How to learn to ride a skateboard?

Skateboard is a modern sports unit, popular among teenagers. At first glance, it’s easy to learn, but in fact, skateboarding is a special art that requires a lot of practice. In this article, we will walk you through the steps to learn how to ride a skateboard.

Skateboarding is a very popular street sport among young people. In some countries, he became a cult. A skate is much more than a vehicle, as it requires stamina, strong legs and a sense of balance. Such a sport is difficult to learn and requires a huge amount of time, effort and patience. Master it completely will not succeed, because constantly inventing more and more new tricks that I want to repeat.

It is important to understand that the most common injuries sustained when falling from a skate are in the hands and head. It’s worth taking a more responsible approach to protecting these parts of the body.. Of course, there will be beginners who will be sure that they will completely manage without "extra" protection. In this matter, the wearing of protective equipment is a personal matter for everyone. Before choosing the protection you need, remember that serious injury can permanently discourage the desire to use this sports unit again.

The described sport is difficult to master and requires a lot of practice and a sound approach. Overall success depends on many factors and compliance with a number of basic rules. So, it is extremely important to make sure the reliability and safety of the skate, equipment, you need a competent choice of places for skiing and protection. Consider the items listed in more detail.

One of the most important rules is choosing the right skate for the training process. For a good choice of your first skateboard, you need to consider what is in its design. The following basic details should be noted.

• Board (deck). The supporting part of the skateboard. Its width, it can be in the range from 4.6 to 10.6 inches. As the first deck, it is best to choose an average size of 8 inches. It will be optimal for training, and as you improve your skills, you will understand whether a deck is required wider or narrower. A narrow part will give you more maneuverability, and a wide one will provide good stability.

• The length of the board is not so important when choosing, because it affects little and the beginner will not notice the difference. The optimal deck shape for yourself can only be selected by trial and error during the skiing process. When choosing this basis, it is worth paying attention to the type of wood of which the board is made. The highest quality boards are made from maple. The number of layers of wood should be from 7 to 9. After gluing and shaping the deck, a special non-slip coating is glued to it, similar to sandpaper. On some models of decks, a plastic coating is applied from the bottom to improve gliding on the railing.

• Wheels. They have different diameters and stiffnesses. Soft wheels provide a more convenient and comfortable ride and ease of control, but they will not be able to gain speed. In addition, such elements wear out faster, which will lead to more frequent replacement. For driving on a smooth asphalt surface, wheels with an average degree of rigidity are well suited. Their diameter can have parameters from 50 to 180 mm. In order to learn how to ride a skateboard, a wheel size of 54 mm is suitable.

• Suspension. This is the junction of the wheels with the deck. Mostly these parts are made of aluminum alloy, but there are also steel ones. They are more durable and much heavier. The more massive the suspension, the stronger it is, but the overall weight of the skateboard increases. For a beginner skateboarder or child, an aluminum suspension is quite suitable.

• Bearings. High-quality bearings can provide not only the speed of a sports unit, but also its safety. In this case, it is best to use the products of trusted brands (Reflex, Independent, Bones, Lucky, Tensor, Speed ​​Demons, Shake Junt).

The main rule of skateboarding is wearing protective gear. Unfortunately, professional skaters and beginners very often neglect these simple and necessary things, which sooner or later leads to injury. It often happens that the defense gets very hot, so they take it off.

The standard set of protective equipment for a skater consists of:

• knee pads;
• Shoulders
• helmet.

The protective helmet should have a smooth surface and a strong strap in the lower part (at the chin). This part of protective ammunition is better to buy in specialized stores. Saving on your own safety is not worth it.

If you are faced with a choice of what kind of protection to buy, then it is best to choose reliable and most suitable products that fit tightly to the body. Protective ammunition should not slide or reap. The best option would be a fastening in the form of "Velcro".

It would be useful to find the right clothes for a beginner skateboarder. It should be suitable for several parameters:

• convenience - this is a very important parameter when choosing, clothes should be free, not restrict or restrict movement in different positions, but also not be too loose;
• material strength - no one is safe from falls, especially a novice, so your clothes must withstand friction against asphalt and be resistant to such effects;
• material - it is best to choose breathable materials, this will allow you to sweat less during training.

To learn how to ride a skateboard, you need to stock up on the right shoes. A very important part of the equipment is skate shoes, they are also called skate shoes, skate shoes and skate shoes. They differ from ordinary sneakers only in the sole, on which a special coating is applied, providing additional traction to the deck. This hook allows you to perform many difficult tricks.

In addition to the sole, on such shoes there are special-shaped hems, a shock-absorbing sole filler and additional characteristics inherent in a particular model, which will not catch the eye when viewed, but will be felt when riding on a board.

Very often you can see a large backpack on the back of the skater. This is a very useful accessory. There, athletes put everything they need for the field repair of their sports equipment, namely:

• tool;
• spare wheels;
• spare suspension;
• protective equipment.

Once you have purchased all the necessary equipment for skateboarding, you can begin training. First you need to get used to the skate you just bought, learn how to get up on it. To do this, put the board on a flat surface, stand on it and try to stand. From the outside, this may seem an elementary affair, but in reality it is not so simple. Skate will "try to jump out" from under the rider. Try to get down and get up on the board again.

Learn to balance, stay in one place and keep balance. When you master the balancing, then begin to smoothly move the center of gravity along the board, alternately moving it to the front wheels, then to the rear.

Having mastered this exercise, start a little jump, standing on a skateboard. The first jumps are the most dangerous, because after landing, the board will "try" to slip out. For the time of getting used to the board, you can resort to additional fall insurance. Here a person or a support can help you, which you can grab onto if you lose your balance.

When light jumps on the board will be given to you without problems, we can assume that you are used to the unit and can control it, so far at the level of a "beginner", but this is the result. Next, it is allowed to start practicing the rack.

Further comfortable riding will depend on a well-placed stance. You should lean on one leg - it is the supporting one, and the other one is the jerk one, you push it during the ride.

After the push is made, the push leg is placed on the back of the board, while the supporting leg is on the front of the deck and practically does not move. You should put your legs across the board.

There are several ways to determine which leg you will have a jogging and which leg as a supporting one.

• Watch yourself - with which foot you start walking, with which you begin to climb the stairs. It is this leg that will be your support.
• Another option for determining the supporting leg is tossing the ball into the air. Which foot will be easier and more convenient to beat it off - that will be the supporting one.
• The third option is reflex. Ask someone to push you a little. Reflexively put your supporting leg so as not to fall.

After the stand on the board is confident and you have decided on the “leading” leg, you can try skateboarding. To do this, you need an even hard coating. Having stood on the board, you will need to push off with a “push” foot and, keeping your balance, keep on a skateboard.

It is advisable to perform one long and strong push. Often beginner skaters are afraid not to stay on the board with such a repulsion, and instead of one long push, you can see several weak repulsions. With this technique it is impossible to achieve a smooth ride, it is much more difficult to maintain balance. Beginners will need to master a strong push.

In addition to the correct repulsions, there are also nuances, the knowledge of which will help to ride the board correctly.

• For safety when riding a skateboard The supporting leg is best placed behind the front screws. In this case, when repelling you will not be threatened by an uncontrolled tilt of the board forward.
• It is advisable to place the jerked foot in the back of the skateboard, at the very end of it. This position will allow better control of the board and, if it is necessary to turn or stop abruptly, do not change the position of the pushing leg, but immediately begin the maneuver.

To learn how to manage a board, you need to balance it well. If you have not fully mastered the balance technique on a skateboard, then cornering attempts may end in a fall for you. If you are confident in your abilities, then you can begin to master this stage.

To perform a turn, you must shift your body weight forward with respect to the feet for the right turn. To perform the left turning maneuver, you will need to transfer the body weight back relative to the feet.

To practice turns, you need to choose a flat surface with enough room for maneuver. The ride at this moment should be calm, not very fast. The faster your movement, the sharper the turn will be. At the first attempts, your main task is not to fall.

Sometimes there will be obstacles in your way that you will notice at the very last moment, and you will have very little space to go around them. In such a situation, a turnaround method will come to the rescue, which is combined with one of the simplest tricks called kickerning. To perform this trick, you need to press the back foot a little on the back of the board (“tail”), so that its front part (“nose”) slightly rises above the floor.

Next, you need to turn the entire body in the direction of rotation. This set of actions should be a single action. The pressure on the deck should be soft but quick. Skate management in this case will be carried out by a sharp jerk of the whole body to the side.

An important process in any movement is the correct and timely stop, and skateboarding is no exception. There are several ways to stop on a skateboard.

• Short touches of the floor gradually slow down. This is the easiest way to stop, but not the most spectacular, and it wears out shoes a lot.
• You can stop by the principle of tail braking. In this case, the weight is transferred to the back of the skate, which leads to contact between the back of the board and the road. In this case, a quick stop occurs. In this way, you can not only slow down, but also slow down slightly if you can balance well on 2 wheels. With this method of braking, wear is transferred to the deck, its edges are quickly erased.

In this sport, falls cannot be avoided, but they can be made less traumatic. To do this, you need to master the technique of falling and do not forget about personal protective equipment. When falling, it should be grouped so that the landing falls on the back of the shoulder, followed by a roll to the back. In this case, it is necessary to press the elbows to the body, cover the head with your palms from the blow.

Mastering the tricks is given to everyone in their own way. Someone takes possession of the basic elements in a few months, while others take years. In this sport, everything is individual. We list and consider the basic tricks, without which you can not master the more complex:

• allie - jump with the board;

• manual - balancing on one suspension of a skateboard, as on two;

• zeros - jump with a click forward;

• flip - more difficult jump: jumping, the board should rotate in flight;

• slide - sliding on the board;

• rowing - when performing this trick, the board is captured by hands;

• stand, lime, stel - when performing these tricks, it is necessary to maintain balance by jumping onto an object.

This kind of sport is easiest to learn in childhood. Skateboarding is a good way to develop your child's stamina and coordination. You can start training from the age of 3. To do this, you will have to get a smaller version of the usual skateboard that most major manufacturers do. Such decks have a width of 17 and a length of 70 cm. Children's skiing equipment is no different from an adult. The little rider needs to be kept under control all the time. Parents will need to be around, monitor all the actions of the child.

Before you master the complex art of skateboarding, it is worth listening to some useful tips.

• Before each workout good workoutThis will allow you to avoid sprains and dislocations.
• In skateparks You can meet other more experienced skaters who will help you learn to ride faster.
• Take your time with mastering the tricks. To begin with, learn to control the board and body well.
• For quick result learn the theory of each trick step by step, practice all the movements as qualitatively as possible, this will allow you not to make mistakes.
• Before heading out for another workout, need to inspect the skate. It must be in good condition, without damage or loose parts.
• Try not to ride on pebbles. On such a road, it is easiest to lose balance, which leads to falls.
• Never compete in skills with more experienced skateboarders who have mastered tricks that are difficult to perform. Often in such situations, newcomers, in order to show their (not yet richest) skills, receive serious injuries and fractures.

See how to learn how to ride a skateboard in the next video.