Surf-skating similarities to EC?

[slayer]

HI all,
Came across surf-skates thanks to YouTube algorithm.

Surf-skates have a special front truck that replicates surfing. I came across this video, with allowing for slightly annoying presenter, has some good similarities to EC, with hip rotation, etc. The bit about muscle-memory training is important - I can't help feeling I have re-inforced bad habits with my backside carve that I am now trying to unlearn..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdkvqMwrkCI

Apparently surf-skating is popular in Spain and Portugal (I guess premium surfing destinations). A good brand with proper surf-skate trucks which allow "sharp carving" very much like EC I guess, is YOW (I think Spanish).

cheers,
Slayer

[jax]

You can also have a look at this.

http://shop.carveusa.com/about

https://youtu.be/1sBYBtF_FgE

[christian61]

I also discovered surfskates a few weeks ago and immediately bought one.
And I agree, surfskating is a very good way to improve one's rotational technique.
Here's another video where you can see what I mean:
https://youtu.be/xVC1Cra-s8w

[Claire Faits d'Hiver]

So cool!

I also started surf skate one week ago (a friend of mine gave me a skate to test it). It is a really good feeling and the pumping might be a good quadriceps preparation for EC. On slightly downhill "slopes" you really get the carve feeling...and that's the best


PS: the brand YOW stand for your own wave

[christian61]

I got myself this one:
https://euroskateshop.de/nkx-slim-surfs ... ml?v=13204

I learned to pump within one hour. It's not very difficult if you know rotation from carving.
Great surf feeling in times without snow or wind.

[fivat]

You got the point, Slayer. Our Swoard-EC technique is inspired from surfing (as we write it everywhere since day one), and also from skateboarding. This is related to the fact that the first Swiss Snowboard School was founded by guys who had understood all the benefits of this technique. One of them, Antoine Massy, was a skateboard champion if I remember well. In addition to rotation (hips and shoulders), you can add movement of the legs and good timing for fluidity (named "push-pull" by Jacques). Of course you can change the timing for playing: with "pull-push" (opposite of "push-pull"), you can jump in the transitions (see this movement in some Opus videos).

As I say to all my EC students:
"What works perfectly on water works perfectly on snow too."
The problem of snowboarding is that the feet are bound to the board, so people are "cheating" or falling in the trap of just using the edges of the boards, they lean the body left and right, no rotation (chest facing the tip of the board all the time), and let the board shape do the job. I see this even on experienced snowboarders who claim they make EC (c.f. our original definition here). This is rather skwal technique, which is different (another way of carving).
On water, if you make no rotation or just try to use the sides of the board, you fall.
In the moguls, or even in deep powder, the basics of Swoard-EC, as well as surfing/skateboarding (rotation of the upper part of the body and "push-pull"), are working great too because you are in harmony with the board: you lead it, you are not a passenger. Of course, the gear plays here a very important rule, that's why we are using our own products: modified hardboots (hard but not stiff!), modified flat bindings and different snowboards (not made for "banana" turns, but for closed for turns). Well, you know the whole concept, don't you?

Thank you for the good links!

Patrice Fivat

[christian61]

Here is a video of my first attempts with my new surfskate.

https://vimeo.com/467173866


Though I'm still far from perfect, you can see that rotation really works for turning and accelerating the board.
Also, the plus and minus positions of the shoulders can be clearly seen from above.
In times without snow surfskating is a great way work on one's rotation technique in order to improve one's carving skills!
Patrice's comparison of EC to surfing is a brilliant idea!
Thanks again to Patrice and SWOARD for developing the EC technique!!!

[user]

moving a surfskate with body-rotation is not the only way to pump a skate-/longboard.
Rotation also works on dedicated pumping setups and longer decks.

@christian: try out a front axis like the carver c7 or similar. The rotating-arm makes it even more surf-like.

[pokkis]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGc_9So-cTs

[christian61]

Very fluid style, Pokkis!

But I can't help noticing one important detail: You protect your hands, I protect my head... ???
OK, only in the first part of your video.

[pokkis]

That was 8 years ago, and i just forgot helmet on first clips

[Claire Faits d'Hiver]

Pokkis and Christian: very interesting videos!

[redia]

Désolé pour le français
J’ai ajouté ce système à mon longboard, très efficace
https://waterborneskateboards.com/

[christian61]

Très intéressant, Redia, merci pour le lien!

[ICERIPPER]

I am scubadiver not a water man, but i am happy in seawater
But living montain
When i was ten years old, i win a Rollet skaterboard at a kiri game ( French cheese )may be 45 years ago.
I am a slalom snowboard guy.

In Grenoble we have Pumping slalom Longboard guys but more for downhill, i am really pumping.
Benett trucks, soft bushing.

Have a look on this video, it works really with long distance pumping skateboard not pushing , really pumping.
we used the flex off the deck, but also the move of the body on the top of the deck, no engine just you and the skate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMDxbn5HDf8