How To Improve Your Frontside Boardslides
This tutorial addresses some common problems shredders experience when attempting a Frontside Boardslide and gives you the techniques to nail it every time. This is part three of our three part Frontside Boardslide series. If you haven't checked out part one and two, give those a view now:
Remember, there are even more great Snowboard Jibbing tutorials available on the Snowboard Tutorial Membership!
(Riders: Nev Lapwood/Jordan Decker. Filming/Editor: Blake Dubler. Filmed At: Whistler Blackcomb)
3 Tips For The Dopest Front Board
- Counter rotation
- Leaning downhill
- Weight on top
1) Counter Rotation
When performing your Frontside Boardslides, you're going to be sliding backwards down the feature. In order to see where you're going and maintain balance, you'll need to rotate your upper and lower body in the opposite direction of each other. This is called counter rotation.
Counter rotating through the Frontside Boardslide.
Counter rotating through the Frontside Boardslide.When landing, make sure to unwind back to your normal riding stance. If you counter rotate properly, you will unwind right at the landing and ride away super clean!
Unwinding at the right moment.
Unwinding at the right moment.Practicing your counter rotation at home is a great way to help build stabilization in your muscles and enhance your muscle memory. Try using the Jib Training Board and Balance Bar combination to practice this at home.
A very well demonstrated Front Board.
A very well demonstrated Front Board.It Adds Way More Style
Simply put, getting your board at a 90 degree angle looks WAAAAY better. This is achieved by good core strength and correctly counter rotating during the trick. The more you counter rotate, the more you can tweak out your Boardslide!
Get that board to 90 degrees to add even more style.
Get that board to 90 degrees to add even more style.2) Lean Downhill
As a basic rule of jibbing, you'll need to make sure that the base of your board is completely flat on top of the feature you're riding. Additionally, the weight of your entire body must be leaning at the same angle of the feature.
Leaning downhill with the feature is key!
Leaning downhill with the feature is key!Commonly, a lot of riders lean way too far UPHILL through the feature, which causes their toe edge to slip out. It's critical to maintain this downhill leaning position if you want to remain on the rail and keep your limbs intact!
You can see how this rider is leaning too far uphill, causing their toe edge to slip out.
You can see how this rider is leaning too far uphill, causing their toe edge to slip out.Practice your Frontside Boardslides on flat boxes first. Hit these boxes over and over until you nail it every time! Once you know your angles and your muscle memory for the trick is dialled in, then you can start moving to down rails and other more difficult features.
3) Weight On Top
The final tip to making your Frontside Boardslides look more steazy is to get your weight up on top and centered over the feature. This can be the most difficult part of the trick, so it's important that you do a lot of practicing off the hill before moving to the slopes. Getting your weight centred is what takes guts; YOU HAVE TO COMMIT!
Trick Tip: Coming in at a 20 degree angle will give you the best positioning to get up and on top of that rail.
Okay, so sometimes it might be 21 degrees, but you get the idea.
Okay, so sometimes it might be 21 degrees, but you get the idea.If your weight isn't centred directly over the rail, you're going to fall off to one side or the other. A good way of practicing is to jump onto the rail, and slide off the opposite side. This ensures that you're getting your body high enough to position your weight directly on top and centred.
This riders is leaning downhill with the feature and has his weight directly on top of the rail.
This riders is leaning downhill with the feature and has his weight directly on top of the rail.A lot of boarders will balance their weight on their front foot, but as long as your weight is directly centred and on top of the rail, you can position your board wherever your heart desires!
That wraps up our 3 part series on How To Frontside Boardslide! This series has taken you through learning your first Front Board, to riding out Fakie and now dialling it in by fixing up those common problems. Give it a go next time you're on the hill and improve your riding today!
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The Snowboard Addiction Team
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