ISSA - International Slalom Skateboarding Association

Hey Wesley, that confirms what I was thinking would be the case.
I just invested in several pairs of Hot Spots and they made a shipping mistake and sent four 89a instead of the two I ordered. I was going to send them back as I hadn't seriously considered running them on the rear...I'm thinking now I should keep them to use on all four corners on the polished floor. I'm getting back into cones after a long layoff but I've free ridden SL boards and run a lot of cones over the years and I have a sensitive feel for grip.

I think with what you're saying going 89a in the rear might work for me. Thanks.

jb

Jeff,

We run on polished concrete at the Bus Depot in Charleston. The harder the better. I know it sounds like it would be a traction problem, but the smooth concrete results in the urethane never losing it's contact patch with the surface. It's when the wheel breaks with the road from roughness or cracks in the asphalt that you have a slide-out problem.

Running 88s or 90s is no issue. If you feel a little trepidation about it, though, start with 86s. You'll soon see, though, that traction is not as scary as you might think.

Oh, one thing: make sure the concrete you run on is BONE DRY and CLEAN. Dust is just as bad as liquid on a smooth concrete surface. At our spot at the Bus Depot we've had problem in the past with transmission fluid and engine oil on the surface. It's impossible to clean and can halt a whole night's session if it's too pervasive and covers the wrong spots on the surface. I would guess in arenas and concert locations there's a problem with spilt beer and soda, melting ice and just plain dust and dirt. So watch for it.

I'm going on a 10 week road tour with a band working sports arenas in the Eastern US and am going to train cyber slalom inside the venues mornings before work. I haven't run cones on polished concrete much and am curious as to what wheels and duros folks have had success with.

Thanks.

jeff