What's up! This is Tim with Tactics and today I'm going to teach you how to kickflip.
Learning kickflips is one of the big milestones in skateboarding and opens up the floodgates for
other kickflip related tricks like varial flips, front side and back side flips, and 360 flips.
They're super versatile and they're also just really satisfying.
The only prerequisite for kickflips is to have a consistent ollie because they share a lot of the same movements and timing
The better your ollies the quicker you'll learn kickflips.
If you're still working on your ollies and need a little help refining them, check out our how to ollie video for an in-depth guide
Alright let's dive into the mechanics of the kickflip.
Similar to the ollie the kickflip works by utilizing the rebound of the wood,
and the flick off the edge of the board to make it flip.
The board won't flip until it's airborne, so proper timing of the flick is vital for the kickflip to work.
But if you have ollies then you've already done most of the hard work of coordinating your muscles for the motion.
Most skaters will tell you that kickflips are easier done while rolling.
I agree with that but it's completely up to you if you want to learn it rolling or stationary
Let's move on to the foot placement.
The widely accepted foot placement for kickflips is...
Weight on the balls of your feet, and evenly distributed between each foot.
The ball of the back foot is on the tip of the tail and your front foot is just behind the front hardware bolts
with a slight angle, and shifted slightly closer to the edge of the deck.
But you'll find that no two skaters do kickflips exactly alike and foot placement will vary slightly from skater to skater.
Also differences in your skateboard setup or in the shape of the toe box of your shoes can alter where you put your feet.
So experiment with different front foot positions while you're trying to learn kickflips and find what works best for you.
Many young skaters who are learning kickflips will put their front foot way far back
and on the very edge of the board to get a sooner and faster flick.
But that foot positioning isn't the best way to flip the board and it'll make your kickflips very low and rocket.
There are five main events within a kickflip:
There's the jump, the pop, the flick, the catch, and of course the landing.
I'm going to break down each individual foot motion for each event before we put it all together.
Just like with ollies, the entire maneuver is initiated with a jump.
The pop slide flick and catch all occur within the jump.
So the higher you can jump and suck up your feet the higher the potential kickflip
and the more time you'll have to spot the board as it finishes the flip.
When you're jumping up, spring up off the balls of your feet because this will give you a better pop and jump.
You can't really get any power if you're just using your knees to jump.
You need to spring up off your toes.
Beginners sometimes get caught up in thinking about popping flicking and everything else, that they forget to get a good jump.
Don't underestimate the importance of a good jump to start it off.
The motion of the back foot for kickflips is the same as with ollies.
It's responsible for popping down the tail,
and then immediately getting out of the way to allow the board to bounce upwards and flip.
The power in the pop comes from your calf muscles and ankle.
And make sure that the pop is straight down.
If you angle the pop of the board it will start to rotate and flip a varial flip instead of a straight kickflip.
Immediately after the back foot pops down,
quickly pull it up by lifting and tucking your knees up towards your chest.
The back foot is gonna chill up there while it's waiting to catch the board after it's done flipping, but
we'll get to that in a second.
The front foot is responsible for the upward slide and the flick.
The flick is the most vital part of the kickflip and will take the most time to figure out because there's so many different ways to flick the board.
The motion starts the same as with an ollie.
The front foot tilts inward and starts the upward slide as the board is popping off the ground.
The ankle tilt is important because the side of the shoe provides more traction for the slide and flick.
At the peak of the jump instead of pushing forward and leveling out the nose like an ollie,
the foot will flick off to the side of the nose causing the board to flip.
The flick isn't just a kick forward into the side,
It's a precise movement using your leg and your ankle to flick off the side of the nose.
Practice this side flicking motion for a little bit.
When flicking the board slide your foot at a slight angle and aim for the side of the nose near the pocket.
Anywhere in this region is good.
Flicking off the side of the deck rather than off the side of the nose will still flip the board
but the deck won't level out properly and will flip vertically or "rocket"
and it'll be harder to land on and won't look very good.
When you flick the board, follow through past the nose to give it room to flip.
As soon as your front foot is clear of the board keep it lifted while bringing it back under you.
If we trace the motion of the flicking foot,
it slides up, flicks forward off the nose, stays up while it's coming back under your body, and then comes down to land.
The timing and the angle of the flick is also very critical for a decent kickflip.
If you try to flick the board too early or flick upwards, it will cause the board to flip rocket.
And flicking it too late or straight down makes the board flip unpredictably and it's hard to catch or control.
The flick needs to be directed more forward and occur just before you reach the peak of your jump.
Which is coincidentally the same timing you'd use to level out an ollie.
Turn the motion you would use to level out the board, into the flicking motion.
Don't stress on trying to land it right away.
Just practice popping and flicking the board and intentionally jumping off to the side
in order to get the feeling of where and how hard you need to flick the board.
Keep practicing flipping the board until you can keep it controlled and underneath your body.
Because no matter how well you can flip the board, if it's not under you you can't land on it.
Try landing on the board with only your back foot.
This can be a confidence builder to inch your way towards landing with both feet.
The last part of the kickflip is putting your feet back on the board and landing.
This can be the most intimidating hurdle to overcome because it takes confidence and 100% commitment.
At this point, your feet should already be up in the air, under your body and waiting for the board to finish flipping.
When the board has completed the flip, set your feet back on the board and land with your weight evenly distributed.
When you're learning kickflips for the first time, they probably won't be very high off the ground,
and you'll just meet up with the board at the ground when you land on it.
But when you start flipping the board a little higher off the ground with a little more power,
you'll need to catch the board to prevent it from over flipping.
Catching the board is when you gently place your feet back on the board in midair to halt the flip so you can land on it.
Learning to catch the board is very important if you eventually want to try doing kickflips
over or down things or doing them into slides or grinds.
The catch can happen with either your backfoot or both feet depending on how the board flips.
Usually when the board levels out properly the back foot naturally meets up with it first
because the tail is traveling upward, and the front foot is still on its way back from the flick.
But catching the board with both feet is completely fine.
Catching the board isn't the same as stomping it down.
Don't try to catch the board by slamming your feet down like pinning down a loose sheet of paper blowing away in the wind.
Catching the board is more gentle and deliberate.
Simply extend your feet enough to touch the top of the board to stop the flip, then let gravity do the rest.
If you make a habit of stomping down the board it'll be hard to learn kickflips down gaps
because the board will just get kicked away if there's still any distance between you and the ground.
So when going off gaps or drops, the board needs to be gently caught and then held all the way down.
Okay, let's recap the motions and put it all together.
With your shoulders parallel with the board, feet in place, weight on the balls of your feet,
and evenly distributed between each foot. Start your kickflip with an upwards jump.
Just like an ollie, right before your feet leave the deck, that's when the back foot does the popping motion.
And at the same time the front foot is starting the upward slide toward the edge of the nose for the flick.
Immediately after you've popped the tail with your ankle suck your back foot up and get it out of the way.
As your back foot is moving up your front foot is flicking off the edge of the nose and following through,
causing the board to flip.
While the board is flipping and leveling out the front foot starts to make its way back under your torso.
Your back foot is still tucked waiting to catch the board.
As soon as you spot the grip tape coming around lower your feet to catch the board and land.
Both feet should come down at the same time.
Land with your feet flat, shoulders still parallel with the board, and try your best to land on the hardware bolts.
All of that takes place within half a second.
After a lot of practice and trial and error, it'll start to feel like one motion.
One of the biggest hurdles in learning new tricks in general is committing to landing on the board with both feet.
It can be scary because since you've never done the trick before, you're not really sure what to expect or how it's supposed to feel.
Once you've figured out how to consistently flip the board and keep it under your torso, you're ready to commit to the landing.
First you need to visualize the trick.
Visualization is when you mentally rehearse the outcome that you want to unfold,
and it can give you the confidence you need to do the trick.
I can't tell you how many times i've been trying a trick, I flip it perfectly and I wuss out for no reason.
I wasn't expecting the board actually do what I wanted, and I bailed before I even gave it a chance.
So you need to expect and have faith in your ability to flip the board properly before you can actually commit to it.
You also need to be willing to fall a few times.
With commitment comes the risk of the trick not working out,
and you might slip out or land on the board upside down or in primo,
and that's all just part of the learning process.
But committing and landing on the board upside down is still closer than flipping the board perfectly and not even trying to land on it.
When your confidence is built up, you need that, "I'M GONNA DO IT!!!" moment where you go for it no matter what.
All you need is that one good flip and commitment together and you'll have landed a kickflip.
Not every kickflip attempt is going to flip exactly the same so try and be flexible.
Usually your body knows within a fraction of a second whether or not the trick is going to work out.
But if you have a commitment mindset, you'll be surprised what you can get away with.
Here's a couple more pointers to help you learn it faster.
If you're nervous about trying kickflips on concrete you can start by practicing on some carpet or some dry grass so you don't slip out.
The pop won't be as solid as concrete but at least you can start building up your confidence.
Another thing you can try is holding on to something.
Find something you can use to prop yourself up with like a short fence or a bike rack.
It'll give you a little moon gravity so you can start really slowing down the whole process and spot your landing without the risk of falling.
It can also help if you record your kickflip attempts and then study the footage to see what you're doing wrong.
Practice kickflips a lot!
Kickflips are one of the most versatile tricks and it's worth putting in the work to get them good.
Refining your kickflip takes months of practice and determination.
But they'll get higher, smoother, more controlled and eventually they'll feel automatic.
You'll start kickflipping down gaps, in and out of grinds and manuals and it'll feel so good.
One last thing, try to not get discouraged.
Learning any new trick on a skateboard is difficult and everyone has their own process.
Just remember that skateboarding is fun! So if you start to get frustrated just take a break,
goof around for a little bit and come back to it.
With some dedication and persistence you will improve and achieve your goals.
And it's that feeling of accomplishment that keeps us coming back day after day.
If you got any comments or questions leave them in the box down below,
and be sure to subscribe to Tactics Boardshop for more content.
All right! Let's go learn some kickflips!