Choosing a longboard, cruiser or penny. Which board is right for you?

– Tell us why longboarding is fashionable?

Vlad: Longboards began their history in the middle of the last century. They appeared even before skateboards. Originally, a longboard was a flat long board on wheels, and skating was reduced to overcoming big turns at speed. However, in the 70s came the fashion for riding with jumps and tricks, and skateboards came to the forefront. Up until the 2000s, longboarding remained a hobby of a very narrow circle of people, and it seems that recently it has finally found its second breath.

Freedom of choice seems to be the reason for the popularity of longboards these days.

Different shapes for different riding styles have started to appear. It is now possible to customize the board to suit your individual needs. Longboard can now take and a lover of tricks, and a lover of speed, and even a lover of dance. It seems that the freedom of choice is the reason for the popularity of longboards these days.

– What varieties of boards does the Russian market now offer?

Vlad: There are a huge number of different kinds of boards on the market now. The most popular ones today are: skateboards (NewSchool), longboards (OldSchool), minicruisers (Penny). From the less popular ones we can distinguish snakeboards (a board with 2 additional axes of rotation and leg mounts) and waveboards (2-wheeled board with torsion joint). All the differences in the boards are due to different riding styles. Each style has its own performance requirements. Skateboards must be lightweight and have a set shape that manufacturers can’t move away from. The shape of longboards is virtually unlimited. However, a longboard must have good elastic properties and have wide suspensions for high speed. With minicruisers, everything is clear from the name – a small lightweight board that you can take anywhere.

– What about the wheels? Are they worth paying attention to? What should they be like?

Vlad: Wheels are one of the main parts of a longboard. The size of the wheels is directly related to the type of longboard. The bigger the wheels, the faster the longboard will go. However, with bigger wheels, your legs will get tired faster on long rides, so you need to choose a middle ground here. There is also such a thing as wheel stiffness. The stiffer the wheels, the less they lose speed on rough roads. For a comfortable, soft ride, wheels with a lower stiffness are much more suitable.

– Why do you make longboards?

Nikita: The idea of creating longboards came spontaneously. I just wanted to. We got together with the guys in the university library, drew up a plan of action, distributed the areas of responsibility and got to work. The task was to make a product that would meet not only the strength characteristics, but also so that anyone could afford to buy a board at an average cost, because at that time it was possible to buy only foreign longboards, the cost of which bite. In addition, our chip is that we give the buyer the opportunity to order your individual design, because everyone wants to stand out from the crowd.

– What are the popular shapes of longboards? What is the difference?

Vlad: There are five main longboard shapes: cruiser, freeride, dance, downhill and freestyle. “Cruiser” is designed for recreational riding around town. Most often has the shape of a fish and minimal curves of the board. “Freeride” is a universal type of longboard. Has pronounced curves of the board, as well as a special way of attaching suspensions. The base of suspensions in such longboards is located not at the bottom, but on top of the board. “Dance” – a type of longboard designed for dancing on the board. It has a very large length and width for easy repositioning of the legs. “Downhill” – a longboard designed for speedy downhill rides. It has the same suspension placement as a freeride, as well as a flex in the center of the board to improve turn control. “Freestyle” – a longboard on which you can do tricks, almost like a skateboard. At the same time, it does not lose its speed. It has pronounced bends at the ends of the board for making jumps and a length of about one meter.

If you move on the board at a fast pace, you can reduce the travel time by three times relative to walking.

– How long does it take to make one board?

Artem: We take two weeks to make a board, which is guaranteed to be enough time to create the board blank, make all kinds of refinements and changes to the pattern, apply it, complete assembly and delivery.

– How to learn to ride a board? What trivial mistakes do beginners make?

Artem: Try, try and try again, even if you don’t succeed. Everyone can learn it, and without a couple of falls you can’t go anywhere. There are special schools in St. Petersburg, where they help you to get up on a longboard faster. Mistakes of beginners can be in the purchase – for example, to buy in a dubious place cheaply that does not go and generally looks little like a longboard. And it is difficult to make a mistake in skating. The process is intuitively clear, and if you find a riding acquaintance or type at least once in the “google” search query “how to learn to ride a longboard?”, there will be no problems.

– On what surface is it better to stand on a longboard? Are there any preferable ones?

Artem: Asphalt, dry asphalt. Ideally, it is fresh asphalt, literally several days old. True, there are unique places, such as underground parking lots, special longboard platforms and other perfectly flat surfaces, but this is too cool. As for the ground in the park, you can certainly ride, but it’s either slow or painful.

Instructions for the beginner. How to choose a board for the season?

When choosing a board, you should first of all proceed from your own expectations from riding:

* if you enjoy recreational riding around town with friends without tricks and high speeds, then take a “cruiser” or “minicruiser” (if you’re too lazy to carry);

* if you want a more versatile board with which you can gradually enter all styles, then “freeride” is your choice;

* if you like speed and would like to race downhill, then downhill is your choice;

* if you want to learn tricks but have a fast, comfortable board, then freestyle is for you;

* and if you want to learn such an unusual kind of leisure activity as dancing on the board, then take “Dance”. We advise beginners to start with “cruiser” or “freeride” to learn how to ride and understand what style is your soul, and after that move to specialized longboards.

Thanks to Unique Longboards team for their participation in the shooting and preparation of the material.