intermediate // transitions
Tailgrab
An air where the back hand grabs the tail of the board.
The Tailgrab is an intermediate Transitions trick.
Spec
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Complexity
- Category
- Transitions
- Stance
- regular
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What the tutorials teach
Both coaches teach the tailgrab as a frontside ollie or frontside 180 in transition with the back hand closing on the tail at the top of the air, and both agree the grab is comparatively easy because the trailing hand is already near the tail. Speed and height are the shared prerequisite: Greg Lutzka opens with pumping for a lot of speed since the trick needs air, and Renton Miller wants the takeoff turned quicker and with more power. On body position they complement each other. Lutzka focuses on the upper body, keeping shoulders turned and looking over the shoulder so you do not hang up on re-entry, while Miller focuses on the lower body, staying crouched at the peak with the back foot up near your bum so the tail is within reach. Miller adds the most useful timing correction: the grab happens around 90 degrees of rotation even though it feels like 180, so commit earlier than instinct says. They differ on how to build up to it. Miller suggests going smaller, three quarters of the way up a ramp or ollie tailgrabs out of a flyout, to get comfortable grabbing while keeping the feet planted. Lutzka instead concentrates on the exit, guiding with the back hand and releasing about a foot before the coping so you land close to it and keep your flow rather than dropping to the flat bottom.
- Pump for real speed and height first; the tailgrab needs air time to happen at all
- Take off like a frontside ollie or frontside 180 and keep your shoulders turned, looking over your shoulder
- Grab with the back hand, which is already near the tail, and reach for it earlier than it feels; the grab lands around 90 degrees of rotation
- Stay crouched at the peak with your back foot up near your bum so the tail comes to your hand and your feet stay on the board
- Release about a foot before the coping and land as close to it as you can, or you drop to the bottom and kill your speed
- Build confidence with smaller versions first: partway up a ramp, or ollie tailgrabs out of a flyout
Synthesized from the top video tutorials. Watch them
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Community clips
How other skaters land the Tailgrab. Hype the ones you rate — the most hyped becomes this trick’s cover in the catalog.
Frequently asked
- What should I learn before the Tailgrab?
- The tailgrab builds on Drop In. Get that consistent first, since the tailgrab reuses the same pop, balance, or flick.
- Is the Tailgrab hard to learn?
- The tailgrab is an intermediate trick. It gets much easier once you can already drop in.
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