Jacqui's in charge!!!

I guess it's time to come clean, Balance isn't my only job. I also work on a ship and sail on the seas. So as I am sailing upon the seven seas my girlfriend Jacqui will be taking care or orders! We have a huge stock of boards ready to go, so get your orders in!

Jacqui can be reached at Jacqui@BalnceLongboards.com or by calling our new Balance Longboards number 801 999 0SK8.
I can still be reached at 801 750 6054 and also through Tom@balancelongboards.com if you do need anything from me. Although Jacqui will be handling all of the sales.

Christmas is right around the corner and there is plenty of time to get your orders in for the holiday season. Every model is currently in stock and can be shipped out immediately.

Love your life

Tom
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Hardwood Speedboards!

Well it all started about eight months ago when I met Mike Snyder. He pretty much introduced me to the world of downhill longboarding. Before hand I knew very much about, all I knew is that speedwobbles scared the crap out of me. We decided to produce a downhill board together. He wanted something fast, while I wanted to offer something that wasn't out there yet.

Two weeks after we met, we had out first prototype. It was pretty good, but Mike wanted something with a bit more of a foot platform, especially for his rear foot. We continued making prototypes, tweaking the wheel base a bit, overall length, amount of concave, width and also some pretty cool top and bottom features and contours. Yea we tweaked and played with just about every aspect of the board.

Throughout this prototype process, I quickly realized how easy it was to make these minute changes in the board because I was using hardwoods and not a tradition press. Its pretty simple for me to add some length or width to the board, but if you were to do that with a traditional longboard you would need a press for every change in width, amount of concave, etc. I also realized how much of a difference these small changes had in how the board actually performed. Which gave me the idea of offering a fully customized downhill speedboard. While we will have a stock deck (Mike's preferred ride) we will also offer customization for a very reasonable price. All of the things we were tweaking in our prototypes the rider will now be able to tweak on his own board. Change the overall length, width, wheel base, amount of concave, where the concave actually starts as well as the top contours of the board. I'm not positive, but I don't think anyone else offers that much customization in their boards.

I guess now I can talk about these top and bottom contours on our downhill board. First off we have "The Speed Egg". Its a hump just behind the front truck. It allows you to know where you foot placement is on the board. As well as allowing you to be a bit more locked in with you front foot. And finally it allows you to let the board fall behind you while you are kicking. This increases your stride and hence increases your speed off of the start line.

Next we have "The Ridge line", which is essentially a V or a ridge coming off of your rear truck towards the center line of the board. This combined with a pretty wide tail allows the rider to use The Ridge line to dictate exactly where the tail is while in a turn, predrifting, or in a slide. More control means a safer more predictable ride.

On the bottom we have essentially removed material. With this we have created rails down the bottom of the board, which come in pretty handy to grab onto while cornering. It also significantly reduces the weight of the board.

Since we have taken away so much material I decided it was a pretty good idea to start introducing some composites into the board. Here again we have an option for the rider. While the bottom of the deck will certainly have layers of bamboo fiberglass, the trip of the deck can either be layered with the bamboo glass or a carbonfiber top sheet. Either option will make the board virtually bomb proof

So there you go, our fully customized hardwood downhill board. I am still doing research on pricing so I am not entirely too sure of the price. I do know the stock board is going to be within the same price range as other downhill decks out there. And the customization is not going to be a ridiculous add on, I'm going to keep it at a reasonable price so more people can enjoy their own custom ride. I am hoping to have this board fully released by the end of the winter so everyone can gear up for the upcoming season. As soon as I know more, I will let everyone else know as well.

Love life,

Tom

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

New Phone Number for Balance - 801-750-6054

Please take note, we have changed our phone number to 801 750 6054!  Our old number no longer works.  Im very sorry for any inconvenience, the situation is totally out of my control.  Feel free to give us a call at anytime if you ever need anything.  Keep on skating.  Love life!

Tom

First ever kickflip on Balance Longboards

I started longboarding about 10 years ago when I realized that I was no good at skateboarding.  I mean I couldn't even ollie.  Although that fact still stands true today, I met somebody today who can.  With in 20 mins of meeting each other this kid had a kickflip dialed on the Platypus.  He was working of presure flips and triflip when we left each other.  Although our meeting was short, I was able to grab some quick footage of his stuff. 

Stay tuned, we have plans on making a full length video in the near future.  Here we are again pushing what can be done on a hardwood longboard.  I know this was the first kickflip done on one of our boards, but it may also be the first one done on any sort of hardwood longboard.  And I know that there aren't a lot of kickflips being done in the longboard world right now.  Were going to keep innovating and keep pushing what can be done with hardwood longboards, as well as longboarding in general!!

Love life!!

www.balancelongboards.com

sales@balancelongboards.com

New Layups!

Here we are, getting into fall, sounds like time to release a couple of new layups.  We have basically gone ahead and added a center stringer to our boards.  I think it gives the board a little more substance, a little more to look at if you will.  

Now we have 8 different decks, combined with 8 different layups.  Im not math genious, but my calculator told me that there are now 64 different combinations of boards to chose from.  There are some board companies that are made in China that can't compete with that.  

Stay tuned throughout this fall we will be releasing even more layups as well as some other options.  

Always handcrafted, and always made in the USA!

Layout 4a

Layout 4b

Love life,

Tom

sales@balancelongboards.com

Custom Boards

We have been pumping out a lot of custom boards lately and I just wanted to keep everyone posted on all of them.  From just switching up the layouts, or coming out with your own design, here is what has been coming out of the shop lately.  Tons of people have been adding concave to the Val.  It turns it into an amazing downhill board.  

Give us a call with your idea for your deck, or check out the pictures for some ideas.  So far we have been getting great response with all of our custom decks.  Love your life, and find your Balance.

Love life,

Tom

Maryhill 2009

Maryhill 2009 concluded last night with Pat Switzer taking the win in Men’s Downhill.  Coming into the weekend it seemed to be Scoot Smith as the favorite.  He had won the event the last two years.  Once the quals started Mischo Erban then looked to be the favorite.  Leading the pack after the first qualifing round and setting a new course record on the second qualifying round.    On race day he won every heat up until the final.  Then it was all about Pat Switzer.  Battling the elements he took out a heavy field including Mischo, Scoot, and Douglas Silva.

Balance team rider Mike Snyder had a solid performance over the weekend.  He qualified right where he wanted to be in the middle of the pack.  He made it through his first heat on Sunday, but then ran into a little rain prob on his next heat.  Our downhill model “Zoolander” is getting closer and closer to being complete.  I am very stoked to release it and I have to say that it is unlike anything else out on the market right now.  A hardwood speedboard, Get Stoked!

Love life,

Tom

Don't Forget to take time and Skate!!

Lately I have been pretty full out.  It has been both the height of the longboarding season and we have been selling more boards than ever.  It is also the height of the waterskiing season.  So I have been spliting my time between the building boards in the shop and going out to the lake to train for the next Pro Tour stop.

Needless to say I haven’t been skating too much besides the daily commute to work.  That was until today when I pretty much forced myself to head out and skate.  I hit up a bank I have been hearing about for months.  I never got specific directions, I was just told it was somewhere in downtown Salt Lake.  Well I found it, and it became one of the best sessions of the summer.  It turned out to be a 10ft high bank that sloped down a 200ft parking lot.  

I ended up staying until dark.  Even though it was still plenty lit and I also had plenty of other more productive things to do.  But it didn’t really matter, I was enjoying life, and enjoying my Platypus.  It was a great night and it really refreshed my soul.  Now tomorrow it is off to Maryhill!!

 

Balance is looking for Sales Reps

Balance is growing.  And now we are looking for Sales Reps throughout the country.  Our Rep Program is not your average program, we give you the freedom to create your own sales network, while building a good relationship with Balance.  Help us promote our company and we will help you out as well, whether it be through gear, merchandise or get some cold hard cash.  Our company is like no other, and that goes for our rep program as well.  Donʼt worry there is no pyramid scheme, or multilevel marketing scheme here.  

Our main focus with this program is for our Reps to get the word of Balance out to the entire country.  Reps are given the freedom of spreading the word how ever they would like.  You can keep it as simple as word of mouth between you and your friends, or you can plaster your town with fliers.  Head to the 

local college, coffee shop, local skateshop,or post on Craigslist.  If you think it will payoff, take out an ad in your local paper.  Anyway you spread the word is great for us.  Get creative with this, the options are limitless.  

Contact Tom at Tom@balancelongboards.com or call 801 918 7793 for some more information.  

Love your life,

Tom

Go Fast and Find your Balance!!

60mph down a mountainside road with no real brakes.  Well thats what Balance is up to these days.  We have teamed up with Mike Snyder, speedboarding extradinaire.  Together we are trying to push the limits on what is possible on a hardwood longboard.    Our new speedboard, set to be released late summer/early fall of 09 isn’t just your average side walk cruiser.  Already we have been pushing the limits of what we can do.  I can’t say much yet, because nothing is set in stone.  But I do know that we are going to be using a different process to press our boards.  Still a hardwood deck, but acting more of like a core inside a composite board.  All the beauty of the hardwoods will still shine through, just with a lot more performance to go along with it.   

We also are going to stay true to Balance in the whole customizability department.  The board is going to have fully customizable concave, wheel base, length and width.  This is something unknown in the downhill world.  Check out our video page for a quick clip of what is to come with Balance.

Get stoked to go fast.  

Go Fast and Find your Balance

Love life,

Tom

News for the Hippies

Well incase you didn’t know Balance is a big fan of the environment.  We have always felt that Longboarding is one of the greenest ways to get around town, but now we have a few more things to show for it. 

Fist off we have a new option for out layout process.  Through out our board making process we end up with a few odd and end scraps hanging out in our shop.  We are now offering this as a complete layout for any of our models.  At first I just through some random scraps together to test out a new deck idea, but once the deck was pressed I loved the randomness of the layout.    Having stringers of Maple, Sapelle, Lyptus, and whatever other hardwoods we have available in our shop in a random pattern creates even more of an organic feel to the decks. The boards are still beautiful, just Momma Earth will end up thanking you as well.  Choose this layout option and we will knock $5 off of any deck, just as a thanks for thinking of the environment while you ride.

Secondly we have teamed up with the Arbor Day Foundation (www.arborday.org) for there Rain Forest Rescue Program.  For each board you purchase from Balance, 250 square feet of Rainforest will be saved.  All of our decks are obviously made from wood and wood comes from trees.  We are just trying to do our part to replenish the resources we are using.  And just to show our commitment we are going to do this for every board we have ever sold.  Thanks for supporting Balance and Momma Earth!!

News Flash

Has it really been since May since my last news entry?  Well this summer has been great for Balance.  Selling more boards, and getting better response than we ever expected.  We also have been doing more things then we expected at this point.  So far this summer we have started testing some downhill speedboards, made a few modifications to some already successful boards, and been killing it with our current product line.  

People have really took to our customization of our boards.  Even just a little tweak here and there, people are requesting what they want and Balance is delivering. Change up the layup, think up your own design.  Balance will take your ideas, your thoughts and make them a reality. 

Even my father thought up his own deck.  He doesn’t know how to ride, but he was still stoked when his board got delivered.  Let us know and we can make your ideas reality.

Love your life!

Tom

tom@balancelongboards.com 

Footloose

Footloose

Length - 48”, 52”, 54”

Width - 9”

Footloose is our dancing specific model.  

Just wide enough at nine inches wide to allow you to constantly feel where the edges of the board are, while still being able to get some leverage over the trucks.  A generous foot platform to allow the rider to walk up and down the board, but not too big where you can get lost along the way.  

The tip and tail are specifically designed for different uses.  The 5” nose is designed for manuals while the 6 inch tail allows you to get some more leverage for shov-it based tricks.  

Different lengths available for different size riders as well as different riding styles.  Go shorter if you are looking for a board that is a little easier to spin.  Or go a bit longer if you are looking for a board that has some more room to walk on.  Whatever your style is, let us know an we will hook you up with the right size board for you.  

Let your creativity flow as you dance the night away.

Everybody cut footloose!

Setup with Randal II 180’s, Biltin Bearings, as well as your choice of either Gumballs or Big Zig Limes.

New Phone Number for Balance - 801-918-7793

Balance is now catching up with the times.  I went out and got myself one of those new fangled BlackBerrys. Im pretty amazed with my new Crackberry.  I think the coolest thing I can now do is take pictures of peoples custom boards in the works and email them so they can see the progress of their new ride.  Anyways enough with the babble, the new number is 801 918 7793.  Yea and being able to stream Pandora everywhere I go is pretty sic too!

Love life,

Tom

Custom Decks

With the weather warming up and the sun shining we have been selling a lot of custom decks.  Shoot us an email today with you thoughts and you could be riding your own custom ride by next week.  

Lately we have been making some pretty sic custom rides.  From the swallowed tail Footloose, to a stretched out Original Pintail with full concave.  The latest creations coming out of the Balance shop have been better than ever.  Email or call today and we can set you up with your own ride. sales@balancelongboards.com 801 918 7793

Love life

Tom

Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter

I don’t know what a twit is yet, but I am determined to figure out what it is.  Find us on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter and become friends with Balance. Stay updated with all the news and events and also hear about special promotions. 

MySpace

Facebook

Twitter

Love life

Tom

Two New Decks - The Platypus and The Rivahh

We have two new decks ready for the summer season.  First comes The Platypus, inspired by surf stomp pads to give extra leverage on the tail of the deck.  Only we didn’t just add a cheezy EVA foam pad to the tail to give you that leverage.  We took the beauty of the hardwood deck to create a functional kicktail.  Take it to your local skate park or bowl, or have a super lively commuter board

Next we have The Rivahh.  Here we have a full functioning concave.  And yes it does create a ton of leverage and locks your feet into your deck.  Charge hard all day, just don’t forget to smile. The Rivahh can also be ordered with customizable concave.  Our standard is 10 degrees of concave, although you can go with some more concave for a more locked in feel, or a little less if you want a looser feel to your ride.  No other company can offer these kinds of options with concave.  

Both of these decks are a first in the industry.  No other hardwood longboard company offers kicktails and concave like we do.  Enjoy the natural beauty of the hardwood decks and now you can have the performance to go along with it.  See the Longboard page for more info or ordering.

Love life,

Tom

New Video! - Everybody Cut Footloose

Hey everyone, 

We just posted a new video on our video page.  Check it out, its just a quick edit of myself on the new model Footloose.  Footloose is our new dancing board, after a few months of design we finally nailed down a shape for this guy.  52” long and 8 -3/4 wide, its the perfect shape for dancing.  Long enough to walk all over, but not so huge where you get lost somewhere in the middle.  It will put a smile on your face. 

Find your Balance 

Tom

The Dancer has arrived - Footloose

After about 4 months of saying it was almost complete and too many designs to remember, Balance is finally releasing the Footloose.  52” long and 9” wide, long enough to walk all over, but not too long to compromise maneuverability or to get you lost somewhere in your dancing travels.  5” nose and 5” tail for shovits and manuals type tricks, wheel cut outs to eliminate wheel bit.  This thing is smooth carver as well as an awesome ride to show off all your hottest cross stepping moves.  See the Longboard page for more info or ordering.  Love life!  

Original Pintail

Original Pintail

Length - 35”, 40”, 44”

Width - 8 3/4”

The Original Pintail is a simple, but stylish pintail.  One that only Balance could have created.  This is a great cruiser/carver that will defiantly turn some heads.  Enjoy the ride, and Find your Balance.

Setup: Randal RII 150’s Trucks, Abec 11 Stickers 65mm wheels, and Biltin Bearings

Ol' Skool

Ol’ Skool

Length - 34”, 41”

Width - 8”

Going back to the first board Tom ever shaped.  This unique design features two different options for the placement of the rear truck.  Place the trucks up further forward if you want a sweet carver, or move em back if you want to go out and bomb hills.  Either way the different truck placements allow the rider to further customize the board for their suited style.  

Setup: Randal RII 180’s Trucks, Abec 11 Flashback 70mm wheels, and Biltin Bearings

The Platypus

The Platypus

Lengths - 33”, 36”, 39”

Width - 9”

The Platypus is probably the most unique board in our line.  It is all based off of the Platypus shape of the board and the kicktail in the rear.  The kicktail makes for a extremely playful and agile board.  Use it as a commuter, take it to your local skatepark, or bomb your local garage for some freeride fun. 

For 2010 we have added a bit of concave in the forebody of the board.  It really helps lock your front foot in, especially when you are carving up bowls.  We also added an extra inch onto the tip of the board.  This extra bit up in the front now allows for some manuals, shuvits, or whatever else your creative mind can think of.  If you need it, it is up there.

One thing is certain, the Platypus will put a smile on your face.  Enjoy the ride!

Setup: Randal RII 150’s trucks, Abec 11 Stickers 65mm wheels and Biltin Bearings

The Rivahh

The Rivahh

Lengths - 35”, 40”, 43”

Width - 9”

This is the first board we made exclusively to showcase our concave.  As far as we know we are the only hardwood longboard company to offer concave, and not only that our concave process is completely customizable. That is a definate first in the industry. Our standard concave is 7 degrees of concave from the center of the deck.  We can increase the amount of concave if you would like to be more locked into your board, or we can detune the concave for a bit of a looser feel. 

As it turned out that this deck is an excellent freeride board.  The concave locks you in and allows for deep carves and super controlled slides.  Opt for the 35” model and you have a stylish commuter that easy to take around with you after you finish riding it.  

This board is also a great board to customize with drop-through trucks.  Opt to have the trucks drop-through the board and you will lower the boards center of gravity, making the board more stable while not sacrificing the turning characteristics of the board.

The options are limitless no matter which way you go.  No matter what you are going to have a sweet looking ride thats going to last a lifetime. 

Setup with Randal RII 150’s trucks, Retro Freeride 72mm wheels and Biltin Bearings

Kalos

Kalos

Length - 33”, 36”

Width - 8.25”

Inspired and first created the for the girl who started it all.  Without her, I would have never been able to start the company which would become Balance Longboards.  And with her inspriation, her board becomes apart of our line which even uses her nickname as the board name, Kalos.  

A standard Balance pintail.  Great for cruising, carving, while small enough to carry around the campus with you.  The look of the board will grab your attention, while the Abec 11 No Skools, Randal 150’s and Biltin Bearings will keep you riding smooth.  

There is no light without the darkness, and this board will remind you of it every time you take it for a ride.

The Crush

The Crush

Length - 56”, 60”

Width - 10”

The big daddy in our line.  The Crush will literally roll over anything in its path.  At 56”X10” it will certainly turn heads no matter where you are at.  Cruise around campus, or take it to the board walk.  No matter where you are at, the ladies will be loving your ride.  

Setup with Randal II 180’s, Biltin Bearings, as well as your choice of either Gumballs or Big Zig Limes.

Recommended for:

Cruising

Carving

Dancing

Val and Val CC

Val

Length - 36, 42, 44

Width - 10” (42, 44), 9” (36”)

Val is just like the man himself, take a chilled out cruise, or let loose on a parking garage. A symmetrical board with a tip and tail for your riding pleasure.  This board is probably one of our most versatile boards that we have in our line-up.  With the right setup this board can be crossed from everything from a nice stylish cruiser to a board that is ready to tackle the biggest hills.  

The hourglass shape of the foot platform provides plenty foot room as well as a nice platform for dancing.  The tip and tail can be used for manuals as well as shuvits.  Your mind is the only thing that will limit you from performing anything on this board.  

The Val CC adds concave to the board.  This makes it a great freeride board.  Lock your feet into the concave and have full control over your slides as well as plenty of leverage over your trucks.  

If you are more interested in dance oriented riding, we suggest just getting the standard Val.  The added concave of the Val CC adds more sensitivity to the board, thus taking away from its dancing ability.  

Concave and Kicktails available on all Decks!

In a continuing effort to offer the most innovative and highest quality longboard skatebords out there, Balance Longboards is now offering  Kicktails and concaved hardwood decks.  As far as we know this is a first in the industry and Balance is proud to be the first and only hardwood longboard skateboard company to offer this option.  

Both the kicktails and the concave are options that can be added to any deck.  For those of you that are unfamiliar with these terms or the technology associated with these terms, a kicktail is a slight raise to either the tip or tail of the board allowing the rider to have more leverage on the board.  This comes in very handy in manuals and shovit type tricks.  Concave is the way the board curves up towards the edges.  This really allows your feet to grip the board and gives you more leverage on the board from side to side.  Concave always helps you stay more connected to the board no matter how hard you are carving your local streets or how fast you are bombing your local hills.

Love life,

Tom