How to learn to skateboard
Find a flat surface..
Reserve the ramps and rails for later. Start practicing on a flat surface such as a spacious driveway that’s free from bumps and cracks. If the pavement has a slight slope, be sure there’s a nearby patch of grass you can safely roll onto if you fall. If you live in a busy street, it’s best to practice at night when there isn’t much traffic.
Practice your stance
Balance is key in skateboarding. Adjust to how your board feels and find the proper foot position that feels most comfortable to you -- it doesn’t matter which foot is in front. Make sure your feet are a shoulder’s width apart. It may help to hold on to a rail or any solid object.
Practice Pushing
Only attempt pushing off once you’ve mastered your balance. With your back foot, push off from the pavement, and return your foot back on the board. Maintain your balance as you move forward, keeping your weight on the balls of your feet.
Skateboard Maintenance
You can’t learn how to skate without learning how to care for your board. From skateboard bearing cleaning to regular polishing, knowing how to maintain your skateboard can prolong its life until your next upgrade.
A lot of trial-and-error is involved in learning how to skateboard, but with determination, you’ll soon become the master of your board. The cuts and scrapes will be well worth it in the end. Eventually, you’ll find yourself performing the hardest skateboard tricks.
Check out our Skateboard Selection HERE!!
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Learning How to Balance
The number one thing it is important to learn with skating is learning to balance, you can't ride a board without it, let alone ever learn any tricks, and you don't want to ride around sitting down and running over your fingers. You could get away with that as a kid, but it's time to get serious and have some fun on the board.
With a brand new skateboard, you can even ignore your Mom on this one when she used to say you definitely can't bring it in the house. Bringing the board inside and trying to balance on it while it is placed over the carpet, can be an easy, safe way to learn how to balance, and quickly get you much more comfortable on the board.
Picking your Board
Now when picking your board, I'd first account for both your size and your height to determine the size of the deck that will work best for you. A good running average for a skateboard deck for most people is 7.5″- 8.25″. Width is generally determined by your size as mentioned before but is also influenced by the type of riding you prefer. If you're a bigger rider and are skating ramps a wider deck will generally work better for you.
Street skaters usually choose a smaller deck. I'd recommend starting out with something towards the middle, and as you ride deciding what feels best for you, you can always change deck size, when you break the board, which is bound to happen, eventually.
You may even decide you want a plastic skateboard, an odd shaped board, or who knows you may just want to cruise and get a longboard. I'd suggest getting one of each, certain days you may have a different preference, and a longboard may come more in handy for the type of riding you are looking for especially for long rides, or a bunch of downhill.
Picking the Spot to Skate
Now what I mean by this is not, should you skate a bank, or a school? I mean to decide if you would rather be a street skater or skate at the skate park. Now, this isn't an ultimatum, this doesn't mean you can only choose one or the other, but the type of trucks, board type, and skateboard wheels do play a role when it comes to choosing your skate spot.
For skating street, you want to make sure the trucks under your board make your deck sit up higher. You can achieve this by putting risers between the truck and the board or getting trucks that specifically make the board sit a bit higher. The opposite is expected for skating at a park, to do tricks it is best to have a lower center of gravity and to have your board lower to the ground.
Skating at the park also demands a harder wheel, these harder wheels will also give you a faster speed, giving you the best edge to nail those gnarly tricks. Contrarily, and a bit surprising to most the opposite is true when street-skating you want a softer wheel which will allow you to get over those rocks and cracks a little easier, by giving the wheel a little of the flex it needs.
Studying and Learning New Tricks
As with everything practice makes perfect, or at least helps you improve. By studying the very nature of the sport you will understand the mechanics behind the tricks and what makes them work. By starting with the basics, like learning to ollie, kickflip, hit a halfpipe, and grinding will not only be a good place to start but will help set the foundation for learning the most complex tricks.
Follow the greats, read their history. See where Tony Hawk or Rodney Mullen began. Only by seeing where they came from can show you where you can go. With the right vision and the proper focus, anything can be made possible. You must stay dedicated to be able to perform at the level you wish to. You will get exactly what you put in and you may find yourself 6 months later looking back wondering how it was possible for you to get so far.
The Basics...
Now, this is a simple guide to give you a little direction and clarity of thought moving forward. This is in no way a resource to make you a professional or the best skateboarder you can possibly be. This is just a start and it is up to you to be able to take this venture exactly where you want it to go, to grow this hobby, to give back to the sport.
As you learn you will be able to understand your pace and know how far you can push something. It is always important to be safe and to never push yourself any further than you feel comfortable with. As they say, if it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't, and you should probably back off a little bit and take a break.
We all have different levels at which we learn and learn at different speeds. This doesn't make you any less adequate than someone else. Working on your mindset is always key to developing your true potential. Happy Skating!
What I mean by this, not any ol' skateboard will do. Choose not to compromise on price, sometimes it pays to spend a little more and buy quality. Generally buying a Walmart or Target brand skateboard can be a mistake, though generally cheaper you can expect it to break a lot quicker.
The boards you can buy from these two companies can also many times be much heavier, making it that much more difficult learning even beginner tricks. A lighter more balanced board will always give you a better shot at nailing your first ollie, and getting down even more advanced tricks, as you develop your skills.
Board size is mostly based off of what feels comfortable for you. A good place to start, and what we'd suggest is an 8" deck. It's a good medium, and not too skinny or too wide for most people. As you continue to ride and
learn you may find you want a deck a bit skinnier, or one a bit wider. You're only going to find what works best for you, the more you ride, and the more you get the real feel for the board.
Let's not over-complicate things. Truck come in all shapes and sizes, but a good rule of thumb to ensure your trucks fit perfectly is by making sure the edge of your skateboard wheels on your truck match up with the outside edges of your deck.
You don't want the trucks too small because of the decrease in stability, having wider trucks that fit your board will give you better wheel grip on the pavement and overall give you more of the ride you're looking for as a beginner.
If the trucks are too wide for the board you also run the risk of the wheels hanging over the board and running over your toes, and you don't want to do that.
A few other points of reference for the more advanced skater but nothing you really have to overly concern yourself with is the height of your trucks. Rising pads can also be used to raise the height of your trucks and to give your board that extra pop.
A low truck is built more for small wheels in mind, they provide the extra stability you need for different moves, such as flip tricks. Our recommendation would be a wheel size of 50-53mm for low trucks.
One of the most common truck heights and what we'd recommend for a beginner. Medium size trucks are a perfect choice to use at your local skate park or even for some street-skating. The wheel size we'd recommend would be between 53-56mm and a hard set of wheels which we will explain why in further detail as you get further down the post.
High trucks are the best for large wheels typically used and work well on a longboard or cruiser. High trucks are best used for carving and cruising. A 56mm+ wheel size is ideal when you use high trucks.
Since you are really just learning how to skateboard it is tough to know your truck preference until you understand your style. You may find you like to spend more time at the park, than on the street. You'll never really know what you like until you get out there and put the wheels to the pavement.
Pick a quality basic truck that will work during your beginner stage of skating. As you begin to become more advanced into the future and develop your skill set, go for a name brand truck or a better quality truck at a size you're comfortable with based off your style.
One of the more important parts of the board, because without wheels where are you going? Would be closer to a snowboard than a skateboard. If you are skating street, which you probably are in the beginning you want a harder wheel with at least a rating of 88a or higher and up to 99a.
This figure is what is known as the durometer, this measures the hardness level of the wheels and gives you an accurate measure of the purpose of the wheel. Any rating above 88a will give you a hard wheel which has a good grip and will work well for speed, riding street, rough surfaces, skate parks, ramps, and pools.
Now for the pros with the highest durometer rating at 101a or higher, you will find your fastest and hardest wheel. Be careful though these do have the least grip and are not very effective on rough and/or slick surfaces.
With a longboard, you want a softer wheel between 78-87a. These are perfect for rough surfaces you encounter while riding and can even be good for street boards that need a lot of grip to facilitate rolling over cracks and pebbles. This type of wheel is made for a smooth ride cruising along, and mastering hills.
When skating street your best choice is to go with a harder set of wheels as they move across the surface of the pavement without sticking as much because of the higher durometer. For a beginner, we recommend a wheel size between 50-56mm.
A safe bet generally can be to go with white wheels, as they are typically harder because they are not made softer by the use of dyes and the urethane. What will really make your wheels spin is a proper set of bearings.
At first, starting out get some cheap bearings while you learn the ropes. They will work to fit your needs without costing you an arm and a leg, and you can always replace them when you feel it is needed. I.e if the board begins to slow try removing and cleaning them first before replacing, as there could just be a build-up of dirt and debris which is slowing your roll.
But if you want to get some more expensive ones go right ahead, not only will they last longer they may work better in terms of speed for the long haul as well. The rating with bearings is something important to take note of as well.
They are rated on an ABEC system which determines how accurate and precise the bearings will be. The higher the rating the more precise and accurate you can expect the bearings to be for your purpose.
ABEC 1: This level tends to be the least expensive with the biggest chance for failure. Low quality steel can also give you additional problems.
ABEC 3: These can also be fairly inexpensive as well but do not roll smoothly or quickly.
ABEC 5: One of the most common types and standard for most types of skateboarding. You generally get a good speed at a good cost.
ABEC 7: You will find these to be quite a bit faster providing a smoother ride, but usually at a higher cost.
ABEC 9+: These are crazy fast! Great for a downhill skater or for those wanting to take life on the wild side.
Always remember as you get more into skating an become more advanced you can always start investing more money into it. At first it's best to find something that works for you, and to upgrade as you feel you need to.
Picking out hardware doesn't really have to be all too hard. Decide if you prefer the Phillips Head or the Allen Head variety which will determine the tool type you have to use to put together/ take apart your board. I.e a Phillips Head hardware set can easily be used with a standard Phillips Head screwdriver.
Make sure not to get very long bolts, a 1" basic set of hardware will do. You should have a total of 8 screws and 8 nuts, as well as your washers too.
**A good tip of the trade is to use different colored bolts to differentiate your nose and tail of your board. While skating you will find either side of the board performs very differently. While riding, unless you are doing a trick you always want the nose of the board to point forwards.
Without grip tape you would fall right off and never be able to land a trick. Grip tape keeps you on the board and allows you to hit that sick kickflip. With so many brands and types out nowadays, it can make it very difficult to make a choice.
Don't stress, pick a grip tape that is not too thick and grips your feet very well. Any of the styles of grip tape we carry will work perfectly for you. Starting out you can feel safe picking a basic grip tape that fits your board and later on you can spend a little more for a better design or for a name brand.
Consider This
You are just starting out, pick some basic stuff, put your skateboard together, and have some fun!
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