Groover Surfskate / Skog / LDP
Groover Surfskate / Skog / LDP
Link to Youtube: Longboarding the STP 2015
A tribute design to the Chris Yandall skogger. 12 years and over 15 iterations before release in 2026. Skogging is a term Chris coined combining Skating+Jogging. The core principle is ambidexterity - switching push foot and stance readily, improvisationally while skateboarding but we stop just short of longboard dancing.
A skogging deck needs to be flat, no concave, to allow independence of foot placement and to teach your feet how to feel their place on the deck without looking down. I have also found that flat decks can make great pumpers as well. The first few skate crazes were over flat decks until aggressive street skating convinced us that we need aggressive concave to stay “locked in.” the whole point of skogging, however, is to discover to play with your skating stance on the fly and train equanimity between all stances, which is one of the hardest things to learn on a skateboard.
My interpretation of Chris’s Skogger is one geared slightly more towards pumping (wide nose) than his version which is more geared towards slalom and pushing (narrow nose).
Ambidextrous training -
Balanced, ergonomic athletic training on a skateboard. It is important to work long-term to open up the other side of your body to board sports as soon as you feel you can, even if this slows down your speed. For training goofy (or regular) stance, pads and slower than normal cruising speeds are strongly encouraged. To begin pushing with the other side of the body, try pushing uphill. Ambidextrous propulsion and training on a longboard is a healthy, safe, fun, and fulfilling sport.
Notable Ambidextrous Rides
75 miles Athens to Atlanta 2023 50% goofy stance
65 miles Athens to Atlanta 2022 50% goofy stance (1st longboarder invited to A2A)
204 miles STP 2018 50% goofy and then with no boardside bushing for last half of day 2.
204 miles STP 2017 on a bicycle
204 miles RSVP 2016 50% goofy
206 Miles STP 2016 50% goofy
209 miles - Ultraskate 2016 - 50% goofy stance (plus several more ultraskates in Miami and Netherlands over the years)
206 miles - RSVP 2015 - 70% goofy stance (2nd longboarder to complete RSVP)
204 miles - Seattle To Portland 2015 - 50% goofy stance (3rd longboarder to complete STP)
30 miles Passport 2 Pain 2014 - 55% goofy stance (1st longboarder invited to P2P)