Do I need to be good at skateboarding already?
This is a question the Slick Revolution team hear all the time and its a fairly simple answer…Nope but it helps.
About 80% of our customers who buy their first electric skateboard have never ridden a board before. We do get some skaters, surfers and snowboarders looking for an alternative board sport and yes, they will pick it up a little faster than someone who hasn’t ridden before.
In general we would say that riding an electric skateboard is easier than riding a skateboard or longboard. For starters you don’t need to kick off to get going (although this does help save battery life and you get your balance when setting off). Nor do you need to balance on one foot while you do so. When you first start learning to eboard, your feet will generally stay pretty still apart from adjustments for comfort, soon enough you’ll be carving tight turns and moving about all over the deck, but at first you can easily get used to the movement while your feet are fairly well planted.
If you want to stop on an electric skateboard, the control is at your fingertips so you don’t need to learn to footbrake. But again this is a useful skill to learn for eboarders, belts snap, batteries run out and sometimes you may be kicking along if you have run out of battery. Our electric skateboards can all be used without power so foot braking does come in handy if riding unpowered.
Steering and control are based on your bodyweight, so a good sense of balance is necessary but its something you can pick up quickly. Braking and accelerating is similar to balancing on a train, tube or bus. Under braking you want to bring your weight back and prepare to be pushed forward with the momentum. When accelerating bring your weight forwards over your front foot and prepare for your weight to be pushed back.
The main difference in the learning curve of an unpowered board and a powered board is speed. New riders or skaters wont be used to the speeds you can travel on flat, downhill and uphill on an electric skateboard and some will find it quite unnatural. We recommend that you start slow and practice accelerating and braking at low speeds before progressing. Learn the best body position for braking and learn to turn while braking too.
I am doing some homework on e-boards and am a little nervous at the expense of an e-board like slick. With recent events like the Corona virus to contend with and Brexit, many small business are suffering. What can you tell me about the future of Slick as I would like to understand the availability of parts in the future and support from the company if I encounter problems. Even the biggest brands are finding trading challenging. I see you moved from Yorkshire. I live in Brighton.
I look forward to hearing from you.
We plan to stick around John! Parts and accessories will be available long in to the future 🙂
Saw the show so impressed with this but my son says I’m not allowed one how safe is it
Tasha 46 commuter and fed up with buses
Super easy Tasha! Email us on info@slickrevolution.co.uk and our helpful team will answer any queries you have