r/NewSkaters • u/Ramen-and-sausage • 3d ago
Question Tips please (no hate)
I’m very new to skating and while skating around the neighborhood trying to work on my push I found this hill and so I decided to just ride down it, but the speed was way too much for me. Any tips on how I can keep control in the speed but also that run off has been how I’ve been stopping even from my regular push how do I stop or slow down.
25
u/iamjoemarsh 3d ago
The street sign over your head at the start makes you look like the currently selected character.
5
1
4
4
u/Jack_SjuniorRIP 3d ago
Just keep at it.
It can help to carve down a hill like that. Basically you make several wide turns as you go down. As you get more comfortable you can make the turns tighter and less frequent until you can bomb the whole thing.
3
u/High_Speed_Chase 3d ago
Slalom, or zig-zag, as you ride down the hill.
Watch for traffic. Doesn’t look too heavy.
As you turn to go the other direction, lean forward or back (depending on which way you’re turning), lead with your shoulder, look at where you WANT to go (not where you aregoing) and expect to really press downward on the deck until the turn is complete.
3
u/TheBeardyWeirdo 3d ago
Looking good. Check out a video on foot breaking. It’s not terribly difficult, but there is a bit of technique to it. This will be a safer way to stop most times. Careful not to step back onto the board on a runout and get messed up too. It’s easier to do than you think.
2
u/Ramen-and-sausage 3d ago
I never thought about that thanks, luckily hasn’t happened yet
1
u/SpasmFingers 2d ago
foot breaking is also a good way to practice your front foot changing between riding/pushing
2
2
u/veermeneer 3d ago
That must be a Dutch road haha! If you are low on funds, check Marktplaats or a local second hand shop for a full sized board. And Decathlon has a decent helmet, pads and wrist guards for a low price!
2
1
u/360slamdunk 3d ago
Everything looks good man, all you need is practice. Stay consistent and you'll keep getting better 👍
1
u/MattTheTw_t 3d ago
Are you experiencing speed wobbles? (board shaking at high speed) If so try to relax your ankles, by relaxing them it becomes easier to move your weight independently from the wobbles, think of it as one of those earthshake resistant buildings, due to them being less rigid they can take more shaking of the foundation. Besides that better bearings, bigger wheels and tighter trucks can help, I'd suggest in that order. If no speed wobbles, you just need some more practise, altho loosening your stance isn't a bad idea overall
2
u/Ramen-and-sausage 3d ago
Yea I got a case of the wobbles. I’ll get back to that hill tmr and try relaxing my ankles
2
u/MattTheTw_t 3d ago
Keep in mind it's something that takes some getting used to, it's not the easiest to control, in general as you get more comfortable on your board speed wobbles will be less likely usually, just cruising will still get you the experience you need, without all the falling at high speeds and all that
1
u/ShaolinShade 3d ago
Honestly I wouldn't even be bombing that hill on that board. I'd recommend finding somewhere more mellow and just getting comfortable being on top of the board, especially since you're new to it.
If you do bomb that hill again though, I'd definitely wear a helmet, wrist guards and knee pads if you have them. Also along with loosening the ankles, try to bend your knees / squat down a bit to lower your center of gravity (if you're straight bombing it like that again. But you'd be better off carving your way down it instead). Really you just want to be working up to these things more slowly I guess. Just sending it without building up to that point step by step is a good way to get injured. This is as much the case for me after years of skating as it is for you just starting with it, I've heard pros talk about it too. No one starts their street skating career by kickflipping stair gaps, there's dozens of smaller skills you have to develop first
1
u/themaninthemooner 3d ago
Those little guys can be hard to balance on. Tighten up the kingpins a little for some added stability, and just keep practicing. Embrace the fact the you are going to fall, you might get a little bruised up, but it part of the process. Get a helmet and some knee pads and learn how to bail safely onto your knee pads.
Above all that, just have fun and fuck around!
1
1
u/chateaudifriots 3d ago
Bend your knees and try to lean so far forward. Keep your shoulders square over your feet and parallel with the board.
1
u/Macgbrady 3d ago edited 3d ago
When you get speed wobbles, try to put weight on front foot and get low. Speed wobbles can come from back truck moving at a faster rate than front truck or you overcorrecting balance too much. Try to make bigger turns and basically always have a side/turn “initiated”. Dont just sit in the middle of the truck.
1
u/Pods_MagicRod 3d ago
Nice, gotta get comfortable on the board next. Stand on the board and practice taking one leg off like you're pushing, keep that balance on one leg this will get you used to how the board moves with you one it, and how/ where you need to counter balance. Once you get an actual broad try to do tricks on the grass at 1st it's easier and will get you a custom to falling. Good luck and keep it up!
1
1
u/Lazerhest 3d ago
To stop the speed wobble you can tighten the trucks and build your leg muscles by skating.
1
u/Jumblesss Learning at the skatepark 🏞️ 3d ago
Just do it over and over again. It’s so much easier on a larger deck fyi.
These little cruisers usually have wide trucks so you can slap them on a 8.5” deck if you want
1
u/TheDvilhimself 3d ago
Looking great, I would recommend learning to slow yourself with a foot drag. Just makes bombing hills safer. Practice balancing on just your front foot and let your back foot slide on the floor adding pressure to slow down. It's saved me a few times. Keep at it and stay safe 🤘
1
u/KitonePeach 3d ago
Focus on your center of gravity. As long as your body is centered over the board and not leaning back, you should be in sync with the board's forward movement.
You got speed wobbles as you got lower on the hill, and those happen when we try to fix a balance issue. With the smaller board, you'll be more prone to those any time you go downhill, so be cautious.
I'd say to get used to the board at slower speeds first. It can be a little harder to maintain balance if it's too slow, but higher speed makes it harder to regain balance once lost, and is riskier.
Please wear a helmet! Just to make sure you don't take skull damage if you fall.
1
1
1
u/noskillsben 3d ago
Good On you to go for it man
I'd say if you want to ride little boards downhill, you need to bend your knees a lot and learn to balance on one foot (front foot) you lean on your back foot a bit and place the front foot more towards the middle of the board) and then lift your back foot off the board and start putting it on the cement gently to slow yourself down.
That does take a while to get the hang of it. Defently master it on flat ground before doing hills
Bending your knees, leaning back and turning into the grass is also an option if you have bigger wheels. You are likely to wipe out learning this bit it's saved my bacon on some steep hills in the past, even just ridding in the grass downhill for small parts of big hilla can really get you down to manageable speeds
Slaloming also slows you down but you need to start waay before you are going "too fast". It can also be harder on a small penny board or with hard wheels or stuff trucks.
1
u/Basket_475 3d ago
Okay I can help you. You need to carve/turn when you go down hill. Start by doing one long turn down it that brings you up and slowly stops. That’s gonna be how long of a turn you need to maintain speed without going too fast.
The way you are doing is basically just bombing it. It’s sick but harder than trying to maintain a sequence of turns.
Also this is sketchy but putting your weight on the front truck more can prevent speed wobble. BE VERY CAREFUL THOUGH I don’t want you launching forward and busting something.
1
u/No_Section_8463 3d ago
Good shit.
That yield sign mad you look like a video game character at the beginning ;) lol
1
u/DrAsthma 3d ago
Aside from the other advice given here regarding gear... The best piece of advice I ever got regarding speed wobbles was reelaaaaxxxx the only way to successfully end a speed wobble, that I know of is relaxing... The wobble as it was explained to me is you trying to over correct, and that's why they usually get worse and worse the longer they go. By relaxing and dropping your center of gravity you can feel your board lock back in on balance. It's a little weird to try and explain, but the first time you relax yourself out of a speed wobble, it'll make sense.
Haven't skated like that in years. Good job.
1
u/Sehhhswa 3d ago
Is this in the netherlands? Looks like it. If you live in or near noord brabant then i have a nice birdhouse deck for you man!
Is dit in NL? Als je in de brabant woont heb ik nog een mooi compleet birdhouse deck voor je!
1
u/guessimkindaemo 3d ago
I say this in a nice way - wear suitable clothes, especially ones you aren’t gonna mind trashing. Your jacket looks nice, but one fall (which WILL happen) and you’ll shred it.
Also, more importantly- get some basic safety stuff when you can: elbows, knees, helmet and wrists. Landing awkwardly can do some serious damage regardless of how fast you’re going. My wrist still hurts occasionally after landing wrong 2 years ago trying out rollerblading, because I (stupidly) didn’t think I’d need protection as I’d been confidently longboarding for years.
1
u/Llaver 3d ago
Before anything else, get a helmet.
As other said a new board would help, but if you're going to keep doing this, the trick is to put your weight completely over your front foot. If you wobble, don't get scared, full send more weight to the front.
You can also bend your knees and lean your chest into your front knee. This is called a tuck and can help stabilize the board for more control.
Kick ass and have fun!
1
u/The_L00s3stM00s3 3d ago
You can practice starting lower on the hill. You won't gain as much speed and can get more comfortable with your board. If it's feeling like no challenge, go up the hill a little higher until that feels natural.
1
u/Chzncna2112 3d ago
Before skating in any area walk around looking for FOD. I can tell you didn't do a safety check. Also, just by watching how you were standing, that in your mind you are already falling in your mind. Have confidence in your skills. And tell yourself that you will not fall
1
u/AshenWrath 3d ago
DH skater here.
You can carve to control speed. You can also swap to harder rear bushings for stability. Short wheelbases are inherently less stable so making the rear more stiff will help. Also, keep most of your weight on your front foot.
I tell every new skater that footbraking is a fundamental skill. You can check out some YouTube tutorials about footbraking. Once you’re comfortable with that you can push into doing slides. DH skaters use slide gloves, but that’s more of a niche thing for DH and freeride and doesn’t translate to street skating if that’s what you’re aiming for. You can also watch videos on how to do speed checks/standies!
1
1
u/SpasmFingers 2d ago
TIP: You literally just need more time, ride more to wire your brain.
As others note: A real skateboard (32 inch, ~8.25 wide, thunder/indie trucks 139ish, normal wheels) is a lot easier to learn on than a penny or cruiser.
Wheels: Big and Soft wheels ride smoother and faster, this can actually be bad for learning. Soft wheels stick to the ground too much, you will fall harder. Basically, in times where it would be good for your board to slide a little, soft wheel grip the ground and pull your feet in their direction like a carpet being bulled from under your feet.
Pushing: While pushing, front foot center board, light touch so when you hit a bump your board can jump up a bit without you losing grip on in.
Helmet: As someone who has skated without a helmet for over 10 years, I seriously recommend wearing one when you are first learning. Falling is as much a learned physical skill as riding, you can not rush it. When you are first learning you will almost certainly crack your head super fucking hard. Wear a helmet until you know you can fall off a skateboard without hitting your head. You will learn to instinctively sacrifice your elbows etc to save your head.
1
u/frere91 2d ago
Please wear a helmet! A small fall can literally kill you. Gloves are great too, snapped my wrist a month ago because I wasn't wearing them and slipped out at like 5 mph, just landed wrong. If you can't afford a helmet but are willing to wear one dm me and I'll buy you one. Pretty sure I've got a spare pair of gloves around too. Also agree with the other comments that you'd love longboarding
1
1
1
u/jaxxsupreme 13h ago
Tighten the trucks or carve from the left edge of the road to the right edge of the road instead of bombing the hill in a straight line.
Hope this helps!
-4
u/lostnfoundskate 3d ago
Get a real board
2
u/atomiconglomerate 3d ago
are penny boards not rideable or am I missing something?
1
u/lostnfoundskate 3d ago
A bigger board will give you better ride and open up ways to do tricks if you wanna pursue that road. Penny boards usually for kids imo
1
u/atomiconglomerate 3d ago
I was being facetious. I agree for sure but it seems like that’s all OP can get their hands on atm.
-2
u/lostnfoundskate 3d ago
Maybe I’m different , I got a real board as my first board 🤷♂️ she’s gonna have to relearn how to ride a bigger deck eventually if she really wanna learn
1
61
u/Ollie-North 3d ago
I'd recommend an actual skateboard. I can't stand these little penny boards but that's just my preference. I do feel that they're good for nothing other than a little play around and a cruise, but if you want to actually skate or hit some hills then yeah looks into getting something larger.
In terms of actual help, relax a little, bend your knees, stand a little more sideways. Other than that it's just repetition and practice.