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intermediate // flatground

Varial Kickflip

Also known as Varial Flip

A pop shove-it and a kickflip combined — the board spins backside 180° horizontally while simultaneously kickflipping.

The Varial Kickflip is an intermediate Flatground trick. Most skaters land their first one within 2-6 months of consistent practice.

V

Spec

Difficulty
intermediate
Complexity
Learn time
2-6 monthsⓘ
Category
Flatground
Stance
regular

Your progress

What the tutorials teach

All top tutorials agree that the varial kickflip is simply a pop shove-it and a kickflip executed at exactly the same moment, and that you must have both prerequisite tricks working before attempting it. The back foot provides a pop straight down with only a slight backward nudge (far less scoop than a tre flip), while the front foot performs a kickflip motion that flicks straight forward or slightly inward rather than sideways. The single biggest consensus point is that the board must stay directly under your center line throughout the trick: leaning away or spinning your shoulders frontside is the root cause of most failed attempts.

  • Pop your back foot straight down first, then add only a slight nudge backward; think of it as a pop with a hint of scoop, not a full shove-it
  • Flick your front foot straight forward or slightly inward, not outward sideways like a standard kickflip, because the board is already rotating under you
  • Keep the board on your center line: the tail should float on your heel side and the nose on your toe side as the board rotates, not drifting out in front of you
  • Keep your shoulders parallel to the board and do not twist them frontside; opening your shoulders pulls your front foot away from the board and is the top cause of missed landings
  • Practice stepping off with your back foot and landing with only your front foot first, doing this repeatedly until the motion is automatic before committing both feet
  • Flick timing for a varial flip is earlier than a kickflip: flick as you are popping and scooping, not after you are already in the air
  • If you over-rotate the shove-it, reduce the scoop to nearly nothing and focus on popping straight down; if you under-rotate, move your back foot toes slightly more into the toe-side pocket
  • Wait for the board to complete its full rotation before extending your legs to land; tuck your knees and be patient in the air rather than forcing your feet down

Synthesized from the top video tutorials. Watch them

Steps

  1. 1

    Combine the motions

    Think of it as a pop shove-it where your front foot also flicks. The back foot scoops backside, the front foot flicks toe-side.

    Force
    ●●○○○
    Direction
    centered
    Weight
    centered
    TipPractice pop shove-its and kickflips separately until both are consistent.
  2. 2

    Back foot scoops backside

    The back foot scoops backward to drive the horizontal rotation.

    Force
    ●●●●○
    Direction
    back
    Weight
    centered
    TipThe scoop and flick must happen at the same moment.
  3. 3

    Front foot flicks toe-side

    Simultaneously with the scoop, your front foot flicks the kickflip as normal.

    Force
    ●●●●○
    Direction
    forward
    Weight
    centered
    TipTrust your muscle memory from the individual tricks.
  4. 4

    Wait for the landing window

    Both rotations must complete before you land.

    Force
    ●●●●○
    Direction
    down
    Weight
    centered
    TipVarial kickflips usually land with the board slightly angled — this is normal.

The blueprint

NOSETAILFRONTBACKPOPSLIDEFLICKSCOOP
Showing foot placement · motion arrows.

Shown for regular stance

Common mistakes

Timing is off

What
One axis completes before the other.
Why
The two simultaneous motions aren't fired together.
Fix
Practice in slow motion on carpet to feel the simultaneous commitment required.

Only one rotation completes

What
The board flips but doesn't shove, or vice versa.
Why
One motion is dominating.
Fix
Isolate the weak motion and practice separately before re-combining.

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Why this works

The mechanics behind the trick

Board
Two independent rotations happen simultaneously: the horizontal backside shove and the vertical kickflip axis.
Feet
The back foot initiates the shove-it scoop. The front foot adds the kickflip flick on top.
Weight
Both rotations need clean height to complete.

Frequently asked

How long does it take to learn a Varial Kickflip?
Most skaters land their first varial kickflip within 2-6 months of consistent practice, once you can pop shove-it and kickflip consistently.
What should I learn before the Varial Kickflip?
The varial kickflip builds on Pop Shove-it and Kickflip. Get those consistent first, since the varial kickflip reuses the same pop, balance, or flick.
Is the Varial Kickflip hard to learn?
The varial kickflip is an intermediate trick. It gets much easier once you can already pop shove-it and kickflip.

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