If you are proficient at skateboarding and basic tricks, then heelflip is a great trick to master. In this article, we teach you the heelflip, without having to learn the kickflip.
Skateboarding is one of those sports that is extremely popular amongst teenagers. While considered a hobby earlier on, today skateboarding is a legitimate sport that receives a lot of attention for the many tricks that are key to the sport. The ollie, railstand, manual, and the kickflip are some of the most popular tricks in the world of skateboarding. Similar to the kickflip, the heelflip is a natural progression from the trick mentioned before. It is though, definitely possible to learn the latter without knowing the kickflip.
Slightly harder, in the heelflip, a skateboarder is expected to ollie into the air and then flick the skateboard with his heel making it spin in the air along the nose-tail axis of the skateboard. While spinning the heel edge, the skateboard is supposed to come up first and the skateboard is supposed to stay aligned parallel to the ground. This trick also includes the spinning of the board before the skater lands on his feet on the skateboard and can continue to ride away or perform other tricks.
Doing the Heelflip
- While starting off, you first position yourself on the skateboard as you would while doing an ollie, with your back foot across the tail and your front foot (dominant foot), placed on the center of the skateboard. Your front foot should be placed in such a manner that your toe region slightly tangles from the skateboard.
- While doing the pop for the heelflip, the difference between the two moves arises. While popping the skateboard into the air, you will need to kick the heel of the foot in the front, forward. Once your front foot is off the skateboard, you point your toes up to the air and kick your front foot outwards completely in front of you, while flicking the skateboard with your heel.
- The next step is important as you need to ensure that as you flick the board with your heel, you get your feet out of the way so that the skateboard spins without any difficulty. As it spins, you need to get the front foot back in position, so that you are ready to catch the skateboard under your feet.
- A tip that you need to keep in mind is to never lean too forward. Keep yourself at level as much as possible. This will help you balance your weight on the skateboard. It is also important that you keep your eyes on the skateboard so that you are able to catch it in time.
- Remember to land with your knees bend, as this will allow to absorb the shock of landing better, and also help prevent injuries. Once you land on your skateboard, all you need to do is roll away.
Mastering the heelflip can take you some time and practice. Persevere with the skateboard trick and you should be able to do it well. While performing it, there are some important things to keep in mind. You need to ensure that you start off with a good pop and flick the skateboard properly. The inward heelflip can be a lot more difficult as you need to spin the skateboard between your feet. With practice though it is possible to learn how to do that.
This is just one of the many skateboarding tricks that you can learn. Once you have mastered it, you can always think about maybe becoming more serious about the hobby.