Length: 48” or 121.92cm



48” or 121.92cm Width: 9.5” or 24.13cm



9.5” or 24.13cm Wheelbase(s): 32” or 81.28cm (smallest), 33" or 83.82cm



32” or 81.28cm (smallest), 33" or 83.82cm (largest)



Concave: 1/4″ of mild radial, 1/4″ of rocker



1/4″ of mild radial, 1/4″ of rocker Asymmetrical shape: Angled nose measuring 4.25″ from outermost mounting hole. Angled tail measuring 5.25″ from outermost mounting hole. Both nose and tail measure 7″ across.



Angled nose measuring 4.25″ from outermost mounting hole. Angled tail measuring 5.25″ from outermost mounting hole. Both nose and tail measure 7″ across. Weight and Construction: 4.58lbs or 2.08kg, Vertically laminated albus wood core sandwiched between two triaxial fiberglass layers with a 60d double-shot urethane rail, with two additional fiberglass stringers.



4.58lbs or 2.08kg, Vertically laminated albus wood core sandwiched between two triaxial fiberglass layers with a 60d double-shot urethane rail, with two additional fiberglass stringers. Retail Price: $249.99 USD

So Moonshine MFG is expanding into the more niche areas of longboarding with their new dancer, the Hoedown. Let’s see how they did!

Where to start, the Moonshine Hoedown is a fully dedicated DK-dancer with all the bells and whistles that Moonshine provides with all the boards in their lineup, such as urethane rails and truck mounts, fully waterproof construction, and a made-in-the-USA; support local idea.

To talk about some general things that every dancer should have, length without intrusive concave is a must, and the Hoedown does this perfectly with 1/4″ of radial and 1/4″ of rocker. Some people like dancing on camber for the flex and rebound, and some people like a ton of rocker for the stable surface, but the Hoedown makes a nice stable, but not quite “cradle” feeling.

Rocker doesn’t really compliment flex and the fiberglass stringers also stiffen up the board a bit, so don’t expect a ton of bouncy flex like a Dervish or something. I feel as though all these features help make the kicks practical on a deck this long being able to absorb the impact from freestyle tricks.

Both the nose and tail have a lot of pop, you can really get the board airborne with them, but on things like manuals they feel a tiny bit saggy, which is strange because that tends to happen more to thin, flexy boards like the Bastl Bolero. Even so, the size and shape of the kicks are definitely on point.

One thing to note is that the fiberglass wears extremely fast on the bottom of the kick, presumably because the fiberglass layer is a softer material than the super thick urethane layer above it.

The wheelbase options from 32″ to 33″ are a bit far-spaced, but now days, anything past 30″ isn’t really used for freeride/DH, some of the only disciplines where people care about that .25″ difference in the wheelbase. If you’re more freestyle-oriented, pick the 33″ wheelbase to get a little more out of your kicks, and for you people who dance more than kickflip, the 32″ wheelbase will give you a little more agility and carve to your step.

For dancing/freestyle, you won’t really find yourself using wheels larger than 72mm for a balance of roll distance and weight, and the Hoedown has plenty of clearance for everything under that.

Moonshine MFG’s signature urethane rail construction is always great, but I always wondered how it would be on a larger scale. Turns out, it’s still just as durable and lightweight as always.

One particular thing I really liked, but don’t really look for in boards is the thickness of the deck, I really like it when a board is long (+40″), DK, and light enough not to be too hard on my hands when I pop tricks. Another board with comparable comfort for me is Loaded’s Chubby Unicorn because of it’s grab handles, but the Hoedown is simply thick enough for me to grab comfortably, yet light enough for it to apply well.

The griptape is asymmetrically set with the softer Jessup more towards the front, and the rest covered in Jessup ROAM, which is a little rougher. At first, the grip is a little rough on the hands, and your feet definitely don’t slip on the kicks. Fun fact: I actually hit myself in the face on my lip when I first picked it up at the Distillery, Moonshine’s factory.

Moonshine’s print quality game is getting stronger from a few months ago, the Hoedown’s graphic is very slightly translucent, letting the fiberglass underneath shine in the light giving it a cool crystalized look.

So should you pick up a Hoedown? If you’re looking for a dancer that will literally last forever with very little concern of delams, cracking, or razoring, this board is for you. The price tag of $249.99 is definitely steep for what it is, but the price of quality is what it is. Perhaps later down the Hoedown’s market lifespan, they’ll start popping up in B/S/T threads for sale at a lower price, but I can’t imagine them being in any kind of poor shape for them not to be worth it.

Another thing to mention is that this red Hoedown is marketed as “medium flex”, perhaps implying a softer green (like the County Line) or a blue variant coming further down the line? Who knows!

A huge, huge thanks to Greg Kish, marketing and sales director for Slingshot sports/Moonshine MFG for inviting me to the Distillery for a factory tour and hooking me up with a Hoedown for review. You can read more about my tour here.

Full-res album.