Longboarding refers to a prominent style of skateboarding. The longboard features an elongated design compared with the conventional street model. While street skateboarding focuses on flipping and spinning the board, longboarding centers around executing high speed turns. The sport of downhill longboarding dates back to the invention of the skateboard, which took place in the 1950s.
Inspiration
California surfers invented longboarding as a way to stay occupied when the waves were flat. Surfers soon began to realize that they could recreate the turns of the surfboard on the paved longboarding terrain. These do it yourself riders took it upon themselves to construct some of the earliest longboard models. These primitive designs featured a plywood construction as well as roller skating wheels. According to Skate Log, the companies Makaha and Hobie began to produce the first surf-inspired longboards in the 1960s.
Longboard Innovation
Avid riders began to push the capabilities of the longboard. The clay wheels of the 1960s models did not provide adequate grip for high speed turns and techniques. Government officials began to deem longboarding unsafe, which caused a significant decrease in the popularity of the sport. A breakthrough took place in the early 1970s. The invention of the urethane wheel helped to revolutionize the sport. The urethane wheels helped to provide better traction allowing for new and innovative maneuvers.
Longboarding Slump
The 1980s and 90s saw a serious slump in the popularity of longboarding. With the invention of the curved kick tail, street skateboarding began to take over. Concrete skate parks began to pop up across the U.S. Skateboarding magazines began to showcase freestyle ramp maneuvers as opposed to the high speed longboarding turns. Skateboard technology continued to grow, which helped to further improve the longboard design. Throughout the 1990s, longboarders began to organize downhill races and slalom events.
Modern Longboarding
As of 2011, professional longboarders can hit top speeds of more than 30 mph. According to "The New York Times,' modern longboards generally have a length of around 34 inches and feature large wheels that have a soft construction. Longboards now feature wide trucks that have been adapted for increased turning capabilities. Top of the line longboards have been constructed out of numerous layers of maple veneer. The longboard is then covered with a thin layer of sandpaper-like material known as grip tape.
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