Downhill Longboarding–Safe or Sorry?
Many youngsters have taken to the extreme sport of Downhill longboarding as a means to satisfy their need for speed. Speed. People nowadays can’t get enough of it. There are ample ways to reach ridiculous speeds: fast cars, to racing bikes, superbikes and skiing all break the bounds of ‘too fast’. However, a group of the longboarding community-a subset of the skateboarding community-seem to disagree. They ride their longboards, long, wide skateboards with big grippy wheels, down mountain roads at speeds between 30mph and 70mph, reaching 80mph at the professional end of the sport.
30mph. “Only 30mph!” you might say, “I can reach 65mph on a good downhill ski run”. Yes, I agree, it does sound a little slow. Yet, the first time I reached 25mph -and fell - on a small hill near my house I realised something: 30mph on a piece of wood on four urethane wheels over hard tarmac with just a helmet to protect your head and some flimsy gloves (not forgetting the snagging worry of the “death wobble”) all makes for a pretty terrifying experience. Then imagine what 70mph would feel like. Also, I have not mentioned how long boarders change their direction when they are faced with a sharp corner, typical of a meandering mountain road. They slide. At 70mph, they actively lose grip
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As Karl Kinley says, his son was not informed means of the dangers of the death wobble and the need to wear a helmet: skateboard adverts show helmet-less skaters. Companies need to wake up to the dangers, shops too, and inform people of safety gear needed for downhill longboarding. Longboards and longboard parts should come with manuals warning people of the dangers of longboarding and how to be safe. I’m all for the sport and will continue to pursue my need for speed, but I will always keep in mind what Karl Kinley states: “This information would have saved his
Why do I like snowboarding? To understand why I like snowboarding, you have to go to the root of who I am, an adrenaline junky. Going fast is who I am so when I strap my boots into my bindings for those pre-planned “speed runs” and the jitters set in, I know it's time to shred. Every season I snowboard, my skills continue to grow and I continually push myself to new limits whether it is hitting bigger jumps or going balls to the wall and going as fast as possible down the mountain. This seasonal
Snowboarding is one of the most enjoyed international pastimes. It presents you with this feeling of freedom and raw power as the cold air hits your face while you carve down the almost vertical mountain face dropping over steep clips and carving trough trees. These are just a few reasons why so many people internationally flock to the mountains to partake in this sport. Snowboarding provides people an escape from there comfort zone by pushing them to take on risks they would never have thought off before.
Skateboarding has rich history of innovation and is full of intriguing stories. Many of these stories are documented in this book in great detail. However, this essay will provide you with an overview of the last nine decades.
Somehow skating has managed to always be in my life. My earliest memories are times on my dad’s hawaiian longboard with him, riding me home from my old school. There would be time’s I’d be brought to someone's house and notice skateboarding on the tv. I didn’t really understand the videos or what a “part” was but I still had recognition for it. Without knowing a single person in the video or any of the tricks, I still somehow felt motivated to go ride. I saw the world through the eyes of a skateboarder, taking notice of all the culture. Eventually I was gifted a used board that was covered in stickers. Nowadays I put very few stickers on a board, but back then I’d be adding more constantly. It wasn’t long before skating became a lifetime friend that I’d wind up relying on throughout my ups and downs.
It was pleasant enough to be able to stand comfortably outside in a light jacket or sweatshirt. A perfect day to glide down a powdery mountain along with my best friend. The anticipation was building as I sat in the back of Mrs. Smith’s eighth grade classroom. In a matter of minutes I would be packing my gear into the car and traveling toward impending doom: Sundown Mountain, twenty one runs of exhilaration and danger. At that point in time I didn’t know whether to be excited or nervous. Snowboarding was completely new to me, not too much different than skiing except for the fact that my balance would be shifted differently. I struggled enough as it was keeping my balance on skis. How could I possibly be able to successfully maintain my balance on a board?
Skateboarding has been around since 1944. Initially, created as a crate with wheels and a bar used as a handle bar, the idea was slowly being more refined. Woman’s Army Corps Betty Magnuson, reported seeing French children riding on wooden boards with rollerblade wheels attached to them which would imply that the idea has been played around with but never capitalized upon. From crate boxes with handle bars, to popsicle shaped boards with specialty made wheels backed with a massive culture, skateboarding has become a popular industry.
Throughout time, the progression and evolution of snowboarding has increased greatly. It has gone from non existence in the late 1970’s, to one of the most watched action sports in a matter of thirty-five years. The upward takeoff and popularity of snowboarding relies on two people, Jake Burton and Shaun White. Jake Burton back in 1977 had the vision for what snowboarding would be, but Shaun White had what it took to manifest that vision. Evidence has shown that time brings change in sports, history has repeated itself with snowboarding, this history reflects the time & changes that has occurred in America.
It's tough to be a BEGINNER on a longboard. You stumble and thump it. Return home with bleeding elbows and skinned knees. It's wicked, but it's fun. There are various forms, sizes of longboards, but some are meant for newbie. The size, movement, weight distribution – everything makes a big difference. Thinking how tough it is for you, we are going to reveal the top 5 of the best longboards for beginners. Then, we could reveal the name of the king of the longbards that has won millions of hearts.
Imagine gliding down a city street in Boise, passing all the cars and the people and other boarders. Riding a longboard for transportation is fast, convenient, and fun. Longboards are used for both transportation and sport. The career I’ve chosen is working at a longboard shop, I’d be good at this career and happy working at it because I could help other skaters buy and fix boards. I love longboarding and I know how to tune up longboards. I love they way they are built and the way they work.
How to begin longboarding can be really easy or really hard depends on your set-up. Skateboarding shoes are perfect, but really, any shoes with a flat bottoms work well. This will help you grip the board better than if you were wearing running shoes. While it's possible to longboard in flip flops, don't try it until you at least know what you are doing! You also need a helmet. You'll need it when starting out, and you should always wear a helmet when doing anything fast, downhill, or anything even slightly dangerous! You're gonna want to use sliding gloves even if you're not sliding itll help if you fall.
Imagine this: you’re on the starting line, feet strapped firmly into boots on your snowboard. The start horn sounds, and you’re off, flying down the slope, jumping obstacles and landing tricks. Slopestyle snowboarding has gained popularity as an Olympic sport, even if it is pretty young. The lack of time the sport has been around doesn’t mean it isn’t well developed. It has a history, and many people competing with a set scoring system and rules.
Over the years as sports in the Olympics have progressed and changed, Snowboarding Halfpipe for Men and Women has become one of many people’s favorite events to watch. Snowboarding is a valued experience that many people enjoy. Although not all may agree, snowboarding has worked its way into numerous lives as a passion and a profession. Furthermore, here are many interesting facts to learn about snowboarding, but most people enjoy reading about snowboarding came to be, statistics, and the risk. Like most items, the snowboard was made for a purpose.
Originally made for surfers, the board was meant to act as a surfboard riding waves, but for pavement. In the 1960’s companies began to mass-produce these boards due to the spike in popularity. Some of the more earlier surf skaters were; Mark Richards, Bruce Logan, Torger Johnson, and Dannel Bearer (Skateboarding History). The first trick called the “Kick tail” which was established during the 1970’s as well as Urethane wheels, which provided more traction, speed, and displayed innovation (Skateboarding History). In continuation, skate parks, pros, skate magazines, and movies arose in quantity. In the 1980’s more style of skating was introduced, street style. Like the great awakening, skaters began to build their own ramps and rails to skate. The trend topic for attire was the infamous baggy pants, shirts, and retro shoes. Skateboarding finally hit exposure when they attended the first X Games. This rejuvenated skating from an underground sport to a spectator sport. The skaters who attended the X Games also get paid money that ranges from 1,000 to 10,000 a month (Skateboarding History,). These now so called “Pros” received their possessions based on wins, talent, placement in competition, and the quantity of contest they participate
Cory Sorensen Paulson 6B English May 4, 2014 Synthesis Essay Snowboarding is a great way to stay in shape, relieve stress, and it floods one’s body with joy and happiness; and if something makes you happy, engage in it till it doesn’t bring happiness to you anymore. The benefits of snowboarding are exponential when it comes to the performance of your mental and physical capacity. Mentally, snowboarding triggers the parts of the brain that feel the sensation of being happy.
The horn sounds. I race down the hill, wind blowing hard against my face. More speed per the second. With the knowledge that I could reach over 80 mph, I take the first turn, then another. The straightway is just ahead. Picking up speed down the hill, I wouldn’t dare shake my body. I cross the line in victory. Longboarding is aggressive, intense, smooth, and fast and gives you {word}. I believe longboarding should be an Olympic event. It’s similar to many events already in the Olympics, for example snowboarding. In my opinion, longboarding is ready for the Olympic stage.