Skateboarding is one interesting, exciting, and relieving sports activity that anyone would love to try. Like roller skating, skateboarding provides valuable health benefits near impossible to achieve with some other sports. You’ll need a piece of equipment known as a skateboard if you’re interested in skateboarding.
Recently, there’s been a debate amongst skaters on a penny board or skateboard for beginners, and which is better. While some skateboarders have taken sides, the vast majority of others are still perplexed on which is more suitable for a beginner and whether both are the same or not.
Fortunately, we will be answering those questions in this article, but before we do that, we need to, first of all, understand what a penny board and a skateboard are.
Now, What’s a Penny Board?
A Penny Board is a portable, small, and lightweight plastic skateboard popular for short cruising. Note that it’s a type of skateboard, meaning that there’re other types of skateboards.
Penny Boards consist of multiple different parts, such as deck, wheels, and trucks, designed separately. You can either purchase a penny board fully assembled or individually.
Its popularity rose after an Australian company, Penny Skateboards, owned by Ben MacKay, started manufacturing it back in 2010. The company made skateboards in three different long decks: Penny (22 inches), Nickel (27 inches), and the Cruiser (32 inches) (more on that later). Other companies followed suit and started making Penny Boards, which we have come to know until this day.
Penny Boards are not wide (about 3″ at the least and 6″ at the widest), have a streamlined design, uses soft wheels (about 85A) and 59mm diameter polyurethane wheels, with fast ABEC 7 bearing. They also have a truck hanger that’s no wider than 3″ and a kicktail, with no kick on the nose, which allows the rider to lift the front conveniently when going over obstacles. The Penny Board’s design enables it to make sharp turns and will allow the rider to maneuver excellently and speed incredibly fast with minimal pushing.
You may be wondering what a Penny Board is used for since it’s so small. It’s a cruiser board, meaning it’s suitable for commuting. And since they are small, they can easily fit in a backpack, which further speaks of their portability. However, the small size can be disadvantageous.
Though light and portable, the wheels are large and can handle rough terrains, street walks, etc. Funny enough, it can hold a considerable amount of weight.
Types of Penny Boards
Portability and light weightiness are two significant reasons why Penny Boards are popular amongst young riders. And if you’re interested in having one, you might want to go to the store to make a purchase or order online. But how do you know the right one to buy?
As stated earlier, there are three types of Penny Boards: Penny Original, Nickel Board, and the Cruiser. To not get confused on the model to buy, we’d advise that you check out these models beforehand.
Penny Orginal Boards are the very first set of Penny Boards to grace the market. They are constructed with a robust polyurethane material for prolonged use and comes equipped with a wide wheelbase (3.125) and 59mm diameter wheels.
The Penny Nickel and Cruiser all come in polyurethane materials for increased durability. The major differences between the three of them are the board’s length and width. While the Penny Original comes with a 22-inch longboard, the Nickel and the Cruiser comes in a 27-inch and 32-inch longboard. Both the Penny Nickel and the Cruiser have more expansive decks compared to the Penny Original.
Because of the differences in their width and size, Penny Original will fit into a backpack more easily than the Nickel and the Cruiser. The fact that it comes with a shorter wheelbase makes it easier to control and maneuver. And since the Nickel and Cruiser come with a bigger deck, riders, especially beginners, tend to control more.
What’s a Skateboard?
A skateboard is a sports equipment used in skateboarding. It’s a narrow, wooden, and sometimes plastic board mounted on pairs of wheels. It’s designed as a board, usually made of maple wood with a polyurethane coating to preserve it and elongate its lifespan.
Skateboards feature a deck, the part which you can stand on, wheels, and a truck. These days, skateboards with piles of wood for more robust performance.
The skateboard’s deck is concave, with an upturned nose and tail. This gives you full control over the movement when you want to make turns or perform tricks.
In comparison to a Penny Board, skateboards are heavier. Of course, their heaviness is because they aren’t made of plastic material as the Penny Board.
Pros and Cons of a Penny Board and a Skateboard
The fact is a beginner can ride a Penny Board and a skateboard conveniently. However, some things need to be taken into account.
A Penny Board is convenient, portable, and comes in various designs. They are also durable and inexpensive. However, you can’t perform tricks with a Penny Board, mainly because of its small size.
On the contrary, a skateboard is easy to learn, portable, and affordable. The downside of a skateboard is that it’s heavy and might tear up your footwear if continuously used.
Penny Boards for Beginners: Good or Bad?
Now that we have looked at each board’s pros and cons, which would be more convenient for a beginner? Let’s start by telling you the reasons why a Penny Board is a good and bad choice for a beginner.
For someone that’s just starting out, especially if he/she is larger, we wouldn’t advise that you go for a Penny Board, especially the 22″ and 27″ ones.
First off, they are small-sized, and your feet will stick out. For a large rider, a Penny Board is a bad choice. Unlike a skateboard, your legs will be closer together, which will make balancing an issue.
Secondly, it has a slippery deck that would make it somewhat impossible to ride comfortably and maintain balance. The streamlined shape of a Penny Board only makes it speedier at the expense of comfort and stability. Unless you have little prior experience with skating, using a Penny Board may be problematic for the first time.
Thirdly, they are not a good option for learning to do tricks. Basically, they are built for cruising and commuting and not to perform tricks, particularly advanced ones. You can learn tricks like riding switch, pushing, power-slides, and any other thing that wouldn’t warrant you leaving the ground, which are basic things a beginner can do anyway.
Given the relatively small size, small soft wheels, and narrow board, it would be hard performing any technical trick on a Penny Board as it’s hard to lift it, catch, and land back onto it. You can only perform complicated tricks on a Penny Board if you get used to riding on it consistently, and not as a first-time beginner.
And now to the good side, if you’ve decided to skate on a Penny Board, avoid the 22” and 27” variants. It’s best you stick to a 32” Penny Board as it’s wider than others and have larger wheels. That translates to having more balance.
Still, it’s a terrible choice for a large person as balancing would be an issue. A Penny Board is best suited to a small, young beginner of the relatively lightweight. The small wheelbase will easily accommodate their small size and lightweight, and since the board has fast wheels, they would be able to cruise around, push, and turn much better.
If you can skate on a Penny Board comfortably, learning to skate on a skateboard or inline skates will become easy-peasy. That’s because you must have acquired all the skills to ride any board. Transition to other ride equipment will be seamless.
Skateboards for Beginners: Good or Bad?
Like Penny Boards, skateboards are portable and inexpensive. Whether you are small or large, you can conveniently skate on a skateboard without any hassle.
Since skateboards are much wider than a Penny Board, it will allow beginners to have more control and stability, which are difficult to attain on a Penny Board. The legs will be wider apart, and the feet will remain within the board’s dimensions, all of which promote better maneuverability and balance.
As a beginner who’s just starting out in the world of skateboarding, you can learn to do a few tricks, from the basic ones to advanced ones on a skateboard, given that it has a wider board.
But here is the thing, if you plan on skating on diverse surfaces, a skateboard may not be ideal since the wheel is relatively small. But with practice, you can get used to skateboarding on a sidewalk and other surfaces.
Penny Board or Skateboard for Beginners: Which Is Better?
The answer isn’t a straightforward one, as both have valid points to prove that a beginner can ride comfortably on them. A beginner can ride comfortably on a Penny Board as much as he/she can on a Skateboard if certain factors favor the rider. Both are different, and at the same time, feel alike.
If you have large feet, you’ll be better off with a skateboard as it would accommodate your feet better than a Penny Board (except for the Cruiser) due to its significant large wheelbase, resulting in more balance. On the other hand, if you are looking for something to cruise with for a while or an easy commute, a Penny Board will be ideal.
Also, if you are interested in learning how to skate, I’d advise you to get a Penny Board as it comes with bigger wheels compared to skateboards. Penny Boards will offer you the platform to learn how to do basic tricks before graduating to more difficult ones.
Do you want my piece of advice? Get both (the Cruiser and a skateboard)! Learn with the Penny Board, and when you’re acquainted with the skating basics, you can move to skateboards. Better still, you can practice on both simultaneously. Remember that it takes more time to practice balance on a Penny Board because of its streamlined wheelbase.
And one more thing, if you ever decide to get a skateboard, avoid one with a plastic board or wheelbase. It can wear out the footwear more frequently, mostly when used repeatedly. We advise that you get a skateboard with a wood deck so that your feet can feel more secure.
You can always change the wheels and truck of a Penny Board and a skateboard if they inhibit your learning process or movement.
Conclusion
Choosing which is better between a Penny Board and a skateboard for a beginner is utterly dependent on the rider. Many started with a Penny Board, while others practiced on skateboards.
The best thing is to start with the one you want. If you feel you will be more comfortable on Penny Boards, so be it. If riding on a skateboard has always tickled your fancy, then I suggest you get started with it. You can get used to riding on both comfortably. It all takes consistent practice.
I believe this article has answered your question on which is better between a Penny Board or Skateboard for beginners.
