The plain fact is, there are times when you can’t get out and skate. Sometimes the problem is a raging downpour or four-day blizzard. Sometimes, a cold or flu is keeping you homebound, or a broken limb from your most recent attempt at the “Leap of Faith”.

And sometimes you’re just grounded.

Whatever the reason you’re stuck at home rather than the skate park, being housebound doesn’t have to keep you from skating. From flash games to X-box skateboard games, virtually every video game format offers a variety of intricate electronic versions to challenge your reflexes and wear calluses on your thumbs.

Flash games are the latest rage, because (a.) they can be played on any device with internet access, you don’t need to buy a special player (b.) they are very often free to play (c.) they offer interactivity not seen in other formats. Shockwave Flash is evolving with every update from Adobe Macromedia, so you can be sure that the technology will be moving as fast as the pavement beneath your (virtual) wheels.

Be sure to have all other applications and windows closed before playing Flash Skateboard Games.

Here are a few of the best Flash-based Skateboard games we’ve found:

Thrash n’ Burn Skateboarding: From Splash Wave. Takes a minute to load, due to the ads and high-quality graphics, but well worth the wait. The controls are simple, making use of arrow keys and the space bar for basic movement, with tricks a combo between arrows and the C, B, and V keys. The game lets you select the gender, clothes, race, and style of your skater, giving you choices between conventional and superhero avatars.

You also get to choose from among board styles (warning-a few of the designs are a little cheesy and would be better suited to a baby’s bedroom! Fortunately there are a few hardcore designs as well.

You’ll want to practice first in freestyle mode before tackling the course, taking a moment to get used to the keyboard commands and how they respond to your pressure and connection speed.

G-Max Skateboard: This one gives you seven board style choices, much better than the design on thrash ‘n Burn. Another bonus is that each design page shows the individual concave, weight, speed, flex, turning and size specifications for each skateboard.

The advantages end there, however. This one doesn’t include any avatar options, and the play course is a simple half pipe that gets old really fast, although there are three options for location. The “How to Play” link wasn’t working, and the game is also annoyingly slow because of a pop-under which appears at some point…take a couple extra shots of spam repellent when playing this one.

EnviroBoarder: from Clever Media. This skateboard game is a little cheesy but strangely addictive. The graphics are pretty old school and you only get one avatar option- a rather dopey looking blonde skater boy, but you’ll find yourself jammin’ to the soundtrack. The point of this skateboard game is to skate around the city picking up cans, newspapers and bottles off the ground and dropping them in the recycling bins that you pass periodically. You can go into the street and even jump over oncoming traffic, just don’t hit the girl on the bike or get run over.