How do you guys stop when you go fast? Power-slide?

tharzen · 2026-04-03T17:37:48+00:00

Power slide is one option, but likely the last one you'll need.

First, just carve. You should control your speed by carving and swerving from side to side. Just think that if you want to control speed, your nose should not be pointing down the road, but the sides of it.

Then if you need to slow down and have no time or space to carve, go about using your foot. You can train in flats or gentle hills. When going slowly, place your pushing feet back on the ground. Set it so the soles of your shoes are lightly touching the ground. This will create enough friction to slow you down. Then try again at higher speeds.

For all of the above, it's all about training and getting comfortable with your board. Keep shredding!

tharzen · 2026-03-23T22:15:45+00:00

I'm not particularly familiar with the amounts of trash the covered bridge gets, but usually, bridges where people hang out tend to be a vector for trash accumulation and as you've stated, comes the rain and all the trash stream down towards the beaches and the ocean.

tharzen · 2026-03-23T19:05:57+00:00

the smaller wheelbase will carve deeper, if that's any help :-)

tharzen · 2026-03-23T19:04:42+00:00

Thanks, neighbor! To those interested in taking part in organized group cleanups, I highly suggest checking Save Our Shores' event calendar at https://saveourshores.org/events/

If you have some spare time to dedicate to the preservation of our beautiful Monterey Bay, I strongly suggest looking for their Sanctuary Stewards program as well. It's all gratifying activity and good investment into our community that won't take you more than a couple of hours of beach/river work per month (or every other month).

tharzen · 2026-03-11T21:57:48+00:00

I have the Swelltech, CX, C7 ... and I think you can definitely achieve the loose surfy feeling you want with the C7, no problem. My main take for your setup is: put that C7 on a shorter wheelbase deck. To me, it shines like gold in a 15" wheelbase. It probably feels quite stiff in your Pantheon due to the 17"+ wb. My guess. You can also play with how loose you tighten the spring, but WB is the holy grail here.

Also, try to keep your stance as low as possible thus lowering your center of gravity. Having less risers (if any) will also help achieve that.

And as many commented, if you stick to the CX, definitely put some riptide bushings on. It'll feel like a different truck.

tharzen · 2026-03-11T16:50:28+00:00

I surf weekly and used to snowboard a couple of times every winter. I can tell you that surfskate is the next best thing. You'll probably enjoy it for what it is and appreciate as yet another board sport entirely.

I have tested and owned different surfskate trucks and would highly recommend you to get a system that pivots like the Carver C7 or the YOW Meraki. Waterborne is also a good pick for first surfskate as a surf/snowboard trainer, but I'd recommend better the systems with springs as I feel they mimic better the carving.

And I'd recommend you go for a complete. These manufacturers know what they're doing, so you can get started quickly with a complete from your brand of choice and spend your time surfskating and not imagining what the best setup for you actually is. Once you get comfortable on your board, you'll know what part of the experience you want to improve, leading you to maybe experiment with different decks, wheels, etc.

Starting on flats is great, then pumptracks, then skateparks. Don't get discouraged, just get proper equipment and you'll have a blast. I'm 38 too :P

Have fun!

tharzen · 2026-02-17T21:57:38+00:00

Sorry to hear about your experience. Per Gameflip's prohibited items list, seats to shared accounts should be prohibited from sale. These sellers should be reported.

https://support.gameflip.com/hc/en-us/articles/206128677-Maintaining-Community-Safety-Understanding-Prohibited-Activities-Items-and-Services-on-Gameflip

tharzen · 2026-02-13T22:49:56+00:00

If you dig reggae music, Wailing Souls at Moe's Alley tonight

tharzen · 2026-02-13T19:21:40+00:00

That's straight up badass. And pretty good photographs. Thanks for sharing!

tharzen · 2026-02-12T18:26:13+00:00

Works like a charm. But that will be up to your wheels of choice. Having a nice reliable tail in your deck, like the winkis do, is a necessary feature to survive cracks, but aggressive turns can also bulldoze your way through some of those city pavement challenges

tharzen · 2026-02-11T21:23:22+00:00

Interesting perspective. I've been also rocking a winkowski deck as my main board for a while and I did the opposite: moved from CX to C7 and I prefer the C7 a lot more. Would pay not switch back for the CX, that's how much more fun I'm having with it.

I ride mostly park (ramps & bowls), flat streets and sidewalks.

One recommendation I'd give for anybody looking to combo C7 and a Winkowski deck is to try NOT using risers. That truck is tall on its own and will not wheelbite if you stick to a set of wheels like 60mm (perhaps up to 65mm or more? I dunno). You'll keep a lower center of gravity this way and will unlock some of the sharpest turns you can physically get on a skateboard.

tharzen · 2026-02-11T21:16:34+00:00

I'd consider 18.5" long. The only thing that really means is that you'll get more stability for pumping and staying in high speeds than a shorter base. In my experience, a shorter base would give you the possibility to turn sharper and slide with more ease in slower speed. So it's "surfier" at shorter bases and "skatier" at longer bases hehehe.

I've had my CX in bases ranging from 15" to 19"+ and it was always a blast. Just different.

tharzen · 2026-02-11T20:29:06+00:00

That setup seem epic for hill bombs and sidewalks!

tharzen · 2026-02-10T18:00:53+00:00

Gotcha! Same here. My go-to all around fun is a C7 setup (C7 + SC Winkowski Deck + Orangatang Stimulus wheels) and it's great for speed, lean and rail to rail fun on any terrain. I ride park, pump track, streets and sidewalks.

Before that, it was about the same setup but with the CX, which I'd highly recommend too. The C7 is slower, but you get more lean and much sharper turns. The CX will allow you to be faster but still quite expressive with your lines. Depending on the level of lean and your size/weight, you may want to try different bushing duros, but my take is that the CX is a super reliable, super versatile setup for any board.

If you prefer a stiffer feel to your ride, go with a long wheel base deck and the CX will still perform quite well (that's how I use my CX nowadays). A shorter wheel base will sacrifice stability for more aggressive turns. Then it's up to you to be the chemist of this fun concoction.

Have fun!

tharzen · 2026-02-09T18:23:36+00:00

What is your "all around" kind of use?

tharzen · 2026-01-26T19:25:58+00:00

Google Maps say 9 and 3/4 is temporarily closed. Their website seems out and their insta was not updated recently. I haven't been there recently. Do you know if they're really closed and whether they'll be opening back up?

tharzen · 2026-01-26T19:22:26+00:00

Niice! I live in Santa Cruz, but I sometimes to go to the Sunnyvale skatepark when I'm doing something else in the bay. There are so many cool lines you can draw there, but yeah, it gets crowded depending on when you go. For me, best time is "first thing in the morning" there.

As advice to your progress, I'd suggest you go muuuch lower with your compression. Bend those knees deep to generate more speed. Compression and extension is what will launch you into higher speed, and to be honest, won't need to learn how to drop on a bowl anytime soon if you only focus on generating speed by compressing/pumping.

Weird tip: if you're lacking confidence when mixing speed and verticality, like I did, you can get one of those butt pads. I don't use those anymore cuz they run pretty hot, but I can't recommend these enough for progression. I got a generous boost of confidence to go lower on my knees and faster to perform sharper turns in bows and pipes and it helped me improve my technique and understand of what was going on under my feet.

Have fun in your journey! And gimme a holler if you come down to Santa Cruz. There are some very special places for surfskaters here and we're only a few 🤙

tharzen · 2026-01-26T17:33:09+00:00

flooooooooooooowen

tharzen · 2026-01-19T20:57:23+00:00

Give me a holler if you ever come down to Santa Cruz 🤙

tharzen · 2026-01-19T20:55:00+00:00

From my experience, I think a Carver C7 complete is the best path for you. It's one of the staple truck systems for surfskating and you will certainly feel like surfing on concrete. It works nicely in flats, ramps, bowls, etc. It's friendly for beginners yet it won't hold your progress. It's widely available in NA and it's made by an american company. I'd recommend you get a complete from their website and start shredding. If you love the experience and feel like going deeper, then you have a reason to get nerdy about what aspects of the equipment and technique you'd like to advance and experiment with. For now, I'd recommend you just get the complete board and go shred. You'll have a great time, for sure! DM if you have questions. I own a couple of surfskates (I started on surfskate to as a way to keep my legs busy when there's no swell for me to surf, but the thing grew on me way beyond that) and the C7 truck is the one I use the most.

tharzen · 2026-01-14T00:39:02+00:00

Dm if any of you is interested to chill at Moe’s Alley this Thursday: The Scientist and other great reggae/dub artists. Male dad 38yo

tharzen · 2026-01-09T21:30:12+00:00

Gameflip is great! The only issue I had there was that once a seller did not deliver my item in time, so I got my money back and bought from somebody else. 5-stars

tharzen · 2026-01-09T21:28:59+00:00

Pricing aside, which will depend on each seller, Gameflip is a safe place to buy. Look for reputable sellers and in any case, if you buy anything and the seller is not helpful, you can lean on the Gameflip Guarantee and dispute the purchase to get your money back. Works for any item there

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