We all get a thrill seeing pro skateboarders do their kicks, flips, and tricks. If you’re a skater, this will undoubtedly get you fired up whether it is indoors skating or in the outdoors, and inspire you to be fancy on the skateboard yourself. However, before you can attempt sophisticated moves like the hard flip and the laser flip, you have to know the basics.
These fundamentals and a few flat-ground tricks to get you started will give you the confidence and balance to move around freely. Learning from ground zero feels slow, but it will keep you safe and potentially save you a lot of doctor fees.
Talk to any pros, and you’ll see how easy it is to become unstable and flounder your way into sprains, concussions, or broken bones.
The Tips
These beginner steps and techniques will help you develop your rhythm, flow, and stability. Any beginners and novices need first to master these practices.
Getting your stance down
Riding a skateboard is basically pushing off the ground with one foot while the other is anchored onto the board. The same way there are left-handed people, right-handed people, and ambidextrous people who have a hand preference is the case with skating.
People either use the regular stance or the goofy stance. The regular stance entails putting the left foot forward while pushing with the right, while the goofy one is the complete opposite. Know what is and how to put your best foot forward.
Bend the knee
A low and relaxed stance is useful in riding and most skateboarding tricks. This is because it makes you stable enough to shift your balance and weight around safely, regardless of the situation.
Be determined to excel
Like in all other things in life, a little dedication and consistency will go a long way; imagine if you had a lot of these virtues. You will not turn into Rob Dyrdek in a few weeks. Keeping at it despite it being hard is the major distinguishing factor between amateurs and the pros.
Brace yourself! You’re going to fall
It’s unavoidable. The sport is skateboarding, not snooker or chess; falling off your board is an unchangeable part of the game. Just like in camping you will need to take safety measures, so is skateboarding. It is therefore wise to invest in protective gear like helmets and knee pads.
Furthermore, knowing how to fall is a crucial skill to learn. Practice on the lawn and when moving slowly; this skill might even save your life one day.
Attune confidence
Learning anything for the first time feels dumb. Unless you’re really good or insanely confident, most people feel a little self-conscious, especially when there are a lot of people around. However, everyone starts at the bottom.
You don’t need to look cool on the first day. Be mindful of the basics and work on being adept. Being unique is what will make the other skateboarders support and respect you. There’s nothing as macho as working on yourself.
The Tricks
Once you’ve mastered boarding and getting off your skateboard and how to maintain a balanced stance, you can now learn basic tricks. The key to perfecting tricks is to start out slow and move on from there.
The drop-in
Calling it a trick is a bit of a stretch, but it’s a technique you will need to learn if you intend to ply your craft on bowls and ramps. To do it, balance the tail of your board on the bowl’s ledge and then drop in. This beginner-level trick will help you increase your confidence to learn even more complex techniques.
Pulling a manny
It’s also known as a manual. Basically, it’s like popping a wheelie on a bike, but with a skateboard. To pull this move off, you will need to roll on the two rear wheels while popping the front of your skateboard. Rolling several feet will improve your stability. Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can mix it up with hop tricks such as the hippie jump.
Kick turn
This technique helps smoothen out your carving. Let’s show you how it works. As you’re riding, put more weight on the tail-end of your skateboard with your other foot on the front. Letting up on the force applied on the front end will have the nose of the skateboard rising. Once the nose is a few inches above the ground, pivot back or forward to change the direction.
Ollie
There are several variations to the ollie, but here we’ll tackle the basic one. It is one of the more fundamental tricks, as you can build a lot on it and incorporate it into a variety of techniques. An ollie is when you jump, but with the skateboard still at your feet.
Start by jumping with your knees crouched. As you do this, pop the tail-end of the board so that it stays with you during the jump. Finally, level the board by sliding your front foot up.
Takeaway
The journey might get a little bumpy on the way, sometimes literally, but you have to stick it out. Practice your heart out, and soon pulling off some of these tricks will be child’s play to you.
