You’ve probably been told how to stop your mountain board “just turn hard and slide”, but its sometimes easier said than done so here’s some extra tips on how to slide.

When your first learning to slide its best if you find a smooth hill with thick grass that slightly wet, this way it hurts less if you stack and is easier to slide. To help the tires lose grip, make sure they’re pumped up. You need to carry a bit of speed, remember, it’s easier to slide the faster your going.

Once you are going fast enough you need to prepare to slide. Get down low with your knees and grab the front edge of the board with your backhand. Remember to bend with your knees and not your hips because it makes it much easier to balance. Make sure you keep your bum close the board keeping your center of gravity low. Shift some of your weight towards the front wheels lean off the heel edge of your board, keeping your bum near the board. Put your front hand out behind you for balance, don’t be afraid to drag it across the ground. Now that your turning sharp keep low and give your back foot a bit of a kick to brake traction, commit and don’t be afraid to fall on your ass. If do a 180 this means that you had too much weight on your front foot, try to balance out you weight between your bindings.
If you couldn’t brake traction or you fell backwards off the board before braking traction, try going a bit faster or pumping up your tires.
If your tires gripped halfway through the slide, you need to commit more, and remember to keep low.
Once sliding hold it steady until you completely stop, then jump off the board and go do it again.

Ride Life

Simo

Carving is a fun way to cruise down huge hills and roads whilst still keeping control of your board. It’s basically just a cool way to bomb a hill, but also if done properly it can help you control your speed wile your riding.

Carving is a simple maneuver. To carve turn left and right on the hill, keeping your weight on the side that you turn on.


· First turn up the hill heel side, putting your weight on your heels and lean back up the hill to turn left (only if your regular footed, the opposite if your goofy).

· Then turn back down the hill toe side again applying weight on your toes so that your turn back up the hill.

· Then continue down the hill for as long as you like doing the same thing and also try to add in some grabs for style and to carve harder all the way to the bottom.

Carving is just like weaving down the hill, the wider theses weaves are the more control you will keep over your board due to a smaller amount of speed. The tighter you turn, the more speed you will lose, but if you do the opposite you can cruise down the hill as fast as you like and style out the road.

Now get out there, go carve up your hills!

Dylan Warren

Crashing is something that no one really wants to do, but most of us still seem to do it. It is possible though to crash a little safer. There are a number of things that you can do to avoid injuries while crashing.

Go down with the ship, the best advice I can give is to stay on the board, don't try and get out of your bindings. A lot of injuries happen when you only manage to pull one leg out. If you leave your feet in the bindings you have the strength of both legs helping to avoid twisted knees and ankles.

There is a lot less chance of breaking bones and pulling muscles if you keep a solid stance and slide across the ground rather than roll. Take advice from the moto GP riders, when they crash they try to slide because if they flip and roll there is a much higher chance of getting into an awkward position and causing themselves damage. Sliding can cause cuts and grazes though so wearing protective gear is recommended.

With this all said it is possible to ride a mountain board without crashing, just ride within your limits. Always where knee pads, wrist pads, elbow pads and a helmet, padded shorts and pants also help.
Need a helmet, knee pads, wrist guards or any safety gear?

Mountainboarding can be a dangerous sport, but as long as you where the right gear and ride wisely nothing can stop you.

Ride Life

Simo