How to Prevent Wheel Bite

Wheel bite can be a real menace when you’re trying to shred the streets on your skate or longboard. You don’t want to have to worry about suddenly stopping because your board decided to eat your wheel. Here are some tips on how to prevent wheel bite and stay safe while riding.

How to Prevent Wheel Bite

What Is Wheel Bite?

If you skateboard, it’s important to know about wheel bite. Wheel bite happens when your skateboard wheels touch the ground or deck and stop spinning. This can happen if you turn too sharply or if you’re going too fast.

When it happens, you can lose control of your skateboard and fall. Wheel bite can damage your wheels and your bearings. It can also damage the deck of your skateboard.

Why It’s Important to Prevent Wheel Bite?

Wheel bite is the bane of every skating beginner. It happens when your wheels catch on the ground while you’re making a turn, resulting in an abrupt stop (and sometimes a fall).

While it might not seem like a big deal, wheel bite can damage your skateboard and cause you to lose control. That’s why it’s important to learn how to prevent it. The best way to do this is to ensure your wheels are properly inflated.

You should also avoid making sharp turns at high speeds and be careful when carving out bowls or going down hills. With a little practice, you’ll be able to avoid wheel bites and skate confidently.

7 Ways to Follow on How to Prevent Wheel Bite

1. Get to Know Your Wheels

One of the first and most important ways to prevent wheel bite is to get to know your wheels. This includes understanding how they work and what makes them tick. You should also be familiar with the different types of wheels available on the market.

Understanding How They Work

2. Inspect Your Skateboard Regularly

Another way to prevent wheel bite is to inspect your skateboard regularly. This is especially important if you live in an area with a lot of road debris or dirt. If you see any cracks, dents, or other damage on your board, replace the affected parts immediately.

3. Choose the Right Wheels for Your Skateboard

Choosing the right wheels for your skateboard is one of the most important ways to prevent wheel bite. This means selecting wheels that are the appropriate size, hardness, and shape for your skating style and the terrain you’ll be skating on.

You’ll want to choose smaller, harder wheels if you’re a street skater. These will give you more control and allow you to do tricks more easily. On the other hand, if you’re a vert skater or you’ll be skating on rough terrain, you’ll want to choose larger, softer wheels. These will give you more stability and a smoother ride.

4. Adjust Your Truck Height

If you’re still getting wheel bite, it might be because your trucks are too low to the ground. You can try adjusting them to see if that helps. If you have risers, try adding them to see if they help. Just remember that adding risers will make your ride less stable, so be careful!

Your Trucks Are Too Low

5. Use Risers

If you can’t adjust your truck height, or if you’re still getting wheel bite, you can try using risers. Risers raise your wheels off the ground, which gives you more clearance and helps to prevent wheel bite. You can find risers at most skate shops or make your own.

6. Be Careful!

Even if you follow all of these tips, you still might get wheel bite from time to time. So when you’re skating, be careful and go slowly until you get a feel for how your board will react. If you feel like you’re going to wheel bite, slow down or jump off your board until you can stop safely.

7. Enjoy Your Skateboarding!

Most importantly, don’t forget to have fun! Skateboarding is supposed to be fun, so make sure you enjoy it. Try new things, experiment, and find what works best for you. With time and practice, you’ll be able to prevent wheel bites and skate like a pro!

That’s it! You’ve now learned how to prevent wheel bite. Just remember to be careful, have fun, and enjoy your skateboarding!

How Do Avoid Wheel Bites in The First Place?

Wheel bite is a phenomenon that can occur when skating, and it essentially refers to the wheels getting caught on the ground and stopping the skater abruptly. This can be caused by various factors, such as incorrect wheel size, loose trucks, or even just riding too fast. Regardless of the cause, wheel bite can be extremely dangerous, leading to falls and serious injuries.

That being said, there are ways to prevent wheel bites from happening in the first place. For starters, ensure that you have the correct size wheels for your skateboard. If they’re too small, they’re more likely to catch on the ground; if they’re too big, they might not fit properly in the trucks.

It's Important to Keep  Your Trucks Tightened

It’s also important to keep your trucks tightened; if they’re loose, they’re more likely to turn abruptly and cause you to lose control. And finally, always ride at a controlled speed; if you go too fast, it’ll be harder to react if you hit a patch of ground higher than the rest.

By following these simple tips, you can help avoid wheel bites and enjoy a safer skating experience.

Do Skateboard Shock Pads Work?

Shock pads are a type of equipment that is used to prevent wheel bites. Wheel bite can occur when the wheel of the skateboard comes in contact with the deck of the skateboard.

This can cause the skateboard to stop abruptly, leading to a fall. Therefore, shock pads are placed between the deck and the skateboard wheel and are designed to absorb the impact of the wheel.

Conclusion

Wheel bite can be prevented by following a few simple tips. You can avoid this common cycling injury by using the right bike and tires, adjusting your riding position, and braking correctly. Thanks for reading our post about how to prevent wheel bite. Have you experienced wheel bite? What techniques do you use to prevent it?