What To Know About Longboard Skateboards

By Patrick Thompson


Skateboards are usually classified into several types including longboards. The various types of boards are similar in most aspects, with longboard skateboards being slightly longer than most others. The longer length and wheel size makes longboards to be used for different functions from ordinary boards. However, in essence, they are still sports equipment used solely for that purpose.

The length of longboards is usually very long, ranging between 84 and 150 centimeters. The width ranges between 22.8 to 25.4 centimeters. There are several different shapes of these devices including flat-nose riders, drop-through decks, pintails, drop decks, and swallowtails. Some come in the same shapes as standard skateboards. Pintails incorporate larger wheels and looser trucks, making them to be more suited for carving.

Conversely, drop decks and drop throughs feature smaller wheels and lower centers of gravity. These features allow them to be more stable and to travel at higher speeds. Longboards are designed to make big turns and fast short turns, which makes their motion to resemble surfers and snowboarders. The short axis, the tail axis, and the central axis are the three main axes on longboards. Tail axis runs from one tail to the other, while the central axis run through the center. The short axis makes a right angle with the tail axis and extends from the breadth.

Rob Thomas from New Zealand holds the record for covering the longest distance on a longboard. The record set by Thomas rests at 12, 159 kilometers. The record for the highest speed reached on land using these equipment is129.94 km/h. The record for the highest speed was set in 2012 by Mischo Erban. Longboards are commonly used for slalom racing, sliding, downhill racing, transport, and cruising.

Longboarders have the culture of wearing helmets than skateboarders. Professionals in longboarding are required to wear protective equipment whenever they are skating. Some of the protective devices they wear include helmets, wrist guards, slide gloves, knee pads, leathers, and elbow pads among others. Slide gloves are manufactured from strong materials such as synthetic fabrics and leather. They protect hands from injury when pivoting on the ground.

Decks are predominantly made using plywood, which consists of between 2 to 11 layers. The thickness of the layers is usually 2 millimeters. Some of the hardwoods used in the construction include oak, bamboo, birch, maple, and koa. The decks are usually made very light and stiff in most cases. Wheels are made hard or soft depending on the specific discipline for which the board is intended to be used.

The differences in the shape and size of the deck present different advantages and disadvantages that only manifest during use or based on personal preferences. Some designers make the decks flexible. Flexible boards are specifically meant for lower speeds because using them at high speeds usually causes torsional flex. Pliability of fiberglass make it to be used more often in modern flexible decks.

One can purchase a longboard from any store that deals with similar equipment. One can also buy from online sellers. There are many factors upon which prices are dependent, including material of construction, measurements, wheels, location, and shape.




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