Beginner Skateboarding

The path

1. 1
   Level 1Free

   First Rolls

   Kickturns and a rolling ollie

   15 Steps, about 28 minutes each. Adults who've never skated or haven't since they were kids. No balance tricks or athletic background needed. Expect about $125 for a complete board, a helmet and pads; a used board works fine, but buy the helmet new.

   1. Chapter 1: Rolling. Your stance found, falling practiced, and pushing, stopping and steering in an empty lot.
   2. Chapter 2: Control. Tic-tacs, kickturns, rolling over cracks and a manual, put together in a filmed lap.
   3. Chapter 3: The ollie. An ollie built from standing on grass to rolling on pavement, then a filmed line with everything you've learned.

   1. 1
      Find your stance

      Your stance worked out and five minutes balancing on the board without rolling.

      Your stance is which foot goes in front on the board. Regular means left foot forward. Goofy means right foot forward. Neither is better; one simply feels natural to you, and finding it makes everything else easier.

      The push test is a quick way to find it. Stand with your feet together and have someone give you a gentle push from behind. The foot you step forward with to catch yourself is usually your front foot.

      The detail beginners miss is practicing balance on a board that can't roll. Put the board on grass or carpet, so the wheels can't move. Stand on it, feet over the bolts, knees bent, and get used to how it feels before it ever rolls.

      Here's an example. Helmet and wrist guards on. Push test: stepped forward with the left foot, so regular. Board on grass. Front foot over the front bolts, back foot over the back bolts, feet across the board. Knees bent, arms relaxed. Shifting weight from toes to heels. Five minutes of balance.

      Right is feeling steady on a still board with bent knees. Wear a helmet every time you ride; head injuries are the most serious skateboarding injuries. Wrist guards protect against the most common one, a broken wrist.

      Skateboard GB
      Show your group
   2. 2
      Learn to fall

      Falls practiced on grass: forward roll, sliding out, and stepping off.

      Braille Skateboarding
   3. 3
      Push and roll

      Pushing off and rolling in a straight line across a flat, empty space.

      Never Stop ImprovingRetrospec

   See all 15 Steps

   1. 4
      Stop

      Stopping smoothly from a gentle roll, three different ways.

      MasterClass
   2. 5
      Steer and carve

      Gentle turns left and right by leaning, and a slow lap around your space.

      RIDE ChannelMasterClass
      Show your group
   3. 6
      Tic-tac

      Moving forward by swinging the board left and right on the back wheels.

      Surfertoday
   4. 7
      Kickturn

      Turning 90° and then 180° on your back wheels while rolling slowly.

      School of SkateSurfertoday
   5. 8
      Roll over cracks

      Rolling confidently over cracks, small bumps and pebbles.

      Tactics
   6. 9
      Hold a manual

      Rolling on your back wheels for a moment without the tail touching the ground.

      Red Bull
   7. 10
      Film a full lap

      A filmed lap: push, carve, tic-tac, kickturn and stop.

      Retrospec
      Show your group
   8. 11
      Ollie on grass

      The ollie motion practiced standing still on grass: pop, slide, jump, land.

      FLOW SK8 ACADEMYSurfertoday
   9. 12
      Ollie standing still

      Ollies on smooth pavement without rolling, landing on the board.

      Surfertoday
   10. 13
       Rolling ollie

       Your first ollie while rolling, landed and ridden away.

       FLOW SK8 ACADEMYSurfertoday
   11. 14
       Ollie over a line

       Rolling ollies over a chalk line, then over a flat stick.

       Red Bull
   12. 15
       Film your line

       One continuous filmed line: push, carve, kickturn, ollie, stop.

       MasterClass
       Show your group
2. Level 2Unlocks after Level 1

   Skatepark Basics

   Drop-ins, pumping and rock to fakie

3. Level 3Unlocks after Level 2

   Street Tricks

   Shuvits, boardslides and a kickflip

Where it ends: riding with friends at the park

Free lessons in First Rolls come from Skateboard GB, Braille Skateboarding, Never Stop Improving, Retrospec, MasterClass, RIDE Channel, Surfertoday, School of Skate, Tactics, Red Bull, FLOW SK8 ACADEMY, Skate Warehouse. We link to their work and never copy it.