Our longtime friend Ruei Chiu has slowly been establishing a longboard scene in Taiwan. He recently sent over a couple photos and video of a recent road trip with two local skateboarders Zeng and Sour who are the first two official riders for DB Longboards Taiwan. Watch the videos below, checkout the setups and read our interview with Ruei!
CarbonX Keystone Line-up
Zeng's Video
Sour's video
DB Longboards Taiwan Q&A
What is the longboard scene in Taiwan like?
Taiwan has enormous amount of mountains. We can access the mountains relatively easy. The population of riders are definitely growing. More and more people get into this sport.
Longboarding is not only about going fast or how many tricks you can do but also exploring and embracing the mother nature and environments. We have some really amazing spots and sweet hills. You can drive 30 mins to a national park which located in Taipei for a small fan slide sesh or camping for a 4-5 day for a mini road trip. Normally the pavement is in good condition, but you can also find some fun and exciting trails the deep in the mountains. Taiwan is definitely a place you need to longboard at least once in a lifetime.
In addition to downhill longboarding, dance/freestyle longboarding is a popular option for skateboarders in the urban/city centers. A convenience public transportation system makes it so you can go longboarding. We are also just being introduced to the phenomenon of dancing longboard trend.
Who was the rider in the video?
Our first two sponsored flow riders in DB Longboards Taiwan Sour Chan and Zeng.
What was they riding?
Sour is riding keystone 39" in the film and Zeng is Riding Keystone 37" in the film.
How long has he been longboarding?
Sour started in his sophomore year in collage. Zeng has been riding for almost three years.
What went into filming for this edit?
The light and the road condition are always the main issue that we need to deal with. We also need some practice runs for some spots/hills we first visited (which is time consuming, considering the lighting and safety issues). We spent three to fours days filming in the northern part of Taiwan. Mostly camping in our Volkswagen T4 Van. There was a day we camped in the park too. Tthere was a night that the temperature inside the van was really hot. It was so hot that our camera guy left the van and spend the whole night sleeping on his scooter in the wild (we put a 125cc scooter into the van traveling with us)
How days did it take?
Four days. Sour joined the trip on the second day. Zeng attended the whole sesh.
Which is not easy for both of them. They are all serving the army for the country at that time, which makes their holidays more valuable.
How many spots did you skate?
Five spots, are all in the northern part of Taiwan. There is a very famous spot called Jinfen you guys should visit. Great view, steep hills, lots of fun.
Longboarding in Taiwan with Sour and Zeng
