Best Longboards for beginners
Longboarding is a pretty exciting activity that can serve as both a hobby and an additional workout routine. It cuts across all age sets but is pretty popular among the youths. In case you are thinking of getting yourself a longboard and joining a million others, it is never too late.
This article will answer some of your questions as a beginner. It is normal to be curious when starting on a new venture and so we are here to guide you. I hope that you will gain all the insight you need as you start on this fantastic hobby.
Are longboards good for beginners?
Absolutely yes. Of all the boards available, longboards are the best option for beginners. Have in mind that as a beginner, you are pretty new to the game, and you probably have little to no skill to start with.
Longboards, therefore, offer full support and a good balance that are key to boarding, which you highly need as a beginner. Another good news is, there are longboards for beginners that are often made of durable and rigid materials that can withstand the heaviest of falls at high speeds.
As a beginner, you are not so acquainted with the stunts that come with skating, and therefore your primary concern is usually cruising. Longboards are perfect for this, a reason why they are wider and broader than other boards that are generally built for tricks.
The full structure of the longboard is also helpful to a beginner since, with it, one can easily manage falls. Have in mind that longboards are made for the speed run, which you need to perfect on when starting.
Another important thing that you will learn in skating or longboarding is braking. Now braking is usually a technical aspect that beginners struggle to grasp and therefore, you need a board that makes it easier for you when starting out, which is why a longboard is a good option for a beginner.
Longboards are also suitable for beginners because of their wheels. For anybody starting on longboarding, you will learn that the wheels of the board do count. Longboards have softer and reliable wheels that are essential when learning the basics of boarding. With these wheels, you also get to speed up pretty quickly.
You can always get other boards after, but when starting out, you should use a longboard.
What style longboard is good for a beginner
You first have to acknowledge that there are different styles of longboards you can choose from. However, you are limited as a beginner. In case you are wondering what is the best style longboard for you, we have something that might help you.
For beginners, I would recommend the Drop Through Longboard. Even though this type also serves the intermediate boarders, it more useful for those who are just starting out. How good is it?
This board has a deck with holes both in the nose and tail. It is called a drop-through longboard because these holes allow for the trucks to drop through the deck, which in return helps you drive low, achieving all the stability you need.
The drop through board is not only easy to ride but also offers different riding options that might interest you. You can therefore push, freeride, slide, carve, slide and even take your adventure downhill.
You get two types of decks, which are the stiff and flexy decks. For increased stability and better speed, I would suggest that you settle on the stiff decks. As a beginner, you can never go wrong with a drop through longboard.
We have touched on the stiff decks but not its flexy counterpart. Flexy longboards are made of bamboo and fibreglass. They are similar to snowboards since they flex as you ride. They do not, however, offer a variety of riding styles, which is a significant disadvantage for a beginner. They are suitable for intermediate riders and not beginners.
Another style of longboards a beginner can get is the drop down longboard, which is also easy to ride. They are made of boards that typically drop down hence their name, and in this case, the foot platform. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
With the foot platform dropped down, one can comfortably ride low to the ground, which, as we mentioned, is pretty good for beginners due to the level of stability achieved. This style of longboard is pretty similar to a drop through longboard since they both allow the rider to go as low as possible.
The only difference that exists between these two is the tightness of turn and the leverage they provide. Dropdown longboards have a tighter twist and more leverage as compared to the drop through counterparts.
The third style that would serve best a beginner is the push/commuter longboard, which, just like the other two, allows you to ride low and stable. This longboard allows for longer rides that are helpful for training.
The board incorporates three styles, two of which we have talked about. You, therefore, get both a drop through, drop down and double drop design. The only difference is that this class is not as long compared to these others.
The push longboards are also pretty comfortable.
What kind of longboard should a beginner get?
In longboarding, you need to be quite selective as a beginner because you need the right board to develop and perfect on your skills. In case you want to know the kind of longboard suitable for you, here is something.
As a beginner, your longboard should help you achieve the highest level of stability possible to avoid dangerous falls that may bruise you or dislocate a bone.
The kind of longboard you need, therefore, be broad enough so that the center of gravity is spread out. You also need softer wheels that will help you speed up quickly. The trucks and the decks should also be wide enough for added stability.
The best board in this case, therefore, is the cruising boards that offer the perfect balance that is key in boarding. Such boards are also suitable for kids who might not be as good at stability.
Is a drop down longboard good for beginners?
Absolutely yes. A drop down longboard would be a crucial asset for anybody starting out on longboarding. This board, also known as the drop platform board, is one of the commonest boards we have around.
These boards, just like their name, have a dropped platform that lowers your center of gravity as a rider and, in return, helps you achieve more stability. Remember, when starting out, stability and balancing are essential skills you need to learn, similar to cycling.
You can also initiate slides easily because of the low platform since you are closer to the ground. It is also easy to initiate and control the slides as a beginner thanks to the dropdown middle section that offers a firm grip to the board.
As a beginner, you need longer rides when training and improving your skills. The drop down longboard is perfect for this because pushing is made easier since your feet do not transverse a longer distance.
The middle section of the dropdown longboard is also lower than the ends, which protects you as a beginner from high speeds as you go down the hill. So absolutely! Drop down longboards are good for beginners.
Is a Pintail Longboard good for beginners?
Even though professionals mainly use pintail longboards, they are still pretty good for beginners. So yes, you can get yourself a pintail longboard as a beginner. In case you want to know why, here are some of the reasons:
Pintail longboards have a pretty flexible deck to help you achieve casual cruising with your board. This level of flexibility helps reduce the shocks that are occasioned by rough and bumpy roads. A good type of these boards is one with a bamboo deck. This level of flexibility allows you to achieve even higher speeds while going downhill.
Pintail boards also have larger wheels, which are suitable for speed. To ensure that you do not give up stability, settle for thicker wheels, which will be helpful while riding on a normal road. Remember, we said that stability is critical for a beginner. ‘
It would be best if you had soft wheels for proper longboarding when starting out, a factor that pintail longboards never lack. This board has soft wheels to help you perfect on cruising and carving, some of the most sort longboarding skills.
Pintail longboards have relatively longer and broader decks that come at an advantage. Such decks offer a more extensive wheelbase ensuring that you are as comfortable as possible in return. A wider deck also deals with wheel bites, which is a significant problem.
The last reason why a pintail longboard will serve a beginner is because of the bearings. You get two options to choose from, the standard metal bearings and the relatively high-quality ceramic bearings.
A secret that you ought to have on mind, however, is that ceramic bearings are the best when it comes to cruising. This is because they are relatively smoother and last much longer provided they are maintained.
As you continue learning and perfecting, you will need high-quality bearings for precision.
What are the different longboarding styles?
There are several longboarding styles that you need to be aware of as a beginner. These are:
- Downhill
The downhill riding style is one of the extreme and pretty dangerous styles in longboarding. It involves super high speeds, and therefore you need not only a quality longboard but also a higher level of precision.
Just from its name, it involves riding downhill and requires around 60mph on average. It, therefore, entails a lot of speed, hand sliding, drifting and flipping. It is quite technical, and I would not recommend it for beginners.
For downhill, you have to slide your hands across the surface while performing rather difficult drills at the same time, and therefore, you need slide gloves with plastic pucks. This style is therefore suited for only experts.
For this, you will need about 70-80mm long and 50-70mm width.
- Cruising
This is one of the most common longboarding styles among several people. It is not complicated and involves going around town or from one place to another on your skateboard. It can, therefore, be executed by any board.
As a beginner, this is one of the easiest styles you can try out.
- Carving
This is more of a technique than a riding style. It involves making several turns either to the left or right while focusing on a particular direction. This is pone of the most sought-after longboarding styles, and you will find it pretty amazing with time.
Carving can help you turn, slow down or pump, techniques that you will perfect on over time.
- Dancing
This style involves dancing alongside other tricks while on your longboard. It requires you to use both the body and the feet to pull some creative moves while having the perfect balance at the same time.
- Freestyle
This style allows longboarders to explore their creativity and try out anything they can achieve with their board. It, therefore, mainly entails different stances. You will see riders flipping, incorporating side steps and even kickflips.
This is one of the most ideal styles for you as a beginner.
- Freeriding
This style is quite similar to downhill riding, just that it incorporates other techniques such as power slides and exploration of creativity. Just like downhill, this style requires the use of side gloves with plastic pucks.
It, however, leans more on slides as compared to the downhill style. You will also see spins and curbs. As a beginner, this is an ideal style since you will get the chance to improve on your balance, speed and overall performance.
Conclusion
Starting out on longboarding should not be a problem once you know what to look out for. Make sure that you get the right board. I hope that this article has helped answer some of your questions.