Let me guess; you probably get a bit uncomfortable while skateboarding or you’re yet to overcome the initial nervousness, right? Well, I’ve been there too, and seen so many kids facing the same problem during their early days of skateboarding.
So how to get comfortable on a skateboard?
Some basic and reliable ways to get comfortable on a skateboard are learning the basics, practicing more, ensuring proper balance, and many more.
Practicing skateboarding on bumpy terrain, encountering bumps and cracks, and learning how to throw down and pick up the skateboard can also help to get comfortable. Learn about all the tips along with some special techniques you can follow to ride your skateboard without breaking a sweat.
How To Skateboard
Whether you want to use good skateboards for transportation or just casual riding, knowing all the basics is mandatory. Skateboarding is not just about standing on a board and pushing it forward. It’s a freestyle skill, and it takes time to master this art.
Well, to get comfortable on a skateboard, you must need to master the basics. And here we’ve included some of the basics that will help you to learn skateboard riding without any issue. Follow the section below:
Learn the Proper Stance
The first thing you have to do to learn skateboard is standing properly and keeping the balance. Well, to stand on your skateboard the correct way, you can follow the steps below:
- Put your skateboard on a flat surface
- Place one foot on the board and use the other one for stabilization.
- Lift the second one once you feel comfortable and firm with standing on the board.
There are two stances for skateboarding, including:
- Regular: This means you will push the board with your right foot and keep the other one on the board.
- Goofy: On the other hand, goofy means you’ll keep the right foot on the board and use the left foot pushing.
However, there is not “perfect stance” for skateboarding. Different individuals prefer different standing position, and figuring out your preferable stance is essential to learning skateboard riding as a beginner.
If you don’t know which one would be the best for you, give both of them a try, and then you can easily figure it out.
Learn How to Push Your Skateboard
Once you can stand on a skateboard maintaining proper balance, the next thing you have to do is learn how to push. No matter which stance is comfortable for you, you always push the board with your back foot. Learning how to push your skateboard is very similar to walking on your board.
Here are some tips that you can apply to learn how to push your skateboard appropriately. Have a look:
- First, place your front foot on the board and the back one on the surface.
- Now give the board a push with your back foot, and at the beginning, don’t try to go hard; try a gentle push.
- When you’ll get the desired speed, lift the back foot and palace it in the board’s tail. Always remember to keep the front foot straight while pushing and keep your foot sideways while riding.
To get used to pushing your skateboard, try to practice as much as you can.
Learn How to Turn a Skateboard
After learning how to stand, keep balance and push a skateboard, the next thing you have to do is learn how to turn. There are two ways of turning, including:
– Carving turn:
You can learn how to perform carving turns by following these basic steps:
- Try to keep your skateboard’s truck a bit looser so that you can easily bend the board.
- Bend your knees and lead with your front shoulder in your desired direction.
- Apply pressure with your heels or toes in the direction you want to take a turn.
And this process will force the board to lean on a side and turn. During carving turns, keep your shoulder parallel to the skateboard, and be careful the wheels should not leave the riding surface.
– Kick turn:
Unfortunately, kick turn is not so simple as the carving turn, and here is the process you have to follow to perform kick turn:
- Bend your front leg to put more weight on the back foot. And after that, slightly lean backwards.
- Once the skateboard’s front side starts to lift off the surface, turn your shoulder and body in the direction you want to take a turn.
The board’s front side of the nose will follow the same direction of your body and shoulder. And to know more about kick turn you can follow the below-mentioned video:
Learn How to Stop a Skateboard
Learning how to ride a skateboard is fun and all, but how are you supposed to stop? There are many different techniques you can apply to stop skateboarding.
However, as a beginner, you should only follow a straightforward stopping method: leg break. This braking system means gradually applying pressure on the ground with your back foot until the board comes to a stop. Always ensure a quality pair of shoes while you follow foot brake methods.
How To Get Comfortable On A Skateboard
Getting comfortable on a skateboard is not a big deal, and the real deal is not knowing proper techniques. So what are these special skills and how can you master them?
Here, I’ve included some of the reliable ones you can follow to overcome nervousness while skateboarding. Have a look:
1. Practice the Basics
The first rule to get comfortable while riding a skateboard is to master the basics. Without knowing all the basics properly, you cannot expect to ride a skateboard with ease.
Some of the basics are: stand, push, turn, break, etc. And you have to give time and effort to learn all skateboard related basics.
2. Comfortable Stance
Another mistake that most people make while learning skateboard riding is not selecting a comfortable stance. Above, we’ve already mentioned there are two types of stance including regular and goofy.
Practice both positions and once you find a comfortable position, invest your time in that position. Since stance helps to get proper balance while skateboarding, it’s essential to select the stance that you feel comfortable with.
3. Learn New Movement
Learning a new movement is another effective and effortless way to get comfortable on a skateboard. You need to learn to move your board while standing on it so that you do not have to get up and down from your board frequently. In short, you have to learn about weight shifting deeply to get comfortable on a skateboard.
4. Turning System
We’ve already mentioned there are two types of turning systems including carving turn and kick turn. And try to master these two turns so that you can easily be able to use both based on different conditions. However, the best turning method you should learn and apply is the carving turn method.
5. Practice Skateboarding in Different Surfaces
Practicing skateboarding in one particular palace will never help to overcome nervousness on a skateboard. And to get comfortable on a skateboard on all surfaces, you have to practice skateboarding on different terrain, surfaces, and conditions.
In short, staying in your comfort zone or skateboarding only on smooth surfaces will never let you reach your goals. The more you practice on different surfaces the faster you’ll get comfortable on your skateboard.
6. Learn Skateboarding Techniques
Alongside learning basics and practicing skateboarding on different surfaces, you also have to learn skateboard techniques. You have to learn skateboarding techniques like:
- Tick-Tacking Technique
- Kick-Flip Technique
- Manual Technique
- Grinds Technique
These techniques may take time to learn appropriately, but you can easily get rid of nervousness once you learn them.
7. Use Quality Skateboards
Using quality skateboards is another essential thing that plays a big role in providing comfort while riding. A quality skateboard will remain durable and provide enough flexibility to ensure skateboarding effortlessly. The board should be firmly attached with quality wheels, trucks, bearings, and many more.
8. Always Ensure Safety Gear
Safety gear is another essential element that significantly affects the comfort level of skateboarding. Since skateboarding is an outdoor sport it can cause several injuries issues. Well, if you want to know what safety gear you need to ensure to get comfort on a skateboard? Follow the section below:
- Helmet
- Wrist guards
- Knee pads
- Elbow pads
Always ensuring skateboard safety gear can impact the comfort level while riding a skateboard.
9. Take Advice from Others
Another effective solution you can follow to get comfort on skateboarding is taking help from a pro skateboard rider. Although many new skateboarders prefer to learn to skateboard by themselves, taking help from experts will help to get comfort in skateboarding faster.
How Long Does It Take To Get Comfortable On A Skateboard?
It’s a tricky question that doesn’t necessarily has any solid answers. However, if you want an estimated answer, then it may take a couple of weeks of proper practice to help you get comfortable on a skateboard.
There is a saying, “skateboarding is 10% muscle, 30% skill, and 60% guts.” If you follow all basic rules and develop your skill properly, you easily overcome the nervousness over skateboarding.
In short, practice more with proper technique, and the more you practice, the faster you can get comfortable on starboard riding.
Final Words
It isn’t just you; many people find riding a skateboard fun but are afraid to do it. Basically, this happens when someone doesn’t know all the basics of proper skateboarding techniques. Not knowing these techniques raises the question of how to get comfortable on a skateboard.
However, throughout this article, I’ve provide guides to help you master all skateboarding basics. I’ve also included some of the easy and reliable ways to get comfortable skateboard riding and how much time it takes. These tips are good enough to make your skateboarding comfortable.