Choosing Your First Skateboard

If you’re looking to start skateboarding but are unsure what board and setup to purchase first you should consider things like how much money you have to spend, how often you want to skateboard and whether you want to learn tricks or just roll out round. Once you’ve taken all these into account you should get down to a local skateshop (a shop dedicated to skateboarding or extreme sports) as these general sell the right equipment and will offer the best advice.

If you have little money to spend on a board then you would probably be best off buying a cheap ’starter’ board, a starter board is a complete skateboard which is usually sold for around £20, you can pick them up in any major sports shop, skateshops generally sell their own version of a starter board and you should ask the shop keeper for what they sell.

Also when buying a skateboard you must take into account that they come in different widths, more common sizes are 7.5”, 7.75”, 8” or minis (a board width under 7.5”). Generally the width best suited to you depends on your height and shoe size, a smaller person with smaller feet would be better off with a 7.5” or possibly a mini. The bigger feet you have the bigger the width of the deck you should buy. If you’re unsure what width is right for you, ask to stand on the boards to see what feels natural to you prior to buying, any decent skateshop will allow you to do this.

If you find skateboarding is for you, you may want to move on to a more expensive board made from a skate company, these will help you progress as they are made for the purpose and are lighter and stronger. They will generally set you back around £100 – £130 for a full setup or £45 – 55 for just the deck, but for this money, you should get a strong, light and good quality skateboard. When you buy a full setup you can also choose the parts you want for the board. For example, you could have an Element deck, Spitfire wheels, Royal trucks and some standard ABEC1 bearings. You’ll only find a decent complete in a skate store so don’t bother looking elsewhere!

You can find your local skater owned skate shop here: http://sk8uk.co.uk/skateboarding-guide/skater-owned-shops/