SO: you want to be a skateboarder
Heres a pretty complete guide to becoming a skateboarder, for all you beginers out there wanting to join this exiting sportAnd no this is not a guide so that you can look like a skater Damn *****s
What you should know before starting
Don’t be fooled, skateboarding is a difficult sport to learn, and its even harder to master, you will feel like quitting many times when you get frustrated; having a hard time learning trick, but don’t give up, everything takes practice. Skateboarding is also a dangerous sport, and you will get hurt; you will get bruised, fall and get roadrash, you might get knocked unconscious or you might even break a bone, depending on how far you push yourself. Some of your best and worst memories will come from skateboarding
What you will need
All a skateboarder really needs is his skateboard. Shoes will help in the future, but not now, so dont waste your money, and dont go out and buy a bunch of skate clothe, just so you can say your a skateboarder. What makes a skater a skater isnt his clothe, its his skateboard... and the fact that he rides it.
Before going out and buying a 200 dollar board, make sure you now the sport is right for you, try out a friends board for a while, get a feel for it. Oh and dont go out and buy the best 50 dollar deck out there, your a begginer, how much pop a board has or anything else doesnt matter right now, thats why you could just as well go out and buy a walmart board or yes even an Element, which is how many of the members of this forum started out with. What i recomend is you buy a blank deck, their cheap, and their legit (unlike a walmart board)
http://www.blankdecks.com/completes/..._completes.htm
An heres a pretty picture:
And now for the basics
Stance
First thing you have to figure out: Whats your stance? or the way you stand on the board
REGULAR: The foot on the front of your board is your left foot
GOOFY: The foot on the front of the board is your right foot
How do you figure this out? there are a couple of test
SLIDING TEST: If you run and slide on the slippery floor with socks on, the foot that on the front is most likely going to be on the front of your board.
PUSH TEST: Get someone to push you from behind, and which ever foot you use to stop you from falling forward is most likely your front foot.
Balance
Balance on your skateboard is something that you will develop over time, here are some things that will help. Start by, testing your board our on your carpet so you don’t have to fear slipping out. Once your comfortable, take it to the streets and just try standing on your board doing Tic Tacs. If done correctly, you should notice that you start moving forward a little. Once you can do these comfortably without falling backwards, then you can start pushing.
PUSHING
This is obviously to propel your skateboard, and to gain speed, unless your going down a hill, then keep BOTH feet on the board or you will kill yourself. To push correctly, your front foot should always be on the board (a little behind the front truck bolts) and your back foot should be the one doing the pushing. When pushing its good to have both your feet facing forward, and when both your feet are on the board, they should be facing the side. Just try cruising around, get comfortable and gain balance. Use your skateboard as your means of transportation, skate to your school, whatever, and while your at it, try doing some manualswhich will also help you develop balance.
The correct way to push.
MONGO
When you push with your front foot, and keep the back one on the board, its called mongo. Although many do this, its better to push the normal way, or you will find it harder to do certain tricks in the future… so its better to change before its too late
TURNING
The easy way to turn, is to do those tic-tacts that we discussed earlier. Simply put pressure on your tail to lift the front trucks and swing them around in the direction you want to turn. Now this is all fine and dandy if your just starting out and your still going pretty slow, but once you start gaining some speed, your not going to want to do tic-tacts, because you will loose control and fall. To add style to your turns, your going to want to carve, which is simply leaning your body on the direction you want to turn and using your heels in order to pivot the board and bend the trucks which will make you turn. How much you turn will depend on how loose your trucks are, and how much you lean. Carving is also good if your going down a hill because you do not want to go straight down a hill, and it will help you control your speed.
Stopping/slowing down
There are three ways to stop; powersliding, draggin/stomping your foot, or in extreme cases bailing. Powerslides, I don’t recommend them as a source of stopping, I usually just do them for fun, especially if your just starting out. What you should always remember is to never go faster than your abilities permit. To control your speed, do short quick stomps with your back foot, but you have to do them quick, or you will loose balance… do this enough and you will eventually come to a complete stop. If your going to fast and you don’t have time to stomp, then bail; hopefully there’s some grass around you. THe best way to bail is to jump forward, so that your board will shoot back, and not forward into traffic or whatever. NEVER DRAG YOUR TAIL TO STOP
OLLIES
Please dont start learning these until your completely comfortable riding your board, youll just be dissapointed. Ollies really is the only basic trick that a skateboarder has to learn, wether you plan to go on and be the next Mullen, or you just want to use your skateboard as transportation, the ollie will help you to get over obstacles (tree branch) or to get onto obstacles (a curb).
But im not going to get into that... just go here:
http://www.ramprage.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8647
this website also explains the science behind the ollie
http://www.exploratorium.edu/skateboarding/trick02.html
and heres another pretty picture
Injuries
Like I said before, you will get injured while skateboarding, from the first time you stand on the board, slip and land on your ass, to the time that you 5-0 and 12 set, and land on your balls. Yes, helmets and elbow pads will prevent many injuries, but if your not skating a Vert Ramp, avoid them, taking the fall is a lot better, their your battle wounds, wear them proudly. Although you probably wont break a bone learning these basics, here are some injuries you might encounter
A swellbow:
Road rash:
if its a flesh wound, make sure to clean it out, and bandage it, Infected wounds spread bacteria easily, for your sake, and for others, clean the wound. Clean SLOWLY with: Water and Antibiotics (gmgsci). if its your nuts or you knock your elbow, make sure to put some ice on that. But hey, shit happens, like i said before, keep with it.
How to bail
1. Shoulder First. If you MUST bail a different way, always keep your head off the ground.
2. Keep from bending wrists. Try not to sprain your wrist.
3. Land on your fleshy skin.
4. Dont stiffen your body.
For more on safety… go here
If you’ve read this guide, and still need some more specific help, then join the RR Big Brother Foundation, and get paired up with one of the many experienced skaters
Thats about it, just remember these three things
- PRACTICE: you wont learn to magicaly ollie or kickflip, just keep practicing
-DONT QUIT: If you cant land a trick, dont get frustrated, just practice something else and come back to it later
-HAVE FUN: if your not having fun, then why the hell are you skating, if you fall, brush yourself off and try it again, and if your friends are laughin, laugh with them
Originally Posted by Sk8 Or DiE
Reply With Quote
.
Thanks for making this guide , I just bought a new *cough*element *cough* "Section" board(I know most people's opinions about elements on here
) , and this guide and the links on how to ollie will help me lots , so thanks. 
