Ollie Skateboard Trick – Simple Step By Step Tutorial

Ollie is a skateboarding trick. Every Skater knows that Ollie is the most basic move, from which the player can perform more complex moves later. So for beginners to skateboard, how will they learn Ollie? 

In any subject, the more practice the more proficient you will become. To become a professor, an expert, a good worker, … everyone must undergo a serious training process. In the process, you also have to learn from basic to advanced steps. Skateboarding is no exception, to become a professional skater, you need to learn from the simplest steps.

What is Ollie skateboarding tricks?

Ollie skateboarding trick is the most important trick of skateboarding that was invented in 1977 by an American athlete – Alan Gelfand. This technique quickly became the core movement of skateboarding. This is also the idea to invent many complex movements later.

In fact, Ollie is the first basic trick that you learn on the road to conquer street sports. They are very suitable for performing moves on boards, overcoming obstacles. To perform this move, you need to have basic knowledge of skateboarding such as pushing, pushing, turning, … For beginners, Ollie is not easy at all.

Besides, learning ollie is meant as learning the foundational steps of almost all the skaters out there. You can practice ollie in parks, big streets, squares, … You can practice ollie anytime, anywhere, most suitable in places with large spaces, not in a narrow school. Once you’ve mastered the ollie, you can learn whatever tricks you desire including your new movement inventions.

If you are new to the community of skateboarders, you should take the time to get used to pushen (skateboarding). This will be easier in practice later. Or be sure to read the directions below before trying to do the ollie. Are you ready!

Firstly, to get the ollie right, you first put your hind leg on the tail of the skateboard. The forefoot will be positioned either at the top or the center of the board. This is the right place for you to ollie. The forelegs should not be placed together with the skateboard tail position of the hind legs. Because it will be difficult to do. For those who are new to the exercise, the risk of falling and trauma is very high.

Once you’ve done a smooth and perfect ollie, you should practice moving your foot to the other position on the skateboard as you wish.

Is it possible to learn ollie while you are standing still? Or can only practice while the skateboard is rolling? If standing still, how to practice effectively? …

When doing the ollie in a stationary state, it also works as if it were rolling. For those who are new to skateboarding, ollie will be a little easier to do. But to learn ollie in a stationary state is not without a way.

To start learning ollie while standing still, you should choose an appropriate location. Ideally, perhaps, on a grass. Because if there are unintended problems such as falling, you will limit the risk compared to practicing on the asphalt. When practicing on the grass, just try to keep the skis from rolling.

If you want to learn the ollie while the wheel is in motion, it’s easier. Initially, you should not move the skateboard at a too fast speed. Because the mechanism works while rolling,  the player is very easy to slip out according to inertia. However, this learning is more dangerous than ollie while standing still.

Either way, the player should practice both. The trick is to practice on the move first, then do the ollie while standing still. Trying to practice both will give you suspicious results!

How to do Ollie on a skateboard

1. Position your feet

Where to set feet is something new skateboarders need to learn. How to set foot properly? What will it help when you do the ollie trick?

How to position feet when the skateboard moves:

Before you start practicing, you should train yourself to get on the skateboard correctly. When doing the ollie while the skateboard is rolling, you need to stand on the skateboard like in a Pushen. That is, you will put the board on the floor or any other surface. Then, put your foot on the skateboard. The usual way to place your foot is to place your left foot at the top of the board. The right leg is in the back part. This means that players will use their right leg for a push. Position the legs approximately with the screws on the face. Learning to stand properly helps you maintain your balance without falling.

Or the player can also place his right foot at the top of the board. Then, his left foot will be in the opposite direction. This movement is understood as your left leg will be used to push the skateboard.

Either way, you will need to do push-ups. Kick your legs back a little to push your body gravity forward, creating momentum for your skateboard to move. During this process, watch how the wheels move (fast or slow) to adjust your thrust accordingly. Once the board has rolled at the right speed, lift your foot on the board in the back. The legs are placed parallel on the board. The front legs can be placed near the top or towards the center of the board. The toe part is slightly deflected towards the bow on each side.

How to position feet on the board while standing still:

This way is simpler. Players only need to put on the surface of the skateboard. Direction to the left or right depends on the player’s will. The forelegs are placed on top or the edge of the board. The hind legs are placed at the tail position. This is a basic set of footwork to prepare for the ollie.

2. Gravity adjustment

After the skateboard has moved at the desired speed. You put your feet up on the back of the board. Standing and keeping balance on the board is very important for ollie. When standing on a board, bend your knees slightly. For what? To lower your focus to the ground. This keeps the maximum balance.

Depending on the wheel axle whether the skateboard becomes sturdy or not. If the shaft is loosened, the wheel and skateboard will not be firmly connected. Therefore, for beginners, it will be difficult to practice a stable balance. Often for professional players, they will loosen the wheel and skateboard linkage in order to be able to move more flexibly. Moreover, it helps them perform difficult movements like Axle Stall, Manual, or Boardslide with ease. Once a high level is reached, players do not have to lower their focus and still be able to keep a good equal.

For new players, maintaining balance and keeping the body upright on the board is quite difficult. As the skateboard moves, your focus will be changed. This results in the body swaying, tilting, and falling off the board. Lowering the center of gravity, as well as tightening the splice is good for balance.

Keeping and controlling your body center is very important in skateboarding. Practice from simple steps and practice persistently to achieve desired results.

3. Jump up

A complete ollie is the execution of sequences to bring the skateboard off the ground and safely land it. When the preparation stages are completed. You turn the skateboard forward with the hind legs resting on the tail. The first part of the skill is the hind legs movements so that the tail of the skateboard touches the ground. Then, pull in to bring both the body and the skateboard to bounce. According to the inertia, both the body and the skateboard will fly into the air.

Do a jump while the skateboard is in motion, making sure you keep your balance. In case of any problems, stop the movement.

To do this, you shift the gravity and push it back towards the back leg. This will release the forelegs, making the head of the board lighter. This helps the board to bounce back easily.

To get used to this move, from the moment you stand on the skateboard, you should practice swinging the bottom of the board. This is for you to learn how to change gravity as well as the body center of gravity more smoothly.

When practicing, you need to focus on feeling to know how much pressure it takes to make the game bounce. And how much force is required to control the skateboard according to his or her intentions.

While jumping, the top of the skateboard will turn up first. Right now you need to have good balance, as this is a critical phase in ollie. If you cannot keep the balance of your body and control your hind legs so that the skateboard moves in the air in the direction you want, the move will fail.

Practice jumping while standing still:

To practice, you stand on the board and lower your knees. Shift the center of gravity down from above to the skis. Move the hind leg to the tail of the plank and follow it with your focus.

Use your body weight to push the bottom of the skateboard down. Meanwhile, the first part of the skateboard will be turned and pushed up into the air. Accordingly, the body weight shifted from top to bottom and from front to hind legs.

Just like ollie on the go, you need to control your hind legs. By rotating or keeping the hind ankles to control the board to move as you want.

According to some experts with years of experience in skateboarding, they recommend jumping on skateboard while the skateboard is moving before learning while standing still. Because, for those who are new, it will be very difficult without the momentum to practice this move. Basically, it’s a good idea to learn to keep your balance steady before you practice switching focus.

4.Kick the skateboard tail

When you are ready for ollie, bend your knees deeply. This means lowering your body by slightly bending your body and bending your knees. At this point, to get high, you can lower the center of gravity by curving down, keeping your knees and chest evenly.

At the moment you turn on the skateboard, do the tail kicks at the same time. The tail kick helps to make the top of the board pop up. If you do not do this, you will not be able to turn on the board. This section is considered the key for you to be able to turn on the skateboard or not. When doing a tail kick, you apply enough force to the back of the skateboard, and at the same time move your front legs back and forth slightly. At this time, the tail of the skateboard is in the position of touching the ground. This makes the head of the skateboard gradually reduce gravity, easier to move into higher air.

Ollie requires players to act quickly and decisively. This is a bit difficult to do with new members. Because they are not proficient in the movements from moving to balancing and shifting focus.

Combined with turning on the skateboard, this is a vital part of Ollie. It creates the success of the movement and can also be said to be very beautiful!

5. Peak jump

At this stage, you and your skateboard should be in a position parallel to the ground. The focus of your body when doing this is of utmost importance.If you control the center of gravity incorrectly when you land you will not maintain your balance. Extreme tilt or grounding may cause the surface of the skateboard to break. To be able to adjust the center of gravity, pay attention to factors such as leg and shoulder movement accordingly.

Actions of foreleg:

Once the player kicks and jumps, both the player’s body and the skateboard will move above a certain amount of space. Now, what do you need to do with your forelegs?

Revealing to you is that you gently push the front leg to the top of the board. As in a skateboard tail kick, you will slightly pull your foreleg back a little. But this step is different. When you jump into the air, you move back to the top of the skateboard. This is in preparation for the grounding stage in the ollie.

When the foreleg is moved to the top of the skateboard, the player will tilt their feet slightly so that the soles of the feet are facing the center of the board. This movement, combined with the hind legs, is used to control the direction of the skateboard in the air.

Many people describe this movement as pulling the foreleg onto the skateboard. As you kick the board into the air, pull your front leg toward the skateboard to flatten the skis. This prevents the board from moving too high. If you do not pull your leg up to position the top of the board, the risk of injury is very high. If you fall at a greater height, the more severe the injury will be.

Therefore, there is a movement of the foreleg to the top of the board to keep the skateboard balanced and in control.

Do not worry, if you persistently follow the instructions, you can do it.

 Actions of hind leg:

The maneuvers of the hind leg are only complicated at the jump and kick stage. Once the skateboard is in the air, the actions of the hind legs are very simple.

After doing the tail kick, you usually retract the legs and put them back in the tail position. You should better place it lightly on the rear peg of the skateboard. In this movement, you need to combine smoothly with the forefoot to control the skateboard to your liking.

There is an appropriate standard for beginners who do not know how to set foot after completing the kick. It is to put the foot on the board, parallel to the foreleg. Unlike the forefoot, the toe tip is tilted towards the bow. For rear leg maneuvers, the new heel is the part that is tilted towards the tail of the skateboard.

When in the air, the feet work together to control the height and direction of the board. Players use feet and ankles to control their skis.

A little advice for young people, choose the right skateboard shoes to be able to perform this movement the best way. The feet are so important, if your feet are uncomfortable, it won’t work as well.

Shoulder adjustments:

When doing ollie, how to hold your shoulder properly?

You should keep your shoulders from leaning too much toward the tail or tip of the bow. Shoulder control makes the ollie process much simpler and easier.

In all ollie’s stages, the shoulder plays a rather important role. As in the footsteps and moves, you need to position your shoulders for the best balance. It is for the shoulders to be natural, in balance with the body. When moving, lower your shoulders so that the body slightly bends to put the focus down which helps to keep the beginner balance.

When performing the jump process, the player lowers the shoulder on the same side as the hind leg so that the bodyweight goes down. This contributes to the skis to bounce high, …

When in the air, how do you handle your shoulder balance? There is a simple way to do that, raise your arm. Raising your arms will help lift your shoulder blades. This combined with leg movements will be of great help in keeping balance in the air.

Although it is a natural reflex according to the body’s activities, not controlling the shoulder properly will also hinder the whole process.

6. Grounding (safe landing)

If you don’t want to fall to the ground freely. If you do not want to fall into the street and don’t like being ridiculed by people. So after being magically floating in the air. Get ready for grounding. Avoid falling or any injury.

As your body and the skateboard fall back to the ground, allow your knees to bend. Open your knees a bit more for balance. This is really important. Why? Lowering the knee will help reduce shock and increase resilience compared to standing upright. For those who are just starting out to practice skateboarding, they should follow along. Because it will help players reduce the chance of injury. As well as reducing the impact force on impact, protecting your board from breaking.

Let your entire body squat on the board while the skis are at the top and ready to hit the ground. This will prevent you from dropping the board out which causes danger. For those who are already proficient, this move may not be performed.

For starters, remember that when you land, keep your knees slightly bent for safety. This will allow you to continue rolling after landing.

Never feel ashamed of doing all the work very smoothly, but when you hit the ground, you have to jump off the skateboard. During jumping, or controlling the board in the air, and you encounter any technical difficulties, should also improvise flexibly. Do not try to land on the surfboard, it could injure you. Instead, you can jump out of the skateboard to protect yourself.

Now, feel free to land the first ollie of your life!

Common problems when doing ollie

Setting up a good vacuum position, not knowing what moves to do, choosing the wrong timing, … are the mistakes that many new skateboarders encounter.

Do not roll the  foreleg on the first part of the skateboard:

Your forefoot needs to be moved to the top of the skateboard. At the same time as that movement, the right foot curls up. That is, give the forefoot an angle to the surface of the board. The soles of the feet face towards the center of the skateboard. The sole of your foot will point towards the tip of the skateboard.

When done, your forelegs should not slide straight. When rolling to the front of the skateboard, the little finger will be the part in contact with the skateboard. During Ollie’s practice, your shoes don’t tear in your little finger, meaning you learned the wrong way.

Back feet do not jump:

Speaking of the hind leg, this is a big mistake most beginners encounter. Focusing on learning to control the hind leg correctly will have a great effect.

Also, After doing the tail kick, your skateboard will bounce into the air. You have to jump with your board. When you do this, you cannot jump and kick the tail of the skateboard.

Besides, One little thing you need to do is take your hind leg off the board. The time to do this is very small, in just a few seconds.

Crucial moment:

You will completely fail if you do not control the right time. Many professional skateboarders have shared their experiences of timing the right fit

Moreover, there are many cases of timing errors such as not kicking the tail of the board at the right time, the skateboard has not stabilized the speed of jumping, not moving the forefoot to the top of the skateboard when the board is flying into the air … and many schools other suitable.

Tips for beginners to master Ollie movements:

Skaters must have known that ollie is a must for anybody. If players want to do it perfectly, you can refer to the following useful tips:

Slow start:

The common mentality of the player is to want to skateboard at high speed to try the thrills. But for those who start, slowly find out! You need to start slowly until you are fully proficient.

Especially, you should pay attention to how your body feels as you go through each stage of the movement. Also, you ought to observe each action carefully to realize what has been done and which has not been done. You need to complete each of the basic steps, without rushing, will perfect your ollie.

When making your moves to prepare for a jump, don’t slide too fast. If you do that, it will cause an imbalance in the first place which leads to potential dangers. In the movement of jumping and kicking the tail of the skateboard requires players to perform quick actions. However, it is difficult for beginners to master it right away. It is hard to avoid injury when you fall.

You need to practice slowly, take time for it and learn the standard knowledge you will do.

Keep your shoulders balanced:

You think you just need to keep your shoulders steady when you land. But the reality is not so. At any stage of the ollie process, you will also need to control your shoulders so that your body can maintain balance.

Firstly, the player should practice keeping the shoulders straight with the head. Next, you need to control the shoulders so that the skateboard and shoulders are in a straight line. It is in the standing move on the board.

What about jumping? Players need to control the shoulder direction in the direction of the skateboard. As the foreleg slips upwards, the shoulders also move upwards. This helps the body maneuver up and up, letting the skateboard bounce off the ground. As well as keeping the body weight on the board, not getting out of position. Also, avoiding players losing balance and being knocked out.

When in the air, your shoulders should be driven to be parallel to the skateboard and the ground. It helps the skateboard not to tilt and makes the next process a more secure landing.

When preparing to land, keep in mind that your shoulder should point toward the contact between the skateboard and the ground. Meaning, the shoulders will follow the head of the skateboard. What is the benefit of it? This way helps you control the skateboard well, go on the right track. If you lean back, you will fall immediately, as the skateboard is following inertia. Then you will not be able to control the micro row, resulting in a skateboarding accident.

Using reasonable pressure:

You may have researched Ollie very well. But surely, not everyone tells you how to use pressure is reasonable.

If you use reasonable force, your Ollie level will rise to a new high. To answer the question, how to use body pressure in the best way? Below we will give you some tips. These tips to help you identify and improve your ability to use force when skateboarding:

• You should have a strong motivation in jumps. Especially, when doing ollie in a stationary position, more pressure is required. Whether jumping or not high is thanks to this impact pressure.
• The pressure is applied in the hind legs to kick the back of the game. The stronger the force, the higher the bounce ability. If you don’t use pressure in this move, you won’t be able to go to the next step. In this move, it will consume the player’s energy the most compared to other operations.
• Also, you should note one more thing, when at the height of the air, you do not need to use pressure to apply too much force to the skateboard. It is essential to maintain a good balance.
• When you land, you should primarily apply force to the top of the skateboard. The impact is not too much. This is enough for the game to move down the direction its owner desired. Furthermore, apply enough force so that when in contact with the ground, it avoids the impact too much