Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with skateboarding

Surf/skate book recommendations?

EnormousTalkingOnion — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:18:37 -0800

Are there any great books about surfing or skateboarding?

How do I keep those durn' kids off my lawn?

codacorolla — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 07:40:59 -0800

Is there a way to control skateboarding on public grounds while being fair to skateboarders and not causing them to feel persecuted? I browsed the archives first, and came across this:
Why prevent skateboarding?

This particular question seems to come from the perspective of the skater. Recently I've started working for a public library where skateboarding is a concern. Our parking lot draws local skaters, and it eats up a lot of staff time asking them to leave. In fact, if I remember myself from my teenaged years, the constant badgering probably makes them want to do it even more.

The branch manager has asked for a 'no skateboarding' sign on a few occasions, but upper management wants to phrase it in a more positive manner before they pay for signs.

Our branch is about a 1/4 mile from the middle school, which means our building is a hot-spot for kids from 3 o'clock to around 5. The best solution to the problem would be to have a skatepark within distance of the school, but that probably won't happen given the current economic climate, and the general conservative nature of our community.

We don't even mind the boarders so long as they're using their boards as a means of conveyance; but they tend to congregate in one spot in the parking lot to do tricks and hang out. This, of course, creates a huge liability for us if someone ever got hit by a car, and is dangerous for the boarders.

The first solutions that come to my mind are: creating an informative program that gives out our policies while offering something entertaining for the kids (good luck on getting attendance though), just buckling down and yelling at the kids every time they break the rules (engenders bad feelings, and might make the problem worse), putting in no-skate measures (probably too expensive, also might make the problem worse).

I was wondering if anyone has any creative solutions for the problem, or has ever had to deal with a similar situation.

Trying to find a random photo

nitsuj — Sat, 23 May 2009 17:09:38 -0800

Longshot filter: Sometime in the mid-90s, Big Brother magazine ran a photo of a male skateboarder sitting on a bench or concrete wall, skateboard in hand, and a female next to him, kissing him on his cheek. Is this photo online? I think it was in black and white, if that helps! Either the male or female was blonde -- possibly both.

What kind of sport involves roller shoes ridden like a longboard?

optimuscrime — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 10:04:50 -0800

It's sport identification time, hive mind. There's a kid I see around campus who travels using... well, they're sort of like roller skates. Except where roller skates' wheels are fixed and point forward, these are pivoting and are ridden sideways, as if you're riding a longboard without the board. He seems to basically just 'surf', leaning into curves, etc. It's quite amazing to watch, but I can't find any information about this sport/mode of conveyance.

Where are the good skateparks in MA?

not_on_display — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 11:59:01 -0800

Good skateboarding parks in or around Cambridge MA, or less than a 20-minute drive therefrom? Whadda they have? Any good public places where skateboarding isn't frowned upon, with stairs, rails, curbs? For a 13-year-old who is at the basic level and wants a challenge. Suggestions further out of the area are also welcome.

gift for a skaterboi?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 19:39:47 -0800

My bf's birthday is in two weeks and well I have no idea what to get him. He has been skateboarding for a long time in the NYC area (his spot is the Globe and some parks in the city) and very much into the culture, which I don't know too much about. I would like to get him something skate related but don't know what exactly where to look or for what. I'm thinking of possibly dvds (he likes watching skateboarding videos) or clothing. He has his own board so I won't be getting him another unless he is there to pick it out, but I want to surprise him so.....any suggestions?

What's the most amazing skateboard video?

felix — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 10:19:09 -0800

What skateboarding video is most likely to make my monocle pop out, my top hat fly off, and cause me to run around the room slapping my ass with both hands and declaiming a total lack of belief? I've never been much of a skater and couldn't tell the difference between a flipside nosegrind and a goofy suicide ollie if my life depended on it. But I enjoy good sports camera work, and since my 6 year old son's life now revolves around Tony Hawk (praise be unto him), I'd like to see and show him some really great street/bowl/ramp skating work. Highly dangerous is fine, but since the audience might include a 6 year old anything with dramatic failure involving compound fractures might be a bit much.

Best recent skateboarding video?

imaswinger — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 10:42:31 -0800

Best recent skateboarding video? I stopped following skating around the time Big Brother magazine came out. I'm just wondering what the best representation of the current scene would be. I don't need Jackass antics a la the Whiskey videos, just crazy skating that would blow my mind. I've seen a few clips like danny way's record jump and mullen's street skating and it's really motivated me to sit down and watch a couple full-length vids.

Oldschool vert skateboard decks?

loquacious — Fri, 11 Nov 2005 00:48:20 -0800

Old school vert skateboards for fat old nerds. Any adult riders out there? I'm having a hell of a time finding sources for suitable vert, ramp or pool boards and gear for adults and larger people. I figured by now, nearly 10 years into the new wave of public/municipal and private vert skateparks it there would be a resurgence in old school or new school vert skateboard decks and hardware.

All the boards I'm finding are tiny little cookie-cutter twin-tip boards better suited for 50 pound kids that would rather bust nothing but kickflips in their driveway rather than rocking smith grinds in a pool or doing power carves in a bowl.

I need a big, beefy board, as I'm a big heavy nerd. 30-32-34 inches long, 9-10+ inches wide. Hopefully oldschool single-tip spoon nosed with a more modern but easy concave, but hybrids or workable vert-riding twin tips are ok. 7 ply hard maple. Big old plastic slide/grab rails. Etc.

Independent Truck Co still makes the 215 truck, which is something like 10" wide, but I can't even find boards that fit this kind of width.

I have a 28-30" x 8.5" twin tip, and it's just too damn small. The wheels are too small, trucks too narrow, etc. My center of gravity is kind of high on that size of deck, and my stance is too narrow, and I've got huge feet. It's frankly a pain in the ass to ride in concrete bowls, halfpipes and parks, and it just feels too light and squirrelly.

Does anyone have any first hand (or second hand, or third hand) knowledge of quality modern manufacturers of real vert riding boards?

I'm just about to give up and go scrounge some 7-ply hardwood up to shape and press my own deck. Which, frankly, might not be that bad of an idea. It might be the start of a business. I know how boards are made in theory, and while I don't have a hydraulic press or mill, I could do a steam+weight jig.

However, I know the boards exist out there. Some where. I've seen people riding them. Where did they get them? Who's making them?

Why prevent skateboarding?

richtea — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 19:59:35 -0800

Why prevent skateboarding? On my daily walk home past QUT in Brisbane I've noticed that they have just spent a considerable amount of time (and money I imagine) carving large chunks out of the concrete seating around campus presumably to stop skaters using it.

It got me thinking of how much money has been spent developing anti-skate street furniture, and this seems odd - why not develop furniture that skaters and pedestrians can use without it getting damaged and looking crappy after a fairly short time - accentuated by the skaters seemingly endless pursuit of removing anti-skate devices by breaking them off etc.

My only conclusion is that it must be to do with liability insurance, or do the authorities just hate skaters?

how does an ollie work?

TeamBilly — Mon, 28 Mar 2005 18:13:41 -0800

Skateboard filter: My son, an 11-year-old budding skate rat, just asked my wife how an ollie works, specifically, the physics involved. I started trying to work out an explanation in my head, but I couldn't come up with anything clear. Frankly, I don't exactly know - I just know that if you sorta kick down on the board with your back foot and take your weight off the front, you get a little air.

Those of you smart people, can you tell me, I guess why an Ollie happens or what is happening when you do it?

Help me buy my wife a good skateboard

justgary — Sun, 11 Jan 2004 19:13:29 -0800

So my 27 year old wife has suddenly decided she wants to become a skate boarder. She wanted to learn in 3rd grade, but got a bike instead. She now wants to make up for lost time. I know nothing about skate boards. How much will it set me back for a decent skateboard? Obviously she doesn't need a board made by Tony Hawk, but she's pretty serious and doesn't give up easily, so I'd at least like to invest in a board that she can get better on and isn't so crappy it holds her back.