So this post is going to be a little different than all of other previous reviews. I recently got a chance to talk with the CEO of Board Blazers and thought it would make a great feature to add to a new set of pieces on skateboard lights.
What Are Skateboard lights/Board Blazers?
Board Blazers are LED lights that you can attach to your board to add some flair to your board and to increase your visibility at night. All of the lights come with a self-adhesive patch that fully adheres to your board during riding. There a number of different companies that sell these LED lights and there are some differences between each companies’ offerings
Overview of Companies that sell Skateboard Lights
NiteFX – This company sells LED strips that can attach to both sides of your skateboard deck. Each strip has two modes: steady and pulse. They do require a 9V battery which is not included. One of the drawbacks of these strips is that these are long strips which can limit where these strips can be put on your skateboard. They work best lining the edges underneath the deck of the skateboard. A picture of this effect can be seen to the left.
LED Light-up Wheels – These are more unique than the LED strips that are popular today. These wheels incorporate LED into the inside of the wheel which then generates a pattern as the wheel spins. These can easily light up your skateboard and make it unique among all of the other skateboards out there. These wheels don’t require batteries and the LED are multi-color. The wheel size is 60 x 45 mm which is meant for a traditional cruiser longboard.
Board Blazers – These skateboard lights come in the form of individual attachable LEDs and one nice thing about these is that each light is packaged with its own power source. That means you don’t have to duct tape a 9V battery to your board just to power your skateboard lights. This also come packaged as individual lights meaning you can arrange the lights any way you would like to on the board.
Interview with the CEO of Board Blazers
To tell you more about the origin of Board Blazers and their future plans, I personally interviewed Greg Rudolph, the CEO of Board Blazers about the process of growing and expanding his company.
1) How long did it take you to go from the initial idea to the finished
product for Board Blazers?
While not easy, it was a surprisingly fast process. After I spotted a student who had duct-taped Christmas lights to his board riding around the Arizona State University campus one night in December 2011, I started the company at age 20 the following spring. By July 2012, we sold our first set of lights.
2) How have you dealt with competition in this space since?
No other product combines all the best elements of Board Blazers: some require you to disassemble your board, others can’t withstand grinds and tricks, and none are available in 8 different colors. While copycats sometimes pop up, we’re “The Original Fully-Customizable LED Underglow Skateboard Lights,” and we’re continually improving our products to stay ahead of the competition.
3) Do you have any plans to expand Board Blazers in the future?
You might say I’ve got a few bright ideas up my sleeve! I love the process of taking a product from idea to reality. Additionally, we just announced two exciting new sponsorships with pro skaters Tech Na$ty and Paulina Eriksson, so check out our Instagram to see where they’re taking Board Blazers next!
4) What color or colors Board Blazers do you typically ride with?
Surprisingly, I can’t skateboard myself! In fact, the day I got my first board in 6th grade I fell off and broke my wrist, which was an early sign I probably wasn’t going to become a pro skater. I do have Crazy Color-Changing lights on my bike, though!
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