Roody

Here's a short video about using a skateboard for transportation. Has anybody here tried this?

"Skating is faster than walking, less of a hassle than biking, more fun than being jostled in the subway, and way cheaper than a car."

Skateboarding Is Transportation, Too - CityLab

If anybody knows how to embed this video, I'd appreciate it!

no1mad 

Interesting and their pros for using a board are spot on. However, from my experience as a youth using a skateboard for transportation (wasn't into the tricks), hills can be a challenge and you're not going to be riding when there is snow or ice on the ground (and I suspect wet surfaces in general are problematic as well- I never tried myself, though). And like they said, you want the smoothest surface possible and that is hard to find around here.

I tried to embed the video (even looked for it on youtube and vimeo), but I'm stumped.

bbeasley

I used my skateboard in New Orleans. I'd skate .5 mile from house to street car and from street car to office ~ .25 mile. It took a lot of vigilance to avoid the small pieces of debris that could ruin your day.

no1mad 

That's why I gave it up (my eyes started going bad at an early age- glasses by 3rd grade). However, if this would've been around back then...
And here's that 'wow' design they were hinting at

Seriously, even without the technology, those boards look like they would be fun.

Dahon.Steve

I've always said that carfree does not mean bike dependant. I find that skate boarding for transportation is totally under utilized by adults. It really is faster than walking and I've seen skaters with large cruiser wheels traveling just as fast as bikers. Multi-mode transport using bus, train or lightrail is a snap compared to a bicycle. No bike locks needed or the fear of getting your transport stolen. Furthermore, they are cheap to maintain and will last the rest of your life if you take care of them.

One of the reasons why I like my Xootr kick scooter is that it has all the benefits of a skate board but is safer. Using it with the bus or public transit has given me the option of taking any bus line so long as it's headed in the right direction. During the weekends at night, it really pays itself off by letting me use any bus even if I'm 2 to 4 miles from my final destination, I'll kick scooter that in no time. Waiting for your bus to arrive at night during the weekend is the worse feeling and can actually be slightly dangerous. With a kick scooter any bus headed in my direction is fair game! LOL!

Next year, I'm getting this scooter from Mibo. It has larger wheels, front and rear brakes, folds in 2 minutes and faster!

Dahon.Steve

I've seen young men using electric long boards flying down the street. They are faster than most cyclist and most local city buses. You go to the electric bike forum and no one talks about using an electric skate board as transport. However, they have tremendous potential as an alternate means of transportation. Unfortunately, it requires special skills to ride one without getting killed! I would like to see an electric kick scooter but with large wheels like the Mibo.

Roody

I would die the first time I ran over a dime somebody dropped on the ground! And I'm not quite ready for a smartphone, let alone a skateboard that can read my mind...

Rowan

I think much depends on the type of wheels and the length of the board... just as various wheel and frame parameters apply to biking.

I have a fair degree of respect for people who use skateboards as transport. The quiet wheels theese days enable them to travel almost in stealth mode. The boards can be picked up and taken aboard buses without challenge. Maintenance is pretty cheap, and parts are available in just about every sports store I have been into.

They also can go where bikes cannot... although there are laws for what are called "small wheel devices" controlling their access to certain areas and on the road. Lighting can use of dark clothing can be issues, however.

I agree with Dahon.Steve... being car free is not dependent on bicycling riding. Walking, skateboarding, in-line skating, and scooters certainly seem to be viable options used by many people.

B. Carfree

I love watching the young folks zip around on their skate boards. However, they're not for me (I had such a bad go with them forty years ago I just can't bring myself to smash another hip on (off) them). I have had friends who were hassled by law enforcement for riding their boards. This often appeared to be more about the riders' race than the skateboard, but there are many places that ban them from sidewalks and they don't have vehicle standing on the streets.

Now skates... I used to commute eight miles one-way to college on skates about one or two days per week. That was great fun and was so unusual back in the '70s that I was never in danger of being hit by an inattentive motorist.

prathmann

This strikes me as the only functional advantage enjoyed by the Segway folks over the much less expensive and sensible small scooters and skateboards (the latter only for those with appropriate riding skills). Kamen and his investor friends managed to get lots of legislation passed giving his device legal standing for urban use that these simpler devices lack.

no1mad 

You left out the pogo stick and depending on locale- horseback, dog sled, and camel , but yeah, I'm also of the opinion that LCF isn't predicated on owning/using a bicycle.

As far as the night time visibility of a skateboard goes, I've got a couple of ideas, though I need to do further research on before I divulge them- it's possible no one has ever bothered to do that before.

no1mad 

That would be true with those poly-whatever the wheels are made of, but if you put on some wider, rubber wheels with low pressure, that would allow the tire to deform when encountering an object like a dime and roll right over it- similar to balloon tires on a bike (or so I imagine, anyway).

Artkansas 

I hear you. My first skateboard was a metal-wheeled-roller-skate disassembled and screwed onto a board. My last one had clay composite wheels.

I think there are a lot of places skateboards can be good for short distance transportation. Small and light, parking is never a problem and there's a definite speed advantage over walking.

yote223

Don't forget the cost of an Oz.

JoeyBike

I lust after a Boosted Board electric assist board. Beautifully engineered to make trips up to 6 miles (20 minutes) at 20mph before recharging (full corded recharge in 2 hours or will charge while pushing). Will slow you while rolling down hills and recharge at the same time. You can push like a regular board and it will recharge with your pushing and braking energy. Bluetooth controlled. Very sweet.

I can go about 30 miles on my longboard at 10 mph average. New Orleans just laid down miles of smooth tarmac and bike lanes too. I have a nice 25 mile loop around the city from my house. Rain is not too much fun though.

I could easily commute on my board and have skated in a few times. If not for the crime issue I would do it more often. I'm kind of a sitting duck on it at 10 mph or less. I could take a trolley part way and skate the rest. Just seems like a lot of effort when I can just jump on a bike and get there in 15 minutes or less.

Here is a look at my board getting hauled to the lakefront path:



Arbor Waterman Koa longboard. Nice fat, soft wheels are not affected by small rocks and twigs.


Go to https://www.silverfishlongboarding.com/ for a great longboard forum with extensive information regarding using a longboard/skateboard as transportation.

timmythology

I see folks using skate boards for transportation all over Portland. On an old commute route that I took home after working a swing shift (night) i use to see this guy who I started talking to that commuted daily on his skateboard, and he commuted about 6 miles on it one way. You can also see someone with a skate board on the social rides in portland too, and they also serve as a good platform for recording those rides.

Smallwheels

After watching some Franky Avalon, Annette Funicello movies I wanted a skateboard. My parents bought one for me. It was much shorter and skinnier than the ones sold today. It was stiff and had plastic wheels. It didn't take too long for the plastic wheels to crack. A couple of years later I bought a plastic model that looked similar to the long boards in shape but it too was very short. That plastic board was smoother than the wooden board. It acted like a suspension.

Another year went by and I bought a thicker red plastic board because I had worn out the yellow one. This red one had a kick tail. It was still shorter and thinner than contemporary boards. I bet the longer the board the more it acts like it has a suspension. I've never ridden a long board with big wheels. The downside to them is the reach to the ground with every step. Five inches is a long drop. Could you do a thousand five inch squats on each leg every day?

My Xootr MG is much lower to the ground. I have made only three trips more than one mile away from my home. One was about four miles most of which was on a flat path with new asphalt. That was an easy ride. The next one was on asphalt beside a road. That was three miles and bumpy. The last trip was over four miles up and down hills with a headwind. That took a long time and I was really out of shape when I did it. The return trip was so easy with the tailwind on smooth asphalt. I'm glad because I was hauling a lot of groceries in my backpack. I probably only pushed the Xootr about one-hundred-seventy-five kicks to get all the way home.

Skateboards and even Xootrs aren't fun when the roads are full of cracks, rocks, sand, and old bumpy asphalt. They don't work in the rain very well either.

Roody

Everybody says skateboards don't work in the rain. Why is that?

Smallwheels

The wheels are made of urethane. They are hard and will slide on hard surfaces when wet. It would be like riding your bicycle across wet glass or perhaps ice.

Smallwheels

Watch this guy teach how to propel a skateboard without pushing with a foot. He demonstrates a few techniques for rocking back and forth that propel the board sort of like a sailboat would operate during a tack. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMDxbn5HDf8

Doesn't this guy sort of prove that skateboarding could be great whole core exercise with all of the bending and twisting he does? It makes me want to get one just to strengthen my ankles and exercise my legs in a different way.

Long boards look fun too. Look how fast this guy goes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZVlemva8hs

JoeyBike

That's called "pumping". And that setup costs about $400US. G?BOMB

Watch this dude pump UPHILL on the same board. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBEkDNBfVo4

Juha

Why is there no love for XC skiing, paddling and snow shoeing?

A member of my extended family commutes on a longboard - I think it's a safe bet it's summer months only.

--J

Roody

A couple environmentalists here commuted by canoe.

https://www.environmentalcouncil.org/...lease.php?x=20

Pliny the Elder

Before having a car all I did was skateboard for transportation. I also would skate to college which was about 4 miles away. Never had to worry about parking! I primarily bike now but for short beer/food runs within 2 miles I'll take the skateboard.

Pliny the Elder

Rain will really mess up the bearings. Also if it is rained on long enough the deck can seriously get messed up.