4 Moves That Will Change Your Life
Want 4 moves that will change your snowboarding life forever? Of course you do!
This tutorial video teaches you 4 manoeuvres that are relatively simple, but with practice, can get you learning new tricks faster and can be mixed together to give you hours, weeks, months and even years of fun on the slopes!
In this video:
Move Number 1 - Nose & Tail Presses
The best way to get into a press is to be low on your board, using you ankles, knees and hips to lean into the press.
- The lower you are in your lean, the better your press!
- Don’t lean over to press with your head and shoulders, standing tall. You will have trouble keeping balance and the board won’t press out the way you want it to.
- Almost sit on your bindings with the leg you are bending. With the other leg, straighten it as much as possible. This will really get your press looking steazy!
Shift your weight out over the end of your board to get into that position.
Shift your weight out over the end of your board to get into that position.Important Tip For Presses
To get a really good press, don’t focus on lifting up the board, but rather, press down on the foot on the ground with more effort. The lower you lean, the more press!
Feeling Advanced?
- Try a grab while pressing (Eg. Tail Press and Tail Grab)
Move Number 2 - Ollies and Nollies
Once you're comfortable with Nose and Tail Presses, Ollies and Nollies become much easier. But remember, get low! The lower you get before you Ollie or Nollie, the bigger you can spring.
Once low, shift your weight quickly into the Tail or Nose Press position, then jump off the loaded leg and pull your board up into the air.
Important Tip For Ollies/Nollies
- Don’t move your head and shoulders too much. Thats where the bulk of your weight is, so you want to keep it steady.
- Really use the flex in your board to assist you in the pop. The more you flex your board, the better the pop!
- Stomp your landings with both feet hitting the ground at the same time. A nice flat base will give you more surface area to land clean and ride away with stability.
Feeling Advanced?
- Try do some Ollies/Nollies while side slipping!
- Go big or go home! Keep practicing getting more and more height with your Ollies/Nollies. The more you Ollie/Nollie, the more height you will achieve!
Move Number 3 - Spinning
Spinning on the slope helps you with your turns and spins in the air. It's important to look all the way around over your shoulder during your spin. Your shoulders, hips, knees, ankles and board will follow.
- Keeping your head up and looking over your shoulder is important so you remain stable and balanced throughout the spin.
- Practice both Frontside and Backside spins to get confident going both ways.
- Remember your edge control during each spin - Catching edges sucks and is a result of lack of concentration!
Move Number 4 - Shifties
Shifties work really well in park, because you can wash off speed without having to change your trajectory like a turn. They also add a bit of spice into manoeuvres.
The Frontside Shifty.
The Frontside Shifty.
The Backside Shifty.
The Backside Shifty.- Using Shifties are a great way to burn speed on a cat track. If you are tentative on cat tracks because you are worried you don’t have enough space to slow down, practice these counter-rotated shifties!!!
- Make sure you don’t bring the counter rotations into your normal linking turns though, as this is a bad habit that many people develop when learning and is hard to undo!
Shifty Tips
- Put your hands over your tail when doing a Frontside Shifty and over your nose when you do a Backside Shifty.
- You should feel a bunch of tension in your torso when you're in your Shifty. This tension is what you're going to use to pop your board back and forth.
Feeling Advanced?
Try Shifties while slide slipping and try make them as big as possible. Getting them to 90 degrees is a great place to start, but 180s or even further are great progressions and can really look cool.
Get Creative!
Now that you have your Ollies/Nollies, Presses, spins and Shifties... mix variations of everything together and get creative!
If you loved this tutorial and would to access even more tutorials, male sure to check out our Snowboard Tutorial Membership. Enjoy!
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Alex McCann
Snowboard Addiction
Our Goal Is To Improve Your Riding