Your First Frontside 360s On A Snowboard

A Frontside 360 is a trick that every snowboarder must know how to do. It's a classic trick that shows your snowboarding mastery. 

This free tutorial is just one of 4 tutorials added to the Snowboard Tutorial Membership. Join now to get access to the world's most extensive snowboard tutorial library.

(Narrating/Riding: Nev Lapwood. Film/Edit: Adison MacDonald. Filmed At: Whistler Blackcomb)

The Fundamentals

Spinning on a snowboard has two main components:

1. Popping - moving up and down to get your snowboard off the ground. This is predominately done with a strong core and the flexion/extension of the legs. 
2. Rotation - this is adding momentum to create spin movement, started by your upper body.

Practice

The difficult part of learning the Frontside 360 is the timing between these two movements, so it's important you practice before hitting the hill. The trampoline is the perfect place to practice using the Tramp Board and Bindings.

On a downward bounce, wind up using your upper body. As you bounce up, release into a Frontside spin. Your upper body initiates the spin after you pop into the air, as your lower body follows around.

Remember your blind landing!

For the Front 3, you don't need to look all the way around as this trick uses a blind landing, just like a Backside 180. 

Practice

Now that you've killed it in practice and are now on the hill, practice jumping some Front 3's with your board off. Without the trampoline you will have to put in much more effort, particularly in how much you will need to pop and bring your knees to your chest.

Hey baby, wanna Front 3?

Edging

The most important aspect of spinning on a snowboard is to initiate it from your edge, as this gives you grip with the snow and something to push away from into your spin.

Get your edging dialled!

The best way to practice spinning from your heel edge for the Front 3, is to traverse across a slope on your heel edge and try a Frontside 270.

• Wind up with your upper body
• Pop with your legs
• Release your upper body faster 

If all goes to plan, you will spin the Frontside 270, landing on your toe edge and end up riding downhill.

If you can get good at your Frontside 270's while traversing on your heel edge, you will quickly be able to spin the Frontside 360 on jumps.

Side Hits

Once you have mastered it while traversing, the next progression is to try on side hits. This is the perfect place to practice, as these side hits will force you to approach on your heel edge (the edge you need to spin Front 3's from).

Disclaimer: Side hits force you to cross runs, so be very careful when hitting them and always check uphill for skiers ripping Super G turns on the green run.

Start with a heel edge straight jump and focus on getting strong pop from the lip, it's ideal to get at least half a metre into the air. Now, hit the same side with same amount of speed and pop, but add a small amount of wind up and release to complete a Frontside 180. 

Front 1's on side hits, then Front 3's on side hits!

Now start winding up a little more to spin 360 degrees. Doing Frontside 360's like this may mean you only get 270, but that is okay. Now you're doing your first Frontside 360's from your heel edge and are ready to start trying them on park jumps. Stay tuned as that tutorial will be dropping very soon.

Want The Gear That Was Used In This Tutorial?

• Tramp Training Board
• Training Board Bindings

Alex McCann 
Snowboard Addiction
Our Goal Is To Improve Your Riding