Snowskate

Snowskating is riding on a flat skate deck on snow. Sometimes snowskates are attached to a ski and are called a "bideck" or "bilevel" snowdeck. Snowskating combines the elements of snowboarding and skateboarding to create a new experience which is most closely described as skateboarding on snow, or Snowskating.

History and Designs

The snowskate, according to skisk8.com, was first invented at a bonfire party at Stevens Pass, Washington when Steve Frink took an old skateboard deck and combined it with a broken ski, creating the potato gun.GNU actually started the trend according to their site. Later, the snowboard manufacturer Burton produced the first bideck snowskate model. The bideck consists of a skateboard deck mounted by special trucks to a mini snowboard or ski (usually bi-directional).Snow skating is a fairly new sport and unlike skateboarding is much easier to get sponsored by companies because they need people to show off thier products. Premier Snowskates created a glass-filled nylon, single deck model around the same time. Bidecks generally have more control in terms of turning or carving, but require a good amount of balance if skateboard type tricks are to be attempted. Single decks have minimal directional control due to the channels that run underneath the snowskate from one end to the other. However, single decks are better suited for most tricks because of their wider contact patch with the ground. Homemade snowskates are also very popular, made from regular skate decks with the trucks and wheels removed.

When bideck users began flocking to ski resorts, there was debate whether or not snowskates should be allowed. Some resorts, seeing that they had ankle leashes and metal edges, allowed their use, while others did not allow them due to their lack of foot bindings. This problem is slowly being resolved as an increasing number of ski resorts set aside sections of their mountain designated for snowskate use only (commonly known as snowskate parks). The real snowskaters just use the snowboard parks because the lines are bigger and better. The single deck is a plastic board (or wood) that has grids in it for the snow to pass through. The single deck is very popular and is a great way to have fun or use in competitions. The best known snow to snow skate on is hardened snow, not powdered.

Companies

Many companies have become involved in snowskating. Some are independently owned and run, others are branches of pre-existing snowboarding/skateboarding companies. Some of the more dedicated snowskate companies include:

• Midwest Snowskate
• Gnu
• Vans Shoes
• Premier
• Ambition Snowskates and Clothing
• Snowskate.ca
• Circuit Snowskates
• Fuse
• AKWD

See also

• Snowboarding