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Skateboarding Safety

Skateboarding is a fun, active, physically demanding and mentally challenging sport. But it can be as dangerous as any other physical activity if you do not take the time to learn proper skills, techniques and safety measures. While skateboarding may look chaotic and reckless, it is essentially a low impact and relatively safe sport compared to most other popular sports. Of course, riders should ride within their own capabilities. It is important to develop your skills. Begin with basics and learn how to feel comfortable while riding, turning and stopping on your skateboard. Remember, everyone has his or her own individual learning curve. With the right gear and a strong will to learn, skateboarding can be a great activity that builds character, integrity, determination and creativity. Have fun and skate safe.

Choose A Quality Skateboard

It is important to be selective when choosing the right equipment for skateboarding. Skateboards are made up of several different components. These components have technical differences for various types of terrain and styles of riding. Essentially, skateboards contain the following components (You can also check out Skateboard.com's Skateboard Anatomy for more information):

1. The skateboard deck, usually made of laminated wood plys molded with concave and raised tail and nose for functionality. They range in different sizes and lengths.
   
   
2. Grip tape is applied to the top for traction and grip while riding.
   
   
3. The trucks (qty 2) are metal casted components that mount to the underside of the skateboards with hardware (nuts and bolts) and which the wheels are attached to. The trucks are used for turning and are adjustable to turn at different speeds and degrees.
   
   
4. Wheels (qty 4) are compromised of urethane compounds and made with resiliency, durability and traction at the focal point of attention. Different wheels are made for different terrain and surfaces. They are critical to the quality, functionality and safety of riding a skateboard.
   
   
5. Two precision bearings are inserted into each wheel with a spacer between, and they are attached to the axle of the trucks with nuts. The precision bearings are machine made products for highest quality, speed and durability. However, they are also available in different quality levels.
   
   

While you can buy cheaper skateboards and components for your board, you are also taking a dangerous risk in the reliability of your skateboard. Faulty low grade products are not made to premium quality standards and are not safe. Do not sacrifice you or your child's health to dangerous products. Always buy quality merchandise from reputable brands. A $100.00 skateboard is much cheaper than a $1000.00 broken arm.

Protective Gear

Where To Skate

Skateboarding can be done anywhere there is smooth, traffic free pavement. Most cities, however, have laws that confine skateboarding to certain areas -- or that ban it altogether. Now, most cities are adopting public skateparks that are designed specifically for skateboarding. Check Skateboard.com's Worldwide Skatepark Directory to search for the skateparks in you town or state.

Skateboard-associated injuries:

Skateboarding is a popular recreational activity but has attendant associated risks. To place this risk in perspective, participation-based rates of injury were determined and compared with those of other selected sports. Skateboard-associated injuries were evaluated over time to determine participation-based trends in injury prevalence.

Rates of skateboard-associated injury were studied for the 12-year period 1987 to 1998 for participants aged 7 years or older. The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System provided injury estimates for skateboarding and the selected additional sporting activities. The National Sporting Goods Association annual survey of nationally representative households provided participation estimates. A participation-based rate of injury was calculated from these data sets for the selected sports for the year 1998.

The 1998 rate of emergency department-treated skateboard-associated injuries- 8.9 injuries per 1,000 participants

-was twice as high as in-line skating (3.9)

and half as high as basketball (21.2 [95%).

The rate of skateboard-associated injuries declined from 1987 to 1993 but is again increasing: the 1998 rate was twice that of 1993 (4.5 and 8.9, respectively). Increases occurred primarily among adolescent and young adult skateboarders.

The most frequent injuries in 1998 were... ankle strain/sprain and wrist fracture: 1.2 (95%) and 0.6 (95%) per 1,000, respectively.

Skateboard-associated injuries requiring hospitalization occurred in 2.9% and were 11.4 (95%) times more likely to have occurred as a result of a crash with a motor vehicle than injuries in those patients not hospitalized.

This study is the first to relate skateboarding and other sport injuries to participation exposures. We found that skateboarding is a comparatively safe sport; however, increased rates of injury are ocurring in adolescent and young adult skateboarders. The most common injuries are musculoskeletal; the more serious injuries resulting in hospitalization typically involve a crash with a motor vehicle. This new methodology that uses participation-based injury rates might contribute to more effective injury control initiatives.