Snow Skates are Like a Skateboard on SnowToday I was searching the internet for the latest model of skis and came across something I never knew existed. They are called Snowskates. Like most snow enthusiasts I have heard of Snowboards and Skis but have never seen these unique looking boards.
Turns out that Snowskates have been around for quite some time. Not that I possess the balance or youthfulness to take my chances riding one of these down the slopes, but I still found them interesting enough to do some research and came up with the following:
A Snowskate appears to be a hybrid of a skateboard a snowboard, primarily designed to permit for skateboard-style tricks on the snow. There are 4 predominate styles which are mentioned in this article and the colors and graphics come in a variety of choices. Prices are in the $39 to $150 range. The majority of users are in age range of 15 to 30 years old.
How They Came to Be
The first snowskate traces its history to the Snurfer circa 1960. The Snurfer is thought about to be the first snowboard to ever hit the market, but it could arguably be called the first snowskate, since it was without bindings. Joshua Luther first coined the phrase snowskate when they needed a way to get across town in the coursework of a blizzard. Around 1970, a product called the "Snow Skate" was sold in local toy & sporting nice stores. They looked much like the modern day Fuse snowskate. There were ski-like aparati that were attached to the area around the truck of a skateboard, allowing the skateboard to move through the snow. Other mentionable early snowskate brands were The "Skeeter" & the "Snodad". Designs of this early period ranged from skiblades on the lower deck (Like the Skeeter) to blades on the lower deck. Sometimes, the early snowskates used metal runners, similar to ice skate blades, enabling the snow skater to make use of the momentum to ride well.
Modern Day Snow Skates
Snowskates are now obtainable in number of varieties: the single deck variety, the bideck variety, the 4x4 variety, and the powderskate variety. All of the modern snowskates have either a waterproof top grip coating on the deck, or a textured deck to keep away from slippage while riding.
Single deck
Usually made out of laminated wood with a plastic bottom or are made of solid plastic, the Single deck Snowskates have grooves cut in to the bottom of the board, typically 7 or five grooves. Single decks are preferred for riding in snowskate parks and urban terrain but may even be ridden down hills, however, they are seldom allowed on ski resorts. They are most suitable for winter skateboarding tricks.Single deck snowskates first appeared on the market in 1998, manufactured by Premier Snowskates and marketed by Andy Wolf, former member of the Nitro snowboarding team. Today the primary manufacturers are: Ambition Snowskates, Icon Snowskates, Fuse Snowskates and Premier Snowskates.
Snowskate parks became started to become popular around the time when the first single deck snowskates were being sold in stores. Word of mouth quickly spread about the single deck snowskate, lending to the popularity of snowskate parks around the Northern U.S.
Bideck
A bideck snowskate is a snowskate that has a top skateboard deck which the rider stands on as well as a lower ski deck, which is in contact with the snow. Bidecks come in single blade varieties and multiple blade varieties. Bideck snowskates were reportedly invented by a Stevens Pass (Washington) local named Steve Frink. They came up with the idea of a skateboard with skis in 1994 while burning his skateboard in a skateboarders' ritual. In the year 2001, after plenty of prototypes, they done a final and done product which they marketed under the brand "Bi-Deck Snowskates".Around the same time, snowboard manufacturer Burton Snowboards released the "Snowdeck". Burton has since stopped making snowskates. There's plenty of bidecking skate communities in the world. Different bidecks are tailored to a different style of riding. Longer bidecks are favored for mountain snowskating, and shorter bidecks are favored for tricks and stunts.
4x4
The least common snowskate, 4x4 snowskates, provide the most skateboard like feel. They have tiny skis, each replacing a wheel, and are usually a tiny fatter and longer than a traditional skateboard.
Powderskates
Powderskates are the most surf-like snowskate. They are usually giant and have a overweight sub and deck. It is popular, as the name says, for use in deep powder. There's varieties; single and bi-deck. The single deck is only for use in powder, and provides the most surf-like feel, whereas the bi-deck provides more leverage, and can be used on and off the powder.
