size progression

parky · Kickflip Joined: 04 Oct 2004 Posts: 3193

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed how the board sizes have been getting smaller and smaller every year... and more people are riding smaller skates

like two years ago the smallest skate someone would ride was the Byerly or Tech 42... anything below that was way to small...

do you think it will keep getting smaller or is the 39-41 range the new skate sizes

Vance Collins · Guest

EvanPark,

I think it has to do with age. Each year younger and younger riders are learning how to wakeskate, and 41" and 42" are way to big for a 85 lb kid.

cfxomega · Frontside 180 Joined: 29 Jul 2004 Posts: 466

it's because a lot of new skates have a wider tip/tail and that makes for more surface area...so you can have a shorter board and still have the same surface area
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Nekkie · Posted: May 30, 2005 7:34 pm Post subject:

it might also be because riders are becoming better as time goes and can manage smaller decks that may allow for more tech stuff... just a tought lol

but I wouldn't see myself riding something smaller than 38-39 tho Razz

-=AlexXx=- · Posted: May 30, 2005 9:43 pm Post subject:

Nekkie, deffinily, smaller skate = techier stuff, u can spin in quicker, and have better controll and stuff, like the 39, sick board, lips stuff is ez, 360's = cake. First time ever riding one i landed 360 shuv first try. I dont think they are gunna be getter smaller. 38 i think is cutitng it close, i like 40-41 i would even ride a 39 but i lik ethe feel of a 41.

jboss · Kickflip Joined: 22 Jun 2004 Posts: 3210 City: Chalmette

Mr. Top Hat · Dead Joined: 29 Aug 2004 Posts: 5818

ive ridden a 35 inch skate and its wayyyyy to friggen small. it snapped like a skateboard though. like not just how people say it feels like a skateboard, but you had to do a skate style ollie on it where you drag your front foot. it was fun but just to small. you cant derive any power from such a small stance.

HatzicScape112 · Posted: May 30, 2005 11:26 pm Post subject:

wider stance = more POWA!!!..heh, yah small skates aren't going to be in the future i don't think, becasue it woudl be too hard so ollie and do tricks and land on the board at 20 MPH

electricsnow · cassette Joined: 14 Sep 2003 Posts: 10756 City: Jefferton

Yeah, I think a lot of it has to do with the way tricks have gone. As alexx and others have said, a smaller skate will flip and spin quicker and easier. Yeah, good riders can make anything work (like byerly 360 shoveing a flight 69, and jason messer doing...lots of cool stuff on a 137 josh smith).

And I was thinking about this, and some boards are reflective of a rider's personal style. As an example, thomas is into skate principles and those "design theories" behind board design, so he likes a smaller board. On the flip side, you have a guy like brian grubb who is a wake to wake dog and his smallest board is a 112 (I think that's right around 45 inches, maybe slightly smaller). But you know, each guy can still kill it on their respective boards in any riding situation, whether it be on rails, wake to wake, or tricks out in the flats.

But then you have an anomaly like danny hampson, who's seemingly shorter than both reed and thomas, yet prefers a longer skate. And when you check out his stance in asterisk, he's stinky wide and literally uses the entire 42 inch space on that old 4-trac. It's seriously crazy to me, but totally cool that he'll use those 42 inches in completely different ways, depending on the trick.

Anyway, decks can only be so small before they plow water and don't hold the rider up. And even though a 41 inch deck seems to be a "common ground" type size, there are riders that still think 41 inches is too small. The only thing I know is that not many people like a 46 inch deck, hence the death of the hessian vert dog... Wink

PIRATE · Guest

mmmmm, hesh, yeah

o.k honestly i think that a 41 is the right size for me. idk about you you'll have to make up your own mind.

mike.h · Posted: May 31, 2005 5:30 pm Post subject:

is there like a board finder thing like what boardstop has so you can find the general size board for you?

senorbueno · Backside 180 Joined: 28 Sep 2004 Posts: 1593

mike.h, it's all about feel. Like ESnow said, sometimes smaller people (Danny Hampson) like to ride bigger boards. I think if you get a board in the 40-42 range, you will be safe, unless you are pretty small, than you may want to consider a 39, and keep experimenting until you find what's right for you, no one else can tell you what you like. If you buy a board, and think it's too small/big, you could always sell it, but for a beginner, I don't think that 1-2 inches is going to make a world of difference or anything.

tribal · Posted: Jun 01, 2005 9:10 am Post subject:

I'm personally a fan of bigger boards, 42"-43", but I'm more into w2w and taking stuff big than tech.I guess I'm also 6'3" and 215lbs.