From One Shredder to Another: Dad Bods
Words and insight by Loaded Ambassador Daniel Versa
Dear Neighborhood Shredder,
Over the summer, I was lucky enough to stumble upon a rare phenomenon: Dad Bods.
These giant morsels are not your ordinary wheels and offer a not-so-ordinary ride experience. During my time prototyping these wheels I had the pleasure to ride them in parking garages, out in the wild streets of Downtown LA, and across the Himalayas. Let me tell you, they are BIG—in every sense of the word. Big in size, big in vibes, but also big in their versatility.
Before installing the Dad Bods on my favorite boards, I made sure to accommodate their massive size with two 1/4 inch Paris Truck risers to make sure I didn’t get wheelbite. I then topped it off with a set of 1/16th inch shock pads for bonus comfort as the cherry on top. With zero chance of wheelbite, I felt ready for anything.
While pack skating in a parking garage, I felt the immense momentum of the wheel's size pulling me faster and faster, passing people left and right. It seemed as if once I was was in motion there was nothing that could possibly stop me. Their gargantuan size and wide contact patch upgraded my Loaded Ballona into a fighter jet. I was able to take any line I wanted and keep my speed on the exits with minimal effort. Naturally, I took this fighter jet of a board and cruised it fearlessly through the gritty streets of Los Angeles. I've never felt more confident when rolling over the plethora of cracks, roots, pebbles, and misshapen sidewalks. You can find my exact setup, the "Ballona Bigfoot" as a prebuilt option on the Loaded Boards website. Definitely my favorite setup I've tried with the Dad Bods.
While I spent most of my time on the Dad Bods with my Ballona, I wanted to mix things up for a recent trip to Nepal. While not 100% recommended, I installed them under my Loaded Carver Bolsa to see how they would feel on a surf-skate setup. Due to the extremely twisty nature of the Carver CX Trucks, I made sure to double check my riser recipe, and thankfully, it held true. I had the most spiritual moments surfing with the Bolsa through the Himalayan mountain range, cruising over any quality of pavement without a care in the world. However my fun was short lived as I was exiting the country. The local board authorities thought it was in my best interest to confiscate my beloved Dad Bolsa.
Upon my return I found myself a new setup to satisfy my big wheel infatuation. On the beaches and boardwalks I would go dancing and diving among the denizens of DockSession LA with the Dad Bods on the Mata Hari. Sticking to my setup of two 1/4 inch risers, the whole setup worked flawlessly with my board never having any chance of wheelbite even when carving hard and deep. It allowed me to create long and smooth dancing lines while barely losing any speed, extending my fun to new lengths. I think Loaded is actually recommending this setup and affectionately calls it the "Mata Hari Megalodon".
Despite their large size, the Dad Bods are far more versatile than I could have imagined. I hope you get as much joy out of these Dad Bods as I did and I encourage you to experiment with your setups to find a ride that suits your style best.
With much love,
VRSA