pavedwave distance skateboarding

Surf One · Joined: 05 Sep 2009 Posts: 18 Location: Spokane, WA

I’ve been reading this forum for about 3 months now, so I joined just for this rant.

Is there some kind of secret handshake or initiation into this longboarding thing? Because I’m not getting very far. At age 55 I decided to get a longboard. Two of the local skateshops wouldn’t even talk to me. Is it an age thing? So I tried to order a board from The Longboard Store online. After 6 weeks of no communication other than ‘it should be here next week’, I cancelled my order. That was last year. This year one of my students worked at another skateshop, so he fixed me up with a Surf One Classic, with Randall 150’s, 71 mm, 80 duro Alligators, and wedged front truck and de-wedged rear (both measure out to about 7 degrees).

I’ve had a lot of fun cruising with this board. Then I started reading about pumping on this forum. I tried for days to pump my Surf One, but didn’t seem to get anywhere. The guy who sold me the board switched my bushings to softer Khiro’s (orange front, blue rear), and I loosened up the front truck a bit. Then I practiced for another 2 months on some local trails. I’m actually pumping now. I can’t go up ‘hills’ but if the incline is barely noticeable, and I have some momentum, I can go for a little while. I’m practicing about 6 to 8 miles per day, with my longest continuous pump at 2 miles. On slight declines I can pump forever though my top speeds are around 12 mph. (I skate holding a gps in my hand).

So now I’ve decided I want to try a dedicated pumping board. I tried Subsonic first because the Pulse looks so cool and everybody seems to think it’s great. I was a little bummed by the 4 week estimated delivery time but e-mailed anyway to ask some questions about set-up and ordering. I never got a reply. Phone calls weren’t answered either. Then I looked at a Roe Mermaid from Stoked. They showed a 3 or 4 day shipping time, so I went ahead and ordered one. That was a month ago, and still no skateboard. After many e-mails and phone calls went unanswered, I finally got a reply. The reply indicated they were having technical and supply problems, and that my board might be here ‘in about a week’. Well, that was more than a week ago. Still no pumper.

So now, my vacation is over, summer is nearing an end and my skating time is limited. Is it worth the wait, the frustration and the uncertainty? I really want to find out if I can pump better with the right equipment, but I’m getting so bummed out that I’m ready to give it up.

pavedwave · Joined: 22 Oct 2007 Posts: 1248 Location: seattle wa usa

First off, try not to be discouraged from this...unfortunately your experience is not too unusual. Part of it comes from the very nature of private builders speed of production versus the mass-produced decks that are stacked up in warehouses and shipped in the thousands.

I'm really bummed to hear about the delay with Stoked-Roe Mermaid because when they first joined forces, decks literally took days to get shipped -- and the Mermaid was actually selling 2nd in popularity only to the Dervish!! However, I do believe in your case this is simply bad timing with some website and inventory issues that Stoked has been having --according to a silverfish thread where 'Camel' has been helping people with their orders. Stoked revamped their website and it created all kinds of problems. In any case I'll contact Camel and David and try to get some clarity on your order, that's the best I can do.

It is worth the wait, but to try to make a summer out of a winter, I would definitely start scouting as many indoor garages as you can to grab a lot of little mini-pump sessions -- assuming you live in a somewhat 'seasonal' region? I find this has helped me for years to keep the stoke alive through our harsh northwest rain.

Oh and there is no handshake, but there are a lot of lazy kids at "mall skateshops" like Zumiez. Hopefully you'll find a shop that's got it together -- here in the NW we now have Motionboardshop that lives and plays skating and surfing.

Thanks for going from just surfing to posting, and I hope you'll find other more stoked reasons to post in the future!

camel · Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 8:54 am Post subject:

Surf One - Shoot me an email and I will get you an update and keep you informed personally. PW is right, we have been going through a nightmare with the site and the inventory. I apologize for that. We order Roe in quantity to try to buffer the demand. However, the deck is EXTREMELY popular and we have trouble keeping them in stock even though we order alot. Currently, we have 7 people waiting on medium flex mermaids, so you aren't alone. We have 2 light flex in stock (now that I have said that publicly, they will probably be spoken for today). We are frustrated as well. We are skaters that want to supply skaters with what they need, their skate fix. Smile

I know that we have open PO's to Roe at this point. I will run those down.

Again, please contact me personally. I will figure out the issue.

We want you stoked, not stymied.

Chadd/Camel
chadd@stokedskateboards.com

Surf One · Joined: 05 Sep 2009 Posts: 18 Location: Spokane, WA

Wow! I just got back from pumping practice and found two replies. This forum rocks. Everyone here is so supportive and helpful. I am truly grateful. I hope I didn't offend anyone in the industry. I was mainly ranting about my frustration.

Pavedwave, I live in Spokane. We have a reasonably long season for skating, but once November rolls around things are pretty much locked down for outdoor skating. I don't know of any garages around here, but I teach at a local high school and skate in the building when no one is around. The halls have terrazzo floors and they are amazing for pumping. At only 330 feet long, I cover the ground quickly, but any practice is helpful when you know as little as I do. Everything I've learned comes from this forum and the videos.

As a beginner I'm reluctant to post about my experience because everyone on this forum seems to know so much. But, I need to remind myself everyone had a beginning. So I'll work up my courage and try to post something about learning. It really has been addictive.

camel · Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 11:07 am Post subject:

Surf One, You will find that both the industry and the community are very close knit. Most of the companies are owned and operated by skaters.

Most are pretty thick skinned. I know I am. If I have a customer that is frustrated, I want to assist immediately. The last thing we need is an un-stoked customer.

Don't worry about posting about simple stuff. Learning is something we have all done and we are happy to help you along. I was there too.

I will touch base with you via a reply to your email. We will get you stoked! And dude, skating in the school? You rock man...

camel · Posted: Mon Sep 14, 2009 7:52 am Post subject:

Hye Charlie, I just wanted to let you know that James and I are talking offline about your order. We are having some difficulties getting restocked right now and hope to have this resolved quickly. It is a top priority. I am sorry that you got caught in the middle of it.

Surf One · Joined: 05 Sep 2009 Posts: 18 Location: Spokane, WA

Thanks. I do appreciate your interest and help. I'm still learning to pump and I'm sure the more I know, the more I'll appreciate the Mermaid when it arrives.