How to Choose a Skateboard

      I'm definitely not a sports person, but one sport that never ceases to amaze me is skateboarding. It's just amazing to witness someone gliding and moving around swiftly almost like air all while being on top of a board. Every time I see someone skateboarding, the sight makes me feel free. I know, that sounds very poetic but that's just how I feel about it. 

      I used to watch my brother skateboarding with his friends all while being under the scorching heat of the sun. It's the same brother who taught me how to ride a bicycle, by the way, him being the biggest sports fan in our family. Although I never had the chance to go skateboarding myself, looking at how my brother found joy with it makes me wonder so much about skateboarding and all of the things that has something to do with such as how one gets to choose the best skateboard for him or herself. 

        I asked around the skateboarders in our area and searched the internet for a basic guide and that's what I'll be sharing with you in this blog. Who knows you and I would get to try skateboarding, right?

        The first thing that I learned about choosing the most suitable skateboard is going to the right shop. There are so many shops that sell skateboards these days, even online, there is a plethora of them, but the question is, is it the right store for you? Why does this even matter and how could a shop possibly help you? The answer is lies to what's in the shop itself. The right shop will get your hands to the quality skateboards that suits your style and your needs. With that in mind, most of those are surely run by professionals who are capable of catering to your needs and could give you advice on how to board in general. Not only that, but they could also show you how a good skateboard looks like and could answer your queries that could help you with your future skateboard shopping sessions.

          Among other things, you also have to consider the size of the skateboard. Now, what are the things that you should look into with that matter? First and foremost is the size of the deck itself which depends largely on your size. For instance, if you are over 5'3" in height, the best deck size for you must have at least 7.5''.  If your height is between 4'5" to 5'2", choose the deck with the width of 7'3". If you're much shorter than the heights mentioned, choose decks with widths, not more than 7". According to a friend who skateboards a lot, this is another one of the main reasons why skateboarders must shop personally. That way, they could have the best grasp on the size of the skateboard decks that suits them best. Aside from the deck, the wheels of a skateboard matter a lot as well. The wheels contribute a lot on how your boards flip and glide. One thing that you should remember about it is that the larger the wheels are, the more grabs it could create.

       Talking about skateboard decks, one thing that should not be neglected is how it was constructed. That includes the material used in making it. maple wood being the most popular choice in making skateboard decks remains to be the best type of wood material in making it. That is because of the wood's durability and flexibility which are very essential when the board is being shaped.

        Another thing that I've learned is the importance of knowing the different styles of boards. There are four main types of boards and each of them varies depending on how you would like to skate. For example, on one hand,  shortboards are great when you want to perform tricks in skating parks. On the other hand, if tricks are not part of your interest, go for longboards or cruisers. 

        Once you have covered all the basics in choosing a skateboard, at least in terms of its parts, it's time for you to work on the style of your skateboard. Some might say that it doesn't really matter, but I think that if it's really a sport that you love, you are free to make it an extension of yourself. So yes, go ahead and decorate your board the way you'd feel like decorating it. It's your board after all. Plus, the more creative it looks, I'm sure that it could spark you some inspiration to keep on boarding especially if you're a newbie. 

         This may not be part of how you choose a skateboard, but make sure that you get your hands on safety gears that you're supposed to wear while skateboarding. Any sports is always much better when done safely.

          I hope this simple article helps you in choosing the skateboard of your dreams.