Skateboarding has become one of the most widespread sports in the world, especially within the younger crowd. There are about twelve million skateboarders on the planet. I don't really want to bore you with skateboarding history, so it's time to get going and present some tips for getting started and list some skateboarding tricks for beginners.

First, you'll need a deck. Visit a local skating shop and ask around. Ask others about their board, trucks, wheels and grip to find out how good they are. Use the feedback to purchase a board which fits your budget and still holds to a good quality. Don't cheap out too much, because you will probably end up having to get new gear sooner.

Then there is safety. Unfortunately, most people probably won't bother because they think it looks better or are too worried what everyone else are going to think when they see what they are wearing. Nothing will take you off a board faster then a broken bone. It's your choice.

Typical safety gear:
Helmets
Elbow Pads
Knee Pads
Ankle Braces
Wrist Guards
Gloves

I'm not saying you need all of these, but you should try to be sensibile in the beginning stages. You don't want to get turned off the sport so early because of a few easily preventable injuries.

Next you want to get comfortable on your board. Find a nice flat surface and ride around on it. If you are right handed you should try natural stance, which is left foot forward. If this feels uncomfortable switch to goofy - right foot forward.

Place your front foot just behind the front trucks, and your back foot on the tail. Push along by kicking off the ground with your back foot, keeping your knees slightly bent. Balance yourself and lean to steer by tilting the board towards your toes or heels. That's all there is to it.

Once you are comfortable you can move on to tricks. Obviously, you should start with skateboarding tricks for beginners as any others will be out of your league.

Below is a short list of tricks. Check out videos of them on the internet or in DVD form to work out the technique. If you can find high frame rate videos, they are even better as you can see exactly what is going on.

Ollie
Pop Shove It
Kickflip
Grinds
Drop In
Fakie
Stalls
Grabs

Good luck...


Jay