Hey, it’s another two-word challenge!  And the words today are “skateboard umbrella”.  I’m a few days late – the weekend got it’s claws into me and I’ve been playing catchup ever since – but this was my notes using a word association list approach.

Day #6 – Skateboard Umbrella


* Stop rain
* Block sun
* Extension
* Roll-up
* Wrap/Cover
* Extends out
* Push button
* Light saber
* UV Block
* Never have it when I need it
* Really small to really big
* umbrella hats
* beach umbrellas
* backyard umbrellas
* colorful or solid
* Wind blows them around
* flipping inside out
* Thin metal frame


* Board
* Trucks
* Wheels
* Bearings
* Grip tape
* Tony Hawk
* Half pipe
* tricks
* Skate parks
* Grind
* Broke mine in half
* Kids leave them everywhere
* Use as furniture mover


* Skateboard sail that pops out like an umbrella
* A outdoor (big) wheels on a beach umbrella/canopy to make it easier to move
* A skateboard with sand wheels that can be pulled like a kite board.
* Motorized (or motor-assisted) “movers” with over-sized (beach/trail) wheels.

Expanding on the last idea – one pain in the ass with going to the beach is carrying the “Family Sized” amount of things.  We have four kids so it’s a canopy, 6 beach chairs, towels, a cooler, the “beach bag”, etc.  When they were younger it was toys and buckets and as they got older is was more food and devices.

That shit is heavy.

We’d just carry it all, but you’d sometimes see people with those wagons that had over-sized wheels and think “See, that’s smart” … but then you’d see them hit dry sand and they are basically dragging their wagon because the weight was too much, even for the oversized wheels.  The problem seemed to be that the wagon was designed for “off-road” usage but was still made to be relatively light.  This meant the wheels were usually tall, but narrow, and sand was prone to get into the hole where the fixed axle went through plastic causing friction (and I assume, over time, made it more prone to rust).

Not smart.

I’d like something that rolled easily on sand (probably even wider wheels) but which compensated for this additional size by providing a motorized assist.  Ideally one that detected movement and automatically assisted (similar to some assistive machines I’ve seen in industrial settings).  When I pulled, it would begin assisting my pull.  When I stopped – it would stop immediately.  Slight turns of the handle would be assisted to push through deeper sand.

It wouldn’t be cheap, but man, it would look cool.

And that’s what matters, right?

Photo by Scott from Pexels