Whenever the snowy season comes, most skaters pack up their skateboards and longboards. They start looking for other extracurricular activities to amuse themselves in their free time. As soon as winter comes, most states have roads and streets full of snow. Hence, professional skaters receive questions about longboarding in the snow from numerous newbies. This article will discuss everything related to the hot question of longboarding in the snow. For other uses of longboards read, What are Longboards used for.

The most common alternative to longboarding in the winter season is snowboarding. If you do not have hills near your house or can not afford to go snowboarding. Moreover, if you are not interested in that alternative, we provide you with the simplest solutions to keep yourself safe while longboarding in the snow. It becomes comparatively easier to ride on a longboard during flurries than riding on ice-full roads. 

Riding a longboard on Snowy Road

There are multiple possibilities regarding the condition of the skating track during the winter season. Sometimes, it is snowing out there, but the temperature is not too cold. In this case, the roads will be a little wet, having no ice or snow coverage. This is the most suitable wintertime to ride a longboard in which you only need some hot clothes. It will keep you safe from winter. If you have slopes and steep streets to track on, you should use leather inside your jackets.

The most important thing to take care of during the ride on a snowy road is to use grippy wheels. If the wheels’ grip is good, you will stay safe from slides and injuries. Moreover, grippy wheels will keep other longboard parts safe from scratches.

Use of Waterproof Deck:

Riding a longboard on a watery track means there are 100% chances of water getting into the deck piles. As a result, the deck becomes heavier and non-functional quicker than expected. Make sure the deck you have is coated completely with any waterproof material or is itself a waterproof material like the following highly ranked waterproof grip tapes.

If you are not interested in buying a grip tape, you can alternatively use polyurethane to coat the whole deck yourself. Most expert skaters use a separate deck to ride in wet and snowy seasons. You can simply make use of the best skate tool to detach the original deck from the original longboard and attach a rough but fully coated deck to use in snow. Once you finish your riding, you can clean the deck and reuse it again until the next summer comes.

Keeping Bearings Dry:

After the longboard deck, the second part that gets rusted due to wet or snowy skating surfaces is longboard bearings. Bearings are inside the wheels, and it doesn’t take much time for water to get into the bearings and spoil them. The most suitable solution to keep the bearings safe from outside water is to lubricate them with the best oil before going out for a longboard ride.

If you are short of lubricant and looking for another alternative to prevent the bearings from water, you should use duct tape to cover the wheels. After each ride on snowy roads, get the bearings out of the wheels, clean them properly, dry them along with the trucks, and use oil to lubricate the dried bearings and reinstall them. You are ready to go for another adventurous ride.

Snow Salt Rides:

The modern techniques in States these days spray salts on icy roads to melt the snow. If you are an expert skater, you must be familiar with performing nice and clear slides due to the salty roads. If your longboard deck contains a proper coating or waterproof grip tape, the salt of the road doesn’t rust the deck. On the other hand, the salt may affect trucks and baseplates due to their metal behavior.

So when you finish the ride on a snow salt road, make sure you wipe everything off the longboard parts to keep them safe from rusting. You will also need to re-oil the trucks if needed. The ice full of salt will stick to the wheels of your longboard, and you need to wipe it off too after you are done with the slides and longboarding rides.

Riding on Snowy Layer:

If the ice is not there on the road and the road is fully covered with a thin layer of snow, you can go for some daring slides by fitting the wheels according to the contact patch. You will also learn how to handle the longboard when you have some pace on a snowy riding track. Before you try out these daring rides, we recommend you to have grippy wheels like Shark, Orangatang, or any other best longboard wheels.

Choosing a wheel for better sliding is tricky as well. You need to get precisely-sized longboard wheels. It will make sure that the wheels don’t come in contact with your longboard deck. If there is not enough spacing between the wheels and the deck, the wheels will get bites. Do not forget to wear the best longboard helmet while riding or sliding at snowy tracks. Though wheels will give you enough grip, extra precautions during these adventurous rides are always appreciated.

Wrapping Up

It doesn’t matter if it is raining or snowing; longboarding doesn’t have any off-season for skate enthusiasts. Longboarding in snow becomes more adventurous when you know what you will face during the ride. Moreover, you need to have full control over your longboard to enjoy the adventure of riding in the snow completely. With the dare, injuries are inevitable if you become careless. That is why we recommend you to go for a ride after wearing proper knee and elbow pads and a longboarding helmet.