How to Slide Your Foot Up in the Ollie

One of the fundamental moves of skateboarding is the ollie, a trick invented in 1978. How the front foot slides toward the toe of the skateboard is an essential part of the ollie. Without this sliding movement, you will not get air or lift the tail of the skateboard off the ground. The ollie can take months to perfect, but learning to move your front foot properly can take weeks off your practice time.

Instructions

    • 1

      Stand on the ball of your front foot. Place your foot behind your skateboard's front bolts. Experiment with foot placement to find a position that is comfortable, but avoid putting your front foot farther back than the middle of the skateboard.

    • 2

      Begin to slide your front foot as soon your back foot pops the tail of the skateboard and pushes it to the ground.

    • 3

      Move your front foot on a 45-degree angle forward as you jump up, so that your foot moves both up and forward. If you move your foot vertically but not horizontally, the skateboard tail won't lift off the ground. If you kick out more than you lift your foot, you may lift off the ground but will not be able to ollie high.

    • 4

      Slide the side of your front shoe toward the toe of your skateboard. Don't keep your foot flat.

    • 5

      Slide your front foot until it reaches the nose of your skateboard. This motion will bring the tail end of the skateboard up, resulting in a horizontal ollie.

    • 6

      Bring your front foot back from the skateboard nose, and flatten it to prepare for landing.