[80] Rebel Souls - "Leviathan"
[69] Me First And The Gimme Gimmes - "¡Blow it....at Madison's quinceañera!"
Therefore, I will discuss the advantages and the disadvantages of learning to skateboard as a high skater in the following content. Firstly, I must say that skateboarding is not harder for tall riders; however, making some adjustments to the equipment to have the best riding experience and avoid injuries is highly recommended.
For the detailed description about how to adjust your skateboard to skate as a tall skater, you can visit SkateAdvisors - a popular skateboarding website among pro riders to see other threads related to this topic.
POPULAR TALL SKATEBOARDERS
Ron Whaley - an experienced skater who has been in this industry since the 1990s is the tallest skater of all time with a specific height of 6’6”. You may know him as the designer for the Santa Cruz skateboard company but you may be surprised that he is the tallest rider. Moreover, you can find out several videos of him teaching amateur skaters different tricks on his social media.
As the tallest man on earth to become a pro skater, Whaley never complains about his height but he always jokes about it as a huge advantage to become such a successful rider. Along with Mr. Whaley, his colleagues who are also tall riders are skillful skateboarders as well.
The next name is so popular that even a non-skateboarder has heard about him, Tony Hawk. You may know he has already been retired from 1991 but you may not know that he is 6’3” tall.
He began skating when he was 9 and was able to get his very first sponsorship at the age of 12. In his career, he has won more than 70 contests and he also broke the world record to perform the trick called the 900. Besides that, he also owns a video game franchise which is worth a billion dollars.
With a shorter height than Tony Hawk, Andrew Reynolds who is 6’2” tall is well known as the master of circle skating. His career began when he left high school and joined Birdhouse - the company established by Tony Hawk.
He also became Skater of the Year as nominated by the Thrasher magazine when he was 20. Like Tony Hawk, he also started his own business and found Baker Skateboards to search for talented skaters.
From these stories, you must be confident that your height has nothing to do with your skateboarding skills and you can definitely succeed in skateboarding as long as you make enough effort.
HOW DOES YOUR HEIGHT INFLUENCE SKATING?
Skating is all about physics and how you can control your body to maintain the perfect balance and know how much force you should apply when skating. Although there are some difficulties for tall skateboarders when learning to skateboard, they can improve the situation with a lot of practice and the right equipment.
Related: Skateboards for Beginners | Facts to Consider To Buy Skateboard
If you are interested in the best skateboard for beginners - best beginner skateboard, especially for tall riders, don’t hesitate to ask for consultation from the sellers to choose the suitable product.
Here are some disadvantages of tall skaters that you want to know:
Center of mass: normally, the center of gravity when you are skating is around your belly button; however, the story is a bit different for tall riders since they always have this point higher than usual. While moving on a skateboard, you should keep your center of gravity as low as you can to stabilize the board and reduce the risk of falling.
Both tall skaters and normal skaters must bend their knees to lower this point so they can control the board easier.
A high chance of getting injuries: according to Dr. Eeric Truumees - a surgeon in Texas, taller athletes are more injury-prone and they also suffer more from damages than short people. Slower reacting time is a reasonable excuse for this limitation and tall skaters fall off from a significant height than normal people so they get more serious injuries. That’s why they should wear helmets all the time.
FINAL THOUGHT
Skateboarding brings both mental and physical benefits to its players and there is absolutely no rule that prevents tall people from skating. By understanding the advantages and limitations of skateboarding as a tall rider, you would be able to reduce the negative effects and improve your skills to get used to this sport.
As I stated above, choosing the right equipment is the key to success so don’t hesitate to pay the local skate shop a visit to find out the best shape and size of skateboards and other apparatuses.
