How to Ollie
Stand on the board., Adjust your feet with your front foot near the middle of the board and your back foot on the tail of the board., Bend your knees and crouch down., Jump into the air, first with your front foot, and after with your back foot...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Stand on the board.
Get a good feel for its shape, the tightness of your trucks, and the size of your wheels.
Ollies are always easier on a familiar setup.
If your trucks are too loose and you can't keep in control while crouching, then tighten them until things are a bit smoother. -
Step 2: Adjust your feet with your front foot near the middle of the board and your back foot on the tail of the board.
Getting the foot positioning right can be the first really tricky part of an ollie to master.
The ball of your back foot should be half hanging off the edge of the deck's tail, or back.
The ball of your front foot should be central to the deck, somewhere between the bolts.
The actual position of your feet is very important.
How far forward/back you choose to have your front foot is mostly a preference thing, but it can affect your ollie too.
Huge monster ollies will require your foot to be further back, but will be more difficult.
Little curb-hoppers can be easily done with your foot further forward. , Start off in a stationary position.
Balancing your crouch properly is crucial.
Don't bend your back too much and don't stick your bottom out too far.
Try to drop down and keep your shoulders level with your feet.
Try to stay on the balls of your feet, especially when crouching.
If you just go up on your toes, chances are you'll start turning back-side when you jump. (If you weren't already aware, the back-side edge is the one nearest your toes).
If you've moving while you ollie, there are two good ways to reposition your feet so that they're properly balanced before you jump.
The first is a tiny little jump, just big enough to let you land with your feet where you need them.
This is the best and quickest way, but also the trickiest.
The second way is to just shuffle your feet into position.
It's a slower, less accurate method, and it ruins your shoes pretty quickly unless your grip tape is dead — which it shouldn't be if you want to be able to ollie well. , The board isn't going anywhere with your weight on it, so the beginning of an ollie maneuver is to jump.
Sometimes it's easier to think of it as jumping off of your back foot.
If you're having trouble with the height of your ollie, just forget about sliding (for the moment) and slam your knees into your chest. , A good strong pop is very important; it's the power behind your ollie.
It's called a pop because of the noise of your deck hitting the ground, which will make it bounce.
Timing of the pop is crucial.
After jumping, pop the board as soon as you feel your weight lessening on the board.
This may seem tricky, as the jump and pop seem instantaneous, but visualizing it this way helps a lot.
If you're new to skateboarding, chances are you've probably tried the maneuver of stamping on the tail to make it jump up at you.
It's the same principal with a pop, except you're doing it while standing on (actually, more like jumping above) the board.
Another possible reason for the tail not lifting is that your foot might be hitting the ground with the tail too much, not allowing the actual board to lift.
You want the ground to help snap the deck up, but not so much that the board gets bogged down and your timing is messed up. , Turn your front foot inward and slide up the front of the board in a rolling motion.
Bring your back leg up toward your chest as you do this.
Remember that this step must be performed at the same time as jumping.
Sliding too soon will result in an ollie with little height; sliding too late will result in an ollie that doesn't get leveled out at its highest point. , Exactly how far you need to do this depends on how high your ollie is, but the board can only go as high as your feet, so if you want your ollie to be high you have to bring those feet up. , Make the board level to the ground while in mid-air.
In other words, don't have the front of the board sticking up in mid-air.
This technique will help tremendously when you get to jumping gaps. , If you land an ollie with both feet in the middle of your deck, it's going to snap.
Likewise, if you land on your nose and tail, they could break off.
Make sure you bend your knees to absorb the shock when you land. -
Step 3: Bend your knees and crouch down.
-
Step 4: Jump into the air
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Step 5: first with your front foot
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Step 6: and after with your back foot.
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Step 7: Jump up
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Step 8: and kick down the back of your board at the same time.
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Step 9: Slide your front foot as soon as you start jumping.
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Step 10: Pull your knees up towards your chest.
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Step 11: Level out with both when your front foot has slid all the way up
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Step 12: keeping pressure on the board as it begins to fall down.
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Step 13: Try to land both feet at the same time
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Step 14: preferably with your feet as close to their respective trucks as possible.
Detailed Guide
Get a good feel for its shape, the tightness of your trucks, and the size of your wheels.
Ollies are always easier on a familiar setup.
If your trucks are too loose and you can't keep in control while crouching, then tighten them until things are a bit smoother.
Getting the foot positioning right can be the first really tricky part of an ollie to master.
The ball of your back foot should be half hanging off the edge of the deck's tail, or back.
The ball of your front foot should be central to the deck, somewhere between the bolts.
The actual position of your feet is very important.
How far forward/back you choose to have your front foot is mostly a preference thing, but it can affect your ollie too.
Huge monster ollies will require your foot to be further back, but will be more difficult.
Little curb-hoppers can be easily done with your foot further forward. , Start off in a stationary position.
Balancing your crouch properly is crucial.
Don't bend your back too much and don't stick your bottom out too far.
Try to drop down and keep your shoulders level with your feet.
Try to stay on the balls of your feet, especially when crouching.
If you just go up on your toes, chances are you'll start turning back-side when you jump. (If you weren't already aware, the back-side edge is the one nearest your toes).
If you've moving while you ollie, there are two good ways to reposition your feet so that they're properly balanced before you jump.
The first is a tiny little jump, just big enough to let you land with your feet where you need them.
This is the best and quickest way, but also the trickiest.
The second way is to just shuffle your feet into position.
It's a slower, less accurate method, and it ruins your shoes pretty quickly unless your grip tape is dead — which it shouldn't be if you want to be able to ollie well. , The board isn't going anywhere with your weight on it, so the beginning of an ollie maneuver is to jump.
Sometimes it's easier to think of it as jumping off of your back foot.
If you're having trouble with the height of your ollie, just forget about sliding (for the moment) and slam your knees into your chest. , A good strong pop is very important; it's the power behind your ollie.
It's called a pop because of the noise of your deck hitting the ground, which will make it bounce.
Timing of the pop is crucial.
After jumping, pop the board as soon as you feel your weight lessening on the board.
This may seem tricky, as the jump and pop seem instantaneous, but visualizing it this way helps a lot.
If you're new to skateboarding, chances are you've probably tried the maneuver of stamping on the tail to make it jump up at you.
It's the same principal with a pop, except you're doing it while standing on (actually, more like jumping above) the board.
Another possible reason for the tail not lifting is that your foot might be hitting the ground with the tail too much, not allowing the actual board to lift.
You want the ground to help snap the deck up, but not so much that the board gets bogged down and your timing is messed up. , Turn your front foot inward and slide up the front of the board in a rolling motion.
Bring your back leg up toward your chest as you do this.
Remember that this step must be performed at the same time as jumping.
Sliding too soon will result in an ollie with little height; sliding too late will result in an ollie that doesn't get leveled out at its highest point. , Exactly how far you need to do this depends on how high your ollie is, but the board can only go as high as your feet, so if you want your ollie to be high you have to bring those feet up. , Make the board level to the ground while in mid-air.
In other words, don't have the front of the board sticking up in mid-air.
This technique will help tremendously when you get to jumping gaps. , If you land an ollie with both feet in the middle of your deck, it's going to snap.
Likewise, if you land on your nose and tail, they could break off.
Make sure you bend your knees to absorb the shock when you land.
About the Author
Kevin Stewart
Writer and educator with a focus on practical pet care knowledge.
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