In August 2013, I walked into the Old Naples Surf Shop after hearing about their selection of “nice-looking” longboards from my wife. Two Sector 9 boards were on display in the window: Ride a Weed and Alt Energy Vehicles. I was interested in the latter. Ride a Weed seemed too provocative for me at 34, even if it was a reference to bamboo.

Many of my friends in high school were good trick skaters and street shredders, which directed my interest toward the sport. But I lived in the hills, seemingly long before this sweet downhill skating movement evolved. Even if it had allowed it, though, I would be kidding myself to think that my mom would have liked the idea any better. Skating was dangerous, and definitely off limits. Her mantra against it was about as persistent as the “You’ll shoot an eye out” warning against Red Rider rifles in A Christmas Story. I dismissed the idea myself when I failed to pop an ollie after my hundredth attempt. D’oh! Fail.

After moving to Naples, FL, I regained interest in skating after seeing a few longboarders glide effortlessly down one of the main sidewalks in town. However, I had no idea what it took make someone glide so effortlessly. I bought my first board at Sports Authority. It was one of those $39.95 Birdhouse boards that seemed cool at the time. I sweated like a hog trying to ride that thing. Walking with it tucked under my arm was more efficient than pushing it!

Pro Tip: If you are serious about getting into distance skating, go for an intermediate-level longboard, not a cheap beginner board. The idea is similar to buying an instrument. If you don’t like playing it, you eventually won’t.

It took two short rides to the end of my street to kill my interest in skating for a while. However, I kept seeing longboarders who made it look so easy and fun. And besides, Southwest Florida is longboard heaven. Or at least it should be. With so many road bikers and runners shaping policies, creating public awareness for rider/pedestrian safety and lobbying more bike lanes and paved park trails, a rider here can easily find several 15 – 20K routes for regular riding—The weather is perfect for year-round. And the area presents all sorts of hidden natural treasures, especially when traveling by board. I had to give it another try.

I didn’t know a lot about longboards when I entered Naples Surf Shop. As far as selection, I was motivated by the boards I remember seeing in the late 80s and early 90s. This shop had Penny Boards, Globe, and Sector 9.

I was most impressed with the A.E.V. board because of its shape (surf board with kick ~ 30”). It also had Gullwing Super Pro III trucks with soy-based wheels. It was definitely the fanciest board I laid hands on at the time.

Pros: Comfortable, well-constructed deck with slight concave and stiff action. Stable. Its forgiving 78a wheels and decent bearings made forward progress fast and smooth.

Cons: Had to stop and use kick to make significant turns. I will cover how to fix this in an upcoming post.

I will also describe the experience of this first ride in the next post . For now, I want to go over a few tips for new riders who are looking for characteristics of a decent

Research. Do it! If you are if you are interested in distance skating, check out the forums on Silverfish Longboarding and everything on Pavedwave.org. You can also use Google, searching for “best LDP board” or “best whatever distance board you are into.” I recommend this because I most likely could have avoided buying several boards that did not suit me if I had taken the time to conduct more thorough research

Deck. Characteristics of an ideal deck depend on how you want to spend most of your time. Some boards are designed for pushing, pumping, or a little of both. Find out what other skaters are riding and reviewing online for popular brands, sizes, and characteristics (i.e., flex, concave, dampening, and the like).

Ultimately, the undercarriage will affect performance more significantly, so I say go with personal style, color, and comfort here.

[If you are building a deck yourself, then this next advice will apply less to you. The idea here is to distinguish the quality of complete decks found in stores like

Wheels. A lot of people like a wheel somewhere in the 60 mm range with a durameter (that number with letter A or B, as in 78a) less than 80a. Personally, I favor 75mm and mixed durameter wheels (83a front, 80a back). However, 60 mm wheels are lower and easier to push initially. Wheels with a durameter less than 80a will be softer and smoother over small stones and road surfaces. Wheels over 80a will generally roll faster and will grip less under lateral force (good for sliders, but potentially problematic for some pumpers).

Bearings. While trucks and bushings make a huge difference with the overall performance of your board, entry-level riders might benefit more from focusing on bearings. My bearings right now are vicious. The black ceramic bearings scream in their channel as the wheels roll a good 2 – 3 minutes on their own after a good hand spin. By comparison, I tried this on a board at Target, which rolled for about a total of 6 – 7 seconds before halting its own progress. You don’t have to go crazy like me. Solid bearings ought to have a smooth roll that don’t seem to die off right when you let go of the wheel. The quality of the wheel, combined with the ease of the bearing roll will contribute most to the feel of your forward progress. People on forums frequently recommend ABEC – 7 rated bearings, whichever brand you like really.

Bushings. Most trucks come with fairly stiff bushings. While you will want to experiment with different bushing based on your weight and riding style, you may want to keep the stiff stock bushings when first learning to ride. The stability will allow you to focus on your pushing fundamentals without too much worry about balance.

That should get you I definitely began this journey with a lot less in mind. Longboarding has grown into a pleasant obsession that I hope you enjoy sharing with me. For more current information about my deck quiver and LDP progress, be sure to check out the other pages on Distance Skater as well.