By Summer Mull
Cruising, slaloming, and bombing are a few skateboarding terms spoken by longboarders in Utah. A sport invented by California surfers has finally made its way to BYU.
Students are seen carrying extra long skateboards around campus and cruising home on these waterless longboards. With the number of students from California at BYU, it is no wonder people are seen surfing the streets.
'Most longboarders are surfers that want the same feeling on the street that they have riding a wave,' said Shawn Hodge, 26, employee of Skates on Haight in San Francisco. 'In the ''60s and ''70s surfers used longboards to carry their surfboards down to the beach.'
Longboards are easier to handle than shortboards. The wheels are bigger and softer hence they grip the ground better. They have a wider wheelbase and keep moderate speeds, he said.
'One of the beauties of a longboard is its ability to make slow gradual turns down hills,' Hodge said.
Longboards have been around just as long as shortboards but are just recently growing in popularity. Recent technology, including newer shapes contribute to the recent outbreak, he said.
Some boards are made with a mix of wood and fiberglass, giving the board a bouncier feel and consequently greater stability, Hodge said.
Hodge said he grew up in Virginia and has been skateboarding for 16 years. He first learned about longboarding when he moved to San Francisco four years ago.
'I had never seen a longboard until I moved out (West),' Hodge said. 'The East is flat and not as good for longboarding.'
He said that businessmen are using longboards as their mode of transportation to and from work in San Francisco.
Matt Candrian, 21, a business major from the Bay area, can be seen cruising the streets of Provo on his longboard.
'I saw it in San Francisco and it looked like fun,' Candrian said. 'I just tried it once and stuck with it.'
Hodge said that longboards aren''t necessarily longer than regular skateboards.
A longboard is a board that has big soft wheels and wider trucks. Trucks are similar to a car''s axel. Longboards can range anywhere between 28 to 57 inches, he said.
'I used to ride shortboards a lot but have actually converted my shortboard into a longboard,' Hodge said. 'That way I can still do tricks.'
Skaters agreed that it is much easier to do tricks on shortboards and to cruise and slalom down hills on longboards.
Kendra Wirig, 24, MBA finance student from Clayton, Calif., said she met her husband longboarding.
'We keep our longboard to this day because it was the place we met,' she said.
Wirig first became interested in longboarding while watching her brothers ride in California.
'I thought it looked like fun so I wanted one,' she said.
Sarah Nicosia, 23, modern dance major from Layton, Davis County, said she learned about longboarding from her Californian roommate.
'I like it because I like the feeling of freedom that you get when you''re cruising,' she said.