Summer maybe winding down and even if the waves aren’t up for you to catch, you can still make like a surfer with a very different type of board. Enter the skimboard, a three to four-foot wooden plank that literally skims on just inches of water. It is one that is easy to learn, and can better still doesn’t require that would be riders need be near a large body of water.
Thus the sport has been catching on in many parts of the country, especially those regions where it isn’t always possible to catch the big waves. According to a recent story in The Bellingham Herald in Washington, skimboards have been around since the early 1980s as an alternative to surfing, but this year has seen a pick-up in the sport. As the article notes skimming can also be relatively cheap when compared to surfing or even snowboards.
A quality skimboard might set you back from $150 to $200, but models such as the Victoria Woody Classic Skimboard retail for under $100. The Woody Classic features a resin mahogany plywood top with a fiberglass bottom that makes it ding and scour resistant, which is a good thing for those learning to do the basic running, dropping and jumping on the board.
While that flatland riding is common anywhere there are ponds or simple surfaces of water, it is noted that innovative skimboarders are increasingly adding tricks, many of which are akin to what skateboarders pull off – including ollies, spins and twists.
Here is where higher end boards come also into play. Once you move up in skill, DB Skimboards offers a range of products, including the “eco-friendly” Emile Bamboo Pro, a hardrock maple and bamboo board that features super cush EVA foam tractio, which can come in quite handy with bare feet and toes, along with waterproof epoxy laminating glue that holds the board together much like a traditional skateboard. This means that the DB decks should hold up through the most hardcore skimming. This board is also the stiffest you’ll likely find from DB and thus is made for jibbing, as well as the most intense flatland rail and box tricks.
The Emile Bamboo Pro will come in handy in the more extreme ponds, where there has even been the introduction of ramps and rails! Of course, purists will still say all you really need is a few inches of water and a decent board to catch that non-wave.