I am guessing that if you are reading this post, then you’d love to jump on a longboard and ride away. That’s cool – really. And this post is exactly what you need. In it, I’ll show you how to ride a longboard. So let’s hit the road.
With that said, let me put something clear. Contrary to what people say, learning how to longboard doesn’t always have to be a daunting task. Never. With proper instructions, you should be flying in a short time.
And like you’ll learn in our how to ride a longboard for beginners, there isn’t a secret on how to do it. The thing is often simple. It is a practice that makes perfect for you. But most importantly, it’s learning in the right way.
How is that so? Do not take the hill start before you learn the basics. It’s that simple. Start from the bottom and make your way up the ladder. How hard can that be?
Luckily for you, I have some of the best beginner tips for learning how to ride a longboard that’ll come in handy in giving you a head start. Take a look.
Step 1: Get the Right Longboard
The first thing that you must do is to get the right longboard for your use. This should meet some of your most crucial needs. With the right board, you should feel comfortable and find your training an easy one. Here are some things to consider when looking for the right longboard.
- Your size
- Bodyweight
- Riding goals
- Skill level
- Age
Remember that everybody is unique in their own way, and such is the “right” longboard for your use.
Step 2: Find Your Natural Stance
Your natural stance is your perfect stance. Do not force a stance when you can’t actually pull it off. There is no need to kill yourself. Longboarding is about fun, even when in the toughest competitions.
For the longboard, if you stand when your left foot is forward while your right foot remains back, then you’re “regular’ however, if you put the right foot forward and the left foot backward, then you’re “goofy.”
Step 3: Work on Your Balance
If you are totally new to longboarding, the first thing that you’d have to do when learning how to ride a longboard is to work on your balance. This should be worked on before you actually begin to ride.
The perfect way to practice how to balance on a longboard safely is to set your board on the grass, thick carpet, or rubber-like surface and climb on it. The friction will keep the board from rolling and, at the same time, allow you to stand on the board.
While standing on the longboard, make sure that you get your natural stance ready too. However, it would be best if you keep your feet shoulder-width apart. This should keep your feet on or close to the top of the bolts.
Step 4: Practice How to Turn
Once you have worked on your balance, it’ll be time to work on how to turn. Here is how to do that.
- While keeping your longboard on the grass
- Stand on your longboard
- Make sure your wheels aren’t rolling
- Shift your bodyweight around
- Let the deck lean to the sides
NOTE: Now that you have seen how your longboard’s deck leans, you can practice how to roll back and forth using your ankles so that your deck can lean around each edge. This is what will initiate a turn when you are riding.
Step 5: Practice the Push and the Braking
There is no shortcut to learning this one trick if you have to take any form of longboarding, balancing on one leg. This is something that you’ve got to master. However, you’ll do more than just mastering it.
Apart from mastering that, you’ll have to do that while the other leg then pushes on the brakes. Here is how you do this.
- Keep your longboard on the grass
- Stand on your longboard
- Rotate the front foot
- Let your toes to point forward and direct towards the nose
- While doing that, turn shoulders and your hips to face forward too
- Do that as you lift your back foot up and off the deck
- Now balance on the front leg
Since your front foot is turned forward, it helps you to stabilize easily. Follow this by shifting your weight on the front leg and then bending your front knee a little to lower your rear foot to the ground again. Do not move your hips.
Now touch on the ground with the back of your foot for just a few seconds while you squat on the front leg. Finally, bring back your foot onto the main deck and to your original position. Turn back your own shoulders, hips, and the front foot to the first angle.
Step 6: Start Rolling
Now that you’ve got your basic stance in places such as the turning stance and the push/brake stance, it is time to start moving. This should be easy now, having practiced your stances over and over again.
The best places to start rolling on are the driveway or the parking lot. Look for a section of the driveway that has a slight incline. Once you have that, you should stand on your longboard then kick a little to let the board roll freely.
Next, you can use your push stance, and as the board moves, in a low speed, you may rotate your front foot, set the shoulders forward, then drop your rear foot to the main ground. This is a slight push that gives your board a slight momentum.
Step 7: Practice How to Brake
Since you can roll, you have to learn how to brake. The best thing is you already have some tips on how to do it. Put them into use. For braking, the steps involved will be similar to those that you take with your push stance.
Instead of kicking the ground, you’d brush with your back leg. This provides friction that will eventually slow you down. Keep your foot flat when approaching the ground.
FAQs: How to Ride a Longboard
Finally, let us take a sneak peek at some of the concerns that learners have when it comes to riding a longboard. These questions that we have rounded up come with simple answers that you will easily understand.
How Do You Determine Your Natural Stance?
Simple. Stand with both feet on the ground. Put your feet together in the same line (at attention). Then have a pal push you from behind/ back. You will always put one foot forward. This is the foot that keeps you from stumbling. More importantly, it again determines your natural stance too.
Why is it Important to Find Your Natural Stance?
Like I mentioned, we have two types of stances when it comes to longboarding. We have the regular and the goofy. If you’re a regular, then pressing on the toes as you ride will make your longboard to turn right. Again, pressing on the heels makes you go left.
For someone who is goofy, the opposite is true. This is why knowing your stance is important. You should keep this in mind when learning new techniques.
How do I lean my body weight when turning?
Once you have learnt how to shift your body weight to turn, you should understand how to lean your body weight when taking the stance. The best way to do it is to lock both ankles and then shift your body weight either forward (toes) or backward (heels). This should give you the perfect lean.
How easy is it to brake when riding a longboard?
The technique is easy if you are riding at very slow speeds. However, it becomes more challenging as your mastery improves.
Conclusion
If you are looking for how to ride a longboard for beginners, this is the perfect post for you. The model is simple, the explanation direct, and it won’t take you long to understand what you need to get your groove on.
More importantly, this post gives you the most basic places where you should start. It is the perfect list if you are looking for a place to start and especially if you already have a trainer in hand.
Do not rush into trying the flicks, hell no! Take one step at a time. Make sure that you’ve got the patience that you deserve for training, and keep your work model simple always.
For a great longboarding session, these tips will come in handy, helping you to get started and to progress from one set to the next every day.
Good luck, and feel free to contact us in case you have some concerns that you need us to help you with on how to ride a longboard.