Hit the Sand in Italy

Italy has some great food, wine, cheese, beautiful women but even more beautiful beaches. When you're in Italy eating the great food, drinking the wine and eating the cheese don't forget to check out the great beaches with your skimboard as well.

Here's a list of some of the great beaches in Italy.

1. Capri: This beach is located in Southern Italy on the Sorrento Peninsula. Capri is a cool place that is full of mountains. This beach is known for it's deep blue sea and great beaches. There are a lot of resorts and hotels along this beach and you should have no problem finding a place to relax and skim across the sand on your board.

2. The Italian Riviera: This place has long been a tourist haven. Attracting thousands and thousands of visitors each year. The beaches here are free of charge but that also makes them crowded. If you do a little hiking along the trails that are there you can find some good beaches that are less crowded. This place is also famous for it's pasta, so after a great day of skimboarding help yourself to a big plate of delicious pasta.

3. Amalfi Coast: This place has some of the coolest cliffs you'll ever see. And you can't miss them as you're driving through to get to this beach. There are two private beaches here that you'll want to visit. The Fornillo beach and the Spiaggia Grande.

4. Tuscany: Famous for it's wine, cool rolling hills and old culture. However this place has some of best beaches with it's white sand and old style villages that are behind them. Not to mention that the water is a beautiful crystal clear color and there's about 100 miles of coastline. When you come here you need to visit Viareggio and enjoy the old festival that's been going on for more than 100 years.

5. Sicily: Sicily has long been famous in many movies. If you haven't heard of Sicily before then you need to watch the Godfather, Goodfellas and any other grehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifat mafia movie. Some of the great beaches here are Mondello Lido, Lido Mazzaro, the Aeolian Islands and Spiaggia Sabbie Nere.

6. Sardinia: There is 35 miles of beautiful coastline here that you must visit before you die. One of the beaches you have to visit is Sardinia's Costa Smeralda. Also hit the Emerald Coast, Cala di Volpe and the Prince's beach.

Italy is a great place. You'll never get bored, get tired of the food, the beaches or gazing at all the cool sites. Hitting Italy's beaches is something that you have to put on your to-do-list-before-I-die.

SkimBoard Pros

Skimboarding in Vietnam

When you think of Vietnam, great skimboarding beaches is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. But believe it or not, Vietnam has some of the best beaches to go skimboarding. Vietnam has more than 3400km of beach and coastline. The sand along these beaches is a great powdery sand. There are many hidden coves, awesome lagoons and many other great features that beach lovers and skimboarders long for. This place is definitely paradise in it's own right.

Here are some of the great beaches you need to visit if you ever make it down to Vietnam.

1. Nha Trang: This beach has been famous for many years and is a tourist favorite. The closet town is not the best and you should be prepared for it but the awesome beach that this town sits by is definitely worth the trip. I highly recommend this beach for any skimboarder.

2. Mui Ne: This beach is famous for it's cool looking dunes and the great waves that this beach offers. This beach is a great place for anyone who is interested in any kind of water sport.

3. Phu Quoc: Some people call this island the most beautiful island in Vietnam. The beaches here are famous for having perfect white sand and a thick jungle behind it. This is a must see for everyone who visits this country.

4. China Beach: This beach has a few different names and is very famous for surfing. If you're a surfer looking to hit some great waves in Asia then this long stretching beach is just what the surf doctor ordered.

5. Con Dao: Not too tourists know about these islands and that's what makes them so special. Once these islands become discovered by tourists they are going to be the next big thing in Vietnam. Go now while you have the chance. Finding an undiscovered gem like this is rare and you should take full advantage of it while you can.

6. Doc Let: This great beach has beautiful white sand and is not too far from Nha Trang. If you're looking for some peace and quiet, this place comes highly http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifrecommended.

7. Ho Coc: Last but not least, this beach can't be accessed by most tourists however there is one cool place that we recommend going. It's a huge, awesome sandbar that's about halfway between Vung Tau and Phan Thiet. A great place for skimboarders looking to get away from the crowds and hit some good sand with their boards.

You should definitely put Vietnam on your places to go skimboarding. Not only is it a cool place to visit but the skimboarding there is great and an experience you won't ever forget.

SkimBoard Pros

Skimboarding and Other Board Sports

Whenever I tell someone that I love to go skimboarding when the hot weather hits the first thing that comes out of their mouths is "what the heck is skimboarding and what does a skimboard look like?" If you've ever seen a skimboard before it's easy to imagine but if you haven't it's very difficult to picture in your mind. I always tell people it's a mix between a body board and a surfboard but the way it's ridden is very very different.

Not only do you not paddle out into the surf but the sand starts out being your best friend. And the smoother the sand the better the skimboarding will be. There's nothing like a smooth patch of sand for a skimboarder. If we have a beach clear of people and nice smooth patch of sand, us skimboarders are in heaven.

Body boarders on other hand love waves that break closer to shore but still need the waves to get their ride. And body boarders not only dislike but hate the sand and only want to see the sand when they're finished riding their waves. If a body boarder is seeing sand too soon that means that they're most likely eating sand and that's not fun. I can speak from experience.

Surfers on the other hand want to get as far away from the beach as possible or wherever the best waves are breaking. Even if that means paddling out to where most tourists would never ever venture. I can still remember my first time surfing in Hawaii. I had just hit Waikiki beach with my surfboard and was paddling out to find the good waves. And way out on the horizon where you could barely see unless you were squinting were a few dozen local surfers. Being my first time to Hawaii and not being too sure if I should paddle way out there and interfere with their waves I decided to stick closer to shore. After awhile I was able to talk to a few of them and was welcomed to go out there and ride with them. It turned out to be an awesome experience and I made some friends in the process.

So as you can see these popular board sports are very different but are all done on hundreds of beaches all over the world. If you go to any beach in the world I can almost bet that you'll see one of these board sports being done by some of thehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif locals.

Well enough talk about all these great board sports. It's time to go hit the waves and enjoy the summer time. There's nothing like summer time. Sorry but winter is not fun!

SkimBoard Pros

Skimboarding Traction Pads - Need or Don't Need?

We get asked this question a lot from many different kinds of people. Do you think that I should use skimboard traction pads or not? Well it all depends on you and your experience and if it feels right or not for you. When I was first starting out skimboarding I liked to use traction pads rather than using a wax. The reason for this was I wanted to be more focused on getting the basics down first. I didn't want to have to worry about waxing my board up each time I went out and hit the waves.

Many times I'd come home from school and didn't have the time to wax up my board. It was a lot easier just to come home, toss my book bag in the corner, grab my board and hit the water. But at first it was more like my head hitting the sand. Then as time went on I got better and better and the sand wasn't breaking my fall as much it was back when I was first starting out.

So I can say that skimboarding traction pads are great for beginners, they definitely were for me. They also help by showing beginners where they should stand on the board when they're first starting to learn where they should stand. Skimboarding is super fun but like any sport can be a little challenging at first. Once you get the hang of it though it becomes very addicting and you develop a lifelong passion and healthy addiction.

I still have boards that I use that have traction pads just for the very reason that I don't always feel like waxing up my board or again have the time. Waxes and traction pads both have their pros and cons. I always recommend to people to try out both and then decide which one best suites you. Different strokes for different folks as I like to say.

The best thing to do is just get a board and start learning how to skimboard so you understand what an awesome sport it is. Then you'll understand what I'm always babbling on about. Experience is the best teacher they say. I happen to agree with that.

There's nothing quite like skimming across a perfect wave on a perfect day. I recommend it for everyone who has an adventuresome spirit.

Spring is here and summer is just around the corner. That means skimboard season is here.

Thanks,

Jason Fackrell

SkimBoardPros

Skimboarding a Beach in Texas

Some people might not know but Texas has some great beaches especially for skimboarders. We're going to go through some beaches that all skimboarders have to hit before they get too old and leave this world.

Corpus Christi/Padre Island National Seashore: This beach is located just off of Padre Island in South Texas. This beach is huge and long over 70 miles long and is a great place for skimboarders. It's not very developed and has an enormous amount of nature. This beach is also a great place to go camping. This park also has some great dunes and sand. This place is also famous for windsurfing.

Galveston Island: This island is 27 miles long and more than 3 miles wide. This island used to be home the Native Americans. This island is also where the greatest American natural disaster ever recorded in history happened. 6,000 people lost their lives in 1900 due to a hurricane. There are a few beaches to skimboard on but mostly it's a cool place to visit because of it's history.

Mustang Island/Port Aransas: This island is just south east from Corpus Christi. This place has some very interesting landscapes and some great beaches for skimboarding. This island is 18 miles long and from the air it looks almost like a strip of bacon.

South Padre Island: This beach has been a popular vacation spot for many years due to a resort on the island and it's nice beaches. South Padre is a barrier island which means that it's a relatively narrow strip of sand that parallels the mainland coast.

For anyone living in Texas or the surrounding states you know how popular Corpus Christi is and how great the beaches down there can be. Skimboarding and summer are just around the corner.

Skimboarders, get your boards waxed up and ready to hit the waves, summer will be here before you know it.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Skimboarding and the Lime Light

Compared to other popular sports such as surfing, football, soccer, golf, basketball and other mainstream sports, skimboarding is like a 6 month old baby that is about ready to have a giant growth spurt.

Just in the last few years skimboard sales and products have sky rocketed and the number of kids and young adults picking up a skimboard is growing substantially every year. Youtube has definitely helped the skimboarding industry because it's been able to show a huge audience what skimboarding truly is. Most older adults have never even heard of a skimboard. Now you can go onto the internet and type in skimboarding and thousands of pages of information and videos are at your finger tips.

Whenever I head to the beach now I'm amazed at all the skimboarders and how popular it's grown over the last decade. When I was a kid which has been some time I would never see a skimboarder, it was body boarding or surfing.

It's great to see so many young people picking up this sport and especially inland skimboarding. The great thing about this sport is you don't need an ocean and waves to go out and have fun. All you have to do is find a muddy puddle, river, pond or lake and you can have a riot all day long with your friends.

In this awesome day and age of technology it's good to see kids still going outside and having fun. When I was a kid I had the first edition of Nintendo but I still spent most of my time outside with my friends raising havoc.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Skimboard the Snow

We know it's the middle of winter, there's a foot of snow on the ground and your spit freezes before it hits the ground. However that doesn't mean you can't get your board out of the closet or garage and start waxing it up. Skimboarding season is only 2 or 3 months away depending on where you live in the world. We know most skimboarders are getting cabin fever right about now unless you snowboard in the off season. For those of us who don't snowboard the best thing for us is to do is sit, dream and wait for the warm weather to come back either that or fly to Hawaii or Australia.

Here's a novel idea. How many of you have tried taking your skimboard out on the snow? We have and let me tell you it's a fun and wild experience trying to skimboard across the snow. We just recommend that you find some soft snow and not a hard patch of ice. I can guarantee that you'll wipe out and you want to make sure your landing is a semi-soft one. If you've ever been tubing, sledding, snowboarding or skiing then you know how it feels when you hit a patch of ice or some hard snow with your face or head.

This is one way to kill the skimboarding winter blues. Just because it's colder than a witch's finger out there doesn't mean our skimboarding spirits have to get cold too. The winter blues is not fun especially for those who love the warm weather. Just keep thinking positive and think how spring time is right around the bend and will be here before we know it. We'll be hitting those waves in no time.

We wish everyone a good time. Go grab your board and go have some fun.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

A Great Wave

We get a lot of questions asking how to catch a good wave. Catching that perfect wave can be one of the most challenging feats in skimboarding. It is also the most rewarding and the biggest rush in skimboarding. Surfers and skimboarders are always talking about catching that "perfect wave". If you haven't experienced that perfect wave then it's very hard to imagine what it's like and why boarders spend every free minute they have just trying to catch those perfect waves.



We're going to help you and teach you how to catch that awesome wave in the simplest terms we can.



You'll need a wave that you can number #1-reach, and number #2 -turn off of, or catch some air off of it. To get help with your speed as you go over into the deeper water, try a maneuver we call side-slipping. This involves turning the board sideways as you go over the flat areas of the water this should make you lose speed at a much slower rate. As you're approaching the wave, you'll need to start your turn by putting your weight to your back inside/outside rail of the board depending on which way you're going.



To slow your speed down, try using the side rail more towards the middle of the board, instead of the back rail. This is much harder than you would think though, it requires much more practice and skill, and it gives you less direct control over the wave. As you're going up the face of the wave, you can turn off of it and come back down the other side towards shore. Eventually you may try aerials, grabs, and other tricks that skimboarders love to do. Make sure to kick the tail of your board out hard at the top of the wave as it starts to crest over to change directions and to get a good spraying effect going. This is all a detailed explanation of something that can be very complicated. Every beach, wave, sand texture, board, person, and condition is different. In order to master this it just takes practice and careful reading of these instructions.



Don't give up, practice makes perfect.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Skimboarding Org

SkimUSA.org is an organization that helps up and coming skimboarders by offering scholarships and sponsorships for young people. They're up to date with all the skimboarding competitions across America and are up to date with the skimboarding industry.



Organizations like this help young people focus on something that will be a benefit to their lives and help keep them out of trouble. Speaking from experience, young people who don't have an outlet for their energy will put their focus and energy into destructive habits and actions.



Luckily when I was young I found an outlet for my energy and focus before I became too heavily involved in destructive habits. Had I not found the outlet I found there's no telling where I'd be today.



SkimUSA.org keeps a contest schedule on their site, skimboarding videos, news, competition standings and links to other great skimboarding sites.



By joining an organization like SkimUSA you'll be kept up to date with all the skimboarding competitions, the scholarships they offer and most importantly by joining their organization you'll be helping to protect your rights by keeping the beach open to all forms of skimboarding.



So if you're a pro skimboarder or a novus beginner then you need to check this site out. At the very least you should apply for the scholarship program they have set in place. This site is doing a great job to help further the skimboarding industry.



Have fun and be safe with all of your skimboarding adventures.



Go out and buy a skimboard today and get involved in a great, up and coming sport.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Love Surfers Ocean

Have you ever noticed that there's something magical and something special about the ocean? We're drawn to it like bears to honey. Ever since I took my first dip in the ocean when I was just a young boy I've loved the ocean and dream about hitting the waves all year long especially when winter hits. I've never been a fan of the cold or the snow and I live in one of the best states for skiing.



I was able to visit Hawaii for the first time about 3 years ago and discovered just how awesome the ocean can be. The water there is so clear, warm and has some of the best waves for surfing and skimboarding in the world.



Oceans have an immense amount of energy and power. They can be as calm as a church mouse or as deadly as the black plague. I think one reason people are drawn to the ocean is the feeling you get the minute you dive into the water. You can instantly feel it's power and instantly respect all it's power and beauty. This is definitely one reason that surfers are so addicted to surfing and will give up everything they have and own just to be able to hit the waves everyday. Surfing is a lifestyle, religion and a way of life for surfers, it's what they live for everyday that they're alive. Now that's pretty powerful, there's only a few other sports that I know of that people have that much love for.



If you ever get a chance I recommend going to Hawaii and witnessing the surf culture there. No where else I know of has more serious surfers than Hawaii. Once you visit there you'll see why and what I mean.



Have fun, go out and hit the waves.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

SkimBoard

As our world becomes more and more technologically advanced and everything is moving at a much faster pace than our parents could have ever imagined it's safe to say that our stress levels are becoming higher and higher and are also moving at a more faster pace.



Everything now days is fast and there are hundreds of options and choices to choose from whether it's the TV, food, cars, cell phones and movies. All this information causes people to have information over load. Wouldn't it be nice to have a time machine that we could jump in from time to time and go back to the old days when life was like Mayberry? We could go hang out with Andy, Barney and Aunt B and just enjoy the simple pleasures of life, while Aunt B whipped up some good ole home cookin.



Well as luck would have it time machines haven't been invented yet so we're stuck here, but hey I love it here that's why I said "from time to time." So what can we do to relieve stress and create good memories at the same time?



How about skimboarding, surfing or body boarding. These sports relieve my stress more than just about anything out there. There's nothing quite like hitting the beach with my buddies and then catching a wave. When you're out riding waves you can feel the power and energy that wave has and you come to respect it's beauty and power. It's almost a spiritual experience in a way. To become one with the wave is like nothing else. There's nothing else out there that can compare to it.



If you're having a lot of stress with life and work, instead of boozing it up more or doing things that damage your health, pick up a board and hit the waves. Nothing relieves your stress faster.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Christmas and Skimboards

Skimboarding is a sport that is gaining momentum. It hasn't been all that popular since it was first invented and professionals boards weren't even being made until the 80's, when Victoria Skimboards came to be. Skimboarding has actually been around for most of the 20th century when people first used pieces of plywood to skim across the sand and waves.



There's two major types of skimboarding, there's inland and sand skimboarding. Inland skimboarding is becoming the new rave for kids during the summer time. Lets face it most of America's population doesn't live next to a beach however that doesn't stop kids from skimboarding on a lake, pond, puddle or even a river.



When you ask most kids what they want for Christmas it's safe to say that video games and movies are high on their list. Ask yourself this question though. Would you rather have your kids inside during the summer months playing video games and watching movies getting fat and overweight? Or would you rather have them out in the beautiful outdoors getting in shape and building social skills with other kids their age?



The answer is obvious.



Like we've said many times before, skimboarding is not a mainstream sport yet. However if other kids see your kid out there skimming across a puddle he or she is going to be the coolest kid on the block and all the kids will be begging their parents to buy them a skimboard.



Do yourself and your kids a favor this Christmas or on their next birthday and buy them a skimboard, not only will they stay in shape and not get fat but they'll be the coolest kid in the neighborhood cause most likely they'll be one of the few kids that actually has a good quality skimboard.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Vacation Hints For Labor Day

This day is the last vacation or chance to go out with your family or friends before it starts to get cold and bitter outside. Just the other day I started making plans with my family to go on one last camping trip before winter hits and it gets too cold to take the kids out and sleep in a tent. It's exciting planning and anticipating trips like this, getting the whole family together going up to the hills and roughing it. There's nothing quite like being in the majestic Rockies cooking your food over a fire or a gas grill, fighting off the flies and mosquitoes, sitting around a fire talking with the friends and family about the good ole days.



There's a lot of options for you and your family this upcoming Labor Day. Depending on where you live you could go camping, water skiing, wave running, skimboarding, surfing, hiking or even go hit an amusement park.



The most important thing to remember is just going out and enjoying time with your friends and family because they're most important in this life. When we leave this world they're going to be the only ones standing there remembering the good times we had, nothing else will be there and that's a guarantee.



Sometimes rounding up the whole family to go out for the weekend has it's challenges and stresses but there's no doubt about it that it's all worth it and something you'll always remember. Going on trips with my family when I was young are some of the best memories of my life.



Be safe this Labor Day and have fun!

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Our Cool Oceans

When it comes to water sports such as surfing, skimboarding, body boarding, snorkeling and scuba diving there's many different places and oceans to choose from and we're going to talk about the different oceans and some unique facts about each one.



Pacific: This ocean is most famous among Americans living in the west because of California and also more famous for being Hawaii's ocean. It also happens to be the biggest ocean in the world. The Mariana Trench is in the Pacific Ocean and happens to be the deepest point in the world. The Pacific was first sighted in the sixteenth century by Spanish explorers.



Atlantic: This ocean is the second largest ocean in the world and is known for it's S shaped basin and design. As most people know the Atlantic was the ocean explorers used when they discovered the Americas and has a lot of rich history in it. The Atlantic is now a famous hot spot for travelers looking to have fun with their families during the summer months and even during the winter if you happen to make it down to Florida.



Indian: This ocean is the third largest ocean in the world and is a major route for transporting goods such as petroleum from the Middle East. An estimated 40% of the world's off shore oil comes directly from the Indian. It's also a popular place to fish for shrimp and tuna.



Southern/Antarctic: Obviously being one of the coldest oceans in the world with temperatures reaching -2 to 10 celsius. This ocean is also know for fishing large amounts of krill and Patagonian toothfish.



Arctic: Also known as the North Pole. The Arctic is known for certain sea life such as walruses, whales and polar bears. This ocean was also known for being a hazard to ships trying to explore it or pass through it, this was before the invention of the modern "ice breakers".



Every ocean on earth is cool and unique in their own way. If you ever get the chance I recommend trying to visit each ocean and each continent before you die, it's quite the experience.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Go Skimboarding In Auzzie Land

When most people think about Australia the first thing that comes to mind is kangaroos, koalas, crocodiles and Crocodile Dundee. Not too many people know that Australia has some of the best surfing and skimboarding beaches in the world. We're going to give you a list of some of the best beaches to hit your board with.



1. Bells Beach: This beach is one of the most famous beaches in the world for surfers. It was also made famous by the hit movie with Keanu Reeves - Point Break.



2. Bondi Beach: This beach happens to be the most famous beach with tourists. Many different types of people like to visit this beach from surfers, sun bathers to lifesavers. Bondi is located very close to Sydney.



3. Byron Bay: This beach is located in the most easterly part of Australia. This place has become a popular beach resort and just a great place to relax.



4. Cable Beach: This beach has become known as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. It has awesome white sands and is most famous for it's stunning red sunsets. This beach is located on the Indian Ocean.



5. Cottesloe: This place is located in Perth and is one of their most popular beaches. You can do it all at this beach from fishing, surfing, snorkeling, swimming or just out to catch some rays and get a tan.



6. Four Mile Beach: This beach was named because of the 4 miles of beautiful white sands this beach entails. There's a rainforest behind this beach that's great for tourists.



7. Gold Coast: The Gold Coast happens to be a favorite spot with many foreign tourists. This beach is a surfers paradise and is on every surfers wish list of beaches to hit before they die.



I recommend to everyone who loves surfing or skimboarding to plan a trip to Australia and hit as many beaches and hot spots as you can.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Summer Vacations Are Good For Kids

If you sit and think about when you were a kid what comes to mind? It would be safe to say that summer time would pop into our minds. Taking vacations, catching frogs and snakes, camping, going to the beach or just relaxing in your back yard with a mini swimming pool or the sprinkler.

When I was around 12 years old my family (2 sisters and 1 brother) made the long trip from Utah to Pennsylvania to visit my mom's cousin. Wow, that was quite the adventure if I sit and reminisce about that trip. There were a lot of fights, tears, blood, laughs and great memories made on that trek to the east coast. We saw many historical places and even took a tour of the White House. Being a 12 year old kid it didn't really hit home all the cool sites I saw because we were more interested in the hotel's swimming pools but now I thank my mom for that trip.

Another trip that we took every summer that sticks out in my mind was going to Orange County, California. We would go there to visit my mom's best friend and we'd hit all the popular places such as Disneyland, Hollywood and the beach. That's where I had my first boogie board experience, needless to say I almost died but I also fell in love with the ocean and board sports from that day on.

These vacations are very important for kids. I cherish these memories and love to sit and think about them and how much fun I had with my family growing up. Now that we're all grown up and have families of our own whenever my family gets together for parties or holidays we all like to sit and talk about all the fun and goofy things we did on our vacations.

There's still some summer left. Take your kids out even if it's just camping for the weekend. Some of the best times I spent with my family were our frequent weekend camping trips.

Have fun and be safe.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Want To Know How To Get Your Hands On Some Good Skimboarding Info?

For beginners to the sport of skimboarding there's never enough information for them or so it seems. People brand new to skimboarding want to get their hands on as much info as possible to help them become better skimboarders. Then as time progresses they become more and more interested in watching videos, attending skimboard competitions and events, communicating with other skimboarders and basically just immersing themselves into the skimboarding culture.

There's a one stop website for all information pertaining to skimboarding and that's skimonline.com. This site has a plethora of information regarding anything skimboarding.

The newest update on their site has to do with Bill Bryan and how Bill is in the number one spot in the UST after another win at the Outer Banks, NC competition. Skimonline is very good about keeping their information up to date and current.

Skimonline also has a great forum for all skimboarders to hang out in and talk about their latest wipe out or just some new technique they've just mastered. Their site is also loaded with a ton of information on how to improve your skimboarding skills through articles, videos and tips from the pros themselves.

They also talk about the pros and cons of certain boards and usually have news regarding new skimboard companies and the boards they provide. So if you're looking for any information regarding skimboarding from what kind of boards to buy to the best beaches to go skimboarding, just log on to skimonline.com and chances are you'll find the answer you're looking for.

Now go out and enjoy what's left of the summer before we all have to put away our boards for the summer.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Cool Down From This Summer Heat!

Just today I was out with my wife and daughter cruising around town buying some things and my daughter was in the back seat crying up a storm and my wife and I couldn't figure out why she was having such a difficult time. She wasn't hungry or tired, we both knew that. Then it hit us, it's the 95 degree weather and the AC was getting back to her. So understandably she was not having a good time and when we pulled her out of the car seat we could tell by the amount of sweat she had accumulated she had every right to be raising the roof.

I think kids find the easiest ways to deal with the summer heat, whether it's jumping on a trampoline with a sprinkler underneath it or sliding down a slip n slide, or maybe even just a small swimming pool.

What about us adults though?

There's many ways for us adults to beat this summer heat but I think a lot of those ideas escape us as we get older. Here's some good ideas for us adults.

1. Skimboarding: Whether you live by the ocean by a lake, river or a pond you can go skimboarding anytime. Not only is it super fun but when you crash and burn you're cooling off at the same time, so it's a win win.

2. Wave Running: I've loved this sport since I was 13 years old. My father used to take his employees and his family up to a local lake every summer and we'd spend the day wave running and having a BBQ. Almost anyone can use a wave runner and renting one is relatively cheap. You can spend all day on one and never get bored.

3. Surfing: This sport does require an ocean and waves, so if you're fortunate enough to live by an ocean and you're not out surfing whenever possible, shame on you for not taking advantage of the beautiful, ever fun, never boring ocean.

4. Swimming: You're never too old to go swimming whether it's in a pool, river, lake or an ocean. Nothing relieves stress more than jumping into some nice cool water. Follow the example of your kids and go take a dive before winter hits and you're regretting not having taken a dip in some nice cool water.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

How Much Should A Skimboard Cost?

This is a huge debate and leads to many arguments among skimboarders. Serious skimboarders view cheaper skimboards as a hindrance to the sport and will openly speak about buying cheap skimboards vs expensive ones. While obviously there is some truth that the more expensive ones of course out perform better than the cheap ones, that's not to say that everyone should run out and buy an expensive board. Especially if you're just a beginner.

I recommend anyone that is a beginner should always start with a cheaper board rather than an expensive board. When you first start out skimboarding you're going to crash and burn more times than not and you're board is going to suffer in the process. Experienced skimboarders have a 6th sense about them that helps them watch out for rocks and other obstacles that may do damage to you or your board.

This sport is definitely learned through trial and error.

After you've somewhat mastered riding a cheap board than I would recommend moving up to an expensive board and then a again it all depends on how serious of a skimboarder you are. If it's something that you'd like to do once or twice a year just when you go on vacation than I would always stick with a cheaper board. However if you've come to love the sport and it becomes addicting than I highly recommend buying a more expensive board.

Whatever type of skimboarder you are just grab a skimboard go out and have fun. It's an addicting sport that will stick with you forever.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com

Surfing And SkimBoard Wax...

It's safe to say that a good majority of surfers and skimboarders, beginners to intermediate are still not quite sure which type of wax they should be waxing their boards with. We're going to try and help some people out with any questions you might have. Depending on where you live might also determine what kind of wax you should use on your board.

First lets talk about two very famous wax companies and the different kinds of waxes that they carry and which ones would be best fit you.

1. Mr. Zog's Sex Wax: Zog's Sex Wax was first produced by Fredrick Herzog III aka-(Mr Zog) and also by chemist Nate Skinner way back in 1972.

Zog's was also originally created to be a wax for drummers to get better grips on their drum sticks but quickly became popular with surfers as a great wax for their boards.

Zog's carries a variety of waxes but the most important information to know are the differences between cold wax and warm wax. It's actually quite simple. If you're going to be surfing or skimboarding in cold water than you should use a colder wax. If you're surfing or skimboarding in warm water than you should use warmer/hotter wax.

Warm water wax last longer and is less sticky than cold water wax and some people prefer to use warm wax all the time regardless of the temperature of the water. Cold water wax is more sticky and softer than warm wax.

2. Sticky Bumps Wax: Sticky Bumps was founded in 1967 by John Dahl and is now owned by John and his wife.

Like Zog's, Sticky Bumps carries a wide range of waxes and here's what type of wax they recommend depending on the temperature of the water.

-Tropical Wax: 75.F degrees and above.
-Warm Wax: 64-74.F degrees.
-Cool Wax: 58-78.F degrees.
-Cold Wax: 60.F degrees and below.

http://www.SkimBoardPros.com