Beginner’s Guide to Longboarding

Determining Your Stance

Before you start longboarding, you need to make sure that you have the right stance. As in any board sport, there are two types of stances: regular stance and goofy stance. In a regular stance, you ride with your right foot back and with your left foot leading. Goofy stance is basically the opposite of regular stance, in that you ride with your left foot back and your right foot leading.

There are two basic methods that you can determine your stance with. The first method is to try moving or kicking something with your foot and note which foot you use. Whichever foot you used is the one that will be placed on the back of your longboard. The second method is to ask a friend to give you a push and whichever foot you step forward with first will be placed in the back of your stance. While these two methods work, they are not 100% accurate. They can, however, help guide you in the right direction. When starting longboarding, try both stances and see how they feel. One of these stances will make you feel comfortable, confident, and relaxed, and the other will be shakier and less natural.

How To Carve

Longboard carving may not come naturally to a beginner. But to achieve a high level of comfort and skill, it is important to practice, practice, and practice some more. Carving is not only a fun activity, but it is also necessary for speed control. To carve, shift your body weight to the toe edge of your foot and then shift your weight to the heel side. Continue to shift your weight back and forth so that your board makes an “S” pattern while you are riding. Making an “S” pattern while riding helps you maintain control because it slows you down. In addition, carving gives you a sense of control on a longboard. When you are longboarding, it’s very easy to lose control if you do not know how to carve correctly.

To learn how to carve properly, practice on a street with a slight decline or in a parking lot. As always, make sure that you wear a helmet while you longboard. Initially, push a little to get some speed with your back foot, heading down the hill. Next, you need to bend your knees slightly. Then, shift your weight towards your heel to begin your carve. You will notice that your longboard turning in the direction that you’re leaning. Stop when you reach the side of the street. Once you stopped carving towards your heel-side, it’s time for you to carve towards your toe-side. Carving towards your toe-side can be a little more difficult, but with some practice, you will start feeling more comfortable. As you ride, remember to slightly bend your knees to maintain balance. Try to not lift your heels off the board as you lean and you should feel your board tilt under your feet. Now with this position, you should be heading towards the other side of the street. Once you have reached the other side of the street, stop. Now that you know how to carve heel-side and toe-side, keep repeating them to get more practice. Each time you reach the side of the street, stop and go back in the other direction. This will help you get familiar with carving without gaining too much speed.

Once you feel comfortable, try combining your heel and toe carve. Instead of stopping when you reach the side of the street, lean towards the opposite side to change direction. You can carve with wider turns to descend the hill slowly or carve with narrower turns to descend with more speed. With some thorough practice, you can carve on your longboard in no time.