It's back to school season, which means that companies who make cheap garbage disguised as skateboards come out to play. I got an e-mail encouraging me to tell you to buy some new back-to-school skateboard packages, but they are all dangerous horrific death traps, so I figured I should post for you to NOT buy them, to save you money and injury. They are these Kryptonics combo sets:
- The Rocker Combo: Skateboard and a helmet; $39.99 exclusively at Sears
- The Shredder Combo: Skateboard, helmet and pads; $49.99 at Toys R' Us
- The Sound Series Combo; Skateboard and headphones; $39.99 exclusively at Kmart
- Skateboard and Bag Combo: Skateboard and shoulder bag; $19.99 exclusively at Walmart
DO NOT BUY THESE. Please! I know they are cheap, and that might tempt you, but if you love yourself or your children, you will RESIST! These are all Bravo Sports skateboards, and everything Bravo makes should be avoided like the plague. They don't care about skateboarding, they don't care about you or your kids, they just want to make a quick buck. They also don't care that once you buy one of these boards for your kid, he will have such a terrible time trying to ride it that he will give up skateboarding. They don't care, because they made their quick cash off of you, and they can move on to ruin something else.
And while we're talking about it, just don't buy anything to do with skateboarding from places like Walmart, Kmart, Toys R' Us or Sears. Good gravy, folks - those are NOT places to get good quality athletic gear of ANY kind. Love your children and yourself, and go to a skate shop to get a skateboard.
On a side note, when did Kryptonics sell out and start making garbage? About the same time as Tony Hawk sold his name for pocket change, too. And what's Darkstar doing putting their stickers in these packs?! It's ugly out there, folks. Skate smart.
Comments
Dude… Seriously! I’ve always wondered why people would even think to buy a board from Wal-Mart or some dept. store. Isn’t it crazy? Those boards really are dangerous and bad quality! They’re heavy, slow, cheap and they break like a cracker if you don’t land right. Lol! I just got my new setup from CCS. Toy Machine Monster Fiberlam Deck, Venture V5 Low Trucks, Hubba Snipers Wheels, Shorty’s Silverado’s Hardware, Dook’s Shock Pads, Bones Reds Bearings and MOB Griptape. It cost me $128.99, I got free shipping. Iv’e had it for about 3 weeks now and so far I love it. It’s sturdy, fast, light and has killer pop. Plus I can land extra hard because of the carbon fiber laminate on the top and bottom of the deck. I wouldn’t recommend this deck for any rookie skater, but Toy Machine makes really good boards. But like Steve Cave said it’s good to spend a little for a skateboard. I love skateboarding and I think it should be an Olympic Sport. I skate all the time when I’m not working or chilling. And I’m going to the skate park tomorrow on my day off. Well… duces people.
This is for you and “Harles J”…first up skaters don’t buy off the internet.If you have a shop GO THERE,it’s cheapter and you can chill with some skaters that are usually in the industry. Also you should get indy trucks….WAY better then venture.Next up your totally right!! The boards are thick,ugly,and have plastic trucks with hollow wheels. However Dick’s sells decent completes from world industries for around 40 bucks..I’d suggest that.it was my first board ever
If you’re looking for a good, affordable complete, check out Positiv. It’s not a big brand name, and people might make fun of you, but the boards rock. Good bearings, trucks, and a solid deck, all for like, 70 bucks.
to owen.. its sometimes better to buy online because there is more variety. at the best skateshop in boston called orchards ive they only have independents and venture trucks. but that is the only thing for everything else i go to skateshops
honestly, i only have a hundred dollars.
i need to buy a skateboard, helmet, and maybe pads for later.
i dont even think thats enough…. is it?
so those skateboards at walmart are EXTREMLY temting to me
To skategirl:
You can do it, but don’t get one of those walmart boards!!!
Take a look at this:
http://skateboard.about.com/od/skategearreview1/tp/Cheap_Skateboards.htm
Some of those boards aren’t too much. They aren’t the best boards, but they’re a million times better than walmart junk. You can get a starter board for around 60 bucks, but make sure it’s a GOOD one!
Helmets shouldn’t cost much – you can skimp on that. Get the cheapest one you can find, that you don’t hate. Once you whack a helmet hard, it’s supposed to be chucked anyway, so the only reason to get a more expensive one is if you like how it looks or feels, or because it gives better protection.
And for pads – what kind of skateboarding are you doing? You probably don’t need pads, but depending on what you’re going to be doing I can help steer you in the right direction.
A hundred bucks is do-able!
-Steve
Claiming that these skateboards are dangerous and complete garbage is completely bogus. Walmart, K-mart, Target, etc… have strict quality standards controlling product that enters their stores. These standards are verified by accredited third party labs.
Not everyone has the money or interest in buying an elaborate skateboard. I understand that much of the skating culture is biased towards small, indie brands that haven’t sold out. With that said, there are a variety of consumers out there. The big box retailers provide a reasonable alternative for those consumers who need something basic.
To Savvy Consumer
What are you thinking? The skateboards Walmart and Target make are TERRIBLE!. If what you say is true, and they have quaility standards, then they are very, very, VERY, low quaility standards. Please, actually go out and ride one of those pieces of junk you are promoting before you go on the Internet and try to convince some poor person to get on one of those deathtraps.
So I’m broke right now so i did the following:
yea like, i just bought a crappy starter board from walmart just to use as transportation to the bus, around school, back to the bus, and home. I just wanted something cheap and faster than a ripstik (that can’t go up the hills where I live – and they’re not big hills either) and that I can actually ride with a decent size backpack to get to and fro. I’m not gonna be doing tricks.
To reduce likely hood of cracking and failure, I plan to upgrade in the future, replacing parts in this order. Adding shock pads, hardware, bone reds ABEC-7 (currently has ABEC-5’s), wheels are decent for now (54mm/97A) Krypto wheels are grippy, trucks, deck, and later wheels again. Resulting in a whole new board.
All in all, I just moved on from Ripstik to Skateboard and it took me about 20 minutes to get the hang of riding with confidence and kick turns. Manuals are a butt load easier on a skateboard than the Ripstik.