About SkateSetups
An independent database of professional skateboarder gear setups, built and maintained by one person who just wanted to know what the pros actually ride.
Who runs SkateSetups
SkateSetups is run by Niklas Bäcklund. I skated a lot growing up and always wanted the same gear as my favourite pros — the kind of detail you used to have to piece together from interviews and magazine close-ups. I don't skate as much these days, but I love building things, so in 2025 I started SkateSetups as a way to collect that information in one place and keep it honest.
There's no team, no editorial board, no PR department. Every profile on this site is researched, written, and reviewed by me.
How we verify setups
Every gear entry on a pro skater's profile is based on public, traceable sources. The sources I rely on, roughly in order of how much weight I give them:
- Official sponsor and brand team pages — if a deck or shoe brand lists a skater on their team roster or product page, that's the strongest possible signal.
- The skater's and sponsor's Instagram — recent posts where the gear is clearly visible or explicitly named.
- Interview clips and "what's in your bag" segments on YouTube — direct, on-camera answers from the rider.
- Podcasts and long-form interviews — when a pro spells out their exact setup.
- Skate magazines — Thrasher, Transworld, and other established outlets, especially gear features and pro spotlights.
I do not publish gear based on rumours, fan speculation, single low-quality photos, or setups I know to be outdated. If I can't verify a specific item — say, the bearings — I leave that field blank rather than guess.
How often we update
I monitor sponsor announcements, rider socials, and interview drops continuously, and update individual profiles whenever a confirmed change happens — a new board sponsor, a shoe deal, a switched truck brand. On top of that, I do one full review of every profile in the database per year to catch anything that slipped through.
Every profile page shows when it was last updated (or last verified, if no specific update date is on file), so you can see for yourself how fresh the information is.
How we make money
Some of the outbound retailer links on this site (the "Buy at CCS / Tactics / SkateDeluxe" buttons under each gear item) are affiliate links. If you buy something through one of those links, SkateSetups may earn affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. This does not influence which gear we list — we only publish what a pro actually rides, regardless of whether the retailer carries it or pays a commission. Outbound retailer links are marked rel="sponsored nofollow".
Corrections & contact
If something on a profile is wrong, or you have a verified source for an updated setup, please get in touch. The form below sends straight to my inbox.
Prefer Instagram? You can also DM @skate.setups.