Well, the first thing you should do is get a pair of skate shoes (check out the Best Skateboard Shoes List). You can skate in regular shoes, but it will be a lot harder and even sometimes dangerous. Skate shoes are built with a large flat bottom, to better grip the board, and often with other features like reinforcement in areas where you'll likely wear the shoe down.
You should also get a helmet (check out the Best Skateboard Helmets list). You might see skaters not wearing helmets, and worry that wearing one will make you look weak or stupid, but don't worry about it. It's common now for skateparks to require helmets, and it's just plain smart, especially when you first start out.
Wearing other protective pads can be good too, but what you need totally depends on what you are doing (see the Best Skateboard Pads list). If you are trying to do tricks in your driveway, elbow pads might be a good idea, but you really only need knee pads if you are skating on a ramp, or trying some pretty crazy tricks. Wrist braces can be nice, but be careful not to get too used to using your hands to catch yourself when you fall.
Now you should be ready to start learning to skate. First, before you try anything crazy, you need to get comfortable standing on your skateboard. If you borrowed it, or if you went to a shop and bought a complete skateboard already built, there's a chance that there may be some things about it that you might find uncomfortable.
Now you should be ready to start learning to skate. First, before you try anything crazy, you need to get comfortable standing on your skateboard. If you borrowed it, or if you went to a shop and bought a complete skateboard already built, there's a chance that there may be some things about it that you might find uncomfortable.
Set the board either in some grass, or on the carpet in your living room, and try standing on it, jumping on it, whatever you want. Try balancing only on the front or back wheels. Standing on the board, move your feet into different positions. Get used to the feel and size of your board, and get used to standing on it.
Next you need to figure out your skateboard stance, whether you are goofy or regular footed. This means whether you should skate with your right foot forward, or your left. If one feels more comfortable than the other, then simply go with that!
Next you need to figure out your skateboard stance, whether you are goofy or regular footed. This means whether you should skate with your right foot forward, or your left. If one feels more comfortable than the other, then simply go with that!
The two different ways to stand are called stances - Goofy (skating with your right foot forward) and Regular (skating with your left foot forward).
Here are three tricky ways to figure out how you will most likely feel most comfortable standing on your board:
ONE
- go get a ball or something like that, and sit it on the ground in front of you. Now kick it. Whichever foot you kicked it with will likely be your back foot. You want the balancing foot in the front, and the kicking foot in the back.TWO
- go to a staircase, and walk up it. What foot did you use to step up the FIRST step? That's likely your back foot.THREE
- this one's hard, because once you read it you'll know the trick. So just read this first spot and then stop when I tell you to stop. Go find someone, stand with both your feet close together, and ask them to shove you from behind. Go do this now -- STOP READING! Ok, so hopefully you didn't just fall over. You should have caught yourself with one foot. The foot you used to catch yourself is likely the foot you'd put in back.Just like most people are right handed, most people are regular footed. That's why it's called regular. Just remember that there's no RIGHT way to do it. If all of these tricks tell you that you are regular, but you just like riding goofy, then ride goofy!
