Surfskate and Surf: What Sensations You Can Work On Out of the Water

For years, we were constantly asked one question: "Which surfskate is most like surfing?"

After trying many different boards, trucks, and setups, our answer ended up being less straightforward than it seemed.

No surfskate can truly replicate a wave. But it can help you to feel, repeat, and understand certain movements that later appear in your surfing.

Not everyone surfs the same way

Two surfers can get on the same surfskate and have completely different sensations.

Your skill level, the board you surf with, your stance, how you generate speed, and what you're trying to work on all play a role.

That's why we don't believe much in searching for "the surfskate that most resembles surfing" as if there were a universal answer.

The most useful question is:

What do I want to work on with it?

The ability to lean and turn matters

One of the most noticeable differences between surfskate systems is how the front truck responds when you lean and rotate your body.

Some systems allow for a freer turning sensation, while others offer more stability.

Neither option is necessarily better. Depending on what you want to work on, one response might be more suitable than another.

During our years of testing different brands, we learned that the adjustment of the system can drastically change the feel of the same board.

Board width changes more than it seems

Another aspect we have always considered important is the available space for foot placement.

A sufficiently wide board allows for better support for both the front and back feet, helps maintain a more natural position, and allows you to focus on how you move your body instead of constantly struggling to stay on.

This is especially useful when we use surfskating as a training tool and not just as a means of transport.

The interesting thing is being able to repeat

For us, this remains the great advantage of surfskating.

On a wave, you have only a few seconds and many variables at once. On land, you can isolate something much more specific.

You can work on your gaze, torso rotation, the relationship between shoulders and hips, compression and extension, or specific turning patterns.

You repeat, correct, and repeat again.

This possibility is much more valuable than trying to convince yourself that you are "surfing on asphalt."

A surfskate turn is not automatically a surf turn

It's also worth setting a limit.

In the water, the board interacts with a moving wall, it has rails, fins, speed, and an energy that doesn't exist in the same way on asphalt.

That's why a movement that works perfectly on a surfskate won't automatically appear on your next wave.

A surfskate can give you a physical reference. Then you have to learn to adapt it to the water.

So, what should you look for in a Surfskate?

Instead of starting with a specific brand, we would look at:

• What you want to do with it: training, commuting, bowl, pumptrack, or a combination.
• Your current level: you don't need the same response if you're a beginner as you do if you've been using it for years.
• Width and wheelbase: these greatly influence your stance and how the board responds.
• Truck type and adjustment: these determine much of the turning and stability sensations.
• The space for your feet: especially if you'll be using it to work on surf-related movements.

If you're trying to choose one, you can consult our Guide to choosing your Surfskate.

Today we still use it, but in a different way

Carving no longer revolves around selling surfskates as it did during those years.

However, we still use this tool in our Surfskate classes, Surfcamps, and Surf Coaching programs when it helps us understand or repeat a movement.

The board itself doesn't make you surf better. What's interesting is what you're able to understand and work on while using it.