5 ms·

I use a bike to get around SF the majority of the time as well. But lately I've been switching it up and using a skateboard for short trips. Riding the bike def

by modo_ 7y ago

I use a bike to get around SF the majority of the time as well. But lately I've been switching it up and using a skateboard for short trips. Riding the bike definitely isn't 'impractical', but the skateboard is so much less of a hassle. You don't have to bother carrying a lock (or walk to the corner to find the nearest pole to lock it to for that matter). And, don't tell my Mom, but not fiddling with a helmet and lights is huge too.

abakker 7y ago
rejoinder to the helmet point: if the speed is the same, and the places traveled are the same, the need for the helmet is the same.
- mikepurvis 7y ago
  I commute on a Boosted Board and after three summers of doing so, I'm a very confident rider of it. But I wouldn't ever dream of going without a helmet, even for short trips around the neighbourhood.
  - eldenbishop 7y ago
    I rode a skateboard every day for 8 years, from high school through college and thought helmets where stupid. I got a Boosted board last year and after one ride bought my first helmet. Would never use it without one now.
- TylerE 7y ago
  Crash motion is different.
- lkbm 7y ago
  If the speed is the same, and the places traveled are the same, and the likelihood of an accident is the same... Can you imagine going to a car dealership, and coming across a car with 10x the stopping distance and a center of mass twice as high as a Civic and the salesman telling you "it's just as safe so long as you're traveling the same speed and same places"? Would you buy that claim for a second? I've avoided numerous accidents by being able to stop quickly on my bike, or by making a sharp turn. This varies greatly just between different bicycles -- a mountain bike has much better stopping distance than a road bike. There's obviously also a big difference between a skateboard and a bicycle. There's also, I think, a steeper learning curve between skateboard and bike, though that may be because learning to bike as a child is more common. There's at least a difference in skill levels. I mostly know the limits of my bike. (e.g., how hard can I turn without skidding out?) and while a skilled skateboarder may be on par with me on that, I'm not. I can bike tens of thousands of miles without falling. I'm nowhere near the skill level of being able to do that on a skateboard. Being able to eject yourself is also valuable. I suspect a skateboarder would have better "eject and run" options than a cyclist, so that's a point in their favor. (I've had my back tire run over twice, and both times I was able to simply run forward over the handlebars, and my hands (and head) didn't touch the grounds, but it's not always going to be that easy.)
  - novok 7y ago
    Skateboards are slower than bikes unless you're really pushing it or bombing down a hill. Skateboarding is a skill and you can do all sorts of maneuvers to stop quickly, such as a side stop. I think the main reason why skateboards are worse injury wise is many of them try to do tricks constantly, while most bicyclists are not in that category. Also the small wheels are more sensitive to potholes.
    - hombre_fatal 7y ago
      > the main reason why skateboards are worse injury wise is many of them try to do tricks constantly Surely it's simply because of scenarios like a small rock's ability to insta-stop your board, basically guaranteeing your injury. Pretty much every time I've ever been knocked off a skateboard during my commute would be something you wouldn't even think/care about if you were on a bike. Not even close. One is a bike, the other is a heavy, tall pole (you) on a low, rolling platform. One is far more precarious, like keeping a reverse pendulum balanced. Hell, the most common injury I've seen on a skateboard is just someone stepping onto one, misplacing their center of mass, and the board just rocketing out from under them, and then bruising their tailbone/wrists. Even an inexperienced bicyclist doesn't have a fail case close to that.
  - grogenaut 7y ago
    Most people really can't run much over 7-10 mph. A bike and a skateboard both easily go faster than this. Eject and run is not really an option unless you want to face plant or do a skilled tuck and roll. This gets more true the further you are from sprinting on a regular basis. And really unless you have practice you're not going to match speeds with the ground anyway
    - lkbm 7y ago
      I have to keep my feet under me for a few dozen steps while I come to a stop. I might not be able to do that at 20 MPH, but I think I can at 12 MPH. I can at whatever speeds I was going when people ran over my back wheel. (Once was a parking lot, so I was probably going fairly slowly, but the other was biking downhill.)
jdavis703 7y ago
I spent three years doing this in SF. You definitely want a backpack you can attach clip on lights (FWIW my setup was a Goruck bag with Blackburn lights). I've found drivers pay even less attention to skateboarders than bicyclists. The lights help a little.
afterburner 7y ago
I feel like it's easier for a skateboarding miscalculation to slap you hard on the ground than a bike. A bike has really good brakes compared to a skateboard. Sure you don't need the helmet?

by modo_ 7y ago

abakker 7y ago

rejoinder to the helmet point: if the speed is the same, and the places traveled are the same, the need for the helmet is the same.

mikepurvis 7y ago
I commute on a Boosted Board and after three summers of doing so, I'm a very confident rider of it. But I wouldn't ever dream of going without a helmet, even for short trips around the neighbourhood.
- eldenbishop 7y ago
  I rode a skateboard every day for 8 years, from high school through college and thought helmets where stupid. I got a Boosted board last year and after one ride bought my first helmet. Would never use it without one now.
TylerE 7y ago
Crash motion is different.
lkbm 7y ago
If the speed is the same, and the places traveled are the same, and the likelihood of an accident is the same... Can you imagine going to a car dealership, and coming across a car with 10x the stopping distance and a center of mass twice as high as a Civic and the salesman telling you "it's just as safe so long as you're traveling the same speed and same places"? Would you buy that claim for a second? I've avoided numerous accidents by being able to stop quickly on my bike, or by making a sharp turn. This varies greatly just between different bicycles -- a mountain bike has much better stopping distance than a road bike. There's obviously also a big difference between a skateboard and a bicycle. There's also, I think, a steeper learning curve between skateboard and bike, though that may be because learning to bike as a child is more common. There's at least a difference in skill levels. I mostly know the limits of my bike. (e.g., how hard can I turn without skidding out?) and while a skilled skateboarder may be on par with me on that, I'm not. I can bike tens of thousands of miles without falling. I'm nowhere near the skill level of being able to do that on a skateboard. Being able to eject yourself is also valuable. I suspect a skateboarder would have better "eject and run" options than a cyclist, so that's a point in their favor. (I've had my back tire run over twice, and both times I was able to simply run forward over the handlebars, and my hands (and head) didn't touch the grounds, but it's not always going to be that easy.)
- novok 7y ago
  Skateboards are slower than bikes unless you're really pushing it or bombing down a hill. Skateboarding is a skill and you can do all sorts of maneuvers to stop quickly, such as a side stop. I think the main reason why skateboards are worse injury wise is many of them try to do tricks constantly, while most bicyclists are not in that category. Also the small wheels are more sensitive to potholes.
  - hombre_fatal 7y ago
    > the main reason why skateboards are worse injury wise is many of them try to do tricks constantly Surely it's simply because of scenarios like a small rock's ability to insta-stop your board, basically guaranteeing your injury. Pretty much every time I've ever been knocked off a skateboard during my commute would be something you wouldn't even think/care about if you were on a bike. Not even close. One is a bike, the other is a heavy, tall pole (you) on a low, rolling platform. One is far more precarious, like keeping a reverse pendulum balanced. Hell, the most common injury I've seen on a skateboard is just someone stepping onto one, misplacing their center of mass, and the board just rocketing out from under them, and then bruising their tailbone/wrists. Even an inexperienced bicyclist doesn't have a fail case close to that.
- grogenaut 7y ago
  Most people really can't run much over 7-10 mph. A bike and a skateboard both easily go faster than this. Eject and run is not really an option unless you want to face plant or do a skilled tuck and roll. This gets more true the further you are from sprinting on a regular basis. And really unless you have practice you're not going to match speeds with the ground anyway
  - lkbm 7y ago
    I have to keep my feet under me for a few dozen steps while I come to a stop. I might not be able to do that at 20 MPH, but I think I can at 12 MPH. I can at whatever speeds I was going when people ran over my back wheel. (Once was a parking lot, so I was probably going fairly slowly, but the other was biking downhill.)

jdavis703 7y ago

I spent three years doing this in SF. You definitely want a backpack you can attach clip on lights (FWIW my setup was a Goruck bag with Blackburn lights). I've found drivers pay even less attention to skateboarders than bicyclists. The lights help a little.

afterburner 7y ago

I feel like it's easier for a skateboarding miscalculation to slap you hard on the ground than a bike. A bike has really good brakes compared to a skateboard. Sure you don't need the helmet?