I learned I naturally do goofy stance 
Just read up an article on this and realized I'm a normal mongo rider. Nobody taught me to skate so I naturally found this style myself and it's worked.
How'd it go? I've always wanted to skateboard but I feel like I'd be too self-conscious
i've already made peace with the idea I'm gonna twist my leg or fall face first into concrete at least once. It's part of learning, right?
The person who finally convinced me to get into skating properly is 48 and skates ramps at a local park. Dude has a big beer gut too and is partially blind in one eye. He keeps going and he's cool as hell.
ijs it's easier to bounce back when you're younger (and i'm a coward), but i do hope you shred tf up
I'm gonna do my best. I'm gonna do a kickflip before the end of the year or I'll eat my hat
I took a major spill while downhill longboarding last year and I couldn't walk for a few weeks, let alone skate. I'm finally getting back on a board for the first time since and that accident really left me with a lot of fear. My posture was super stiff and I was too hesitant to land anything on a street deck. The only thing that snapped me out of it? Going full send down a little hill and intentionally bailing out of an ollie at the bottom. I got a couple bruises but it got my head straight.
At 30+ a good fall can really mess you up, but it can also be the thing you need in order to get back on your feet. Stay safe, wear a helmet and don't get too reckless! Despite the bum knees, I don't regret picking up skating as an old person.
I'm not planning on doing much other than small ledges and maybe small ramps at the park. I'm generally risk and injury averse and hope to stay safe. I'm perfectly fine with only doing little tricks here and there, I don't feel the need to do anything downhill or huge flips on a vert halfpipe.
I'm glad you learned stuff about yourself! You stay safe as well, ok?
100%
My brother just picked up skateboarding at 35, and proudly just sent me a video of his first ollie, but he has longboarded for years. Learning from scratch in your +30’s sounds like a recipe for disaster.
I'm not really sure how I'm doing. I'm able to stand up on the board at least, and I can push off. Half the time I lose my balance if I try pushing again while I'm already riding.
I also can't seem to turn right, since I'd have to lean backwards and I don't have the dexterity for that yet. Can only lean forwards, which makes me go left. I'm really self-conscious and thought I looked like a goofball. I fell over once, but I'm ok. But here was the best part: When I was walking back to my apartment, a bunch of people nodded, waved, etc at me. A random woman approached and talked with me too for a bit. For me this is very strange because most people tend to avoid me socially, like completely avoid speaking or interacting with me unless they have to. I have natural bad vibes emanating off me. But while holding a skateboard I seem to be more normal and approachable? It was kinda nice, I think. Try walking around holding a skateboard and see if random passersby treat you differently. It might offset your self-consciousness.
Half the time I lose my balance if I try pushing again while I'm already riding
Most stable position is to keep your center of gravity straight down your front foot. When you're pushing make sure your entire body is leaning directly on top of your front foot and even when you're cruising on your board, standing straight is worse than leaning slightly forward to put your weight on your front foot
It's kinda dweeby but learning about the physics and biomechanics of riding/tricks helps so much more than just trying random shit
You'll get it! Try to find a longish slightly sloping downhill to practice your riding balance and turns. Something where you don't have to peddle much or at all to still go, but not too steep where you're picking up too much speed to feel comfortable with.
To practice peddling you can just try to balance on your front foot, on your board, for a bit while you're stationary. If that's too hard you can put the board on some dry grass or something so it doesn't move. If it's pretty easy try moving your push foot like your peddling. You can try moving around in random ways too while trying to keep your balance. The better you can balance on your front foot in general the easier time you'll have pushing.
If youre ever just standing around somewhere try balancing on your front foot for as long as you can. I'm literally doing it while typing this.
You can tell how comfortable someone is on a board just by how long they can go between pushes while not having to go back to two feet for balance. Does thst make sense?
There's probably better advice/tricks online, I'm all self taught and only good at the actual riding part. It was mostly on long boards too, but I bombed down big hills in a crowded city so I'm pretty comfortable on any kind of board.
Also try experimenting with loosening or tightening your trucks. Too tight makes it hard to turn, too lose and you're gonna lose your balance.
Also never ride in the rain and try your best to avoid going over any kind of puddle. It'll fuck up your bearings and there's nothing worse than shitty bearings.
Have fun!
If you're losing your balance while turning, it probably means you're keeping your knees too stiff. Relax your stance a little bit, keep your shoulders lined up with your feet and try to lower your center of gravity. To steer, aim with your shoulders rather than leaning outward.
Sorry if this is unsolicited advice, I'm just very excited for you. I had the same experience when I started skating - for the first time, I felt like a part of my community. Now I'm the neighborhood weirdo skating by with a dip net in one hand a 5 gallon bucket in the other and people are so damn nice to me.
Thank you! The advice is cool to get, don't worry. I'm an absolute beginner so I'll take whatever i can get.
Yeah I went skating again this morning and it happened again. People waved, talked to me. It's a complete 180 from what I typically expect, most people outside make a wide circle around me and avoid my eyes. Now they like...come up just to say hey? Is this what it's like being neurotypical lol
I had that issue, could ollie and pop shuvit on flat ground, drop in on ramps, but anything approaching a curb spooked me. I switched to mountain biking and found a deal on a full suspension diamondback 27'' bike that gave me a lot more confidence over my 26'' hardtail and now I'm sending it off jumps flanked by teenagers on REI bikes and boomers with electric assist bikes that cost more than my car.
It has the added benefit that dirt usually hurts less to fall on. I still miss practicing skating though, the feeling of landing something you've been working on and the supportive range of people at the park is unmatched. I still wanna get back into it when I hear this song
for around 80% of people on a skateboard it's more natural to have their left foot forward and push with the right foot. For some people like me, this feels wrong and backwards. It feels more natural to put our right foot forward and push with the left foot. It means I'm gonna have to learn skating backwards compared to most people.
Where did you get the 80% number? As someone who wasted so much of my youth skating with friends and working at a shop, anecdotally it’s 50/50 and no one gives a shit either way
It's what someone at the shop said to me. Looked into it just now and it seems more complicated. This article says 75% skate regular. But then this study at a Tampa skatepark puts the regular skaters around 55%.
Complicated. i'm right handed, but I play guitar left handed. I can write legibly with both hands somehow. But I cannot catch/throw a ball with my left hand, or use a fork in my left hand. Does goofy tend to correlate with being left handed?
NIce!
Pro Tip - Get comfortable pushing off "regular", opposite like you do naturally. Next pop a body varial (spin your body 180 degrees on the vertical axis, doesn't need to be an ollie varial), and proceed do tricks - any tricks; everyone watching is obligated to blast extra props because you are "landing that 'switch'...
"Oh that's a neat idea! Trick people into thinking I'm normal.
I think my first step though is learning to travel more than 15 feet without losing my balance.
don't have to keep your balance while traveling if you just do tricks constantly
Learning balance is important, weight distribution, feet on bolts vs. feet on tail vs. nose, where the 'pockets' are...
Equally important is learning how to bail safely. Jumping or stepping off the board while running is best, tuck-and-roll is a good failsafe plan.
And always remember a core tenet of skateboarding culture is not giving one single FUCK about what anyone thinks.
Once you've got that down, practice manuals over and over and over. Like, every time you get on your board. You're going to want to go straight to ollies but if you can master manuals then every other trick will be so much easier to learn. It really gets you comfortable with all the balance points on your board.
Ik nobody asked but make sure you have those wrist protector glove thingies if you can get them. Theyre good for when you fall on your hands so the concrete doesn't shred your palms.
Thank you, I've been wearing pads on my knees and a helmet, but protection on my palms makes a lot of sense too
Actually happy to hear this. Skateboarding has a weird culture of no helmets
same. I'm right handed but skateboard goofy and play guitar left handed. Nobody has any idea why.
EDIT: Saw your other post about playing guitar left handed. Are you literally me?
I also shoot some guns left handed. Pistols are right handed, but whenever I have a shotgun or rifle I go left handed. The one time I held an SMG it also felt more natural to hold it left handed. I think our brains are wired wrong.
no. everyone else's brains are wired wrong.