The Skateboarding Field Manual

by Stutt, Ryan

• ISBN13: 9781554073627
• ISBN10: 1554073626
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-01-01
• Publisher: Firefly Books Ltd

Summary

An illustrated guide to skateboarding skills and techniques.Skateboarding is more than a sport; it is a passion and way of life driven by those who love to push the limits of gravity and inertia while bending the notions of social acceptability. The Skateboarding Field Manual addresses both the intricacies of the sport and the intangibles of its culture. Skateboard enthusiast and journalist Ryan Stutt provides outstanding advice, which ranges from how to stand on your board and how to fall without causing injuries to how to perform grinds, slides and flips.This comprehensive reference is simply the very best manual on the sport of skateboarding. There are 33 maneuvers and tricks for beginners to intermediates, all illustrated with over 350 custom color photographs by skateboarding photographer Harry Gils.Other features include:A 12-page primer on skate culture, including history, deck art, skateboarding in the media and the importance of homemade skate videos and photos. A beginner's guide to parts, safety equipment and skatepark etiquette. Instructions on the basic techniques of pushing, turning, dropping-in, ollies and nollies. Advice on flips, grinds and slides for rails, ramps and ledges, including the varial flip, the nose grind and the board slide.The Skateboarding Field Manual is the essential guide for anyone looking to master the art of skateboarding and to understand its unique culture

Table of Contents

Introduction

Skateboarding 101

Hard Goods

Soft Goods

Putting Your Board Together

The Evolution of Four Wheels on Wood

Skate Media Primer

Spots and Obstacles

Skate Park Etiquette

Skateboarding Hierarchy

Welcome to Skateboarding

Flat Ground Basics

Stance

Pushing

Stopping

Kicking the Board Up

Falling

Tic Tac

Turning

Ollie

Nollie

Manual

Transition Basics

Dropping In

Pumping

Kick Turn on Transition

Nose and Tail Stalls

Axle Stall

Rock 'n Rolls

Tricks on Transition

Flip Tricks

Kick Flip

Heel Flip

Pop Shove-It

Varial Flip

360 Flip

Grinds

50-50 Grind

5-0 Grind

Nose Grind

Smith Grind

Feeble Grind

Crooked Grind

Slides

Boardslide

Lipslide

Tailslide

Noseslide

Glossary

Credits

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

IntroductionI am by no means the best skateboard in the world. In fact, I'm probably among the worst in the world. People who know me will probably laugh themselves stupid when they hear I wrote a book containing skateboarding instruction.But hey, just because you're a pro at something doesn't necessarily mean you can teach it. Imparting instruction isn't about doing, thankfully; it is about getting the right information and explaining it simply enough that people can figure it out for themselves.And since I'm nowhere near being a professional skateboarder, I hit up my friends when putting this book together. A lot of them. I consulted skateboarders of every stripe and skill level I could - and each lent their expertise to this thing. The end result is the culmination of a lot of experiences, not just mine.That said, I think you'll find that these skateboarding instructions are the most straightforward out there, bar none. Trust me, I checked.Now, there's hundreds upon hundreds of tricks and variations of tricks in skateboarding, so there's no way I could possibly cram every single one into this book - I'd need waaaaay more space than I've got here, believe me. So this guide is a primer of sorts - the basic tricks to give you a foundation to build on.Instruction aside, I also wanted to give you a taste of what skateboarding's really about - not just the mechanics of it, but what the subculture is about.I'm going to give you an overview of the skate world (its history, industry, etc) so you don't spend your first year saying dumb things and annoying those around you. Consider this book as you would your big brother - someone who's going to make sure you're off to a good start and not totally embarrassing yourself.Why? Because skateboarders look out for one another - you'll learn that lesson pretty quick - there's something about skating that binds people together once they've spent a couple years pushing themselves around on a piece of wood. It's like a fraternity, but without the stupid sweaters and secret handshakes.In 10 years, maybe you won't skate anymore. But one this is for certain, once a skateboarder, always a skateboarder. -Ryan Stutt