How to Carry a Longboard
- Ken Miller
- November 24, 2022
Are you tired of carrying your longboard back home after a long day of riding?? Often, the awkward large board isn’t comfortable to carry around. Don’t worry as you are in for the solution to your problem!
In the article, I have described various style that might just work for you in carrying your plaything around. Starting from buying a bag, to making a DIY carrier, to carrying it on bikes or flights – my article will serve you all the insights into longboard carrying. Read away and choose what suits you!
Why do you need to carry a longboard?
You might just think, Why Do I Need To Carry A Longboard?! So here are the situations you will need to carry your longboard along:
- While riding on your longboard, if you reach a road or location that is off-limits for any kind of wheeled gadget, or maybe it’s unfit for riding on your skates, scooter or longboard, dirt or muddy path, flooded area or a cobblestone pathway, you might just have to carry your longboard and walk past the distance.
- Suppose you made plans for daylong boarding with your friends. It’s in a place far away from your location so you will have to ride or drive there and thus, you have to carry your board in your bike or car.
- If your longboard is your way of commuting to your school or working hub, you will need to carry your longboard while passing past hallways or corridors as you enter your station.
- Do you love the gush of wind against your face while riding downhill? Then you are well aware of the aftermath of walking up the slope. You could kick push back uphill but most riders or freestylers would want to save the energy for rides and carry their longboard in their hands or on shoulders and climb back up.
- You might need to carry your longboard in your flights too while traveling inter-city distances or overseas.
06 Methods to Carry A Longboard
There are many different ways to carry your longboard. According to your purpose, the most appropriate methods to carry your longboard are:
✔️ carry it in the back of your bike
✔️ carry it in a sling bag
✔️ carry it on your shoulder
✔️ by making a DIY carrier
✔️ carry it in a backpack
How To Carry Longboard on Bike
The easiest way to carry your board on a bike is to carry it as you’d do if you were walking and couldn’t ride it. Put it through your backpack straps and carry it on your shoulder while the board is between you and the pack.
It’s a hack!
If you put it inside the bag and carry it while riding the bike, mind you, the backpack will wrap it vertically and your bike seat will come in your way.
You might feel a little bit of wind resistance but that won’t be an issue if you are riding on local routes.
You can also check this awesome video to carry your board on a bike
How To Carry Longboard On Flight
If you are going on a longboarding trip that involves air travel, you will need the following tips.
Carrying your board into a long distance travel slightly depends on the airline you are traveling through, how convenient they are, how early you checked in, and how bulky your board is as a carry-on.
Having taken care of all the limitations, you can carry your longboard around with you with a shoulder strap or backpack if the deck isn’t bigger than 38”.
If you are choosing to put it in check-in, you may as well spend some extra bucks into protecting your favorite play tool. Use a travel bag made for longboards or snowboards especially. Before everything, wrap it around a blanket and stuff it inside a travel bag and travel worry free!
How To Carry a Longboard On A Backpack
There are wide varieties of manufactured bags for longboard. Carrying the gadget in it is going to ease your problems of carrying the helmet, protection pads and gloves, extra trucks and wheels, skate tool, water bottle, hoodie etc. Specially on days you plan a longboarding trip or distance ride with your buddies.
Although it might become a little uncomfortable if your board is over 40inches. There’s not much comfort in the longboard hanging and flopping against your cuffs as you walk.
But for boards with a deck of 36” or lower, the easiest hack is to pass the board across the shoulder straps, with the underside of the deck against your back. This can even be quite comfortable, as long as you don’t try to walk through narrow doorways. Make sure the straps are padded for your deck to be safe from any scratch or getting rugged.
How To Carry Your Longboard on Your Back
There can be several option to carry your longboard on your back once you are done riding. Carrying it on a backpack and carrying it on your back straight can be different from each other.
Simply use a shoulder strap or a backpack strap to tie around your board and pass it through your head like you would do to a crossbody bag. You can also make a DIY carrier using rope and knotting skills which we will describe in our article later. Comment and let us know if you loved it!
How To Carry Your Longboard With A Sling
The Longboard Sling is made of a padded bandage that you can fasten to the trucks of your longboard. The sling is made of nylon rope.
The pad distributes the pressure put forth by the board equally across your chest and shoulder. It also prevents the rope from scouring into your skin and saves you from rope burns.
Some slings have a stainless steel ring so that the rope fits tightly onto the trucks and the board avoids extra dangling. All in all, the sling and the pad makes it super easy to carry around your board.
Longboard sling vs backpack: Which one should You choose
Longboard slings are longboard traveling hooks that enable you to hang your board around your shoulder, though you can not make room for any other additional equipment. Here’s a precise pros & cons discussion:
Pros of using a sling
- Pocket friendly
- Lightweight
- Slick in size
- Carries low to medium loads easily
- Sensitive on skin in humid weathers
- Summer friendly
- Easy to carry when you are riding
Cons of using a sling:
- Can’t carry heavy loads as 40” deck
Longboard bags or skateboard backpacks, all are the same. Some even use snowboarding backpacks for longboard travel. However, the bags provide you with extra storage space, as well as shelter for your board if the weather becomes rough suddenly. Here’s more to it:
Pros of using a backpack
- Spacious
- Provides room for additional equipments
- Carries heavy loads
- Small in size often
- Padded straps provide comfort
Cons of using a backpack
- Costs a bit higher
- Might be a baggage
- Might dig into shoulder skin due to weight
How To Make Your Own Longboard Carrying System
Here’s how to make a DIY longboard carrying system out of scratch in just a few easy steps:
1.Get Your Supplies: You will need soft rope. This will be easily available in any hardware store. The ones that are easy to tie a knot with. Buy about 3 meters of it to avoid any later regrets. Other things include a pair of scissors, tape and some substance for padding such as insulation pipe.
2.Making of The System:
- Learn how to tie a hangman’s knot. You can practice it a few times first with a spare rope. It should be easy for you if you have any prior experience with defense or scouting.
- Tie a hangman’s knot at one end of the rope and pass it around the truck of one end of your longboard.
- Pass the rope through the insoluble pipe. This is actually going to work as a padding system for your chest or shoulder, saving them from any rugged scratches caused by the weight of the heavy board while you hang it.
- Here’s a tip to save you some extra work. Grab your board and the half-done system, go in front of a mirror and measure at what length you want your board to hang as you put it on. Hold the rope then and there as you take it off and don’t let that go. That’s where you will cut the loose end of the extra rope .
- Now finally, hold the rope at your desired length. That’s the pinch point where you are going to tie another hangman’s knot for the final touch.
3.Go For A Trial: You are all ready to use it as your daily carrier. The system will not hinder your rides as it is going to stay high from the ground as you ride on your trucks and wheels. Wear it on and walk a few steps and adjust it if you find any faults.
Longboard slings are longboard traveling hooks that enable you to hang your board around your shoulder, though you can not make room for any other additional equipment. Here’s a precise pros & cons discussion:
Final Words....
By this time, we hope you know all about the carrying options of your longboard. We tried our best to ensure you a stress-free ride. Comment down if you have any sneaky tips for it and help a fellow rider!
Ken Miller
Hey i am Ken,i have picked up longboard since i was 16! I always wanted to ride and learn. Now i am 30 and still skateboarding. I am here to share with you all I experienced on my board, trying to help you on longboard and skateboarding knowledge,tricks and,tips. Personally, am connected to this.I guess more longboarding now. It is a great way to get around .
