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| Q&A: McKendry on Speed (1810 Posts)
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NEW PL8S
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On 10/14/2004
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
United States
(66.116.nnn.nnn)
I just scored a new California personalized plate. I can't believe that this hadn't been taken already!
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Back From Morro, On to Ohio
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On 10/14/2004
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
United States
(66.116.nnn.nnn)
Yorck, Darryl gave the wheels. That makes 3 in the world that I've seen like that. Email me for replacements.
Rodrigo, "in my book" is an expression meaning "in my opinion". To date I have plenty of opinions, but no book. That is a good idea though. I'll put "inspired by Rodrigo" in the credits.
Diego, Thanks! I'm glad that you speak English. My Spanish is bad and my Portuguese is even worse. Brazilian skaters are the coolest. The girls at your events look pretty nice too!
Kanucky, The Abec 11 wheels did great at the Super-G in Paso Robles. I wish that guys like Jason Mitchell, Tay Hunt or Chicken were on them - they ripped. I used combinations of 81a Strikers and 81a Grippins. The hill wasn't as fast as we thought in the first round due to the pumping needed on the flat sections. A 30mph tailwind changed all that in the second round where speed and the need for traction increased and times went down by 12 SECONDS!
LLfeetspray, That doesn't sound good at all. Urethane can spill over the top and into the hub. Small bubbles are nearly impossible to avoid. In either event, if they aren't "right", I'll take care of you. Email me or call the shop.
Boss, There is a certain beauty found in the simplicity of a basic double action truck. Trucks that steer like a car would tend to be more "mechanical" in the way that they turn, and there wouldn't be the same dampened feel. This is not to say that I'd never try it, I just think that a lot more can be done to improve the classic designs.
Fredrik, I recommend both Jim Z's and Geezer X. Jim Z's are probably more money due to the machined hangers and spherical bearings. Geezer X can "upgrade" a lot of current trucks. Any time that you get a strong, straight, precision 8mm axle you are going to feel the difference. Removing the slop in the bearing seats and/or the pivot cup can also improve steering and traction. Yes, you can actually get better traction from your trucks when they turn with more precision. On technical tracks this is great. For bombing or thrashing around, it's a luxury.
Brad, There are times when you should grab your board on a heelside slide, rather than just doing a Coleman. When it rained in Germany a year ago, we'd come barreling down this straight, narrow strip of road before a hard left. You had to brake. Footbraking seemed slow (little traction with the shoe) so many of us through down a pendulum slide. The first time that I tried it, I didn't grab my board. There was so little friction pushing the board toward me that I literally pushed the board right out from underneath me. Note to self: Hang on to the board! The next time that I tried it (Round 1 of qualifying), I held on to board but veered to the left like a gutterball and went off the road. I held on as long as I could but when the board sunk into the grass, I couldn't hang any longer. In Round 2 I held on to a slide in a straight line a and qualified 5th. The moral of the story is to "know when to hold'em...". I usually grab the rail, and optionally skim the slideglove. Sometimes I really lean on the glove, sometimes I really push on the wheels. For racing we do whatever it takes to get the job done. For sliding fun, focus on safety first and then style.
Herbn, The Green Room sounds like a Legendary Urban Herbn spot at the beach. How about Chaput on Meth OD? Wait till you see the color for the car I've picked out.
Sean, Glad you found them!
Kenny, I was dreaming/hallucinating that I had a shot at the overall going into Sunday. I encountered several problems.
#1 Jason Mitchell. I had to "outpoint" him by 5 places on Sunday to tie him. He finished 5th which meant that he locked up the title.
#2 Tight Slalom. This style is my nemisis, although recent advancements in technology (Radikals, Grippins) allow me to at least make the course on a good run.
#3 Kenny Mollica and Chicken were just a point or two behind me. Aren't these guys World Champions? And how about Richy? It was fun while it lasted but a double DQ in qualifying killed the dream. In the coming year, I'm going to try practicing. It seems to work for others...
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WOrld Championship overall placings
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On 10/14/2004 Mollica
wrote in from
United States
(65.24.nnn.nnn)
Chappy-
Did you get second overall in Morro Bay?
I thought I was battling you for the 2nd spot.
Mollica
Come on over and hang in the Gong Show
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I found the pic
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On 10/13/2004 sc
wrote in from
United States
(63.105.nnn.nnn)
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Hand placement when cornering
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On 10/13/2004
sean
wrote in from
United States
(63.105.nnn.nnn)
Chris could you post or send me the pic of you showing your hand placement(the G Hardwick style that I saw yesterday
thanks sc
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alt. names
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On 10/12/2004 herbn
wrote in from
United States
(152.163.nnn.nnn)
welcome to ,"the green room", the "chap-page"," a vendor corner" "chris'pagadon" , thats' a page with an ad built into it:)
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slide carve
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On 10/11/2004
brad
wrote in from
United States
(155.229.nnn.nnn)
Chris,
On your post regarding doing a slide carve for cornering, you referred to grabbing the board on the opposite side of the slide. Do you prefer to grab the board for this slide rather than the usual Coleman slide method of laying your uphill glove on the ground and rotating toward the slide.
I have been going back and forth on this, but would prefer to learn the method used by racers rather than those who slide for the fun of sliding.
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JimZ Speedhangers / Geezer X
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On 10/11/2004 Fredrik
wrote in from
Sweden
(217.208.nnn.nnn)
Hi Chris! This post should be in the truck forum but I want to ask you.
I want some good true 8mm axel hangers for downhill.
Wich one do you suggest?
The ones I´ve heard of is JimZ and Geezer X.
Can you use a Randal baseplate to these hangers
Thaaanks!!!
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stroker trucks
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On 10/9/2004 the boss (canada)
wrote in from
Canada
(198.53.nnn.nnn)
chris....why doesn't someone namely you make truck or skateboard that turns like a car? what are the pro and cons. i think that is where we should be moving the technology. what do you think?
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83mm flywheels bad pour?
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On 10/9/2004
LLfeetspraY
wrote in from
United States
(152.163.nnn.nnn)
i am just wondering if there was a bad pour of 83mm flywheels? ive got some that the the thane is all over the hubs and have air bubbles in them and such.
thanks for your time chris
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SGS
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On 10/8/2004 Kanucky
wrote in from
United States
(206.40.nnn.nnn)
Chris
How did you and the ABEC 11 wheels do today at the SGS?
I know that all those slalom wigglers haven't a chance against a real downhiller, sounds like that course was tailor made for you and the greenies!
I bet you and the greenies kicked some major BUTT!
ABEC 11 IS REAL!
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COOL
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On 10/8/2004
Diego
wrote in from
Brazil
(200.102.nnn.nnn)
Nice going Chris!
Keep up the good work.
Shall need any info from Brazil, just let us know!
Diego
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Bay Area Bomben
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On 10/8/2004
ICE
wrote in from
United States
(69.104.nnn.nnn)
BUDAH
Check Out SFLONGBOARDING.com
Bay Area Connections
Check the message board
ICE
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Book?
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On 10/8/2004
Rodrigo Stulzer
wrote in from
Brazil
(200.140.nnn.nnn)
Hi Chris!
In many of your posts in the speedboarding forum I've read you saying about a "book" and "I'll include it in my book". So... do you really are writing a book abou speedboarding? Well, I'm not sure if it'll be a best-seller at Amazon, but I'm buying one, for sure!
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Meltdown
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On 10/8/2004 Yorck
wrote in from
Germany
(82.83.nnn.nnn)
Cool that you got your own forum Chris. Did Darryl show you the melted wheels from chamrousse?
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SF Bombers
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On 10/7/2004
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
United States
(66.116.nnn.nnn)
Contact Eli Smouse at Purple Skunk or Cavey at Sonoma Sports or Cliff Coleman in Berkley/Auburn or Patrick Rizzo and JM (phone # is currently in the Speedboarders Forum) or Comet Skateboarders. They are much more in touch with NorCal downhill scene than I am.
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Wheels
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On 10/7/2004
Budha
wrote in from
United States
(204.156.nnn.nnn)
Thanks! I have another question are there any clubs in or around the SF bay area that sponsor days/races on local hills?
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Budha Wheels
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On 10/7/2004
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
United States
(66.116.nnn.nnn)
Budha, Try a bigger wheel like the 76mm Gumball or the 83mm Flywheel. I've yet to see a meltdown on either of them. You can carve, cruise, bomb or win a race on either of these. A big guy like you might want to try the 78a durometer.
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Cornering Theory
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On 10/7/2004
Chris Chaput
wrote in from
United States
(66.116.nnn.nnn)
Lets's say that you are approaching a 90 degree right hander at 40mph. Assume also that you can start and finish a good line through it at 30mph without scrubbing your wheels. Ideally, you'd want to instantaneously deccelerate from 40mph to 30mph and carve the turn without sliding. The only problem is, no one can instantaneously deccelerate. This means that some type of braking is necessary. As long as you can stay in control, braking should be done as late as possible and as fast as possible. How can you barke? There are a handful of methods, none of them are safe.
1. Airbrake - stable but slow and high.
2. Carving - stable but slow and you can collide with others
3. Standing Slide - unstable and you can collide with others
4. Pendulum Slide - dangerous to others and overbraking often occurs
5. Foot Drag - unstable
6. Slide Carve - unstable and can scrub wheels
It's difficult to brake in a straight line or to hold your line. If you can master the Slide Carve, it can be very effective on technical courses. You don't have to spend any time standing up to prepare for the turn, you just dive right in nice and low. Ideally, you pitch your board into a sideways slide that both slows you down and initiates the turn. You'd want to have slowed to 30mph as you begin the turn so that you will stop sliding and start carving. When you see guys doing it perfectly, you can't really tell which part of the corner they're sliding and which part they're carving.
There are some turns that you want to foot-brake and then slide. Being able to slide a turn without braking is a nice trick to have in your bag. My advice is to get yourself a bag of tricks and have them at your disposal. Strategies can change in a heartbeat in the middle of a run. Be prepared.
Anthony, Toeside turns often are "scarier" at first and then become your favorite turn. Once you've learned to grab that outside rail and put the slideglove down, you'll find that you can keep your back end from sliding out more easily in toesides. Heelside feels safer and more natural in the beginning, but it's trickier to keep from sliding out. To practice both turns, get low on your board and go down a wide, steep, straight hill. Alternate heelside and toeside carves and just skim the slidegloves while grabbing the opposite rail. This way, you can parctice dozens of turns on a run instead of just the number of turns on your practice hill.
 
BTW, I modified my heelside grabs so that my arm goes around my back leg instead of in between, as Hardwicke and I did in 2001.
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Turns.
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On 10/7/2004 DOWNHILLjimmy.
wrote in from
United States
(198.81.nnn.nnn)
No two turns are the same, every turn can be taken many ways, only you know what is the fastest way through the turn on your deck.
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Wheels
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On 10/7/2004
budha
wrote in from
United States
(204.156.nnn.nnn)
This is the first time to this site for me. I am a downhill freak that's had a recent scare. First as my name suggests I am a big guy in the 270 range, but don't let that fool ya I love high speed downhill. My problem is that recently I melted the hub/bearings out of my Krypto route 70's, and I'm a little freaked. I wanted to know what wheels you all would recommend for a big brutha downhiller.
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foot braking vs drifting
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On 10/7/2004
martin
wrote in from
Switzerland
(83.77.nnn.nnn)
Every turn we make is different!
You can't say that drifting is faster than foot braking or foot braking is faster than drifting in general. It depends on the course...
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re: CC
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On 10/6/2004
Paipo Jim
wrote in from
United States
(67.164.nnn.nnn)
Klaatu Barada Nikto!!!
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foot braking vs drifting
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On 10/6/2004 herbn
wrote in from
United States
(205.188.nnn.nnn)
my 2 scents,drifting a turn perfectly is harder and may not be a option, though it probabely is the fastest. how do you know exactly how much to foot brake? to much ,and you're obviously slow,to little he he you in a very unenviable position,especially since it's best to foot brake at the last moment. "taste of hay",is a quote that comes to mind. A long drifting three point slider gloove turn is cool to look at, but do you think that even if it's perfectly executed , the extra heat in the wheels may slow you down in the next straight ,a hot sneaker doesn't slow you down.
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core shape
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On 10/6/2004 herbn
wrote in from
United States
(205.188.nnn.nnn)
i heard "somewhere" that if you had a core shaped like a gear or a star... ,to lock urithane in place, the alternating high and low spots(more support/less support) would create a pulsing effect that slows the wheel down. My idea is that a very raised center ridge makes the wheel use the urithane around that ridge as a source for traction. To me a series of small grooves running around the hub might be ideal.
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