We love a good longboard deck review, but you can’t always just take our word for it. We think its equally or even more important to hear how good/bad something is from the average longboarder. So here’s a Sector 9 Super Shaka review that an anonymous longboarder posted on our website (and if you didn’t already know, BOOMbot Ross Druckrey shreds one):
“Good solid shredstick. For 85 bones you cannot do better than this. The rocker is amazing; combined with the width and the concave it makes for a very comfy and confidence inspiring deck. My set up right now is the Shaka, 1/4″ Khiro hard riser, Gunmetal double barrels, and some really worn down Landslides in 83a.
This is my go to board for free-riding and slope-style. I’ve replaced certain spots of the griptape with some Flypaper that I had laying around. Despite the mellow concave you really feel locked-in on the board due to the rocker and the width. The width fits my feet perfectly and I don’t find myself shuffling my feet around that much(i wear a 9/10 shoe depending on brand). With the 8 ply construction the board is pretty stiff and I do not notice any flex when riding, although i am sure there is some very slight dampening flex under my 155lbs. The symmetrical EFP is dreamy and makes riding switch easy. Unless you look down at the nose/tail you won’t notice a difference in the direction and ride of the board.
The nose/kick tails are excellent and make freestylin tricks (mannys,shuvs,gturns,cross-step variations) smooth and easy. However the size and weight might be noticed once you really get into freestyle tricks(such as tiger claws, boneless plants). But if you have good cardio and stamina you should be able to pull off some steeze.
Commuting on this board isn’t that bad either. Yes its a toppy, but with the big EFP and the kicks it is too much fun to notice any fatigue when pushing. When i commute on this i end up working on my mannys, dancing, and slides when the road grade permits. I have yet to try out the shaka on some dh runs, but i am sure it will hold its own.
All around this is a great board offered at a great price. Excellent for free-ride and slope-style, its a killer for slashin the streets on the way to the grocery store, work, or class. It also has good freestyle capabilities if you don’t mind the weight/size. Sector 9 killed it with this board.
Omen longboards designer and MOBOT Trevor Preston breaks it down for us in this video review of the brand new Omen Pike longboard deck. So what makes the Pike unique from all the other decks on the market? Here’s a few reasons….First of all, 9 plies of badass Canadian maple make it durable and sturdy enough for even the biggest riders. Not only can you choose whether you’d rather have a topmount or drop-thru deck, you can also choose between 9.5″ and 10″ widths to customize your ride to your size and style. Nose and tail kicks make it ideal for freeide moves like shove-its while a half inch of rocker keep your feet locked and center your weight during slides. Finally, Omen has revolutionized longboard design with their flattened w-concave for more comfortable pushing.
Tis the season for another one of our longboard deck reviews; this time for the Landyachtz Chinook. The Chinook used to have a bad rep for its previous design with awkward dimensions that didn’t fit in with the rest of the Landy lineup. Ahh, but the new Chinook is a totally different beast, redesigned the right way. We consider it the sleeper hit out of the 2011 Landy decks. It has a super steep w-concave with razor sharp rails to make sure you stay on your deck at all times. With the extreme drops you can wedge your feet close to the trucks for maxed out stability and control. The front to back taper allows you to hang your back foot off the edge for extreme traction. Great for pre-drifiting! Try it with Bear 840 trucks and Blue Mini Monster hawg wheels for a versatile setup.
Motion newcomer talks about all the different Roger Bros longboard accessories. We love these cause they’re a cheap way to customize your ride! The drop-thru risers actually help lower your drop-thru longboard deck for better stability at high speeds. Cover plates help hide your ugly drop thru cutouts when you topmount your trucks or let you lower your topmount deck. The universal footstops work for both regular and goofy riders and help brace your front foot on a topmount. Brake soles extend the life of your shoes while concave implants can create pockets or w-concave. Get some online or at our brick-and-mortar Seattle longboard store.
Abec11 has finally released its 72mm centerset freeride longboard wheel! Similar to the 72mm classic freeride, with a few new features. Clearly as the title suggest it offers a centerset core rather than the offset of the classic freeride, allowing the wheel to be flipped as it begins to cone. Also the new Abec11 Centerset Freeride wheel features a 39mm contact patch, which is 7mm wider than the classic freeride.
photo courtesy of Sunnyside Longboarding
This wheel is offered in abec11′s classic thane in 78, 81, and 84a covering all of your needs! The most popular duro is by far the 81a since it offers that perfect balance of grip and slide. With these wheels, Abec11 has bridged the gap between freeride and downhill, offering a wheel that covers everything in between. If you haven’t had a chance to check out these wheels be sure to do so! They may be $3 more than their original classic, but they’re worth every penny since you don’t have to worry about coning them out.
A new wheel you may or may not of heard about is the Earthwing Slide B Superballs. These wheels are 72mm and come in red (78a), blue (81a) and black (84a). They have a offset hub and a thick outer lip. A wheel that is comparable to the Earthwing slide B’s are the legendary blue Krypto. Blue Kryptos are notorious for being one of the best freeriding wheels around, sadly they were made in Europe and Krypto stopped making them a long time ago, so finding them is a challenge. Both of these wheels are very distinct, they have the same outer lip attributes, the only difference between them is that the Kryptos bearing hub is side set. Earthwing did a really good job with these wheels, they are some of the most consistent wheels I’ve ridden. We have been using the red (78a) set and so far they leave gigantic thane lines and have no flatspots or any vibrations, the urethane wears very evenly. Hopefully you enjoy them as much as we do!
Everyone knows about drop deck longboards but have you ever really looked at the drop of a deck?
As you can see in the BlackDog Betty, your feet are standing on the drop instead of sitting in or against the drop. This can give you a lot of leverage over your trucks because you are at an angle towards your wheels. This also helps to keep your weight between your feet by canting the angle of your shoes to allow you to place more weight into the wheels when initiating slides.
In the Landyachtz Switchblade you can see that you put your feet into the pocket and that there is a little bit of a wall holding you into the board. This drop will give you the feeling of the pocket matched up with the wall against your foot, it will let you be able to dig into the wall for sliding and make it a lot easier to get the board pushed out.
The Rayne Nemesis shows you the last variety of drop which is having your feet on concave into a drop. This will let you be able to dig into the concave AND pocket which is useful for pre-drifts. The drop also makes it so you can push your feet into it, when going faster g-forces make you want to come off your board, but not with these drops. Whether you’re sliding or just bombing hills, drop decks are an option you can’t go wrong with.
Not in the loop for new product, let us fill you in! One of the newest products on the market are the Bear Bushings by JimZ. Remember back in the day when JimZ bushings only came in one shape option, with a limited selection of two duros? Well boy have things changed… The new bear line up of bushings come in a variety of shapes and duros, offering 4 different duros and 5 different shapes. With so many duros and shapes the bushing combinations are endless. The bushings come in a 75a grey, 82.5a white, 85a black, and a 90a red. The shapes include a standard cone, a stepped cone, standard barrel, stepped barrel, and a double stepped barrel.
These bushing offer some new shapes to the bushing market, such as the stepped cone. The stepped cone is a bit fatter version of your standard cone, with a step giving a more precise fit into the bushing seat and creating an increase in the amount of resistance the rider will notice while turning. The stepped barrel is one of JimZ’s original shapes, but is certainly one of a kind. The stepped barrel is a noticeably fatter platform for the truck to rest on while offering a precise fit due to the step, much like the stepped cone mentioned earlier. Due to the amount of urethane in the bushing it makes this a great bushing for the boardside due simply to the amount of rebound provided by the mass amount of urethane pushing it back to center. These stepped bushings as well as the other shapes offered by bear and jimz work extremely well in precision trucks due to the extremely tight fit, and obviously work well in the bear trucks making for an awesome ride, and can be dialed in for all sorts of riding.
We have been encountering a lot of skepticism and a lot of confusion about the new Dual Durometer Sector 9 wheels. I am just going to clear up some of the thinking going on inside this wheel. The first thing that makes these longboard wheels fast and unique has to deal with the wheel having a layer of softer urethane around a hard urethane inside. This allows the inside of the wheel to remain very rigid, and have lots of momentum.
Meanwhile, the outside of the wheel is a softer grippier urethane. This allows the wheel to gain the speed benefits of a harder core, while gaining the grip benefits of the softer urethane on the outside. Another benefit of these wheels is that they are going to maintain the rigidity of the lips when gripping over adverse terrain due to the harder core, supporting the outside lips of the wheel.
The other benefit of these wheels, is that when you wear the wheel down beyond the soft outside urethane, you are then on a much harder wheel which is a lot better for stand up slides. This wheel is going to be turning a lot of heads, and the fact that it is the first wheel of its kind to be openly available.
The Five Mile Longboarding company has been producing lots of completely unique designs and some incredible boards. Their unique insight into how the rider interacts with the board as they are traveling down a hill, while they are turning, and when they are putting the board through drifts is truly a different perspective on board design. Definitely the most underrated company out there with their release of the Five Mile Raptor, they gave everyone else a benchmark. The raptor is a board that has never been attempted by another company which is quite frankly because the board itself is a complete departure from traditional longboard thought. With their Triple Drop Technology they are able to create the unique foot pockets of their boards, as well as their comfy concaves.
Now they have introduced a new freeride board called the A-4 Skyhawk, which is a very unique douple drop, with deep grabbing pockets that make sliding very easy, and make your feet feel glued to the board for all types of slides both forwards and backwards. It also has gas pedals in the board, that is going to give your feet the most leverage over your slides, and your pushing leverage is translated directly into clean controlled slide.
Five Mile has been breaking new ground, and pushing the envelope in every aspect of design, function, and style, and this is going to become more evident when the masses start to catch on to how a Tacoma company can make boards that work with your natural movements to make you longboard even better.
Recently I have been using the Roger Bros Implant on my freeride longboard, I have used pieces of toilet paper before to add W-concave to my board, but I have found a much better substitute in the Roger Bros Implant. I Really like that I can just slip it in under my grip tape, as well as I can move the Bump around my board to pocket my foot better in the rear when I tuck. I simply adjust the angle of the bump, and move it closer to the rail, and this gives my back foot more pressure holding it in the spot that I want it to be. The other benefit to this is that i can take it out when I am done using it. This Roger Bros w-concave implant is a great accessory if you are looking to change your board to having W-concave.
All you need to attach them to your deck is some spray adhesive. They come in a 35cc and 45cc volume so you can choose exactly how much W you want to add to your concave.
The 2011 Landyachtz Chinook is going to be the next Evo. Well, it is an Evo, just a more contemporary version of the timeless classic. The 2011 Chinook is similar in name only to its older counterpart. The Chinook of the past used to have an incredibly wedged nose, was very long, and had a flat tail, which pretty much confused anyone who rode it. The new Chinook is still wedged in the front, but now it has a de-wedge in the back, giving it the same directional feel as the Evo, as well as the unmatched stability of a lowered directional deck.
Most longboarders assume that the harder the durometer of a longboarding wheel, the easier it will be to slide. Not only that, but there is also a misconception that a softer durometer can be better for downhill, especially if you’re looking for a lot of grip on a technical course. Nersh wheels bucks the trend and Nate explains why…..
Recently I purchased 2 sets of Nersh Candy Wheels: one set int 80a and another in 76a. I started out using the 76a wheels as grippy wheels on my downhill board, and found them to be a little different then the other wheels that I have ridden. The first thing that I learned was that the harder durometer Candies were better for downhill riding, because with their larger core, and center-set core placement it changes the performance of the wheel. With the larger stiffer core, it increases roll speed, and the general amount of momentum that you can hold while riding. Then, with the larger inside lips of a center-set wheel, it allows the wheels to be more easily molded over the pavement because you are gaining more leverage over the gripping parts of the wheel. This allows them to grip a lot better then one would expect. In my personal opinion the 80a Nersh Candy feels like an 83a Retro BIG ZIG in its momentum, but more similarly to an 78a pink when you start to turn on the wheels. This is one of the reasons that I enjoy this style of wheel, because it is fast and grippy.
Once I learned this, I decided that I would use the 76a Candies as my sliding wheels. Even tho this is a particularly soft durometer, it is still quick due to the larger core. But once you turn these sweet treats sideways the softness of the urethane really comes through. You can feel the wheels slowing down when they slide. I really enjoy the consistency of the urethane as it wears down. It gives me confidence when a wheel behaves intuitively and these wheels must have E.S.P. On a side note, the fact that the wheel is center-set, means that you can rotate the wheel 180 degrees in order to fight coning. This really helps when you are constantly battling wheels crapping out before they are out of urethane. Definately a wheel I will buy more of.
Best Kiteboarding is offering an amazing deal right now. You have the opportunity to win a Best Taboo kite, and all you have to do is demo one and write up a review about it. They really have to twist your arm, huh? Out of all the entries, Best will be picking one winner based on how well they expressed their love for the Taboo, and a second winner will be picked by random out of all the participants.
The sky is the limit when it comes to how you choose to present your review. You can use photos, video, or just make a nice write-up. As you may or may not already know, each Taboo size is dialed in to optimize performance specific wind-range and riding style that accompany it. At Motion, we’re really lucky to have a solid team of Best sponsored riders who have the Taboos available for demo, practically any windy day of the week. Joaquin, Eric V. and Nick Ward are all at your disposal so you can take advantage of their Taboo quivers. And if you ask extra nicely, you may be able to pry away one of the new Nemesis HP V3 kites away from them for a quick spin. : )
Click on this link for more info on submitting your review!
Trevor Preston breaks it down on the new Landyachtz Time Machine deck. This aggressive city cruiser features a drop deck with a wedged nose and tail. The symmetrical body offers Landy’s trademark w-concave for doing toe-side standies so the ball of your foot doesn’t slide out. The drops right in front of the nose and tail also lock in your feet, giving you the illusion that you’re riding in bindings. Wheelbite isn’t an issue at all, even with the biggest longboard wheels, thanks to the uber intense wheel cutouts. Ten plies of Canadian maple make this urban assault deck stand out among the rest.
Also in line with the Armada V2 kiteboard is the Best KB Pro Kiteboard which comes in a 130x40cm. Most womens kiteboards are only offered in super tiny sizes, as if all women are 5’0 and 100lbs. But the sizing for this board is a little longer and wider making it a more realistic option for the majority of women who are serious about kiting. With the light winds we get here during the northwest summers, I think this size board will be perfect.
Best of all, pro rider and 9 time world champ Kirstin Boese had a ton of influence in the design so it has the features of a pro board that even a man can appreciate. And if it wasn’t for the polka dots and pink Best fish logo, I bet you’d see a lot of guys riding the KB Pro. It has a very similar flex pattern to the Armada kiteboard which makes for insane pop, cushy landings, and it plows through choppy water. It also features Best’s new super comfy foot straps and pads. If you’re a late beginner or intermediate rider, this board will let you advance all the way to the finish line.
We just got a shipment in of the 2011 Best Armada V2 kiteboard. Although we fell in love with last year’s version, this year has proven to up the ante even more. Though the shape of the Armada has basically stayed the same, it seems to be just a little stiffer which translates to higher performance and increased pop. While we haven’t compared the actual weight, the board feels a little lighter under your feet while riding. Overall, it handles the chop really well, has nice smooth landings thanks to it’s progressive flex pattern and features some sweet new graphics too.
If we had to compare the Armada to something else, it’s like the Best Kahoona V3 in the sense that they took something that was already really great, and found a way to make it even better. This year, Best upgraded their straps and pads so that they’re extremely comfortable. According to Best teamrider, Joaquin, they are some of the easiest to take off and on. The new design really lets you wedge your feet in to get a real locked in feel.
I copy and pasted this directly from a review that someone made on our website for the Omen Carbon Matrix longboard deck. They had a lot of nice things to say about the deck so I thought I’d share. It’s 100% legit from an anonymous stranger who just happens to feel the same about this amazing carbon fiber/foam core longboard deck as we do. Also, we heard from an Omen rider in Canada that they picked up one of the original Matrix’s when they first came out and it’s held up awesome. In fact, he’ll often early grab down 3 stairs and it’s taken the abuse like a champ.
“This is my go to board for everything EVERYTHING, this board goes through everything you put in its way. She’s rul light but somehow feels super solid. I love the feeling going dh, something with the concave, and the small drops, but being close to the ground is a magical feeling . this board is DEFENETLY stable enough for dh ( ive brought her to about 50-55 and i havnt met her limits yet) light and symmetrical for free ride and again the pockets are super, light and low enough for commuting. over all love this board and dont tell anyone, but i honestly like the pockets more then the killswitch pocket.”
Rayne longboards is now taking their turn at producing slide gloves that are a cut above the rest. Basically, they’ve found a way to create a slide glove that fits in between the $40 Landy/Sector 9 BHNC glove and the more expensive Loaded or Sector 9 Surgeon Gloves.
The thing that stood out most about the new Rayne Idle Hands slide gloves is how comfortable they are! They fit like a glove. : ) No really though. They fit super snugly against your hand, almost like a second skin. The leather is extremely soft and you hardly feel like you’re even wearing anything on your hands. The puck is also more minimalistic which they tout as being “catch-free”.
It’s only been two weeks since the official spring premier of the 2011 Landyachtz longboards lineup and some of our shelves are already empty. The two obvious heavy-hitters for this season are the much talked about Landyachtz Switchblade longboard and Wolf Shark. The Switchblade is the answer for everyone who loves the double-drop concept behind the Demonseed but found the standing platform to be just a little too long. It’s got really aggressive concave to lock you in too. We blew through a record 20 decks in only a weeks time which makes us think that the Switchblade is going to be the most popular board of 2011.
The Landyachtz Wolf Shark deck plays on the latest topmount speedboard craze but takes it a step further than other longboards. The sanded gas pedals are a nice feature and you can’t go wrong with that 9two5 rocker/concave combo. When you add in the multiple wheelbase options with corresponding “shark bite” wheel wells you have a clear winner. At the moment, we only have a few left in stock and they’ve been flying off the shelves.
Most of the other decks from Landy feature updated graphics from last year and let me just say the colors pop! Their finish work on the graphics is really top notch compared to other manufacturers. You may not like all the artwork but you can’t disagree that they did an awesome job laying up the graphics. The Wolf Shark is either a love it or hate it graphic and I happen to love it for how tacky it is.
We’ve also been flying through their new wheels, especially the zombie hawgs which now come in 78,80,82,84,and 88 durometers. Since Landyachtz has been so busy trying to keep up with demand for these hot new products, we’re going to drive up to their Vancouver-based factory ourselves and pick up more Switchblades, Zombies, and other goodies. So you can expect to see those out of stock items available again later this week.
Max was busy cranking out the videos this weekend and managed to finish up a nice little review of the 2011 Landyachtz Wolf Shark. This particular longboard deck is extra special for a lot of reasons. For one, it’s kind of the first true topmount speedboard that Landy has put out there. You might remember a video we made at the Maryhill Festival of Speed last summer where Landy’s Blake Startup gave us all a little sneak peak of this deck and it’s been highly anticipated ever since.
The graphic alone is enough to set this deck apart but they didn’t stop there. It has multiple wheelbases, is a little narrower than most topmounts (measuring in at 9 3/4″ wide) has multiple “shark bite” wheel wells to accomodate the different wheelbases, and has some monster gas pedals. The Landyachtz Wolf Shark is pressed in the same mold as the Landyachtz 9two5 so it has the same gnasty concave and rocker to lock you in big time. It’s also one of the fastest selling boards we’ve ever had in stock.
Just last week we got our shipment of the 2011 Mystic Kiteboarding lineup. While Mystic is known for their kick ass kiteboarding harnesses, they have tons of other amazing accessories this year. We stocked up on everything from the Shadow and Warrior III harnesses to wetsuits, hook knives, layering jackets, impact vests, travel bags and even waterproof car seats.
The Mystic Shadow harness was first introduced last year and instantly became a bestseller. And if you ask me, it has everything to do with it’s ultra lightweight design that allows for mobility while still providing substantial back support. When you factor in the affordable price, it’s no surprise that this harness is a winner.
Thankfully Mystic saw how much everyone loved the Shadow last year so they stuck with the whole “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” attitude and didn’t over-tweak the design. They made the smart decision to stay with a proven product and managed to make it better than before. Instead, you’ll notice that the 2011 Mystic Shadow harness comes with the updated spreader bar pad and a beefed up covering for the spreader bar straps. It comes complete with the double-blade Mystic safety knife and back safety leash for clipping on your kite leash. The safety leash comes in particularly handy if you’re practicing handle passes. Come on in, try one on for size, and you’ll know what everyone has been raving about.
It’s nice to be able to mix up all our product review videos with a little tutorial now and then. And it doesn’t hurt to have one of the top junior downhill racers around to talk you through the fundamentals of downhill longboarding. This time, Max Wipp breaks down how to do a heelside pre-drift to scrub off a little speed before a tight turn.
Main Tips:
Keep your hips and board pointed towards the corner
Don’t turn your board completely sideways cause you’ll lose too much speed
Friends don’t let friends grab stinkbug!
Tuck your back knee into your front leg
Put most of your weight over your front truck
Front hand in line with your front wheels
Keep your weight over your board as much as possible (not off to the side) to keep weight on the wheels for traction
This fall, we brought our junior teamrider Max on to work a few days in the shop. Not only has it been fun to have him around, but he’s been cranking out the videos faster than we can keep up with (which is a good problem to have). A lot of times, our Youtube subscribers will message us with special requests to make videos on certain products. While we can’t get to all of them, we try to pick out the ones that get the most requests. When it came to longboarding wheels, everyone wanted to know more about the Venom Cannibals which come in a 78a, 80a and 83a durometer.
One of the best parts about being in the longboarding industry is that there is a constant flow of cool new products being introduced into the market. There’s no shortage of innovative ideas taking shape and hitting the hands of consumers. The sport is growing faster than shops and manufacturers can keep up with even! One product that we are suuuper excited about and just happen to have exclusively at Motion Boardshop, is a new grip tape: 24-grit gator grip tape.
The standard 36-grit gatorgrip which is known around town as “gnar grip” has a new 24-grit cousin that we’re stocking. The lower the number, the gnarlier the grip, so we’re calling this stuff “gnasty gnar”. It’s a real knuckle buster and not for the faint of heart. Made out of mineral abrasive double sealed with an epoxy resin, this grip will make your longboard deck stick to your feet like peanut butter.
And on top of that, it’ll take longer to wear down than standard grip. Considering that it’s only $3 more for a board length than regular gnar grip, you’d be a fool not to just go for the gold. Just be smarter than we were when applying your grip and wear some beefy gloves. Never gripped a board before? No problem. Just follow our step by step guide on how to grip tape a longboard deck.
Lately we’ve been getting a ton of questions about the differences between Surf-Rodz trucks and Munkae trucks. In our mind, they couldn’t be any more different but it may not be as obvious to a longboarder who’s never had the chance to see them in person or try them out first hand.
Fireball just came out with a little brother for the Beast by launching the Fireball Incendo wheel (70mm and 84a). The Beast is one of our favorite longboard wheels for freeriding because it has a big ‘ol contact patch with a really nice sugary sliding urethane which allows it to wear consistently (no chop and hop feeling as you slide).
The only problem with the Beasts is that topmount riders inevitably get wheelbite because of the size. Now, you can just use the 70mm Incendo version though. It’s a little smaller and a little driftier because the wheel is rotating faster.
Here are a few solid reasons why we’re really loving the Incendo…
-The wide contact patch means they still grip really solidly
-They have a really sugary urethane that wears consistently
-The large bevels on the outside will decrease any chance of chunking or having an odd wear pattern
-They get driftier as you wear them down becasue the contact patch gets even bigger and the actual wheel gets smaller (you’re applying less vertical leverage to a larger contact patch which makes it driftier)
-The fact that they are pre broken in really sets them apart from a lot of other really wide wheels (most pre-broken in freeride wheels are pretty narrow)
-Even though they aren’t the grippiest wheel, they are still wheels that will never be the wrong wheel to be riding, whether you’re commuting or standup sliding, we’ve even DH’d on them too
-Even though they are an 84a, the lips are progressively tapered to soften the lip and still grip and it doesn’t feel as hard as most 84a wheels even though they still slide like an 84a wheel.
We got a request from one of our Youtube Channel subscribers to do a special review on the Roger Bros DH 36 longboard deck and how we would set it up if money wasn’t an option. Well, if you’re looking for the most badass topmount speedboard and you have all the money in the board, this is what Nate recommends. With 16 different truck mounting options and CNC precision on the deck, it’s a versatile longboard that’s super responsive. Munkae precision trucks are the way to go, and since it’s a topmount you won’t have to worry about being too low to the ground. The DH36 already comes with some gnarly grip tape and munkaes come with venom bushings already so they’re all ready to go. All you need is some longboarding wheels and we recommend something with a nice wide contact patch like blue Mini Monsters.
Time to graduate from those grippy pink bigzigs to something a little more slippery, but stumped on where to start? Well if you’re looking to do more freeriding and start throwing down big ‘ol standies then you’ll want to get some nice, round-lipped wheels (we call ‘em freeride wheels). With so many choices on the market, we try to break it down for you with some of the most popular freeride longboarding wheels on the market.
In the latest of our longboarding videos, Nate covers everything from Earthwing Floaters to Sector 9 Race Formulas to Abec11 Freerides to the our best sellers, the Orangatang Durians (and stimulus and fat frees too). The rounded lip will help your wheel break free into a nice, smooth slide unlike a wheel with a 90 degree beveled edge which is more for grip and cornering.
Nate Blackburn sits down and tells us about the latest longboarding deck to drop from Black Dog Longboards. This time, it’s the Black Dog Shallow Drop that’s turning heads everywhere. After lots of testing and tweaking, Black Dog created what we call the “pocket drop” because of the cradling feel you get from the drop combined with the waist of the board. Even though it technically doesn’t have rocker to it, you still get that nice “centered” feeling.
It’s a freeride board and obviously has a shallow drop, only 3/4″ all together. So you’ll get more traction than on a Rayne Nemesis or Landyachtz Switch. The concave is 1/2″ so you have just enough to hold your feet in for repetitive slides but your feet won’t feel sore if you’re riding for a few hours at a time. One of our new favorites!
A couple of weeks ago our friend Sam came in with his own money to buy his first longboard. He ended up walking away with a killer setup including an Earthwing Superglider longboard with Monster Hawg wheels and Paris trucks. He’s been back to a make a few adjustments to his board, and recently bought some new pads including a Triple 8 helmet. We love hearing from customers, especially when they tell us how much fun they’re having.
From Sam’s Mom:
“We picked up Sam’s new pads from Motion yesterday and went for a cruise around the neighborhood. He is *loving* the board. Just wanted to share a couple of pics with you.
Thanks again to all of you for making him feel so welcome. He is always addressed by name when we visit the store. ”
This is the Motion Boardshop video review of two of our favorite longboard decks, the Rayne Nemesis and the Rayne Demonseed. We decided to make this video after getting multiple requests from our youtube subscribers that wanted to learn more about the decks, particularly the Nemesis. Trevor lays it down for you all.
Nemesis: Bamboo core sandwiched between two layers of fiberglass giving it for a nice lightweight without sacrificing any strength. This is one of the few boards that will work for pretty much any kind of riding discipline. So many people ask us “what deck will do it all?” and 9 times out of 10, we’ll recommend the Nemesis. Thanks to its short wheelbase, its great for carving, while the symmetrical shape and 1″ drop makes it a killer freeride board. The shorter wheelbase option will make the deck more nimble and the long WB will make it more stable at higher speeds. Wide trucks (like Paris 195s or 200mm Surf-Rodz) work best since the standing platform itself is so wide. The fact that 80% of Motion employees own a Nemesis speaks volumes about the deck.
Demonseed: Newly redesigned to be symmetrical which is a huge improvement upon last years model. It’s basically a longer Nemesis with the added drop thrus. A better option for taller guys with a wider stance. Thanks to the nice big cut outs, you rock wheels upwards of up to 85mm. It has 6 plys of bamboo in the middle between the two sheets of fiberglass making it light but still stiff. Consider it the big brother to the Nemesis. We like it with the Abec 11 Freeride wheels thanks to their buttery-smooth slide. Or for downhill, try the new Nersh Money Hax for super grip and roll speed.
Unlike all the other longboard decks in the Kebbek lineup, the Hairpin isn’t named after one of their teamriders. The thing that stands out most about this deck is it’s super gnarly, aggressive concave. It’s not like your average concave though. A nice, wide flat in the middle makes it a lot more comfortable on your feet than most crazy concaves. But once you get to the sides, the rails jut upwards to grab onto your feet like a claw. Compared to the JimZ and the Steve Daddow, this concave takes the cake. Those claws make sure you have super leverage without having to worry about your feet slipping.
longboard deck
The ever-so-precisely cut drop through mounts make the Kebbek Hairpin longboard ideal for freeriding or speedboarding. Made from 100 percent solid Canadian rock maple just like all the other decks in the line-up, this board is built to last. All 8 plys of wood are compressed underneath tons of pressure to sandwich it all together. This deck features a universal drop through mount so you can saddle up with any combo of trucks and wheels your heart desires. Thanks to deep wheel wells, you can ride bigger wheels than usual.
kebbek longboards
It may have taken Kebbek a few years to get their stuff together but it was well worth the wait. Their new designs are pure perfection. And at $169 a pop, this is a purchase you can’t go wrong with.
Steve Daddow is arguably the face of longboarding in Australia. He pioneered the sport in his home country and worked hard with local media to get the sport off the ground and portrayed in a good light. Many of Aussie’s best downhill skaters and slalom riders have Steve to thank for getting them started too. He’s been skating for 26 years and has a lot to show for it, including multiple titles for giant slalom racing.
The Kebbek Steve Daddow deck is one of the newer boards added to the Kebbek line-up for 2010. Just like Daddow’s style, this deck is designed to be super versatile for all riding disciplines. Underflushed truck mounts make for stability at high speeds without sacrificing traction in those hairpin corners. Did I mention it has gas pedals too?
Made from 100% solid rock Canadian maple, this board is made to last a lifetime. No need to worry about delams here. Beefy wheel wells and a universal flushmount mean this is one of the rare longboard decks where you can throw down with any truck and wheel combo you can dream of. You want 75mm bigzigs on Bear Grizzly 852s? Not a problem. 76mm Flywheels with Surf-Rodz? Consider it done. I can guarantee we’re the only Seattle longboards shop where you’ll be able to find this deck.
Most people know the name “JimZ” for bushings and trucks. True, this legendary longboarder was one of the first to pioneer the stim shaped bushing which are still regarded as some of the most stable in the industry. He also cranked out some of the first precision trucks to hit the market from his company SpeedParts. But did you know he had his own board too? That’s right, JimZ was an integral part of getting Kebbek up and running in the early stages, and he got one of the sickest pro model boards in exchange.
The Kebbek JimZ Flushcut is legendary in the world of speedboarding. It’s one the very few longboard decks that features a dropped deck in addition to dropped-thru flush mounts. What does this mean? Lower center of gravity for unparalleled stability at high speeds. The flush mount provides a little more grip/traction than a deck like the Rayne Demonseed longboard which is a drop thru/drop combo. The symmetrical shape makes it a killer deck for freeriding and sliding too, in case you aren’t hittin’ high speeds quite yet.
Features: Made in Canada. 43″ long, 9.5″ wide with a 32 3/4″ wheelbase.
**Keep in mind this deck doesn’t come gripped and only fits Paris trucks.
Here’s Nate with a new 60 second video (which ended up being more like 7 minutes…) talking about how he likes to setup his Black Dog Pussy Gato longboard deck which is the topmount speedboard in the BD Series. It has an 1/8″ rocker, 1/2″ concave, and aggressive wheel wells so you can rock 70mm wheels without getting too much wheelbite.
Nate’s Setup
-Munkae Trucks with a red (90a) venom cone roadside and a yellow (85a) venom barrel boardside. Both have a cupped washer for a divey feel on the front truck. For his back truck, he ditches the boardside washer so the bushing can deform a bit for lots of grip. It’s more sloppy bit has more traction.
-1/8″ riser on the back truck and 4 degree wedged riser on his front truck
At the Maryhill Festival of Speed this year, we got a chance to spend some time with Blake Startup from Landyachtz. He just happened to have a sexy new carbon 9two five longboard deck with him. We were able to sneak him away from the races for a few minutes to give us the scoop on this hot new deck and here’s the video for all of you to check it out too.
Blake’s favorite setup for the 9two5? 70mm Mini Monster wheels (he prefers the 78a “turbo” blue race formula ones) and the Bear Grizzly 852s. He’s also got a nice little custom grip job with a skull and wings.
If we don’t have this board in stock, just email, call us, hit us up on livechat, whatever. We’ll special order it for you and the shipping is on us as usual! We got a chance to try it out firsthand and it really was truly amazing.
Benefits of the Carbon Foam Core?
-super stiff and no torsional flex
-input from your front foot will transfer movement to back truck
-results in more control and more grip
-added stiffness makes it a killer deck for racing too
-still has all the features we love about the regular 9two5 longboard deck including drop thrus, gas pedals, rocker, and the widest possible foot platform with big wheel wells.
We got some new longboard decks in the shop today that we’re really stoked about. We’ve been carrying Bombsquad noseguards for awhile now and they are an amazing product for anyone with a delicate board that has a habit of sending it flying into curbs or parking garage walls. I hope they continue to crank out new noseguards that will fit all the popular decks on the market these days.
However, Bombsquad also makes some really killer boards. We’ve just brought in two decks for the time being but we’re really impressed with the quality. The F-Bomb and the Wooden Saltflat are the ones that we’re starting out with. It’s not too often you can find a drop through speedboard for just $125! The Earthwing supermodel deck is the only one that can even touch that price range.
The Saltflat longboard deck is a 9 ply topmount made for agility and precision when drafting down big mountains at high speeds. It has just enough concave too-mellower than what seems to be the concave trend these days with super aggressive concave. The Saltflat is $125. I have to say, Bombsquad longboards can do no wrong in our book.
Looking for a grippy wheel to nail hairpin turns on a super tight, technical course? Well look no further than the Nersh Money Hax longboard wheels and the Abec11 Centrax wheels. They both feature a monster contact patch so you get the ultimate contact with the pavement for traction like none other. But for two wheels that seem so similar on the surface, what’s the difference between the two?
*Nersh longboard wheels are an offset wheel with a 70mm contact patch and a 75mm height. The super squared-off lips really dig into the pavement to give you a ton of traction. The softest option, a 76a durometer, will glide over any bumps in the road to give you the smoothest ride possible. In the harder duros, 80a and 83a, you can actually drift them a bit and the urethane gives a pretty smooth slide but they still get a ton of traction to make them a good all around wheel.
*The Abec 11 Centrax wheels are grippy like none other. No drifting out of these bad boys. Made from the “Reflex urethane”, these wheels are fast, grippy and predictable. The urethane also has a reputation for durability and holding up during usage. The square lips will fold under while cornering to give you traction. UNLIKE the Nersh, these wheels are center-set so you can flip them around and get a nice even wear pattern on them.
This video is part 2 of our surf-rodz precision trucks review. You can watch part 1 in the blog post just before this one. In the second part of this series we aimed to tackle life’s toughest questions, like “How do Surf-Rodz trucks compare to Munkae precision longboard trucks?”
Compared to JimZ Precision Trucks, Surf-Rodz come in 3 different baseplate degrees to dial in your ride. JimZ trucks are designed for stability and nothing else so they are limited to a 35 degree baseplate only. Jimz Trucks have a tight bushing seat with minimal lean. Surf-Rodz have a deep bushing seat.
You can expand the axle widths on the Surf-Rodz trucks by purchasing the axle extensions to make it a 220-240mm width. Narrower hangers will offer a nimble ride with quick turning for easy carving. The wider option will be super stable, especially at high speeds. You can also get the 150mm hanger which can extend to 160 or 170mm. It’s suited for small longboards like longboard hybrid minis. These narrow hangers will turn on a dime for ultimate thrashability.
Did we mention that they come in a huge variety of colors like purple, blue, gold, and black?
I wanted to tackle one of the most frequently questions we get in the shop. “How does the 10 Best Kahoona V2 kite compare to the 09 Kahoona?” Since we teach on the Kahoonas almost exclusively in our school, these kites practically sell themselves. They have a great reputation among the kiteboarding community and if you do your research and scour the forums, you won’t find a bad word said about the kites. Pretty amazing since you can’t please everyone, and every other kite out there has its pros and cons.
Since a lot of people bought the original 09 Kahoona, they’re wondering why they should upgrade to the 2010 Kahoona. Here’s what we think…
The Kahoona V2 has the newly redesigned V2 bridle system which eliminates a main pulley and incorporates a unique stainless steel block that allows the bridle to move so you can trim the kite effortlessly. The old pulley had a tendency to build up with sand over time so it would glide as easily. Plus, it was a plastic piece that had a higher chance of breaking, compared to the metal ring.
The new Kahoona is made with a higher quality dacron on the beefed up leading edge. We estimate that it’s about twice the strength of last year’s so it’s more durable and resistant to abrasion. Here in the northwets we have to be careful of barnacles, mussles, driftwood, oyster shells and other sharp objects which can mangle our kites.
The new redline bar is a huge benefit too with it’s increased line strength, and other cool features which you can find more about on our Best Performance redline bar review.
It looks like there is a little bit more adjustment per size, especially in the trailing edge. The 13 and 11 have more lower end and are easier to relaunch in lighter wind conditions (the trailing edge is longer so it has more surface area to help catch the wind and relaunch).
In reality, it just does everything better-more depower, much more stable when fully depowered, relaunch is effortless even in light wind, turning speed is about the same which is plenty fast (even in the larger sizes).
If you’d like to try one out for yourself please contact us for a demo.
One of Motion’s biggest supporters, Christian Johnson, took the time to test out the brand-spankin’ new 2010 Best Redline Performance Bar that now comes with Best kiteboarding kites, both on the water and off. He documented the key features that set this bar apart from the rest and was nice enough to put it in a video we can all watch. I have to admit, my favorite part is watching him personally test the chicken loop release in the beginning. : ) He’ll always sacrifice his body for the sake of a good review. So here you have it, the unofficial 2010 Best Redline Performance Bar Review.
This is an unbiased opinion that doesn’t sugar-coat anything. Christian talks about both the good and the bad parts of this kiteboarding bar. He’s tried most all bars on the market so he can offer a great comparison.
PROS-smaller chicken loop (good for people with shorter arms), dependable chicken loop release, stopper ball works really well, above the bar sheeting (less likely to tangle with chicken loop), actual RED line has a bungee feature to decrease shock on your body when you engage safety system, OSR on both sides of the bar, line trim/adjustments under the floats,
CONS-smaller chicken loop (not as good for wakestyle riders), above the bar sheeting (harder to reach, more clutter)
So you’ve already mastered kitesurfing in flatwater and choppy conditions so the next step, naturally, is venturing out into the waves. Whenever I talk to someone who has just ridden in waves for the first time, they’re practically glowing they’re so stoked to the brim. Wave riding with a kite is almost like a whole new sport, just like snowkiting is so different from water kiting. One of the biggest concerns for kiters in the waves is wondering what will happen if you drop your kite, but luckily I found this article from the Kiteboarder Magazine that gives some tips. The last thing you want to happen is to get a rip from your leading to trailing edge when the next set of waves pummels your kite.
If possible, you want to do whatever you can to relaunch the kite immediately. If it’s too late and a wave is already upon you, you may need to let the kite go, but only do so if no one is downwind of you. Once you pull your chicken loop and safety leash, swim as quick as you can into shore. You may even be able to catch the kite before it’s too late.
If you can’t release the kite, pull your chicken loop release to engage your safety system. If you don’t have one that will completely flag your kite, then grab one of the oh-$hit handles to depower one steering line and flag out the kite. Make sure you’re clear of the loose lines while you swim in the direction of the waves. You never want to pull in on your bar when a wave hits the kite otherwise there will be too much tension and either your lines will snap or the canopy on the kite will rip.
Good luck next time you hit the waves and in the meantime practice relaunching your kitesurfing kite until you can do it in no time. If you struggle with relaunching, consider taking an advanced Seattle kiteboarding lesson with us to hone your skills. The Best Kahoona kite is one of the best relaunching kites we’ve encountered so far.
I just wanted to share with you a sweet go pro video that one of MOBO’s friends, Christian Johnson, put together recently. He’s been rocking the Best Kahoona kite in the 7.5m and 9.5m sizes and he’s a huge fan of Best’s hottest selling kite, just like we are. The Kahoona is just one of those magical kitesurfing kites that you can’t help but have a great time flying. You’re guaranteed to have an awesome session on a Kahoona no matter how crappy the wind conditions are. This hybrid-delta style kite eats up the gusts like no other with a huge wind range and lots of throw in the chicken loop which translates to tons of depower.
We use the Kahoona’s to teach on in our school, the Seattle Kiteboarding Center, where we teach Seattle kiteboarding lessons on a daily basis. Since switching over to the Kahoonas, our students have seen tons of success. It’s now a regular occurrence to get fresh newbies the taste of getting up on the board during their very first lesson. With a price you can’t beat (the most expensive size, the 13.5 is still under $1300 for a brand new Kahoona complete with a new bar), the Kahoonas are a no brainer. The best part is that it’s not a beginner kite though. Even our super experienced teamrider Joaquin chooses the Kahoona on a regular basis.
These wheels are just as pretty as they look—smooth and sticky.
Nersh Longboard Wheels are here just in time for Maryhill and the summer race season. Similar to Centrax Wheels, these wheels pack a massive amount of ‘thane ready to grip pavement and drift smoothly.
Being one of the widest wheels on the market, the Nersh Money Hax is designed to provide the best traction with maximum grip for racing.
Not only do these wheels grip, they hold speed and roll over bumps like a bulldozer.
Nersh Money Hax Wheels 75mm come in 3 varieties of durometers: 76a, 80a, and 83a (pictured in order.)
To allow more drift, go for the harder 83a. If you’re looking to carry your speed through a turn, go for the softer 76a.
Made in Huntington Beach, California, Nersh Wheels are made by the same company that makes Sector9, Abec11, and Seismic.
If you’re interested in a pair and don’t have time for us to ship them to your doorstep before the Maryhill Festival of Speed, then give us a call at the shop. We’d be happy to bring a set of Nersh Wheels (or anything else for that matter) down to the race with us with your name on them.
We posted a Holesom Longboard Review not too long ago and got a huge amount of interest from that. This deck is just one of those boards that sparks people’s interest and they want to know more about it. Truly, there’s nothing else like the Street Sweeper deck on the longboard market these days. Big ups to Holesom and Longboard Larry for coming up with a unique design in an industry populated with copycats.
We’ve been selling these longboard decks like hotcakes, we can barely even keep them in stock! I think the demo deck at our seattle longboard shop that we keep around at all times really helps solidify how bad-ass the street sweeper deck is.
To follow up our review, we decided to crank out a little video to really show you what the deck is all about. Afterall, if picture is worth a thousand words, then a video must be worth a bazillion words. We decided to do something a little different this time though. Instead of just filming in the shop showing you the ins and outs or each product, we decided to hit the streets a little bit. I hope Nate and Spencer show you how this deck rides on the streets in case you’re not in Seattle to try one for yourself.
With summer kiting season upon us, we’ve got some gear worth mentioning—Motion Tested and Approved! Here is just one of our picks for 2010. Keep your eyes peeled because we’ll be reviewing TONS of gear over the next few weeks. I love this time of year!
Mystic Star 5/3 Wetsuit
Last summer the Motion test crew gave lessons in the Mystic Star 5/3 Wetsuit everyday. Even after the repeated thrashing of lessons, these suits reigned true to their flexibility and durability. We didn’t have any of the damage that wetsuits with heavy use typically sustain such as zipper breakage, seams coming apart or blowouts in the material. If you have questions about it, please let us know so we can gloat about this suit. We like it. A lot. Best of all, they are one of our lest expensive 5mm wetsuits at only $219.95. If you’re a big fan of them as well, please leave us a mystic wetsuit review on our website so more people will know what a great suit it is.
“Sector 9 Slide Gloves are badass,” Motion Boardshop’s Nate Blackburn says. “And since they are black, they go faster.”(kidding of course!) If you already have a longboard deck, getting slide gloves is the next logical step, especially if you’re homemade ones aren’t holding up.
Blackburn says the Kevlar reinforced fingertips make the gloves great for dragging fingers right across the pavement. The Landyachtz gloves are great too but boarders who are using gloves for the first time tend to drag their fingertips instead of curling them back and end up wearing a hole in the tips super quick. A softer wrist strap makes the gloves feel more natural and flexible, in addition to being lightweight and breathable. These are comfy gloves with big removable pucks for a great value….only $39.95!
Glove features:
Delrin Pucks for smooth slide and speed control
Neoprene comfort knuckle panel and cuff
Reflective print on top panels
3mm Anti-vibration foam under palm puck Velcro
Sonic weld patch and strap detailing
Extra strength twin needle at stress areas and palm Velcro
Thirty riders packed the house at Motion Boardshop for the Shoreline Outlaw at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 22. Luckily the sun was out all day for some Downhill and Old School races.
The race was held locally in Shoreline on Andrews, Sherrill and Ya Gotta Listen Hills. After warming up with two practice runs, riders took to the streets for seven heats of downhill pavement. Each heat featured four riders, with six riders in the final two heats.
The final heat standings:
Max Wipperman
Trevor Preston
Gabe Trainer
Nate Blackburn/Ryan Heffrenan, Kaleb Haddish
First place rider Max Wipperman walked away with a brand new Comet VooDoo Doll longboard deck. Other prizes included a set of Lime 70 mm wheels, and set of bushings. Prizes were hooked up by Motion Boardshop
If not, you’re missing out! Our Youtube Channel has 35 videos and just under 175,000 views so far and that number is growing every day. We try to offer a mix of all things related to longboard skateboard. You’ll find instructional videos to learn more about precision trucks, bushings, wheels and decks. There’s also videos dedicated to specific products like the Rayne Demonseed and the Eastside Rocky Bomber in case you’re thinking about buying one and want to learn more about it. And then of course you’ll find lots of action-packed videos of our teamriders bombing local suburban hills at 50mph, freerides and events at the famous Maryhill, and our team cruising down Alpental’s mountain roads. So there’s obviously something for everyone. We encourage comments and try to get back to everyone who leaves specific questions.
Subscribe to our channel and you’ll be the first to know when our latest longboard videos drop!
Here’s our video documenting last month’s Maryhill Freeride:
The new Rayne Isis longboard is quickly becoming a Motion favorite here in the shop. Why? Here’s some of the features on the Isis:
Slim-cave (a downhill concave specifically developed for smaller feet), a 1/2″ dropped riding platform, it’s topmounted like the avenger for tons of traction, and it has a “flat top pleasure dome” which is specifically dialed in for stand-up slides and cornering high speed turns.
With such features, the Isis longboard is a perfect board for just about anything. Being a Rayne longboard, it obviously features that famous Rayne construction of a bamboo core and fiberglass sandwiched on top and bottom, giving it that perfectly stiff ride, and an incredibly durable board.For those riders who are looking for one board that does it all, this board will surely make a good addition to the quiver.
I’m sure you have all heard about the Killswitch by now, nut if you haven’t, it is time to hop on to the downhill board of the future. The Rayne Killswitch Longboard is the brainchild of Rayne team rider, Kevin Reimer. As Kevin says, the Killswitch longboard is designed to work around the way a human goes downhill skateboarding. Kevin has taken the time to think about every movement that happens while you are downhill or freeriding longboarding, and put a feature to make that movement easier and more comfortable while riding this board, giving the rider that “locked in” feeling at all times. Some of the features include:
1: 3/8″ Radial Drop Platform: subtle drops in the front and rear so as to cradle the life that it is stealing you from regular monotonous board design.
2: K-Rimes’ own Pleasure Dome concave with a subtle feel that is enough to lock you in, but not enough to become bothers ome on long bombs or pushes. The W concave also allows for butter toe-side pre-drifts and heel-side stand up checks by keeping your rear foot in place.
1+2 = 3: Where the small drop morphs into the flat-topped Pleasure Dome concave, you place your foot in that “special spot” where the two lovers meet. You will find your foot and toes are dropped into an aggressive forward facing stance that is similar to that of a runner on a starting block. This allows for pushing bad’assery and major comfort when you’re out on the track.
4: Three-dimensional wood bending was used in this deck to give a full, cupped feeling for the front and rear toes. This allows the body to lean far away from the board while still maintaining full contact of the front foot. The rear foot will find a pocket specially designed for those who tuck, and tuck fast.5: The “Drop-Lock”. When you stand on this s deck your front foot will naturally position itself into the “Drop-Lock” where the toes sit beside the drop rather than behind it. This makes for a complete and total lock of the front foot for toe-side drifts.
Along with those futuristic features listed above, the board features a 38-inch deck, with 10 inches of width at its widest points, and alternate wheelbases of 31 and 32 inches. With its functional nose and tail, the board truly maximizes the amount of deck space that useable for you feet while you are bombing your favorite hill or cruising to the grocery store. Not to mention the construction, with a solid bamboo core, and fiberglass sandwiched on top and bottom, this board is one solid downhill and freeride machine! All in all, the Rayne Killswitch is one board that you have to see to appreciate the truly genius design.
We just received our box of ‘zines from SBC Kiteboard Magazine. They feature the 2010 Kite Showdown and Slingshot cleaned house, just as we predicted. Here’s what they had to say about the new Comp Stick Bar:
“Slingshot also receives top marks for the beefy and easy rotating, front line swivel, which keeps the lines untwisted and also houses the mini fifth line leash system which connects below the bar and ensures 100 percent depower… Overall, the Comp Stick represents a solidly designed and streamlined set-up that rivals the best on the market for safety and simplicity.”
“Intermediate riders that value versatility over top-end performance in a specific discipline will gravitate towards the Octane. It has enough performance to carry a rider from the early stages to advanced levels. It’s versatile character will encourage intermediates to push the limits and experience new levels, styles and disciplines of riding”
The 2010 RPM really takes the cake though with this bold statement:
“The new 2010 Slingshot RPM is the most tunable kite in the SBC Kiteboard 2010 tests.”
“The RPM has tremendous amounts of pop and great pull unhooked, giving good drift and loft with smooth landings on unhooked jumps. It could also easily compete against the full-on wakestyle realm with its smooth unhooked pull and good amounts of control. It has enough depower and good quick steering to make it a versatile travel companion in your quiver.”
If you’re local, stop by the shop and we’ll give you a free issue of the magazine! Mention that you read the blog and we might even hook you up with a t-shirt too. : ) The PSKite Spring Fling party is going on tonight at the Pyramid Brewery across the street from Safeco field. We’ll be giving out lots of swag and hope to see lots of familiar faces, and new ones too!
We just brought in a big box of compression kite bags from Dakine and it’s a product we’re really excited about for 2 reason. They’re cheap and they’re functional! Compression bags are made out of a super lightweight nylon material so you can get rid of your heavy stock bag that came with the kite. When you’re traveling with a golf bag, space and weight are the two big concerns.
These bags cinch down really tight around the kite so you can fit more kites into your bag, and you save a ton of weight you didn’t realize the stock bags had. So, you don’t have to worry about tipping the scales at the airport check in station.
Or, you can use the cheap black compression bags to replace your stock bags so that you can keep the stock bags looking clean and new. That way when you go to resell your used kite, it will look a lot fresher than some dirty, torn up bag. We’ve found you can fit at least two compressed kite bags into one stock bag so you can easily throw more kites on your back when walking to the beach.
So the AWSI industry trade show last week allowed us to try kites and boards from about 90% of the manufacturers, from all the big companies to lesser known up-and-comers. After trying almost everything that was available, along with a team of other retailers around the country that we work with, the consensus was that HANDS DOWN the most impressive kites were the Wainman Rabbit Series.
They have a different name for every size, like their 14m is the Big Mama and the 9m is The Smoke. They only make one style of kite and then they tweak each size individually to perfect it (as opposed to making a perfect 9m and then sizing it up or down like other manufacturers do)
It’s a delta shaped kite that performs like a mix of the RPM and Fuel with fast turning and Slingshot-esque durability. It’s one of the smoothest kites we’ve ever tested and the design is the future of kiteboarding in our opinion. It’s low aspect ratio makes it good for users of all skill levels. It will likely be our school kite of choice because of it’s excellent relaunch, stability while flying and the fact that it won’t oversheet. So beginners learning to put the board on their feet won’t find it sneaking off to the side of the window. It also has small tags on the pigtails which clearly label “more power, less power, better upwind” etc. making it easy for even a former blonde like myself to tune their kite to the conditions and their riding style.
Some features include:
-above the bar sheeting
-colored line sets (good for kook proofing and snowkiting)
-a plastic sheath over the chicken loop (to ensure minimal wear on the sheeting line)
-push away chicken loop release
-suicide ring option on chicken loop
-beefed up LE with Dacron which goes into the wingtip itself for extra durability
We also carry the Kahoona which is a delta kite and you may wonder what the main differences are…The Wainman kite is a little more expensive but that’s because the construction on it is so beefy. It’s also created on more of a freestyle riding platform, so even though it will loop good, it’s not as fast turning as the Kahoona. Both have excellent relaunch.
NOW ONTO THE BOARDS…
The Wainman boards are out of this world. They have great upwind capability, surprisingly so since they have insane concave on the bottom and added rocker too. This concave allows for the feeling of a larger volume board so you can get away with riding a size smaller than usual. Very predictable, excellent pop and is probably the lightest board we’ve ever tried. Squishy, soft, comfy footpads are great for hot landings and long sessions. Just like the kites, the boards are very durably made with high quality. Overall, we wouldn’t tweak a thing on the boards.
The Wainman surfboards are something we weren’t able to try out first hand but they’re so beautiful they could be mistaken for a piece of art. They are shaped and finished by renowned board maker Jimmy Lewis and have a distinct gun shape making then good in heavy surf. Oh yeah, and they also come with a padded board bag to make sure it stays in good condition.
FOR DEMO we have a 9m and 12m Rabbit Kites and a Blunt 130 twin tip and the Surfboard. This is what we were able to snag at the trade show and more will be arriving shortly. But you can consider us your Wainman connection. After talking with other shops around the country, I’m sure you’ll be hearing a lot more about this brand in the very near future.
We are super pumped to be carrying the line-up from Hyperflex and the 2mm Playa Jacket happens to be our favorite product at the moment. It’s great for throwing on before or after sessions, warming up in the car, wearing while you’re waiting in the boat for your turn to wakesurf or whatever it may be. You’ve probably seen some ads with Dmitry Marimendes wearing his. They are not too bulky, yet are still stylish while being wind and waterproof.
They come in two different design options which you can see Jason & Joaquin wearing.
We just got a big shipment of 10mm Munkae Trucks from the Downhill Dragon Clan. What I love is the wide variety of colors they have available. You can either pick from what we have in stock or you can let us know what you want and we’ll order it up for you. Keep in mind that with these 10mm axles you will need 10mm bearings but luckily they’ll only run you about $16 (or for ceramic 10mm bearings, $52).
Here’s what Seattle local longboarder Barrett had to say about his new pair of Munkaes:
“They have lots of agility, a quick response, good articulation and great leverage. The traction they provide going around corners is like a whole different sport. They’re awesome and I’ve been loving riding them.”
Since Munkaes come stock with venoms, at least you won’t have to spend any extra to upgrade your bushings. They have a 42.25 degree baseplate and are like a cross between Bear Smokies and Kahalanis. Josh Rolf, the mastermind behind Munkaes, recommends that the kingpin go through the bottom of the baseplate. This helps reduce damage to the thru hole due to heavy turning and road vibrations. Threads will eat a hole in aluminum in a hurry.
. this board is DEFENETLY stable enough for dh ( ive brought her to about 50-55 and i havnt met her limits yet) light and symmetrical for free ride and again the pockets are super, light and low enough for commuting. over all love this board and dont tell anyone, but i honestly like the pockets more then the killswitch pocket.”
One of the best parts about being in the longboarding industry is that there is a constant flow of cool new products being introduced into the market. There’s no shortage of innovative ideas taking shape and hitting the hands of consumers. The sport is growing faster than shops and manufacturers can keep up with even! One product that we are suuuper excited about and just happen to have exclusively at Motion Boardshop, is a new grip tape: 
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