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How to Generate Speed on a Surfskate
Watch How to Generate Speed on a Surfskate on YouTube
If you’re beginner surfskater struggling to learn how to pump and generate speed on a surfskate, then this surfskate tutorial will help.
*Disclaimer: The techniques I teach are not necessarily proper surfing form. So if you’re a surfer wanting to learn how to generate speed on a surfboard, then you may want to learn from a different tutorial. However, if you’re a non-surfer like me, then these techniques work great.
For more detailed surfskating instructions and tips, check out my surfskating video course for beginners.
Step 1: Use Your Ankles to Propel Forward
The first technique to generate speed on a surfskate is simple. Just use your ankles to propel forward by pushing your heels and toes down on your rails (the sides of your deck).
First, make sure you have the proper surfskate foot position. Place your front foot on or behind the inner bolt holes, and your back foot behind the back bolts.
Make sure your feet are evenly distributed on the board width-wise, with equal weight on heels and toes.
Now that you’re positioned properly, simply use your ankles to push your rails side to side, like this:
Step 2: Bend Your Knees to Add Compression and Extension
Now that you’ve got your ankles down, it’s time to add your knees. You want to bend your knees and move up and down, coordinating that movement with your ankles.
A little trick I use to coordinate the movements is, “Heel down, toe up.” This means that when you’re bending down with your knees, you’re pushing down on your heels. When you’re standing up, you’re pushing down on your toes on that rail. You want to over-exaggerate your knee bends, bend deeper than it feels right or that you think you should.
Step 3: Use Your Back Foot to Kick to the Side
Now, as you’re moving up and down with your knees, use your back foot to give a little kick off to the side. This motion will propel you forward.
Step 4: Add a Push to the Other Side
Now that you’ve got the kick off to one side down, it’s time to add a push to the other side. If pushing your back foot forward moves the board forward, then pushing the other way will do the same thing, pushing you forward the other way.
Step 5: Move Your Arms Side to Side
Now we’ll add upper body movements, starting with just moving your arms side to side.
First, make sure that you have a forward-facing stance. You want to twist your knees, hips, and shoulders to where you’re oriented and facing forward.
Now that you’re facing forward, move your arms side to side, and you’ll feel how your arms will move the surfskate.
Step 6: Time Compression & Extension with the “Lift and Pull” Technique
Now it’s time to coordinate your up and down compression and extension with the side-to-side motion you’re doing with your shoulders and arms.
To do this, use a technique called lift and pull, where you want to start feeling the motion of your upper body lifting and then your arms pulling.
Put it All Together
Now that you’ve got all the techniques down, it’s time to put them all together.
Remember to keep practicing, and don’t get discouraged if it takes a while to get the hang of it. With practice, you’ll be surfskating confidently and competently in no time.
For more detailed instructions and tips, check out my surfskating video course for beginners.
