Longboarding is a fun activity you can try at various difficulty levels and implement your style with skills and tricks. A popular version is downhill longboarding, which consists of riding your longboard on a safe road and traveling at higher speeds.
These five key essentials of downhill longboarding will help you achieve your goals while safely developing your skills. Time and consistency are the best teachers, but you can always speed up the process with the right knowledge and continuous fun.
Protective Gear
Protection is one of the most important elements of downhill longboarding because traveling at high speeds on concrete roads can get dangerous. Wearing the right protective gear, like gloves, a hard helmet, knee pads, and the right shoes, will make a positive difference in your experience. Different brands have the necessary gear depending on what you want to accomplish and how far you want to go.
Equipment
The right equipment for longboarding will make the difference with safety, manipulation, and your development on the road. A downhill longboard complete is the best option to work on your skills and feel a progression. Designers and manufacturers know every last detail about a board, enabling them to create unique features for specific activities you can enjoy.
Tucking
Longboarding downhill relies on speed to deliver better results, and longboarders use every feature and detail of their boards for a better experience. Learning to tuck while riding is essential because it gives you better speed management to conquer new abilities. Tucking will reduce wind resistance, but it might feel like you are getting a push while holding a weird position. Still, it will help your control and balance.
Slowing Down
Slowing down is essential for downhill longboarding because it will prevent accidents, injuries, and unwanted situations on the road. You must master balance and strength to slow down effectively; you must drop your foot to the ground and drag it along the road to reduce speed. This action might feel dangerous or wrong at first, so that’s why you must start slow and feel the movement of your body to learn the process.
Turning
Most roads are not straight, and this is for safety reasons, especially when these roads go up or down a hill. Shift your body in the direction you want to go and place your feet at a wider angle on the board to turn effectively at moderate to high speeds. The tightness of your trucks will greatly influence this ability—looser trucks will make it easier to balance, while tighter ones require more strength and time to turn.