Hiya, welcome to Boogieskim Central 2022!
Wait, what? Equipment The basics Dropping the board Hot-dogging Fun Stuff!
You will need a boogieboard with the following features:
There are a few things you can do to get your board a little more suitable for boogieskim! First off, you can wax the top of the board. You don't have to, as most boogieboards are pretty grippy, but a little wax can help.
I have also experimented with putting tape (or a sticker) over the bottom side of the leash plug. It might reduce drag a little bit.
Hot glue and then Gaffer tape :)
There are no basics. This stuff is not basic at all, it is unseen territory.
A few little things:
- Don't throw the board and chase it. It will just not work. You need to do a real one-step-drop or monkey crawl.
- Boogieboards don't really slide on sand. You need to drop it onto a layer of water at about 2-3 inches thickness.
- Aim your feet for the right position at the drop. Don't stomp into the middle of the board. It will bend or even break. Think landing bolts on a skateboard.
- You can totally ride deep water. Just run a bit faster, to make some more distance.
- Try to avoid rocks and stones. They might rip the slick bottom of your board.
- A board with channels goes surprisingly straight!
It's the regular skimboard drop. You run as fast as you can and drop the board underneath your feet. There is NO way you can throw the board and chase it, like you would do on a wooden skimboard that you tried riding on a summer holiday.
Hot-dogging is where we leave the realm of performance and enter the zone. There are no limits, you can do boardwalks, cross-steps, coffins, laybacks. Can you do a handstand? While moving along the shoreline? If so, you are clearly hot-doggin'!
In a fine example of genuine hot-dogging, I step up, lay low, kick the board into some rocks and then walk away. I have asked some of my older friends for this tricks name, and they recalled this as a "Christie".