Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 2: Part: Getting Started
• Method 2 of 2: Part: Longboarding Basics
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

Longboarding is a sports activity similar to skateboarding.It uses a longer board, larger wheels, and sometimes larger suspensions, as longboarding includes speed, freeride, glide and slalom. Longboarding is a lot of sensations, and perhaps for a beginner it will even be more accessible than skateboarding. If you have a longboard and some free time, go outside and start practicing! But before that, be sure to read this helpful guide.

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Part: Getting Started

1. 1 Decide what you want your board to do. Are you looking for a board just for getting around town? To bomb a skatepark? Or are you planning to fly big descents?
   • Longboards of different lengths have different advantages and disadvantages. Shorter longboards are more agile, allowing you to turn more, but are less stable (easier to fall off). Long planks are more stable but less mobile. Beginners are encouraged to start with them.
2. 2 Purchase protective gear. You may think that this is not the best longboarding solution, but it is necessary, especially in the beginning, due to possible falls. If you have chosen a more extreme type of longboarding, then falls are inevitable.
   • Make sure you have:
     
     • Well-fitting helmet
     • Skateboarding Shoes (Flat)
     • Elbow pads (optional)
     • Knee pads (optional)
3. 3 Determine your guiding foot. This refers to the foot that you put on the board first.
   • To determine what your guiding foot is, have someone unexpectedly push you from behind onto the board. The foot you place first will most likely be the foot you use to guide the skate. If you feel uncomfortable, try changing your legs.
   • Another way to define a foot is to try slipping in socks on a smooth surface; you can also lie on the ground - the leg on which you will rest when standing up will be your guide in skating.
4. 4 Try rolling on a flat surface. Feel the board moving smoothly across the asphalt. The lower your center of gravity, the more confident you will feel while riding. Make sure you follow this rule before starting.
5. 5 Get into the basic position. Place your feet between the bolts that hold the pendants a little more than shoulder width apart. Tilt your guide leg forward slightly, at about a 45 degree angle. Place your other foot perpendicular to the board and the direction in which you are moving.
   • This is just one from positions that you can use. After mastering the basic position, you can study the rest, which may suit you better. Ride the way you like it.
6. 6 Practice board balance by longboarding down a slight slide. Enjoy all the delights of longboard riding. Balance with your hands and bend your knees a little.
7. 7 Balance. If you feel like you are starting to lose control, make sure you focus in a straight line and your peripheral vision guides you. This will allow your body to naturally gain control and balance.

Method 2 of 2: Part: Longboarding Basics

1. 1 Practice accelerating. Take your other foot off the board and start pushing off the ground. You can do one strong push or several weaker ones. Feel free to overclock, the more tense you are, the harder it will be to balance.
   • If you want to use a guiding foot for pushing off, give it a try. Most riders don't do this - it's called "mongo" - but in any case, it's better to do what is more comfortable than what others do.
   • Once you are comfortable with this, try to pick up more speed, pushing harder. You will find that after you get up to a decent speed, one push off is enough to keep the speed long enough.
2. 2 Practice turning, or carving, on your longboard. You need to learn how to turn if you want to ride a lot. Turning is easy enough. All you need to do is focus on the edge of the longboard in which direction you want to turn:
   • Back piping: tilt your feet back and wrap it up with a board inside... For people with a left steer foot, this gives a left turn.
   • Front edge thread: tilt your feet forward and, as it were, wrap the board outward... For people with a left steer foot, this gives a right turn.
3. 3 Find a way to stop or slow down. Foot braking where you lower one foot to the ground while riding is probably the most reliable way - you create friction with the surface, thereby slowing down your longboard. Here are other ways to slow down:
   • Carving: A winding, side-to-side slope slows down and gradually slows down.
   • Pneumatic braking: at high speed, simply align and spread your arms to the sides, which will significantly slow down your ride.
4. 4 Try gliding after you've mastered all the previous practices. To glide, you need slip gloves, or you can attach wooden squares to regular work gloves, for example, from a cutting board (available at any supermarket). As soon as you have gloves, you can start learning! To slide, remember the following:
   • Keep your guiding leg straight, bending your knees slightly; shift your weight forward
   • Slide your other foot off the board using your guide foot to make contact with the ground.
   • Increase pressure gradually to stop
   • Try not to touch the ground with your heels or toes; use the middle of your sole for this
5. 5 Time to learn how to slide with gloves if you want to ride fast. Start off with a slow ride and increase your speed afterwards. Moscow was not built in a day.
6. 6 Don't worry if your board doesn't look like it does in the video. Finding the most comfortable board takes time, and the methods given are suitable for different types of boards. Rigid bearings (86a stiffness) have better grip, making sliding easier.
7. 7 Enjoy the ride, but be careful. Longboarding is a sensation, but falls can lead to serious injury. You will never think that this is about you until it actually happens to you. Be careful and alert to all kinds of situations, prepare carefully and be able to avoid danger in time. But, as they say, get on the longboard and drive!

Tips

• Wear flat shoes. These shoes have much better grip than any other shoe.
• Use large, soft wheels if you want your ride to be as smooth as possible.
• Walk your path and check for obstacles, dirt or speed bumps before driving.
• Find a calm street with no traffic.
• If you want to bomb slopes, look for ones with a long, flat road at the end so you can stop.
• If you're not sure which board you want, go skateboarding and ask to try out different ones, or ask your friends for a time if they have one.
• Don't worry if you fall a lot - as a result, you will hone your skills.
• Learn to glide well. The slide to stop should come naturally to you. If you master it at a high level, you can bomb long descents with confidence.
• Don't try what you feel uncomfortable doing.
• Get gloves with plastic inserts on the palms (google "longboarding gloves").

Warnings

• Are you ready to jump out of the car at 50 km / h? It's easy to pick up speed on a longboard, but make sure you know how to brake!
• Longboarding is a dangerous sport. Do it at your own peril and risk.
• Be careful when driving in public places.
• Always ride in areas where there is no traffic.
• Always wear a helmet, protection and gloves.

What do you need

• Longboard
• Protection
• Helmet
• Gloves
• Long stretch of smooth asphalt