Spins

All tricks learned on the ground will improve your chances of doing them on the vert.

All tricks learned on the ground will improve your chances of doing them on the vert. So this is nearly an easy move for those who can do them on ground.

The 360 should only be tried on halfpipes that have a vert section. Pump the vert until you reach the coping on the other side of the vert. The attempt should begin as soon as you leave the transition area. It's important that your start here doing the trick, so you have the time to complete the move, before you hit the transition area.

The beginning time is no longer crucial once you start getting air above the coping, but for now, make sure you commit as soon as hit vertical. The crucial here is timing and commitment. Don't think of yourself as being vertical, rather look at the perspective relative to the ramp. When you look at it this way, you are not vertical at all, if fact it's like skating on the ground. Now just as if you were on the ground, do a 360, making sure to take your hands from out to in (from the body). As I said earlier the timing is important as well as commitment. Give 100% there is room to pull it off! You want to finish the 360 before hitting the transition area. Coming down the transition at an angle backwards is not easy to control. A clue to timing is this:

If you haven't passed 180 degrees before you are on your way back down, you have done it too slow and your chances of completing the move are minimal. At 180 degrees you should be seeing the ramp below you. Once the 360 is complete and you are facing the sky above, put your feet in a spread stance from forward to back. You are now coming down backwards and the spread feet stance will give you stability. Ride down backwards like normal…

540: The 540 is a bit harder than the 360. Some skaters have troubles in the beginning doing this trick. It is not that they can't do it, but they will not let themselves. There isn't that much to it!

Like you would with any spin, you should also practise this trick on flat ground first. Think that you are going to spin like in a 360, but you are also going to land the opposite of what you were facing when you started to turn. For instance, if you are going forwards, think of spinning a lot, and landing backwards. So it is same thought like a 180 that should go through your head - but spin like you would with a 360! That's it!

When you have got the spin, and feel comfortable with your landing, you can add grabs too.

Other Vert tricks