Most skaters are exhilarated to learn how to powerslide, especially because of the bigger and faster hills they are able to bomb as a result. Usually, the first slide they learn is a heelside, glove down slide. As they progress, they may not grab rail as much, hold out slides for longer, and eventually not use their gloves at all in the stand-up slide. However impressive or difficult this may seem, they must then realize it is only half the battle. Every one of those progressive techniques can be learned again for the other side of the board, the toeside. Not everyone needs to be throwing massive toeside standies if that isn’t what they’re going for, but if the only slides a rider knows or can pull off at high speeds are heelsides, the capabilities and possibilities while bombing hills will be reduced, since they can only drift in one direction. Aside from the kinds of hills it can unlock, toeside slides can be very impressive and fun to learn if a skater does so in the right way.
Toeside slides usually take a little longer for a beginner to approach. This is both because of the physical aspect of less intuitive muscle movements as well as the psychological aspect of sliding “backwards,” as it were, down the slope. My advice, as with anything else, is to take it in small, progressive steps.
Some riders may find it comfortable to start their toesides by doing pendulum slides at fairly slow speeds. This allows them to lean into their slides and to have the additional stability of having two hands on the ground. Since this is not a tutorial on pendulum slides, I will not go into depth on how to do them here. I only mention it as a way to get acquainted with toesides. Having the right gear can also help one get over the psychological factor.
When you are ready to give it a try, start by selecting the right road. Just like with learning heelsides, having a wide, open turn or a cul-de-sac can work wonders, especially when the rider just wants to focus on breaking traction and not so much where he’s going. Once you’ve found the right hill, find the right stance and speed. Some riders may prefer their back toes hanging slightly off the rail so they can push their board into the slide better. As for the speed, remember that it is possible to go too slow, but it is definitely more dangerous to go too fast all at once. Find the in-between starting on the slow end. Here are some tips for executing the slide:
- Start with carving, just like with heelsides, envisioning the slide at the apex of any one of those carves. Try to be relaxed and ready (relaxed is ready) to slide as you start to go down the hill. Bend your knees.
- Eyes on the curve. I know that riders want to focus on just getting the slide down, but looking under your shoulder or between your arm pit where you are going is a great way to get over the fear associated with “going backwards.”
- Execute. Just turn your body and put your feet in a set position. It will take a while to get the confidence in your board to slide, but this faith is crucial in order to have consistency in your slides.
Some may want to start with a glove on the ground and a glove on the rail. This might make you feel a little more stable during the slide, but because your weight is necessarily situated more forward (or in this case, backwards) I feel a rider may be more liable to “highsiding,” which, scarily enough in this case, means falling backwards onto their back and head. I highly recommend one glove down, one in the air for balance, and if you should fall, fall uphill on your knee pads or thighs. Make sure you wear a helmet!
Good luck, safe riding, and God bless.
