Have bigger boards slowed the progression of skateboarding?

[Grrrreencans]

Watch what happened when Rodney Mullen had to instantly switch from smaller to bigger, and then you tell us!

(around 3:40, but may as well watch the whole part)

Is there anything more unsettling than 60 seconds of Rodney fake laughing in an empty schoolyard ??

[Heshrat]

Not at all... like back in the day if you think about it, boards got smaller cuz the skaters wnated to find out new ways to make the boards under neath them flip, now its about seeing how big boards can flip the same way. Thats progression, because people used to think those fat boards were only for riding bowls n slappies.

[switchfakie]

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Many people consider the 90’s to be the golden era in skateboarding. So many timeless video parts were dropped and skating rapidly progressed to new levels. Its been over 20 years and many of these parts still hold up today even compared to the abilities of modern day skaters. This makes me wonder what caused this boom in the 90’s. I’ve noticed everyone back then rode 7.75 boards or smaller which I’m sure made technical manoeuvres much easier. But nowadays everyone is riding 8.25+ I wonder if this has slowed the natural progression of skating to a certain degree and steered us away from the technical tricks of the 90’s

[close]

How much further should it progress? We need a regression. People front feebling quintuple kink rails, switch laser back lipping handrails, doing triple flips off 12 stairs. Lets just skate size 10's and push mongo uphill in the rain.

i unironically want more simple but well performed tricks in parts

after nyjah's 10+ minute part, i could give negative fucks about tech anymore

just give me good style and good music

[big_kev_215]

No, they haven’t

[Not_Bruce]

I don't know how you can look at the progression of skating from the 90s until today, and propose this question.

So eloquently stated.

[Terminal]

No, but the fact none of us are riding Skatewings has...

[mooraga]

I think it’s made skating progress in a more well rounded way. It seems like we’re no longer simply aiming for max technical proficiency and/or handrail gnar, but you can if that’s your wheelhouse. The bigger boards have unlocked other, surfier potential while adding some gnar*.

*As controversial as crosslocked 50-50s are on here, they do allow people to grind longer, more wild rails and you wouldn’t really see too many of them on 7.75 or 8” trucks.

SOUND LOGICAL but Im pretty sure isn't true
long distance rail skating its been going on since Duffy and Way showed it was possible, a lot of shit its been done in those terms, the difference its kids nowadays are more prone to skate the fucked up 10 flat 14 rail than ever before only cause so much has been done on "normal" spots, but that doesn't mean they go longer
its become a more common way to step on the rail but the most insane rail dudes are still locking the wheels (nyjah or foy)
I think its more a consequence of loose trucks than board wide, you can totally crosslock on a 7.5 If you want to.

As a kid I always thought that when you grinded a round rail you had to grind RIGTH IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRUCK, full balanced and centered, basically a 1 mm contact surface on each truck    That probably came from skating only square flatbars with my friends thinking it was safer, which obviously never helped us to properly learn rail tricks

[tadej Pog]

Nate Jones > Tyshawn

[Mean salto]

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I think it’s made skating progress in a more well rounded way. It seems like we’re no longer simply aiming for max technical proficiency and/or handrail gnar, but you can if that’s your wheelhouse. The bigger boards have unlocked other, surfier potential while adding some gnar*.

*As controversial as crosslocked 50-50s are on here, they do allow people to grind longer, more wild rails and you wouldn’t really see too many of them on 7.75 or 8” trucks.

[close]

SOUND LOGICAL but Im pretty sure isn't true
long distance rail skating its been going on since Duffy and Way showed it was possible, a lot of shit its been done in those terms, the difference its kids nowadays are more prone to skate the fucked up 10 flat 14 rail than ever before only cause so much has been done on "normal" spots, but that doesn't mean they go longer
its become a more common way to step on the rail but the most insane rail dudes are still locking the wheels (nyjah or foy)
I think its more a consequence of loose trucks than board wide, you can totally crosslock on a 7.5 If you want to.

As a kid I always thought that when you grinded a round rail you had to grind RIGTH IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRUCK, full balanced and centered, basically a 1 mm contact surface on each truck    That probably came from skating only square flatbars with my friends thinking it was safer, which obviously never helped us to properly learn rail tricks

It's funny because we all did that shit too even on square flatbars. Have the board shifting side to side like bumper bowling while 5050 a flatbar. Even 5050d a 7 rail not locked in at all just thought the idea was to sandwich the board between your feet and the rail

[alexander glownig]

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I think it’s made skating progress in a more well rounded way. It seems like we’re no longer simply aiming for max technical proficiency and/or handrail gnar, but you can if that’s your wheelhouse. The bigger boards have unlocked other, surfier potential while adding some gnar*.

*As controversial as crosslocked 50-50s are on here, they do allow people to grind longer, more wild rails and you wouldn’t really see too many of them on 7.75 or 8” trucks.

[close]

SOUND LOGICAL but Im pretty sure isn't true
long distance rail skating its been going on since Duffy and Way showed it was possible, a lot of shit its been done in those terms, the difference its kids nowadays are more prone to skate the fucked up 10 flat 14 rail than ever before only cause so much has been done on "normal" spots, but that doesn't mean they go longer
its become a more common way to step on the rail but the most insane rail dudes are still locking the wheels (nyjah or foy)
I think its more a consequence of loose trucks than board wide, you can totally crosslock on a 7.5 If you want to.

As a kid I always thought that when you grinded a round rail you had to grind RIGTH IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRUCK, full balanced and centered, basically a 1 mm contact surface on each truck    That probably came from skating only square flatbars with my friends thinking it was safer, which obviously never helped us to properly learn rail tricks

[close]

It's funny because we all did that shit too even on square flatbars. Have the board shifting side to side like bumper bowling while 5050 a flatbar. Even 5050d a 7 rail not locked in at all just thought the idea was to sandwich the board between your feet and the rail

i thought that until a few years ago. someone asked me how to lock onto round contest rail and i said i just try to balance in the middle. truth be told, i was likely heel side locking because i noticed you wanted to be right on top but had no idea what was really going on. old thrashers seemed to back up the balance in the middle theory, especially when shot from underneath the rail.

[13Bastards]

Didn't Bachinsky flip el toro on a 7.5?
Not contributing to the debate, but that is an interesting fact somewhat.

[dill8849]

It sure hasn't slowed Chico down.

[goodatmeth]

Didn't Bachinsky flip el toro on a 7.5?
Not contributing to the debate, but that is an interesting fact somewhat.

And he's still riding 7.5.
He's tiny though

[camel filters]

All I can say is my own progression went up when I got rid of the 7.75 nonesense and went to 8.25 in the late 2000's. So much more confidence at higher speeds. I hate the feeling of the infinity flip of narrow boards. No hefty slap on catches and grinds feel like a balance beam. Narrow boards also looks terrible especially in HD footage where you can clearly see your massive feet hanging over both rails. Thats just me tho. Wenning cosplayers may feel different.

[rawbertson.]

Didn't Bachinsky flip el toro on a 7.5?
Not contributing to the debate, but that is an interesting fact somewhat.

pretty sure it was a 7.75

I think for certain people and certain types of skating, small boards work great and people should ride them if they work well for them like Kevin Bileyu.

its funny whne you think about certain things that were done like 10-15 years ago that havent been done much or at all since.

Someone was saying the into line on Doobie's part on the new Anti Hero video ollie into the bank was "for sure NBD" then someone posted the clip of a guy kickflipping into it in 2007 or 2011 or something.

Scott Kane doing the switch heel front noseslide down handrail on bootleg 3000

Most of Rodney + Daewons shit like crook flip outs, the insane manny combos... then shane oneill sorta inspired a whole wave of skaters who can kinda just do whatever they want with flip tricks and flat obstacles. that is where i feel like the progression has come. back in the early days, there were only a few who had this level of skill. now theres A LOT more people with the ability. with that comes different ideas

[Bruiser603]

Expand Quote

Many people consider the 90’s to be the golden era in skateboarding. So many timeless video parts were dropped and skating rapidly progressed to new levels. Its been over 20 years and many of these parts still hold up today even compared to the abilities of modern day skaters. This makes me wonder what caused this boom in the 90’s. I’ve noticed everyone back then rode 7.75 boards or smaller which I’m sure made technical manoeuvres much easier. But nowadays everyone is riding 8.25+ I wonder if this has slowed the natural progression of skating to a certain degree and steered us away from the technical tricks of the 90’s

[close]

That's your first mistake right there, you noticed wrong. The era of the most rapid progression was 1989-94 (same as Golden Age Hip-Hop) and board sizes smack dab in the middle of this period (1991-1992) were around 9" +/- wide and many were slicks (so super heavy and soggy). All the shit in Questionable, Tim &  Henry's Pack of Lies, Love Child, etc. was filmed and released during this period on relatively wide boards that went from being square tail/pointy-rounded nose to symmetrical-egg/football shapes. The wheels were another major factor; they went down to like 35mm (insanity, when you think about it) and somehow managed to not hinder progression, just speed and style.

Eventually, the evolution to the popsicle shape happened in 1993 and while smaller, boards were still 8-8.5 (like today) until the second half of '93, when they quickly went all the way down to 7.5" in some cases and stayed that way in 1994. They basically became banana boards. But wheels gradually became bigger; this was accelerated by the Philly/Love Park/Eastern Exposure scene, with those dudes riding 55mm+ wheels that looked HUGE at the time. This was near the beginning of the progression of style over tech. Boards stayed pretty much the same (7.75"-8.25") until the 2010s, as the evolution of style, gnar, and tech merged.

Now with the wider boards, people are doing the most insane shit, so I'd say NO, it hasn't affected progression in the least. I think board shape and wheel size is all about a particular skater's idiosyncrasies and comfort level. Amazing shit can be done on practically any shape, within reason.

What is being described here was my exact experience/thoughts.  Those years 93-98 were my hey day for skateboarding.  Got introduced on tiny wheels and a tom boyle new school slick.  And when I came into my own, myself and the crew I skated with were all heavily influenced by the boys in philly.  Bombing the city with 56-60 mm and wider boards, (still the way I lean to this day, just enjoy that set up more).  I also saw some of the gnarliest skating progression on the bigger set ups, people just got used to them and could still send it off of whatever they were on a smaller set up.  I will say on a personal note, styles and comfort got so much better for the people I skated with and myself when everything sized up.  I think it's mainly due to how much easier it is to skate all over all day from spot to spot on 58-60mm.  No part of the city was off limits and few spots were with wheels like that, so the result was alot more time on the board riding.  More time on the board riding = greater comfort = smoother style? (Theory).  Just 2 cents from an old head.

[EagleassMF]

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Expand Quote

Many people consider the 90’s to be the golden era in skateboarding. So many timeless video parts were dropped and skating rapidly progressed to new levels. Its been over 20 years and many of these parts still hold up today even compared to the abilities of modern day skaters. This makes me wonder what caused this boom in the 90’s. I’ve noticed everyone back then rode 7.75 boards or smaller which I’m sure made technical manoeuvres much easier. But nowadays everyone is riding 8.25+ I wonder if this has slowed the natural progression of skating to a certain degree and steered us away from the technical tricks of the 90’s

[close]

There’s not a timeless 90s part that would even get you on flow for the lowliest of brands these days.

[close]

that is a noble take sir

Despite old guy nostalgia, which this site is filled to the brim with, it’s true. Welcome to Hell may have been the gnarliest thing anyone had seen at the time, but it doesn’t compare with what the kids are able to do these days.

[mj23]

T Funk ollied the China banks bench on a 9” board with 58mm wheels

[blahblah999]

OP should go look at some old CCS catalogs or mags online to get an idea of actual board sizes from different eras. Those football/egg type boards were wide, maybe 9'' at the middle and 8.5'' or a little more over the trucks. Wheels were getting down to sub-40mm.

By the time I got my first real complete (in '94 or '95), boards were down to 7.5'' on average with some skaters riding 7.75'' or a little larger. Depending on where you lived some people were still riding small wheels. I remember seeing lots of people on 45mm and my 50mm wheels were considered "big" at the time.

I agree that EE3 was a big influence on people moving to wider boards. Almost everyone I knew at the time sized up to 8-8.25'' and got larger wheels (e.g. 55mm) when they could afford it. Plenty of people are doing fine on setups like that now as well.

As far as progression goes, that comment makes little sense to me. I agree that are only so many tricks out there and so many variations on those tricks. My observation is that a lot of the pros nowadays are highly skilled and very technical but all the tricks are just combos or variations on tricks we've already seen.

A guy like Rodney Mullen inventing all these new tricks doesn't come around too often. Of course the obstacles some pros skate have gotten a whole lot bigger and more dangerous too.

Bottom line is that people should ride whatever they feel comfortable on.

[No Wave Comply]

Something I forgot to mention is that I think spot selection and the ability to "unlock" spots (using Bondo, tools, sabotaging skate-stoppers a la Tom K., etc.) has contributed the most to progression in the last decade or so. I think everyone has been looking at things differently and more creatively in the last decade or so.

The THPS series and Skate video games were another factor in pushing what might be possible.

[funeral_tuxedo]

Expand Quote

Many people consider the 90’s to be the golden era in skateboarding. So many timeless video parts were dropped and skating rapidly progressed to new levels. Its been over 20 years and many of these parts still hold up today even compared to the abilities of modern day skaters. This makes me wonder what caused this boom in the 90’s. I’ve noticed everyone back then rode 7.75 boards or smaller which I’m sure made technical manoeuvres much easier. But nowadays everyone is riding 8.25+ I wonder if this has slowed the natural progression of skating to a certain degree and steered us away from the technical tricks of the 90’s

[close]

There’s not a timeless 90s part that would even get you on flow for the lowliest of brands these days.

Jeremy Wray ollied the water tower gap back in 97. It's still there if you want to go get some.

[djoekr]

We'd probably all be skating flatbars out of an airplane if bigger boards never held us back.

[jorge]

The most progressive skater of all time (Gonz not Rodney, and not close either) rides gigantic weird boards all the time for what it’s worth.

[Mean salto]

In a way Rodney was most progressive on a pretty big board. Even if he rode a 7.5 it's much bigger than the freestyle boards he started with

[No Wave Comply]

In a way Rodney was most progressive on a pretty big board. Even if he rode a 7.5 it's much bigger than the freestyle boards he started with

Rodney obviously did a lot for foundational flip tricks and their variations, as well as board shapes, but his style is doo doo.

[hotstudios_on_youtube]

I want deep concave back

[Lou Strux]

Have bigger brains slowed the progression of thinking?

[SilentBob]

Crappy shoes slowed the progression of skating.
Companies were building tanks for your feet back then when Jamie Thomas and Reynolds were hucking down massive gaps.
Now it's all vulc garbage. Thank DC and NB# for a real athletic shoe resurgence

[kookdusoleil]

Not sure how many more ways a skateboard can flip though

[Uncle Flea]

Skating was wide open in the 90s. Street skating as a movement was new still. Now everything has been done almost.

Bigger boards are good for style. Skating needs weight and pop to pow! That's progress. Big wheels and big boards.

To me riding baby boards was the worst. Having no choice above 7.7 was horrendous for me. I had to stop. I couldn't afford it anymore. It was rare AF that I could get free shit to tide me over. When I could I always asked for new trucks.

Small trucks seemed to break much easier too. Or maybe it's because my max Ollie height is like 20" less these days.

I've said it before a ton.
We are living through the golden age of product and choices.
8"-9" is the goldilocks zone for street skating in my opinion. I've always felt like this.

Wheels like 51-60mm I can do all of that with little change in my abilities.

Fred Gall said he only rode baby boards when filming. He knows what I'm talking about.

7.75 and 7.5 was hard for my soul to deal with. Same with sub 52mm wheels