How to Do Freestyle Skateboard Tricks

New freestyle skateboard tricks are constantly being created. If you're entering a freestyle skateboarding contest, it's important to integrate variety and creativity into your tricks. Judges will be looking for difficulty of trick and fluidity of execution. Most freestyle skateboarding tricks are done in a stationary position. Freestyle skateboarding has been around since the late 1970s, as a way to coordinate skateboarding to a soundtrack. Modern tricks are derived from "ancient" freestyle tricks. (See Reference 1.)

Things You'll Need

  • Skateboard
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Instructions

  1. Body Varial

    • 1

      Begin this move in Switch Stance. (See Reference 1.) Switch stance is the opposite of regular stance. For example, if you normally ride with your left foot forward (your regular stance), switch stance would be riding with your right foot forward.(See Reference 2.)

    • 2

      The skateboarder jumps up, rotates 180 degrees and lands on the skateboard in regular stance.

    • 3

      The body varial is often combined with another trick. A body varial high jump, or hippy twist, is when the skateboarder jumps over an obstacle as the board rolls under the obstacle. (See Reference 1.)

    Fingerflip

    • 4

      In this trick, the skateboarder reaches down with front hand, jumps off the skateboard, flips the board on its axis and lands back on the board.

    • 5

      You can also do a double- or triple-fingerflip.

    • 6

      A 180 fingerlip is when the skateboard is rotated 180 degrees and flipped with the hand. (See Reference 1.)

    Hang Ten Nose Wheelies

    • 7

      For a hang ten nose wheelie, the skateboarder puts both feet at the nose of the board and lifts the back wheels off the ground.

    • 8

      The skateboarder must balance while moving.

    • 9

      You can also do the self-explanatory one-footed wheelie or one-wheel wheelie. (See Reference 1.)

    Street Plant

    • 10

      The old-school street plant trick is a fancy way of getting onto your skateboard.

    • 11

      The skateboarder holds the board in one hand and gets a running start.

    • 12

      The skateboarder does a one-handed handstand, puts the skateboard under his feet and comes back down. (See Reference 2.)

    Walk the Dog

    • 13

      For a "walk the dog," the skateboarder puts one foot in the middle of the board, steps to the nose of the board with their back foot, brings the nose to the back and spins the board around the center foot 180 degrees.

    • 14

      You can do this move quickly and several times in a row.

    • 15

      It may be better to do this trick slower, though, as keeping balance will give the illusion of speed.

    Ollie

    • 16

      The skateboarder stands on the board with one foot on the tail of the board and the other foot in the middle.

    • 17

      The skateboarder kicks down with the tail foot.

    • 18

      The skateboarder shifts weight onto the nose of the board, lands the trick and rolls away.