180 on a Scooter
Doing a 180 means rotating your scooter and yourself 180 degrees. This is a basic, fundamental trick for the scooter. It tends to be one of the first tricks learned after the basic ollie (jump) and is essential for learning other tricks. With practice, you can expect to add this trick to your repertoire and move on to other scooter tricks in no time.
Contents
Steps
Landing a 180
- Scout out locations. Find an open area free of any hazards (uneven surfaces, sharp objects, or pedestrians). Skate parks are great places to practice tricks. Also large, open parking lots can be used for tricks. Make sure there aren't any rules against skating or scooters!
- If you’re shy, stick to your driveway and garage till you feel comfortable.
- Practice safety. Some might poke fun if you wear knee and elbow pads, but your joints are worth it! Always wear a helmet. You are most prone to injury when you first practice more complex tricks like the 180.
- Don’t increase your chances for needing knee surgery!
- Gain momentum. Push yourself in quick bursts to reach a fast speed. This will help you build enough momentum to get "air".
- Gauge how fast you can reach on the scooter and aim for a few notches below this speed.
- Compress your knees. This means bending your knees and getting as low as possible while remaining balanced. Center your weight below your torso.
- If this feels uncomfortable at first, practice riding around in this crouched position.
- Do an ollie. Push off the ground by extending yourself up, in a jumping motion, while holding onto the handle bars. Once you're in the air, pull the scooter in towards yourself.
- Make sure that both wheels are at least half a foot off the ground; otherwise, one of the wheels might catch the pavement as you perform the 180.
- Initiate the 180. Shift the top half of your body, beginning with your head, in the direction that you want to do the 180. You can either go left (backside) or to the right (frontside). Rotate a full 180, or until you are facing the opposite direction.
- When you turn your head/upper body, the rest of your body and scooter will follow.
- Stick the landing. Straighten your legs out to reduce the spinning and land the scooter. If you don't stick the landing on the first try, keep trying!
Landing a 180 over a Barrier
- Find a barrier that's about mid shin level. Skate parks have barriers of all sizes, but if you can't get to a skate park, you can use a small cardboard box.
- Avoid using anything that has sharp edges or could cause serious injury.
- Use soft materials (cushions, cardboard boxes, etc.) for practicing over.
- Practice ollieing over the barrier. Make sure that you can clear the barrier with an ollie. If you can't, you'll probably need to move to a smaller barrier or practice your ollie.
- Gain momentum. Push yourself in quick bursts to reach a fast speed. This will help you build enough momentum to get "air".
- Gauge how fast you can reach on the scooter and aim for a few notches below this speed.
- Compress your knees. This means bending your knees and getting as low as possible while remaining balanced. Center your weight below your torso.
- Perform an ollie. Push off the ground in a jumping motion while holding onto the handle bars. Once you're in the air, pull the scooter in towards your body.
- Make sure that both wheels are at least half a foot off the ground; otherwise, one of the wheels might catch the barrier as you perform the 180.
- Make sure that your center of gravity is directly below your torso and try to keep your eyes focused right above the barrier.
- Initiate the 180. Shift the top half of your body, beginning with your head, in the direction that you want to do the 180. You can either go left (backside) or to the right (frontside). Rotate a full 180, or until you are facing the opposite direction.
- When you turn your head/upper body, the rest of your body and scooter will follow.
- Begin doing this right as you ollie.
- Land the 180. You’ll probably need to practice a few times before you stick this landing. Have confidence and learn from your mistakes. If you notice your wheel clipping the barrier each time, you need to adjust when you initiate the ollie.
Performing a Faux 180
- Understand the faux 180. If you are a little scared of landing a traditional 180, there is a safer version. During a faux 180 your feet leave the scooter momentarily while the scooter performs a 180. This is inspired by old school skateboarding tricks where they’d incorporate one foot on the pavement.
- Practice stationary. You will want to get comfortable whipping your scooter in a 180. While off your scooter, spin the handle bars around so the scooter does a 180. Once you get a feel for the movement required by your hands, try incorporating your body.
- Once the scooter completes a 180, hop on with your feet right before the scooter hits the surface.
- Gain momentum. Once you’ve practiced in your garage a few times, it’s time to bring it to the streets. You don’t need to go too fast to pull this one off. Just gain a casual speed.
- Hop off and spin. Try to hop off with one foot while spinning the handlebar in a 180 motion. The best look is when one foot is on the ground, one foot in the air, and the scooter operating a 180 spin.
- For starting out, you can hop off with both feet.
- Land the trick. Once the scooter completes the 180, try to hop back onto the scooter while it’s still in the air. This way you and the scooter land the 180 at the same time.
Tips
- Most cities provide local skate parks. Referencing your city's recreation website is a good way to find one near you.
- These tricks can be easy for some, while being much harder for others. It's all about consistently practicing and awareness of your body while performing the trick.
Warnings
- Always wear your helmet to be safe.
