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Holy hell, you guys. I rode an 8.28 for awhile today (normally ride the 8.25/14.38). I was SHOCKED at how small that thing is. The shorter kicks, length, and wheelbase…felt like I was riding a freestyle board. I am bewildered that any normal sized adult could ride a sub 14” wheelbase (e.g. true fit) for anything other pure freestyle. That shit is just WILD. Hats-off to those of you can ride those decks, they would be the death of me.
Same.
Sure is a weird ride for me, but I know some really short people too, so they definitely benefit from those sort of boards.
Also to note, some people like Koston prefer shorter wheelbases to anything else, so I couldn't imagine a sub 14" wb but that is the norm for them.
* Koston is not short either.
Koston also came up when that was normal and rides Venture. He rode normal decks when he was "sponsored by Independent"
Yeah it is definitely more what you know and what you are used to.
I don't really follow Koston in detail, but when on Crail boards, they had shorter wheelbases, so he could get away without modifying Indy trucks even though he wanted them lower than they were, but I think more than anything now, most of the boards he rides, Skate Mental or whatever are longer wheelbases, so his repositioned holes on lower Venture trucks work better on those setups anyway.
When trying out that option just to see what it was like, I could definitely feel how short the board was in the wheelbase, but it also made Venture trucks work a lot more easily for me too.
Combinations of board and trucks will definitely help or hinder what you are used to in your skateboard madness / comfort on a board, more so if you have been riding a certain shape, size or feel of setup for a while.
Some of the pro people (male or female) as well as the general public are very short and could do with something that is significantly shorter and easier to spin, flip or whatever, especially as people are going more for wider boards now than they have in the past, which usually meant increases in width would also come with increases in wheelbase and overall length.
How tall are you guys? I'm 5'7 and like a bit shorter of a board, but those True Fits sound crazy short.
6'2" / 188cms tall with size 11/12 shoe.
Riding 8.38 to 8.5 with 14.5 wb and 32+ length more often than not nowdays (with size 12 shoes), but was on black eagles 8.12 with 14.25 wb or other 8.18 with 14.38 wb for a long time while squeezing into size 11 shoes.
When I have a go of the 8 or 8.25 shorter boards, often 14 or so wb, they feel so light and easy to flip, so it is not a big deal, but I definitely prefer a bit more board overall nowdays.