The heelflip is an enjoyable and easy-to-learn skateboard trick for beginners. If you are a skilled beginner skateboarder and trying to learn skateboarding tricks, you should add this trick to your shortlist. However, if you want to practice any new trick, you must learn the tactics before starting to learn it quickly and appropriately. So, let’s know how to heelflip on a skateboard.
What is Heelflip?
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The heelflip is a variation of the kickflip trick, and it is nearly the same as the kickflip. The only difference is that you need to spin the board by kicking with your front foot heel. Moreover, the board will spin in the opposite direction of a kickflip.
It is the same as the kickflip, if you know how to kickflip, it will be easy for you to quickly learn the heelflip. So if you do not know the tactics of a basic kickflip, you can read this article to learn it – “How to kickflip?”
Tactics of Heelflip:
Now follow the steps below to learn the basic heelflip.
Step 1: Place your back foot on the tail by half hanging and keep your front foot near the front truck bolts by hanging slightly.
Step 2: Crouch down by bending your knees. Meanwhile, snap the tail with your back foot to pop the board.
Step 3: Kick the outer face of the deck with your front foot heel to spin the board.
Step 4: The board will spin under your feet. Catch the board with your feet while it comes parallel to the ground.
Step 5: Now land the board off. Try to land your both feet at the same time. Crouch your body while landing to absorb the shock.
To watch the video tutorial on how to heelflip:
Variations of heelflip
There are few variations of heelflip, but you need to know few basic skateboarding tricks like 180, Ollie, etc. and must be the basic heelflip. So if you’ve already learned the basic heelflip and few other basic tricks, then you should try the variations to get extra fun with the heelflip trick. So let’s start.
1. Backside heelflip
This trick is a combination of the backside 180 and the heelflip trick. In this trick, you need to rotate your body at the backside 180 degrees while the board flips under your feet.
Tactics:
Step 1: Put your back foot on the tail by half hanging at a 45-degree angle. Place your front foot on the deck at the heelflip position.
Step 2: Snap the board and kick the board with your front foot heel to spin it.
Step 3: Rotate your shoulder at the opposite of board spin while doing the heelflip.
Step 4: Catch the board when it completes the flip. Complete the backside 180 in the air and land the board off.
To watch the video tutorial on how to heelflip:
2. Frontside heelflip
This trick is pretty the same as the backside heelflip. The only difference is that you need to do frontside 180 instead of backside 180 while heelflip.
Step 1: Stand on the board at a heelflip position.
Step 2: Snap the board and spin the board by kicking with your front heel. Rotate your shoulder in the opposite direction of the board spin.
Step 3: Catch the board while it completes spinning and do a frontside 180 in the air at the time of landing.
To watch a video tutorial of how to heelflip:
3. Fakie heelflip
This trick is very simple. You just need to do a heelflip by reversing your stance. Though this trick is simple, you need enough balancing skill because you are going to do a trick by switching your regular riding stance.
Step 1: Stand on the board at the heelflip position by switching your stance. (Regular will stand goofy and goofy will stand regular).
Step 2: Snap the tail and kick the front side for a heelflip.
Step 3: While the board completes spinning catches it with your foot and land off with the fakie stance.
To watch the video tutorial on how to heelflip:
4. Varial heelflip
This trick is a combination of heelflip and pop-shove-it. So you must know how to pop-shove it for learning this trick. Pop-shove-it is also a variation trick and it is a combination of shove it and kickflip. You can learn it from here – “How to pop-shove-it” before trying the varial heelflip if you do not know how to pop-shove-it.
Step 1: Place your feet on the deck for a heelflip.
Step 2: Snap the board as you are going for a pop-shove-it and kick with your front foot heel lightly for the heelflip.
Step 3: Catch the board at the pop-shove-it style and land it off. You may need to jump a little higher than a regular heelflip.
To watch the video tutorial on how to heelflip:
Except for these variations, there are few other heelflip variations like:
- Switch varial heelflip.
- Switch inward heelflip.
- Nollie varial heelflip.
- Nollie frontside heelflip and others.
These are advanced tricks and need better skills to learn. So keep practicing the easy tricks first and try the advanced variations after mastering them.
Conclusion
In this article, I’ve provided a few variations of heelflip along with the primary heelflip. For better results, learn the basic heelflip first. The described variations in this article are suitable for beginners to learn quickly. However, before trying any variation of heelflip, make sure that you have already learned the other trick which is combined with heelflip.