Skateboarding

Be genuine. Make sure you’re in it for the right reasons. Don’t skate just to be cool, or get sponsored and make a lot of money. You should skate because you love skateboarding. If you really enjoy it, everything else will follow.

2. Visit your local skate shop. This is a great way to see what works and what doesn’t. Just by looking at others and asking them how their board, wheels, etc. hold up, you will learn what is worth buying; boards that cost more are not always better.

3. Get the supplies. A skateboard can cost a lot, but buy something sufficient to last a while. Have a friend that is good at skateboarding suggest a brand to you. You then need comfortable clothing and a pair of sneakers. Skate shoes are a good idea, but as long as you can move your foot around easily, feel comfortable, and know they won’t fall apart after just a few uses, they’ll work perfectly.

4. Set aside a day or two to get comfortable on your board. Feel how it leans, and how the wheels spin. Skate around in your driveway and on the sidewalk. Just get used to the feel of the board.

   * Find a good place to skate like a level, concrete driveway.
   * Put your front foot about 2 inches behind the front trucks at an angle.
   * Put your back foot on the tail, and as well slightly at an angle.
   * Push off at a comfortable speed. This is done by putting your back foot    towards where you want to go, putting it on the ground then pushing backwards.
   * Bend your knees. If you bend your knees, your center of gravity is closer to the ground, and you can turn and balance better.
   * Balance yourself and try not to fall off.
   * Turn by shifting your weight to one side of the board, in the direction you want to go.
   * When you are ready to stop, put your back foot on the ground and stop or (not suggested) push up your nose and scrape your tail against the ground.

5. Practice. For tips on how to do moves, you can always watch a move in a video in slow motion and pay attention to the foot movement. Sequence photos are another great way to learn. But basically, the more you practice, the better you will be. Don’t get discouraged because you can’t land a trick the first or second try. Just practice and have fun, and you will get the trick eventually.

6. Get someone you know that’s good at skateboarding to teach you. Your dad probably can’t pop shuvit or anything, so ask someone from a local shop or park if you can watch them. Bring some beginners and ask if what he’s doing is intermediate to advanced skating, if it is, perfect. You have a teacher.

7. Try riding switch. This is with your feet in the reverse position that feels comfortable (with your back foot in front and vice versa.) This comes in useful when you try a halfpipe.

8. Get some skating clothes. It sometimes helps, especially when experienced skaters look at you and say, Hey, sweet threads. Some good brands are Element, Flip, Volcom, Adio,and DC.

9. Learn how to manual. Put one foot on the tail and one just behind the front bolts. Apply pressure to the tail, causing the front wheels to rise off of the ground. Practice this. It is not easy to manual for long distances.

Ollie. This is the most vital of all skateboarding tricks. Place one foot on the tail, and one just behind the bolts. Some people will say put your front foot in the middle of the board, but it is harder to learn this way. That is for when you have ollies down pat and are going for sheer height. Now release all of the pressure on your front foot, causing your back to fly towards the ground. Just as it hits the ground, give a quick - the key here is quick - jump with your back foot. Jump as high as you can. As your board Hops up, use the griptape by your front foot to drag it up further. Level out your feet in midair and stomp it down with your feet over the bolts. Now ride away cool.

The most important thing to remember is to land with you feet over the bolts and knees bent, this improves your chances of rolling away successfully and keeps the board from breaking as often.

Go skate! Find some other skaters to skate with. It helps you to learn from their styles or different skill levels. If you don’t know anyone, just talk to some other skaters at the local skate park. They are usually friendly, and will help you out. Experiment, make a higher ollie, read about how to do another trick, whatever your heart desires. Your teacher is more a friend than an instructor now, share skills with him, and anyone else you want to show off to.

Learn to pop shove it. Do an ollie as high as you can, then as you level off your feet, give a nudge with the front foot on the board so it spins 180 degrees. You may want to use a little “scoop” motion with the back foot to make it spin easier.

Learn to kickflip. Do the same thing as a pop shove it, except when you nudge the board, kick the little area where the side of the board rises. Try out a few different motions until you get it to spin. This is not an easy trick, so practice and don’t give up.

Learn to grind. Start with a fairly low rail (equal to or less than one foot.) This is not easy, so take it in steps. Start out simply rolling up to the rail, then jump off of your board and land with just your feet on the rail, letting the board roll away. Next, practice popping the board up as you jump, but don’t worry about where it goes after that. Just make sure that your feet land on the rail. Now its time for the real thing. Ollie as high as you can, in the direction of the rail. Land with your feet on the bolts and the board balanced on the rail. Once you get to the end of the rail, turn the board around (so it faces the right direction) and land over the bolts. This is called a boardslide.

Learn to drop in. Dropping in takes guts, but it’s worth it. Start with your tail on the coping (the metal on the top of the halfpipe) and your foot just behind the bolts, but far enough back to balance. Put your front foot over the bolts, and slam the board down. Don’t hesitate, or you will fall. It takes confidence and power. Don’t worry about coming down on the other side, just hop off of your board at the top.

Do some Liptricks. Some good ones are a Rock to Fakie, Axle Stall, and Nose Stall. These look impressive, but are not that difficult to learn if you have several months of experience.

Grab tricks are cool. Try grabbing the sides and front of your board. Ask around to find some fun ones.