Rainwheels Update

There has been an update on the rainwheels that Endless is working on. The picture below shows the first set we have made and are going to test out and yet make better. Endless strives for the best, and can't stop till that has been achieved. Endless Rain Wheels.

Endless Rain Wheels
Made from a Sector 9 wheel

Go Longboard

Wrapping up January I thought I might do something a little different and post a few of my favorite longboarding videos. They are awesome videos and you're gonna want to go longboard after watching them. Enjoy!

PS: February is going to be nothing but trick how-to's so if your stuck on a trick, be ready!

Define: Longboarding

Longboard: A longboard is a skateboard with a longer and sometimes wider shape used for longboarding. They are most commonly used for cruising, downhill racing, slalom racing, or transportation. Longboards can be shaped in various different ways, depending on the type of riding intended.
Longboarding: Longboarding is the act of riding on or performing tricks with a longboard.

Endless Longboards is all about telling you the wonders of longboards, how to get the most out of your experience, and how to maintain not only your board, but safety and persona along your journey; however the term longboard has never really been explained. The term has never been broken down and shown for what it really is.

Michael Kosmoski:
Endless Longboards founder.

What is a longboard? What are they good for? Why? These questions are simple. A longboard is a skateboard, however typically longer [as stated in its name] and can be used for casual riding, downhill, tricks, and much more. Invented somewhere in the 1950's from surfers looking for something to do when the oceans were flat, skateboarding started from roller blade wheels attacked to 2x4's for primarily carving (like a surf board). From there became the sport we now see today, especially known for being revolutionized by the Z-Boys under the Dogtown label in the 1970's. From there, all kinds of skateboards and longboards boomed into what we see today. Longboards and downhill racing is a booming industry however. Due to its lack of publicity and advertising, downhill racing has remained, in a sense, a secret to the general public due to the sole fact that no one really pushes it in the current market.

Longboarding: sport, casual, hobby, lifestyle. All things longboarding is, but it's also much more. To myself, it is all of these. A career in the longboard industry to bring it to the public is a dream. Just a dream. Until the day I can help the industry out more than a blog, I will do that. Until then, ride on. Endless longboarding forever. Endless.

Your Wheels and You

A lot of people wonder what they are doing wrong when it comes to longboarding. Whether they are trying to slide, bomb hills, slalom, or whatever they do with their board, most people make the same mistake. It's not always a small tip or adjustment to help you preform better, it's all in the wheels you have. The basic parts of a wheel are simple to understand and will be broken down for you: Wheel diameter, contact surface, and hardness.

Wheel Diameter
Longboard wheels are most traditionally meant for cruising with a basic range of 60-100 millimeters. This range is much greater than those of a skateboard and allow for a smoother ride. Typically, the larger the wheel diameter, the smoother a ride you will have. The slalom scene usually have a larger wheel because of their smoothness in riding and also makes it easier on he bearings in the long run. Smaller wheels rotate more to get the same distance but accelerate typically quicker than larger ones. For slalom go larger, for hills go smaller.

Contact Surface
When riding, you need to know if you will be wanting to stick your wheels to the ground more of have more ability to let the longboard slide freely. The wider a wheel you have, the more contact surface to the ground it has, and typically will hold the ground better which can become very useful in a slalom type setting. The narrower a wheel, the less contact surface it will have, and typically let go of the ground easier. More contact surface also means more friction and can let the board slow down faster and accelerate less. Exceptions to these rules can be determined on the wheel hardness.

Wheel Hardness
Your style will be either sliding or not sliding, it's that easy. The hardness is determined by the durometer A scale [which is how dense the wheel is]. Softer wheels are seen around the 75A range, but can differ up and down from that. Harder wheels can be seen anywhere from 86A up to 99A. The softer a wheel, the more traction it will have in holding the concrete, and opposite for hard wheels (they let go and slide on concrete fairly easy}. The hardness can affect your riding a lot because on slalom you will normally want a softer wheel, downhill might want a medium wheel (depending if you want to slide or not), and other sliding will want a hard wheel.

Additionally!
Those three factors are just the basics. Wheels also come with a few different shapes as well. The shape of a wheel is typically either with rounded edges or squared off edges. Casual riding and slalom take a squared edge because when turning that edge will catch concrete and hold traction very nicely. Rounded edges on wheels are great for sliding because they have no extra edge to catch concrete and just let go to start the slide.

Burn Longboards

Dregs Skateboards has something out that I ran across while on the Skates on Haight website. This is something I have never heard of or even thought of doing on a skateboard or longboard. Designs so intricate, detailed, and so perfect that you honestly cant ride the board just because they are too valuable or just look too damn clean.

Who came up with this idea? If it was a guy then I want to be his best friend, and if it was a girl, marry me? Burning a design on to wood with a etching laser is unheard of unless you have a master artistic mind or your just a little but crazy. Either way, these boards are some of the sickest boards you will ever see and you don't want to pass them up.

Limited on Skates on Haight you can get these amazing boards with perfected burnt designs, and you can get them either deck or complete board! I would get them before they run out because they are advertised as a limited edition item. Personally, I just started work back up and I will be looking to buy one of these bad boys as soon as that pay check rolls in and in no time will I love it.

Get them while they last, because I might steal them all. Check out this website by clicking HERE to see some more of these perfection boards with laser etched work. B-e-a-u-tiful.

Ride On. Ride Strong. Ride Long. Endless Longboards. Except.. don't ride those, you don't want to mess up the wood work.

Rain Wheels

Today, inventing things takes an honest crazy person because most everything has been made that we would ever need. So what next? Why not take what we already have and make it better? Endless Longboards has been playing around with some spare wheels that have been laying around for a while, and put them up to the test: what will be the next and best rain wheel?

Endless Longboards Rainwheels Concept

People think that rain wheels can only use those few straight lines down the middle as good water placement, well if that were true then car tires wouldn't look so crazy. With inspiration from car tires, the side cuts were put on to the wheel to ultimately push excess water away from the wheel and let it ride as if it were dry outside. This design could revolutionize the way we longboard after a nice rainfall. Sacrificing too small amounts of wear and speed to be noticed the wheels will let a riding roll over water as if it were never there.

However there is one small flaw to the design: there will have to be seperate patters for both left and right sides of the board. The diagonal cuts must land middle-side-in in order to push water out. If they were to be placed the on the other side of the board, they would in fact push water under the wheel and cause unwanted (or maybe wanted if your crazy) slides. A more universal fit is being worked on however, but for now these will be tested and worked with until further notice.

Ride On. Ride Strong. Ride Long. Endless Longboards.

Longboarding Protection

Recently on a long ride I took, and many slides later I come home to a lot of pain. This pain was from the falls I took doing different tricks and slides that I have yet to perfect, and some others were burns from sliding down a grass hill. The pain was almost unbearable that night but many baths and much pain gel later, I was better and inspired to write about how not to get hurt.

Many longboarders can hop on their boards, give a good kick and just roll, making is look easy. This however is not the case. There is more than just pushing off and maintaining your balance that goes into riding that many people don't fully understand at first and can lead to a few wipe outs early on. It takes practice and acquired skill to learn to ride and do tricks that you see others do. How quickly you learn however depends on you and how willing you are to take a few chances and try things out.

To start, there is only one thing between you and the pavement when you are on your longboard - your protective gear. Without this you will have many more injuries that you normally would even with your gear on. Note that your gear will not protect you from everything, but it will help you out a lot (and protect the important parts of your body) when you absolutely need it to. You can start out with a helmet, elbow and knee pads, sliding gloves, and some wear shin guards. Many of these will feel really awkward on you at first but they all serve a very important role when it comes to protecting your body from harm in the long run.

For beginners, many might notice that they will fall more than they will ride, and this is expected a lot of times too, but with the said protective gear above, they will lose fear of the ground and it will help them to being a better rider in the long run. Trust of your self and of your gear is a huge part of longboarding and getting better faster. Many people will want to take off their gear because it feels awkward or they are falling less and that is ok, however it is recommended that all riders leave their helmet on at all times because the head is the most important part of the body.

Longboard more and get comfortable on your board and with your gear, it's the best way to get better, especially in the beginning. Knowing your board is how you can ultimately start really riding faster. Knowing also the longboarding terms/lingo will help a lot too. There are many different styles of riding and different kinds of boards, and they are all made for a different reason. Your longboard IQ will make your experiance a lot greater in the long run. Remember, there is a lot more to it than riding a flat piece of wood, and there will always be more to learn.

Ride On. Ride Strong. Ride Long. Endless Longboards.

Happy New Years

Happy New Years from Endless Longboards.

What will 2011 bring us? I see more longboarding, sick new products, the latest in reviews for the top boards to help you get the very best, and just sick and fun times together. Lets make 2011 better than 2010 and get boarding right away.