What Are The Different Types Of Longboards?

Who does not like cruising, travelling or racing down the hill using a longboard? Isn't it an appealing activity you can do in your free time?

 There is hardly any person who can resist themselves from longboarding.

It is such an engaging sport that brings a lot of joy as well as thrill. But, if you get a wrong longboard, it can turn out to be dangerous, and you do not want to injure yourself while doing something that makes you happy.

So, you must choose the right longboard for your ride. But the question is, how to choose from different types of longboards? You can get advice from your friends or someone else, but are they the right people to suggest you that? Maybe not; so, what to do?

Well, that’s why we have brought you this article. We will discuss What are longboards and different types of longboards so that you can understand which one will be the best for you.

What is a longboard?

Longboards are a special kind of skateboards that are bigger than usual skateboards. These boards are easier to handle.Longboards have a larger and sturdy platform, softer wheels for better comfort. You can use a longboard to go around nearby places.

What are the different kinds of longboards?

Longboards are ofdifferent kinds and used for different purposes. So, you need to know for what purpose you are going to buy a longboard and which one will be suitable for you.

In the article, you will get to know different longboard types, so that you can find out the right longboard for your purpose.

Cruising Longboard

These are the most basic longboard types that you can use to go around your place. You use these types of longboards for going to a nearby market, park, riding with your friends and enjoy the time.

The unique thing about these boards is they have big wheels to make your ride comfortable.

It ensures the longboard runs easily on bumpy roads. The wheels are designed to absorb the shocks of riding on cracks and bumps. These types of longboards are top-mounted, and they have a pintail shape.

Carving Longboards

Have you seen people riding a longboard with a beautiful rhythm in an s-shaped motion? I am sure you must have. Carving with friends or even alone on the roads or parks is great fun.

These longboard types are usually similar to the cruising boards, but they are concave in the middle. It helps to keep your feet secure when you try to lean while you are riding in curvy roads and ups and downs. 

These types of longboards have relatively large wheel cutouts that prevent wheel bite while riding in a curved motion. Moreover, these longboards have ultra-soft wheels that help you maintain a better grip while you are taking turns.

Freeriding Longboards

These types of longboards are used for sliding on curve surfaces which needs better manoeuvring. To ride longboards on curves, you need to have some expertise.

So, usually, people use these boards when they have gained some knowledge of skating and controlling a longboard.

The wheels of these longboards are little smaller and harder as compared to other types as it allows a skater to slide efficiently. The hardness of the wheel let it lose the grip a bit which helps gain more speed and turn the board in sideways movement on a curve.

Freeriding involves some amount of risk. Since you use a Freeriding longboard on curvy surfaces and you have to slide a lot, so you should use a helmet and gloves while doing freeriding.

Dance Longboards

You must have noticed people dance on roads or parks while using longboards. It is very popular in the USA and different parts of Europe. However, it is not easy as it looks and the boards for dancing are designed specifically keeping many factors in mind.

A dancing longboard has a larger platform where you can spin, jump and cross your feet. The dancing longboards are flat as to maintain balance while performing different tricks on it.

 It also helps you move your feet all around the platform. These types of longboards are great for using on plain surfaces rather than using on curves, bumps or small hills.

So, if you have to use the longboard on flat surfaces on most of the time and rarely ride in hilly areas, these longboard types are the ones you must go for.

Push Longboards

These types of longboards are designed specifically to travel a distance instead of doing special tricks or activities. So, the platform of these longboards is lower than any other types to make it comfortable for pushing.

The lower the deck is, the easier it is to push and takes less effort as compared to push from a longboard with a higher platform.

These longboard types are not suitable any other purpose as the deck can hit the ground if you try to carve, cruise or dance on it. If you want to use the longboard for any other purpose like dancing or carving, you should not but these longboards.

Freestyle Longboards

As the name states, these longboard types are flexible quite similar to dancing longboards, but not as big as them. These boards are designed for stability so you can do a little bit of carving and dancing.

You can take sharp turns or twists. The wheels of these longboards are large and soft to ensure the wheels have better grip and stable.

Often Freestyle Longboards are confused with Freeride ones because of the names. However, freeride longboards have harder wheels, and these are designed to use on curved surfaces and sliding in hilly areas.

Electric Longboards

With different kinds of longboards, there is one thing in common; you have to push it to move. Some longboards types require greater push while some can be ridden with very little effort.

However, won't it be great if there is a longboard that does not require a push or putting any effort?

If you are looking for a longboard that can be run using electric rather than pushing, then electric longboards are the one you should look for. However, there are a few things you must know about this type of longboards before you ride it.

Since you will rely on the brake to stop it, so you must know when to apply brakes. Moreover, you must be aware of how much weight it can carry, how much time does it require to charge the battery and how far it can travel after charging fully.

Conclusion

Longboarding is a great fun experience, and everyone enjoys, especially the kids and youths. You can travel the nearby places like a store to buy groceries or to a market, spend time with friends while longboarding.

You can also slide in small hilly areas or enjoy dancing on a longboard. However, you must use the right types of longboards for different activities.  If you choose the wrong longboards, you will not enjoy it; rather you may injure yourself.

We have discussed different kinds of longboards and their specific usage in this article. You should choose the longboard depending on your choice. We hope you liked the article.