Berlin action boys own some skimboards now! Has been on my bucketlist for a while!
Skimboard 101
A high-end skimboard looks like a finless surfboard (really short one). Cool PROs run into a breaking wave, drop the board on flat water or wet sand, hop on top of it and have a little fun ride, sometimes even catching that wave close to shore.
How "the dream of skimboarding" looks like:
freaking sick, right ?
What mine (and probably your) skimboarding will look like, for a while:
And that was "on a good day"
Haha, I will keep practicing to get you guys a better video. Berlin action boys got hooked on "sliding every kind of surface that slides".
In the meanwhile, Internet is full of brave people skimboarding wet grass, rain puddles, dragged behind cars - just winging it everywhere it's possible, really.
The most prominent is Adrien Raza skimming city fountains, wet skateparks and staircases. Madman.
My little report
Me and Floh went to a surf-shop here in Ericeira, bought a 30eur wooden skimboard, waxed it, tried to get it going on wet sand like forever aaaand .... We can slide on wet sand now. Wow.
I've been going to the beach to skim for about a month now. It's not just the novelty of it, oh-no-no-no, sir.
Not wetsuit to put on, no "good and bad" conditions, no real dependency on tide, no paddling out and no waiting - I was born to skim!
On the negatives: You might get hurt when you bail (as always). And you'll have sand everywhere.
My little upgrade
On average you can get a wooden skimboard for about ~30EUR. Wooden skimboard slides great on sand and I've read people do all kinds of flatland tricks on these. The downside is: it's heavy and it will sink in water FAST.
A foamy "lighter" skimboard will go faster, will be able to carry your weight in the water a bit due to higher float and will set you back approx 10 times more $$$ then your first woodie. Yup. If you don't believe me, take a look at these
I've gotten myself one from a now defunct local brand. Local shops were still selling b-stock CHEAP.
It does slide better, goes faster, not as sturdy (unfortunatelly), gets me in water just a little bit further.. Everything as advertised. Not quite my size, but beggars can't be choosers, for sub 100 eur it's a blast.
You can even slide it on dry sand if you really want!
Tine can do what others can not
My BIG skimboard dreams (the conclusion bit)
Getting a wooden skimboard was defo a step in a right direction. It's cheap, it's lotta fun, it's cost efficient - Berlin action boys recommend you to get a wooden skimboard. Make sure it's big enough for your height and weight!!
Perhaps don't rush "upgrading" too fast - I do feel a difference, but my skill and confidence are just not there to "unlock full potential" of my cheapo bargain bin foamie. Since we go skim together with Tine, having two boards is quite handy anyways, so it wasn't a waste.
"Catching a wave" will most probably take some time, it seems. Manage your expectations.
My "big plan" as of today is simply "to keep going". If I find a cheap way to smuggle my boards back to Germany, I would love to try them on lake beaches, and big nasty city puddles :) Till then, I'll keep you guys posted and hope you've enjoyed reading this.
Stay active, stay beautiful. Now go out and skim, or something!