Skateboarding is an activity that has been popular among youth and even adults for many years, and will likely remain so for years to come. A structure often used in skateboarding as well as other gravity-based extreme sports is the half pipe. This massive structure is used to increase the height of jumps achieved by the skateboarders to assist them in performing tricks and stunts. There are many different types of tricks that experienced skateboarders may learn to complete on the half pipe.
Rotational Tricks
The 180 is one of the more basic half-pipe tricks in skateboarding. Simply put, a 180 is when the skateboarder performs a half turn of his board in the air so that the nose of the skateboard lands in the original position of the tail of the skateboard. In a 360, the athlete is performing one full turn of the skateboard in the air, landing in the original position.
Further and more advanced rotational tricks continue in increments of 180 degrees; 540, 720 and 900. These tricks are also often combined with other tricks to produce more complex variations. According to his website, popular skateboarder Tony Hawk's favorite trick is the 540, and he was the first skateboarder known to have completed the 900.
Grabs
The most basic grab trick in skateboarding is known as the Indy. In this trick the athlete reaches a back hand down between the legs to grab the toe of the board while in mid-air. The nose grab and tail grab are similar tricks where the skateboarder uses the front hand to reach and grab the nose of the board, or the back hand to reach and grab the tail of the board, respectively.
There are many other types of grabs including, but not limited to; backside grab, double grab, frontside grab and stalefish grab.
Flip Tricks
Flip tricks occur when a skateboarder performs one of many styles of flipping the skateboard underneath the body. The kickflip is one of the first tricks in the progression of skateboard flip tricks, where the skateboarder maneuvers to rotate the board 360 degrees along its axis while in the air. The opposite of the kickflip is a heelflip, where the skateboarder instead flips the board toward the toes.
Also popular is the shove-it, where the skateboarder makes the board flip 180 degrees underneath the feet. Other flip tricks are backside flip, disco flip, double kickflip, birdy flip and toeflip. Professional skateboarder Rodney Mullen claims to be the inventor of many popular flip tricks and variations.
Handplant
The handplant is a popular skateboarding trick on the half pipe, and differs greatly from the other tricks because it does not require the jump and the height. Skateboarders plant a hand on the lip of the wall while performing a rotational trick. Depending on the type of handplant being executed, the rotation can be frontside or backside.
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