Skimboard

Skimboarding came out of California’s surf scene - think surfing’s chill cousin. It uses a smaller board and lets you glide across shallow water instead of chasing big waves. Here in Vancouver, low tide at Spanish Banks turns the beach into a skimboarding playground. It’s a blast for beginners, and if you're into skateboarding or snowboarding, you'll love working your way up to tricks and catching air off the rails in the shallows.

Thankfully, getting the skimboarding basics down is pretty straightforward, albeit a bit sandy! We recommend a lesson as a total beginner, and then again if you're looking to try out tricks and ramps. In between, it’s practice, practice, practice to get those throws and glides right!

If you’re looking to get your own skimboard, we recommend our friends at Kayotics, a Vancouver-based and founded company.

Skimboarding has been around for a while! It was invented in the 1920s by lifeguards in Laguna Beach, California. They used simple, round wooden boards to glide across the shallow shorebreak when the surf was too rough to swim in. The sport has since evolved with more advanced board shapes and materials, but it all started with those early beach lifeguards looking for a fun way to ride the waves close to shore. There are also different types of skimboarding, including wave riding. At Windsure, with our conditions and terrain, we teach flat land skimboarding.

At Windsure, we skimboard at Spanish Banks beach - when the tide is low here, it is ideal for skimboarding! Specifically, we require the tides to be less than 8ft high and with this tracker you can check when the tides are best!