Adding speed wax to the bottom of your skimboard is a way to potentially speed up your board giving you more distance and hopefully help you catch more waves.
But what are the best speed wax options out there that you should consider for your skimboard?
While it's not super common for skimboarders to use speed wax (most just leave the bottom of their board clean) some people do like to use it and there are a few options out there.
1. ZUM Wax
ZUMWax is arguably one of the best options for speed wax for the bottom of your skimboard.
It uses high fluoro nana technology to provide you with increase board speed, a longer glide over both sand and water and can also minimize wear and tear on the bottom of your board.
ZUMWax is made to be environmentally friendly and is proudly made in the USA. It's backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee so if you don't like it you can contact the company for your money back.
It also comes with the applicator pad so you don't need to go out and purchase microfibre cloths separately in order to apply ZUMWax to the bottom of your board. This makes it really easy to use.
It is however more expensive than the other options on here but if you want to be environmentally friendly this is the brand I would go for.
2. Eelsnot
Eelsnot works as a speed wax on your skimboard and makes the base of your board extra slick.
To apply you'll want to use 2 microfibre cloths. One to rub the eelsnot onto your board and the other will be to polish away any excess leaving the bottom of your board super smooth.
Eelsnot is completely made in the USA. Just make sure you purchase the board therapy version and not the boat therapy version which is more expensive.
It's eco-friendly and non-toxic and one of the most affordable speed wax options for your skimboard.
Hydrophobic compound completely rejects water on a molecular level reducing drag and increasing speed. Lasts up to a full month on boards.
3. Car Wax
Rather than using a wax specifically designed for skimboards you can also just use a simple car wax for the bottom of your skimboard.
There are lots of different car waxes to choose from and you'll want to go with the one that has a focus on being hydrophobic (or that repels water).
The Meguiar's Hydro Ceramic Wax is a simple spray that has extreme water beading action.
Just spray it on, rinse it off and dry and you're ready to go. No rubbing, buffing or mess required. This is one of the easiest options for adding speed wax to the bottom of your skimboard and the large spray bottle will last you AGES.
See the latest price of Car Wax at Amazon
Alternatively: Keep It Clean
A lot of skimboarder opt to keep the bottom of their board completely clean from any type of speed wax.
The major of the skimboarding community seems to believe that speed wax offers no noticeable difference to the speed and distance you get when skimboarding.
Or they feel the benefits just isn't worth the extra cost and effort of waxing your board plus the potential negative environmental impacts the wax could have on marine life. I cover this in more detail in my article on whether or not you should wax the bottom of your skimboard.
Really when it comes down to it a better board, running faster and a cleaner drop with better feet and weight distribution are going to do more to your speed and distance than any speed wax will.
So if you're not sure whether you want speed wax or not on your skimboard see how you go without it.
Does Speed Wax Make Your Skimboard Go Faster?
Does speed wax actually make your skimboard go faster and further or does it offer no benefit at all?
Applying speedwax to the bottom of your skimboard will allow it to travel faster and farther over wet and dry sand and water. However, the benefit is very minor so most skimboarders opt to use no speed wax on the bottom of their boards.
One area where speed wax clearly does increase speed is on dry sand. However, as a skimboarder you're rarely if ever on dry sand.
Check out this comment from a skimboarder in this reddit post how it helped his drop when starting on the sand:
I was told not to use speed wax because it offers minimal benefits and they weren’t wrong however i did find it extremely useful for better drops because your board will slide on the sand which can be very helpful when timing. Using speed wax for sliding out farther you won’t really see a difference just gonna have to work on your technique. Also save money by using liquid car wax.
You may start your skim on wet sand but if you're trying to catch waves you'll quickly be skimming over deeper water and it's unclear if speed wax helps in this situation.
How To Apply Speed Wax To Your Skimboard
Applying speed wax to the bottom of your board is an easy process but one you'll want to get right for the best results.
You'll Need:
- Eelsnot, ZUMWax or other speed wax
- 2 microfibre cloths
- 10-15 minutes
1. Using Microfibre Cloth Rub Speed Wax onto Your Board in Circles
Get your microfibre cloth and put some speed wax onto it.
Rub in circles applying the speed wax to the entire base of your board making sure to get all the wax to the edges.
You don't need a huge amount of wax for the bottom of your board so don't overdo it.
After the first coat you will have a bit of a haze on the bottom of your board. The next step will be to remove that extra wax and remove the haze.
2. Using a Second Microfibre Cloth Rub Off The Excess
Fold your second microfibre cloth and run it over your board doing big large circles.
You don't want to be too firm with it and rub off all the wax but be light. You are removing any excess wax and ensuring a thin, glossy even layer of wax on the bottom of your board.
3. Leave To Dry
Once complete leave the wax to dry for at least a couple of minutes before taking your board out for a skim.
How Often Should You Add Speed Wax To The Bottom Of Your Board
If you're going to be adding speed wax to the bottom of your board how often should you be doing it?
If you're adding speed wax to the bottom of your bskimoard you should do it every few times you skim. The coating will wear off with usage and you can tell when a new coat is needed by feeling the slickness of the bottom of your skimboard.
Tyler Lee writes this about the frequency of waxing in the comments section of his YouTube video on how to wax the bottom of your skimboard:
Every time you skim or every other time you skim. Depends on how much you skimboard and how fast the coating wears off, you will be able to feel the slickness on the bottom.
Do You Need To Add Speed Wax To The Bottom Of Your Skimboard?
Is adding speed wax to the bottom of your skimboard a requirement or is it ok to skimboard without any speed wax?
It's perfectly fine to skimboard without any speed wax on the bottom of your board. Most pro skim boarders don't talk about speed waxes because they have little if any impact on the speed or distance of your board.
Check out this comment from a fellow skimboarder on this reddit post:
There's a reason very few of the top pros are riding for or talking about speed waxes. It's because they have an imperceptible, if any, effect on the board's ability to plane across the water.
The same goes for surfing. If speed wax significantly increased the speed a skimboard or surfboard could travel whilst planing on the water you would expect a lot of pro surfers to be using and recommending speed wax.
This is rarely if ever the case and in most cases is just isn't needed.
The exception to this would be to increase the speed of your skimboard whilst traveling over dry or wet sand. In this scenario when the board has contact with the ground the speed wax may provide some benefit.
