5 Things NOT TO DO when buying your first skateboard!

Our friend, Hannah Bailey from Neon Stash, has written an article over on the Cooler website, to help you girls who are new to skateboarding and wanting to buy a board for the first time! She runs us through 5 easy mistakes we should avoid when choosing your very first board…

Don’t Go Cheap!

Yes your local sports warehouse offers a lovely shiny plastic-ey looking number with a ‘cool’ graphic and wheels attached already, but BEWARE! Going cheap will most likely not be cheerful. Morelikely, it will be unrideable. If you need proof, check out the pro’s testing out some $20 boards on The Berrics Extremely Cheap Skates. Ok they don’t do too bad, but if even Nyjah Huston and Curren Caples are having problems, then we’d steer clear.

Don’t Buy A Graphic You Don’t Want To Scratch Up!

the-national-land-8.125-620x412 Sometimes you really, really like a skateboard deck simply for its graphic. That’s ok, they are like pieces of art! But if you really want that graphic staying scratch free, then keep it on your mantlepiece. Your board is going to get destroyed or you’re not doing it right.

Don’t Buy Any Old Size!

Mike-Giant-Classic-Shapes-Skateboard-Print-620x471 You’ve decided to hit the park to learn to skateboard. And a board’s a board right? You might be tempted by that retro looking deck, maybe have an old longboard from years ago or you’ve been waiting to take out your Santa Cruz Homer Simpson head.. but wait they might not be right for progression! If you want to learn to skate in the mini, pump round the bowl, do a few flatland tricks.. best bet is to go conventional and as a girl a 7.75″-8″ will likely do your feet justice. Cruise to the park on your penny, then switch it up.

Don’t Forget To Grip Your Board!

You’ve just bought a new deck and are admiring the wood grain top sheet. Wow it’s so shiny and pretty. Time to put the trucks and wheels on and off you go? Wait a minute, something’s not right here. Don’t forget to grip your board (it could totally happen). If you’re buying a deck, more often than not, you will get free grip tape. Score! And gripping your own board is therapeutic (although you can normally ask the skate shop staff to do it…)

Don’t Decide Not To Buy Your Own Board!

legs You might decide not to invest in a board, just borrow one here and there. But that defeats the point of skating, limiting its accessibility! The fact that you can just grab your board and roll outside! Plus if you have your own board, you are likely to skatemore, so no excuses. Get shopping!