One of the biggest regrets was when I stopped skating. My brother was always good at it, and I always did whatever he did. All I wanted to do was a kick flip.

Pretty sure I stopped because I use to get **** as a kid for being a black skater (Inglewood CA).

I'm old as fuk now though, but fuk it, I'm going to learn. I've always loved skating and the social aspects to it.

Are skating shoes truly necessary? And when it comes to buying a board and all that other stuff, what are the necessary essentials?

Go for it brah. Srs.

My friends that I made when I was 20 in MKE were all into skating in HS and still did when we became friends, my GF bought me a board setup so I could cruise around with them and chit, it was a lot of fun, I was nowhere near their level and barely learned to ollie, but it helped me connect with those brahs and gave me something challenging to try.

When I moved into my house here in STL I hadn't used in in probably a year, one day I saw a black brah skating down the street on a garbage deck while walking my pups, he fell and I called him over and chatted with him a bit. Had him walk back to my house and straight up gave him my deck, told him I never ride the thing and if I really want a cruiser board I can pick one up cheap, someone needs to use it who's actually going touseit. My (now ex) GF was pissed, but it felt great. Dude was incredulous and I've seen him a few times since and every time he hops off his board and holds it up so I can see he's riding it.

Just sayin go for it brah, life's too short to not follow things, even if they're as seemingly trivial as skating

I personally think guys who are over 18 and skate for fun are losers. Then again I knocked my tooth out skating when I was 12 and Ive been missing a tooth since.

that's awesome, I'm sure that dude will never forget you for that. Maybe I should consider a cruiser board instead
I hardly care about trivial things like this anymore. I'm not a teenager anymoreWhy?

That's awesome mang, You're never too old. I used to be a serious skier my whole life but stopped for about 6 years when I moved out of my parents house. You think you'll be bad but its amazing how much easier things become when you get older. I'd imagine skating is going to go similarly for you. You have a more mature mind now and you'll be better than you ever were. It will be easier for you to comprehend tricks and chit, seriously. At least that's the way it was for me. I'm a bit older than you and the only downside is that you don't have rubber bones anymore lol

The shoes aren't necessary just a lot more comfortable, finding the right size deck is important though.

On Ebay there's a few skate shops that will sell blank decks or like checkered pattern decks, non-branded and no graphic, which are usually super cheap, or you can get a used deck and just get some trucks with spacers and buy the biggest wheels you can fit, crank the trucks loose as **** but not to the point of rubbing the board and you have a nice little cruiser, the bigger wheels will help with cracks and rock stops and **** but you can still learn to ollie and pop tricks unlike a longboardWore a pair of Osiris until about 2 years ago, fuuuark those things are like pillows on your feet but they also look like you're walking in cinder blocks lmao

Know that feel bro, stopped skating when I was 13 cause I became obsessed with guitar.. Remember watching Rodney Mullen videos obsessively and daydreaming of one day learning his moves to get pussy

25 years old here dude, used to skate back in the day but haven`t in about 10 years. Felt the same as you and bought a board about 2 months ago, took it out the next day and had tons of fun.

The brah above is right, you`re able to pick up and comprehend stuff a lot easier now being older. You should go for it man, and be a positive influence to the younger kids - one thing i dont like about skating is the kind of behaviour the culture seems to endorse. I think it would be awesome if that was able to change a bit.

Get it OP

I am skating and I am 22. Get back to it. Also yeah get skate shoes.

I'm older than you and I still skate. There are probably tons of great skate parks near you in California.

Nothing wrong with that. Sure it has a 'rebelling youth/emo' stigma but it's an active and rewarding hobby.

Never got that into skating myself, but some of the things kids do on a board is nuts.

good to know. I guess I just need to figure out how to get started pretty much

Dude im 31 and recently snapped my deck practising heelflips. It was an element with independent axles (why are they called trucks?) And small 30mm odd wheels I think

Live your dreams and land a kickflip

Thx 4 the thread too... gonna get a new setup now

And so he kick, push, kick, push
Kick, push, kick, push, coast
And away he rolled
Just a rebel to the world with no place to go

25 is np brah


look at hawk and rodney mullen

never skated but want to






sad chit,.

brah that kinda made me tear up

25 y/o skateboarder checking in.. skate with 40 yr old who rips harder than most my age.

skate shoes are absolutely necessary if you want the best experience/want to make the most progress- flat, grippy outsole, durable upper materials, best impact support/safety etc.. just made for skating

In sort of the same vein as bodybuilding, you're your own "coach"/you can do w/e you want; total freedom

skating a mini ramp is cardio out the a$$

you are at a marked advantage being on the west coast (skateparks and smooth, cracks-free street spots everywhere)

I can understand you getting chit before, but I would guess those same people wouldn't be giving you chit today, with how much skating has grown in popularity over the past decade, and there are a slew of famous black skaters (Theotis Beasley [who's actually from Inglewood I believe] Terry Kennedy, Stevie Williams, Boo Johnson, Ishod Wair to name a few)

Just hit up a nearby skatepark and strike up a convo with the locals, and 95% chance they will be cool

do it

I was never a skater, But i BMX'ed a ton when i was 12-16. One day, I was doing some basic bar spins off a set of 4 stairs and flipped over the bars and knocked myself unconscious. I was all by myself and i really dont remember exactly how long i was out for or what happened. I gave up BMX after that, got my license soon after and havent touched it since.

Just recently, I got the itch to try it out again. They built a skatepark down the road from me so i said why not? Holy fuk. I forgot just how much fun this **** really is. I've been feeling old as fuk lately myself but after riding around for a bit, There really isnt different from 15 yr old me and 25 year old me.


Fuking Tony Hawk is in his mid 40s and does 900s for breakfast. Lol.

As far as being a black skater, Check out Hopsin(LA rapper). He is a decent skateboarder who is in his early 30s.

I've skated last 9 years

Shoes - yes you need skate shoes. The suede outside grips well to to the grip tape, and the tread on the bottom is designed to grip well standing on the board. Nike SB has the most superior shoes. Look up Nike SB zoom FP as an example (I ride those now). You want a Nike SB shoe that has lunarlon outsole which is much more comfortable and shock absorbing than traditional shoes. A company called FP insoles has also put out specialty inserts for shock absorption just for skating

Board - I ride almost double impact. I like boards with fiberglass inserts because theyre stronger and stiffer. You need a name brand board because they have good pop. The pop will greatly assist in your ollie. I would recommend an 8" wide. That's like the mid point for whats too wide and whats too narrow

Trucks - they dont differ much. Personally i ride ventures

Bushings - stock bushings suck. You need shorty doh dohs. They come in differing hardness. Depends on how tight you want your tricks

Wheels - most are similar. Wouldn't reccomend anything too big or youll go too fast. 52mm should be ok

Bearrings - most are similiar

I recently got a cruiser and I'm going to buy a regular/"popsicle stick" style board. It's fukking fun mane. I started watching Thrashers King of The Road and want to skate again so much after that

Then skateboard, brah.

I picked it back up at 23, been skating hard ever since. Skaters aren't like MISCers/lifters who criticize you all day, they actually support anybody willing to come out. Completely judgment free zone and some of the most chill people you'll encounter, srs. I see *******s on here and in gym videos giggling at people who don't know what they're doing, and I've been around flow riders who have stopped their session to help me learn a trick. Completely different world, bro.

Edit: Black skater from Inglewood... you Compton Ass Terry, brah?



Shoes: Yeah, they are. You can pick up a pair of Figgies for about 70 dollars, which isn't really all that much. You could also buy yourself a pair of any old suede shoe, too (don't get anything canvas since the grip tape will eat the fuk out of it). I'd recommend getting a cup sole vs vulcanized to help absorb impact + protect against primos. As mentioned by another brah, there's a brand called Footprint that sells insoles (and also socks called painkillers, which come in handy when dealing with shinners).

Deck: You'll want a pro-model, bare least a minilogo. I ride Plan B most days, but it all depends on what team/graphic you like and the shape of the nose that you like. The size you'll want is dependent on your goals; 7.5" - 7.75" are great for technical boards, while 8" - 8.5" are great for doing stair sets and grinding. The downsides of a smaller board is they'ere a bit harder to land on, the downside of a bigger board is they're harder to flip. Once you get the hang of tricks, though, an 8.25"+ won't be hard to perform on at all.

Also, there's decks with things such as "P2 tech" and "Black Ice tech", which basically means there's kevlar on the top (p2) that improves pop by loading the energy, and Black Ice creates a slippier grind when doing board slides/smith grinds/blunt slides/feeble grinds/nose slides/whatever. Side note: I recommend Grizzly/Mob grip for grip tape.

Trucks: Independent or Thunder IMO. Can't get any better. Size will depend on your board. Hollow kingpin = lighter, low = lighter and easier to flip.

Wheels: I go with bones, but it doesn't really matter. Fatter wheels = more stability, whereas smaller wheels = lighter and easier to flip. I ride 52mm, standard size is 54mm, they go as small as 48mm.

Bearings: Get Bones Reds. They're cheap as fuk but are high quality. It's better to spend money on a good lube and bearing cleaner anyway, clean when you hear noise.

Triple Edit: I'd recommend watching Aaron Kyro's video series "Skateboarding Made Simple" and following his trick progression guide.
Cliffs on the series: Ollie -> FS 180 -> BS 180 -> Pop Shuv It -> Front Shuv -> Kickflip -> Heelflip.

surprised at the amount of positive miscers ITT.

Thanks for the encouragement and info, Ill try and get everyone ITT on spread

Do what makes you happy, wgaf about other opinions

Make sure you have health insurance and buy some wrist guards and a helmet if you want.

used to shred the gnar hard back in the day. some of my best memories

enjoy brah