Many new snowboarders go into the sport with images of flips, 360s, and full rail grinds. Before being able to drop in and land advanced tricks, everyone has to begin somewhere. There are a few basic tricks for beginners to learn after they have become comfortable doing regular runs. As they progress, each of these moves allows for more challenging variations to be added.
Ollies
Ollies are a base move that leads to other aerial tricks. This allows the rider to get used to being in the air at a comfortable and controllable height. They also will help practice landing from an airborne position that will aid in other tricks. Ollies should be done on the ground initially and then integrating into jumps to increase air.
Manuals
Manuals, commonly called wheelies, are common additions to more complex tricks, so learning them early is very helpful. There are tail manuals and nose manuals depending on which side of the board you are elevating, so each would be helpful to be familiar with. These can be learned off simple riding and then added on to the end of a jump for progression.
Butters
Butters are the next level from a Manual. This is done by spinning while doing a nose manual or a tail manual, so it’s good to be comfortable with these before moving on to Butters.
Frontside 180s
Frontside 180s are the next progression once a rider has the Ollie down as there needs to be a decent amount of air to perform the spin and then land. It is best to start with Frontside 180s to get used to switching between stances, and then moving on to Backside 180s as well as bigger spins.
Adding Maneuvers
When these initial tricks can be completed comfortably, many variations can be added to increase difficulty. Adding a grab or moving on to jibs, or grinding rails, are great ways to progress these foundational moves.
It is beneficial to start basic and increase difficulty when it comes to snowboarding tricks. This ensures an increased chance of succeeding in performing the next move as confidence grows. Then it’s on to the halfpipe!
