Click here for full review - "Edna Mode doesn't approve, but Sport Sailing takes off!"

"Sport sailing proves the point that the line between genius and ridiculous is as fuzzy as a lollipop dropped on shag carpeting. It’s impossible not to look at sport sails and assume that a kid pretending to be a superhero mistakenly attached his cape to his ankles, but the fact is that sport sails provide both an unconventional and effective braking system to skateboarding and a boost to your snow-related airs.

In this snippet hosted by climber extraordinaire Timmy O’Neil, we get a glimpse into the origins of the sport sail as well as the aesthetics. It’s impossible to judge unless you’ve tried it yourself, but watching Timmy bail about 30 feet into his descent makes me feel better about the yellow streak running down the middle of my back. Having snapped my arm in two places flying off my skateboard, I’ve never quite gotten my need for speed on asphalt back and anything that lets me slow down more effectively than a 40 mph one-legged foot drag is A-OK in my book. Braking is better than breaking, as it were."

"SPORTING-SAILS are essential for distance. They can be deployed downhill and also be used to get propelled forward with a tail wind. I also use my SPORTING-SAIL as a blanket at night and sometimes even as a rain shelter. I'll never go on a distance skate without one..."

*To see Huw Jon and Troy Bilbrough of Skateventure in action, click here & click here.

Best Made Product Test: The Sporting-Sail

"In June 2010 Best Made enlisted photographer Nate Bressler and skateboard luminary and fabricator DeWitt Cannon to put the Sporting-Sail to the test on the steep and winding hills of Malibu, California. The results were spectacular. DeWitt, a longboard downhill rider had never deployed a Sporting-Sail and Bressler was there to capture the proceeding magic in the unmistakable California light.

We got the pictures in and discovered just how much the Sporting-Sail, like our axes, can not only serve a valuable purpose (and look good), but it gets you back out with mother nature. You run your hand out the window of a moving car, or intercept a gust of wind in your jacket walking down a busy street: either way we all know what fun it can be to just catch wind. And now you don’t need a fancy rig, a sailboat or a surf kite to make this happen. You can guarantee we’ll be packing the Sporting-Sail along for the ride on all our adventures from now on."

"Ride the Wind, catch the wind and soar on your board with Sporting-Sails by Sukrafte!"

"Sporting-Sails are a descendant of Ski-Klippers wearable sails, which were originally invented in the 1970s by avid skier H.W. Smith Jr. The sails wrapped around a skier’s wrists and ankles, allowing the skier to harness the wind while carving down mountains, creating enhanced control, stability and a little freestyle elegance.

In 2006, Smith’s grown grandsons who are outdoor adventurers, Nick and Billy Smith, rediscovered Ski-Klippers in the attic of the family’s Vail home.  They realized that with some modification, the sails were perfect for not only skiers and snowboarders, but also skateboarders and longboarders. So they patented their grandfather’s idea and their sport sail business was born.

Skaters love Sporting-Sails because the wind resistance slows them down, making gnarly roads more manageable. Previously, the only way to create drag was with a skater’s hands (ouch!) or feet, ruining many a good pair of shoes along the way.

The sails weigh only 8 ounces, and are easily folded and transported in a compact sack. The simple design is perfect for no-nonsense adventurers and bright reflective tape adds extra safety. So, strap on a Sporting-Sail and reinvent your descent!"

"Scary chip-seal pavement does not go well with going fast downhill wasting away your shoes.  SPORTING-SAILS saved our shoes and made going down this road a lot more fun.

*To see LongTreksOnSkateDecks in action with their SPORTING-SAILS during their 2000km skate across Morocco, click here & click here.

Click here for complete video of the review!

After only a short amount of time riding with and using these sails, riders will quickly realize that adding a simple device to an already beloved sport and hobby can make it even more fun and worthwhile. There are several other “performance enhancers” that can add to a boarding session, however, there are few that actually transform the type and feel of riding that will take place. Normally, giant hills are straight down bombing, corner drifting, and foot braking speed runs; the SPORTING-SAIL turns those same hills into slopes of creativity, breaking the hill up into a pattern of choice. Riders can carve or tuck from fast to slow on the steepest and roughest areas that road has to offer, all by throwing up his or her arms, sort of like when your favorite American football team scores and the fans do the “TOUCH DOWN!” (You know… with the arms in the air?)

SPORTING-SAILS has taken a simple concept and perfected a product through highly detailed and quality craftsmanship, all delivered in an attractive package that avid riders and new comers can appreciate. On that note, I literally mean, too, that the packaging itself is very unique and very noticeable; it adds to the overall value of the Sail itself. One can tell that the effort put into this product was one that goes above and beyond, not skimping out on the areas that some groups have in the past or continue to do.

The SPORTING-SAIL is a truly enjoyable product, one that won’t get old fast. However, it’s also one that can be thrown in its bag, taken out after a month without use, and then put back into action for more fun than ever. Check out the SPORTING-SAILS and enjoy the feeling of flight once again. Go back to that simple fun, because that my friends, lasts forever!

"SPORTING-SAILS are the bellows of the intrepid soul; they focus the wind towards the embers to keep the fire hot. Deploy and Enjoy people."

"What is a Sporting Sail? Well its many things, to start with you can use it to slow your run when boarding downhill, or as a make shift sail for surfing or even kayaking, Skiing or snow boarding. The Sporting Sail is best described as a device that’s limited in its use only by your own pursuits. If you choose to do so, you can use this device as an impromptu shelter, we even saw a picture of a gentlemen leaping from a cliff with on of these strapped to his back.

Needless to say this has become on of our new favorite toys, and we were all too eager to test it out. So we made contact with our friend Billy over at Sporting Sails and the adventures began.

While we found that leaping from the top of a 25 foot tree wasn’t nearly enough room for the Sporting Sail to do its thing, we did find that it worked well for carrying Cullen away from the accident scene (We’re kidding of course, we left him there to recover while we moved on to the next test).

Skateboarding was a blast, as when you picked up some speed you were able to simply slow up by deploying the Sporting Sail. The simple to use system uses wide velcro strap you fasten to your legs or ankles, and two grips for your hands. The whole system only weighs about 1.15 oz and is highly compressible coming in its own compression sack.

And of course in true NecessaryCool form, no test would be complete without Jef trying to break the product by doing something completely ridiculous. For more Sporting Sail action keep checking back, as Jef is still doing some crazy stuff in his and will be making additional posts later.

For our testing we used the Sporting Sail as a shelter in a mild rain storm, skating, and of course jumping from a tree, the last of which ended with Jef curled up on the ground shouting “That was an awful idea, let’s try it higher up next time.”

Our results? The Sporting Sail is a blast, easy to use, has a lot of uses, and is like nothing else out there. This deserves a spot on your gear shelf. It’s not hard to want to do something crazy when this thing arrives in the mail."