Snowboard Jumps

As snowboarding continues to be one of the fastest growing winter sports in the world, we are all becoming more familiar with the various types of snowboard jumps that snowboarders employ. Ollies, air to fakie, and half-pipes are just a few of the snowboard jump terms that are entering the English vocabulary.

Watching snowboarding competitions can be an exciting way to spend an afternoon. But listening to the commentators can be confusing, as if they are speaking a totally different language. But even though the moves sound silly, there are a few major types of snowboard jumps to learn about.

Ollies

The most basic snowboard jump is the ollie. An ollie is basically a bunny hop on a snowboard. In an ollie, the snowboarder uses the back part of his snowboard as a spring to jump straight up. An ollie can be done on a slope course or on a half-pipe. On a slope course, a snowboarder picks up speed going down the hill, then jumps up, moves forward through the air, then lands with both feet at the same time. It's very similar on a half-pipe, where the snowboarder can jump up on the edge of the pipe. In competition, an ollie is generally done in combination with other jumps, or as a lead in to a bigger trick. While an ollie is the most basic snowboard jump, it's important to not try it for the first time on your own; get instruction from a pro first.

Air To Fakie

No - fakie is not fake snow boarding, even though it is fun to say. Air to fakie is a snowboard jump that has the snowboarder switch directions and move through the air on the board. The basic of the jump is that the snowboarder starts by jumping straight up then turning 180 degrees in the air. The snowboarder then lands with both feet at the same time and continues to ride down the slope backwards (or fakie, which is riding the opposite way from the way you usually ride).

Other Tricks On The Snowboard

There are other snowboard jumps and tricks that riders do on the half-pipe, and new tricks are being invented all the time. Snowboarders also do a variety of twists, usually named by the number of degrees of rotation. A 360 is a full rotation; a 1080 is currently the highest degree of rotation that is currently being done in competition. The McTwist is a popular inverted snowboard jump, where the rider does an inverted 540   a back flip with a twist. There are also tricks done along the wall or the edge of the wall. And nearly every trick can be done "cab," which means that it is done with the rider's unnatural foot in front or "corked," where the spin is done off-axis.

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