Question: What Skateboarding Can I Do When It's Cold, Wet, Raining, Snowy
and Winter?
Wherever you live, there's likely to be at least a few wet months out of the year where
skateboarding outside just isn't an option. What should you do?
Answer: Skateboarding doesn't have to be boxed up and stored until Spring -
there are plenty of ways to get your skateboarding fix all year round, to stay
active, and to actually improve! Here are some ideas:
1. The Garage - your own personal skatepark
If you have a garage with a concrete floor, then you're all set. Get the cars out of the
way, move all the boxes into the attic, and you have a perfect mini-skatepark just for
you. If your garage is big enough, you can even put in a miniramp to skate on, or a
short rail to practice grinds. Garages are perfect for skating when it's wet and cold
outside. Plus, if you are a new skater, no one can see how bad you are!
2. Carpet Skating
If you have a carpeted floor in your house, like the living room, you can practice
things like your kickturns, ollies, kickflips, pop shuvits, manual balance practice...
really, all the technical tricks you want! Just clear enough space so you don't take out
a lamp or anything.
3. Indoor Training Equipment
There are companies out there who make special training equipment for
skateboarding. For example, the Indo Board is a balance trainer. I have one of these
set up in my living room pretty much all the time, and hop on it when I'm on the
phone, or watching TV but don't feel like sitting down. Improving your balance over
the winter will help your skating in the spring.
There are also other practice tools, like Ollieblocks or Softrucks. Both of these do
basically the same thing - they help you practice your ollies without rolling, and
without having to be outside (read Ollieblocks Vs Softrucks for a comparison). Since
the ollie is the basis of most street technical skateboarding tricks, Softrucks and
Ollieblocks are a great idea for practicing skateboarding throughout the cold, wet
winter months.
4. Indoor Skateparks
This might seem obvious - in fact, I almost didn't include it in the list, but sometimes
we don't think of what's right in front of us! If you have a local indoor skatepark, then
go there! It might cost some money, but usually it's not that much, and if you go a lot
most places offer a membership. If you aren't sure if you have an indoor park nearby,
then call up a couple of local skate shops and ask whoever answers the phone. They
should know.
If you don't have an indoor skatepark, you can always push for getting one built! Lots
of youth organizations, churches, city parks and recreation offices, groups like
Campus Life and others devote themselves to providing safe places for young
people to be active. Check with organizations like these, and volunteer to help get
something started!
5. Skateboard Videos
Watching skateboarding videos does several things - first off, it's just fun. Second,
you get all excited about skateboarding, and want to go (which might be frustrating
over the winter). But third, you also learn stuff. Watch the pros and see how they do
their tricks. Watch your favorite skater in slow motion. Study them. They may look
larger than life to you, but to be honest, you could do the same things if you decide
to. It just takes time, practice, patience, and will! Check out some Skateboarding
Video Reviews for some skate video ideas.
6. Skateboarding Video Games
If all else fails, you can sit on your backside and play a skateboarding video game.
This isn't the best option at all, but it might give you that fix, and it should help keep
you amped up over the winter for skateboarding in the spring! Take a look at the
Skateboarding Games Category for more on skateboarding games.
7. Snowskates and Snowdecks
If the ground is completely covered in snow, you can always take advantage of it
instead of avoiding it. Snowskates are like mini snowboards, without bindings.
Another way to look at them is like skateboards without trucks. Snowdecks are
similar, but have trucks with a mini-snowboard bolted to the bottom. Snowdecks and
snowskates are a fairly new idea still, and these names often end up getting swapped
around, so don't be surprised if you see or hear one being called the other!
Both snowdecks and snowskates are designed to let you have the fun of
skateboarding when the ground is covered in snow. A lot of big ski and snowboarding
lodges have even created terrain parks just for snowskates and snowdecks! They
aren't the same as skateboarding, but they are close in a many ways, and fun to ride.
See some Reviews of Snowskates and Snowdecks for more ideas.
8. Snowboarding
A lot of the skills from snowboarding translate over to skateboarding. Most don't. But,
it's riding a board, and it keeps you active! The drawback is snowboarding costs a lot
of money ... Check in on the About Snowboarding site for more snowboarding info,
help and ideas.
Something Else...
There might be more ideas out there for skateboarding activities when it's cold or wet
outside. If you come up with something awesome, drop me an e-mail and let me
know!