No matter if you’re an experienced longboarder, skateboarder or a beginner, there’s a learning curve to surfskating. Due to the unique front truck, surfskates ride and flow different compared to all other types of skateboards.
Today we want to give you a some useful tips for your Curfboard experience.
Stance and body position
Try to remember your stance on your surfboard and simply copy it over to your surfskate. Your feet should be about shoulder-width apart. Your front foot is placed slightly behind the front truck and your back foot is right on top of the rear truck. Keep your knees fluid, ready to bend as you flow and carve. Same with your arms, keep them loose and ready to swing out to initiate turns.
First steps
The very first thing to practice is to be loose and comfortable on the board. Get used to the loose front trucks, learn to balance first while standing and then while slowly rolling.
A good tip that every surfskate beginner should know, the best way to ride it is not by skating, but surfing it. You might use one foot off the board to give yourself a first push, but after that you will pump to get and maintain speed.
Try to engage your surfing brain, Curfboards are designed to flow and turn just like a surfboard, so riding with this mindset is key.
Surfskating engages your shoulders and hips
As mentioned, surfskating is much different from skateboarding and longboarding. While skateboarding and longboarding, you primarily use your lower body to ride, steer and do tricks. However, surfskating is like surfing and snowboarding. It all comes from your upper body, primarily your shoulders and hips. Here’s what to remember: Where your head and arms lead, your board will follow. It’s a common mistake in the beginning, to keep your upper body rigid while trying to generate all your movement from the feet. This won’t work on a surfskate. Move your body in the same way as you would surfing and learn to surf the concrete.
How to pump your surfskate
So you’re starting to feel comfortable standing and slowly rolling on your surfskate. Let’s move to the next step which is to learn how to pump your surfskate. Place your feet sideways on the board, as described above. To generate the first movement, you can use your front foot to move the front truck back and forth. Keep your foot stable on the board while putting weight onto your toes and then onto your heels. This back and forth movement will get you going, but will only get you so far.
For the full pumping motion, you will use your upper body. In the beginning it will help to hold up your arms up higher than normal. Remember to lead with your shoulders, then your hips and the feet will follow. Swing your arms and twist your upper body from side to side. Your upper body twists, while your lower body releases that energy into the surfskate. Allow your upper body to move the board, rather than your feet. Surf the concrete ahead, look where you want to go and feel the board reacting to your movement.
Let’s take a look at the movement in detail:
