Author Archives: bgladmin

Conquering Wheelbite

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What is wheelbite? Well, wheelbite is a longboarder’s worst enemy! Wheelbite causes bad crashes, scars, and even broken bones. However, if you know what wheelbite is and how to correct it, you will have no worries.

When a longboarder experiences wheelbite, this means that the wheels rub against the bottom of the deck in turns, causing the longboard to stop suddenly. When the board stops suddenly, guess what? The longboarder keeps moving! This can cause some major injuries.

How can you correct wheelbite? This is the simple part. Most of the time, wheelbite is caused by too little distance between your wheels and deck. So you can add risers to your trucks to give more clearance. You can also adjust the tightness in the wingnut of your trucks with a skate tool so that when you turn, your deck does not turn into the wheels. Another option is to buy smaller longboard wheels.

Before you get out there on your new longboard setup, just remember to test for wheelbite. Stand on the board and rock from left to right as if you are making a turn and have a friend look to see if the wheels are rubbing or not. Next, test the longboard setup in action at a slow speed, making sharp turns from left to right. If you come to an abrupt stop when making a turn, chances are you have wheelbite!

Now that you know how to spot wheelbite, get out there and have fun skating!

Damage to Your Longboard

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If you are new to longboarding or skateboarding, there is nothing like the look and feel of a brand new board. With all the smooth edges and sweet graphics, you would love to keep your new ride in great condition for as long as possible. When I received my first longboard, I felt this way. Soon, however, I realized that I had better get over it. Longboards and skateboards are meant to be used and abused. That are made to be destroyed.

There are people out there who love to take care of their stuff. I am one of them. If I pay a lot of money for something, I like to take care of it and make it last as long as possible. For some items, taking good care to protect the item makes sense. You just take care of the item as you use it, and hope it lasts a long time. For other items, though, you have to be willing to do some damage to them to get use out of them. A longboard, skateboard, or snowboard is a prime example. Even your favorite pair of shoes is going to be subject to wear and tear. So, instead of worrying about every little dent or ding to your board, get out there and skate! Skate it until it breaks and then buy another board. Trust me, longboarding will be much more enjoyable if you don’t worry about the small things.

– Adam

Longboarding in the Rain

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Its a perfect day outside, so you decide to longboard to your destination.  But when it is time to go back home, it is pouring the rain outside.  Can you longboard in the rain? Should you longboard in the rain?

Rainy Road

Of course you can longboard in the rain!  Some people have a great time in the rain and say that sliding is awesome on wet pavement.  Other longboarders say it is easier for them to wipe out, so they avoid it.

Should you longboard in the rain?  If you want your longboard and its components to last as long as possible, then the answer would be no.  Water seems to deteriorate everything it touches.  Your longboard has a lot of metal components, so when they come in contact with water, then they will be very prone to rust.  Your bearings will feel the biggest brunt of your time in the rain.  Getting the bearings wet can severely lessen their lifespan.

If you have to longboard in the rain, one option would be to ride a board with cheap bearings on those days, and save your more expensive bearings for nice days. Or you can also buy full ceramic bearings, which are rust resistant.  Always remember that if you do happen to longboard in the rain, to wipe off your entire board when you get inside.  Water can sit between the trucks and the deck and inside the hardware, so you may want to even take your trucks off and wipe them off as well.  This should help preserve some of the components.

Whatever you decide to do, always longboard at your own risk.

Thanks for reading!

– Adam