How to
Skateboard

Before anything else, figure out which foot goes in front. If your left foot leads and you push with your right, you ride regular. If your right foot leads, you ride goofy. Neither is better, it is just how your body naturally balances.

The fastest way to test it: stand with feet together and have a friend gently push you from behind, or imagine sliding across a wet floor. Whichever foot shoots out first to catch you is usually your back foot, which means the other foot leads. You can also picture which foot you would kick a ball with: that is often the back, pushing foot.

Stand on the board on carpet or grass first so it cannot roll, and just feel where your feet want to sit. Front foot angled slightly forward over the front bolts, back foot across the tail.

Place your front foot over the front bolts, angled about thirty degrees toward the nose. Bend your front knee and lower your back foot to the ground next to the board.

Push with the ball of your back foot in smooth strokes, like a gentle scooter kick, then bring that foot back onto the tail once you are rolling. Keep your weight over the front foot and your knees soft, not locked.

Look where you want to go, not down at your feet. Your first few pushes should be on flat, smooth ground with no traffic. Comfort with rolling and balance is the single biggest predictor of how fast you will learn everything else.

There are two ways to turn. The first is leaning: shift your weight gently toward your heels or toes and the board carves in that direction. This is the smooth, rolling turn you will use most of the time.

If your trucks feel too stiff to lean, loosen the kingpin nut a little, or too loose and they feel wobbly, tighten it. Adjust in small quarter-turns until the board carves the way you like.

The second is a kickturn: press lightly on the tail to lift the front wheels, pivot the nose toward your new direction, then set it back down. Practice kickturns slowly at first, they are the foundation for sharper turns and later for transition skating.

The most reliable beginner stop is the foot brake. Keep your weight on your front foot, take your back foot off the tail, and lower it flat to the ground, dragging the sole gently until you slow to a stop. Start with light pressure so you do not lurch forward.

For low speeds you can also step off: as you slow down, run it out by stepping off the front and taking a few jogging steps while the board rolls to a stop behind you. Practice the runout early so you have an instinct for bailing safely.

Avoid stopping by jamming your tail down hard or jumping off at speed. Wear a helmet, and learn to fall by rolling rather than bracing with stiff arms.

Once you can push, roll, turn, and stop with confidence, you are ready for the ollie, the jump that nearly every other trick is built on. It combines a sharp pop off the tail with a slide of the front foot up the board.

Learn it standing still first, then rolling slowly. Do not rush to flip tricks before your ollie is clean and consistent, because a kickflip is just an ollie with a flick added.