How To Hardflip

A hardflip is an advanced trick that combines a kickflip with a frontside pop shuvit. To be able to learn this trick, you should master three tricks: kickflip, frontside pop shuvit, and frontside kickflip. The techniques you have learned and muscle memory from these tricks makes the hardflip easier to learn. Essentially, a hardflip requires the fingerboard to both flip and rotate toward you. Here’s how to hardflip on a fingerboard.

Step 1: Finger placement

Like the kickflip, frontside pop shuvit, and frontside kickflip, the finger placement is the same with a hardflip. Position your front finger (index finger) just behind the front four screws of the board. You can position your front finger closer to the center of the board if it makes it more comfortable for you. Place your back finger on the tail of the board.

Step 2: Popping the board

Like a frontside pop shove it and frontside kickflip, a hardflip requires the same beginning motion for popping the board. Pop the tail of the board down with your back finger to start the trick.

Step 3: Flipping the board

This trick can seem extremely challenging to understand, but once you realize the technique for flipping the board while also rotating it, the trick becomes easier to learn and eventually master. As you pop the tail down, you must simultaneously slide your front finger towards the left side of the nose. When the board is almost perpendicular to the ground and when your front finger is almost at the nose of the board, bring your front finger towards you like a frontside pop shuvit while also performing a kickflip.

Step 4: Landing the trick

Once the board has completed both a kickflip and frontside pop shuvit, catch the board with both fingers on the grip side and land it on all four wheels. Different from a frontside pop shove it and frontside kickflip, you don’t need to rotate your wrist or land any different than a regular shove it or kickflip.

Final thoughts

While this trick might seem difficult to master at first, it can be easy once you understand the technique that goes with it. While some perform this trick by beginning to rotate their wrist but then rotating it back the other way, this trick can be performed without every rotating your wrist in order for the board to move in the way it needs to.

You can keep your wrist straight the entire time, and use your front finger to get the board to both flip and rotate at you.by flicking it down on the nose for a kickflip while also away from you to get the board to frontside pop shove it. Using this simple technique can make this trick easier to perform.