Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Testing knowledge during a conversation
• Method 2 of 3: Observing Activity
• Method 3 of 3: Assessing Appearance

Many people say that they are real skaters, but in fact they don't even know how to skate. Such people are just posers. For them, skateboarding and the whole skate culture is just fashion, they have no interest in skating. Most poseers often talk about what kind of tricks they can perform, but it is almost impossible to see them rolling on the board. Many posers are good enough at misleading others about their skills, but if you know which points to pay attention to, you can easily tell a poser from a real skater.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Testing knowledge during a conversation

1. 1 Pay attention to the terms and slang associated with skateboarding. Real skaters always talk about frontside and backside tricks. They often use basic terms like "pop" and "kickflip". Pay attention to one of the most basic terms - ollie. Ollie is the basis of any trick that skaters do, and this word constantly resounds in their speech.
   • Other basic terms in skateboarding are slappy, fake, kickflip, vert, tweak, table, shift, kick, and mob.
   • You might ask something like, "Have you done the kickflip on the vert ramp yet?" or "Did you see Max doing kickflips? He has a huge pop!"
   • Notice how he calls the different parts of the skateboard. A true skater must know all the elements: deck, nose, tracks, harness, grip and base.
   • Try asking, "How do you hold the board, by the deck or by the tracks? Do you think it matters?"
2. 2 Ask him if he knows about goofy and regular. Any real skater can easily answer this question, but the poseer is likely to find this question difficult, and unlikely to be able to answer it. These terms refer to the way a person stands on a skateboard and is one of the first things taught when skateboarding.
   • Say: "I only ride a regular. Are you a goofy?"
   • Regular is the most common stance on a skateboard, with the left foot closer to the nose of the board and the right foot closer to the tail.
   • Goofy is the opposite of the regular, with the right foot close to the nose of the board and the left near the tail.
3. 3 Ask them about the board. Ask which brand the skateboard is, how long ago it was purchased, and what it looks like. These are very simple questions, and a real skater who knows his board in every detail can easily answer them. You can also ask if he is using a complete (pre-assembled, pre-assembled) board or custom-built for this skater.
   • Ask, "What material is the board made of?" and "Have you tightened or loosened the tracks after buying the board?" and "What's on the board?"
   • It is very common for experienced skateboarders to purchase decks and other parts separately to assemble their own skateboard, ideally suited to all needs.
   • Even if they've never done it before, a real skater will happily talk about all the aspects of building your own skateboard.
4. 4 Ask about your favorite skateboarders and favorite brands. Real skaters are bound to have their favorite professional skateboarders, and they will know the names of the pros, not just Tony Hawk, Bam and Ryan Scheckler. Style plays an important role in skate culture, so a real skater will definitely name a few skateboarding brands. Even if he says something negative about a particular brand or skater, it will still be knowledge.
   • When he talks about which professional skaters or brands he likes (or dislikes), be sure to ask why.
   • A real skater easily argues his opinion, positive or negative.

Method 2 of 3: Observing Activity

1. 1 See how he holds his board. Pay attention to whether he holds the board with a central grip ("pier-grab"), that is, by the wheels. "Like-grab" most often speaks of posturing. If he is holding her with the side covering towards him, then he is most likely a poseur (or a beginner). Correctly hold the board close at hand by the middle, with the wheels outward.
   • There is a lot of controversy over whether "mole grab" really indicates a poseur, as many skaters today hold their boards that way. Like-grab may indicate that you are a poser only if there are other signs mentioned in this article.
   • Sure, you have to appreciate the way he holds the skateboard, but you also need to look at the way he rides the skateboard he carries around with him.
   • Some poseurs buy skateboards and carry them around just to look cool, just like a fashion accessory - and they don't even know how to wear it right!
2. 2 Find out what he is doing at the skate park. Does he really spend his time in the park skating? Or does he only come there to show off, ride once, and the rest of the time he just stands there, chatting, smoking, texting and interfering with real skaters? Behavior of a classic poseur.
   • Real skaters spend all their time in the park, skating and perfecting new techniques.
   • Real skaters pay little or no attention to the social aspect of going to a skate park.
3. 3 Ask for a few tricks to demonstrate. If you get the chance, ask them to show you a few tricks. A real skater will not mind showing what he can do, even if he is a beginner. Beginners are not posers - they have at least started skating and are learning how to do it.
   • You may ask, "Show me the ollie!" or "Show me the frontside and backside tricks? I am currently practicing the frontside and want to see how you do it."
   • Poser will find many excuses not to ride, because he doesn't really know how to do it.
   • If he doesn't have a board with him, ask him to go to the skate park together, or even offer to ride your board.

Method 3 of 3: Assessing Appearance

1. 1 Pay attention to scratches and abrasions. If a person rides a skateboard, then he probably falls and gets bruises or scratches. There is no getting away from this. Even seasoned skaters fall off the board quite often because they try new tricks, which always means a few falls before a successful attempt.
   • Real skaters are always trying to do something new, which means that falls and bumps are inevitable.
   • Real skaters learn to fall "correctly" to avoid serious injury, but minor scratches and abrasions are common.
2. 2 Pay attention to the wear and the quality of the skateboard. Posers on skateboards usually don't get scratched or worn out (or are obviously fake), while a real skater's skateboard will certainly have scratches in the middle, nose and tail depending on the riding style and tricks. The skateboard of a real skater shows obvious scratches and signs of wear (unless it is a new and branded board).
   • Posers often buy low quality, inexpensive skateboards, most often from chain stores.These boards are hard to ride, but it doesn't matter to them, because they don't ride anyway.
   • A real skater saves to buy a good quality skateboard because he will ride it. After all, any trick requires high-quality boards that ride smoothly, and they are not cheap.
3. 3 Look for ripped shoes with good grip soles. Real skaters wear comfortable flat shoes that have good grip on the board as they are comfortable for performing tricks. Their shoes never look new and shiny - if you really skate, your shoes are bound to fray, tear and wear out very quickly. "Ollie holes" (also called "allie scuffs") are inevitable when skateboarding.
   • Unless the shoes have fallen apart completely, the skater does not care how worn out. Posers, on the other hand, buy shoes very often.
   • Look for signs of deliberate "artificial" wear on your shoes. Some poseurs, wanting to look like real skaters, often damage their shoes on purpose.
   • This is easy enough to detect as the shoe will have rips and scratches, but the material itself will not look faded or worn out.
4. 4 Pay attention to how many branded items he wears. If he is dressed from head to toe in crazy clothes and shoes, which seems even redundant, then most likely you are in front of a poser. Real skaters love brands too, but they won't wear branded clothing every day, and they are unlikely to dress head to toe in branded items to prove their authenticity.