While the ollie is one of the most basic things to do on a skateboard, it can be quite a challenge taking it down stairs and gaps. And while doing this might be similar to doing them on flat ground, there are some differences that you'll want to be aware of before throwing your body down or across something. This is a guide to let you know what those are.
What You Need to Know
Ollie
Obviously if you're going to try to ollie down or across something, you have to be able to do it consistently on flat with much comfort, confidence, and control.
What You May Find Useful:
One very important thing you should make note of is that things like this are going to take a lot of commitment. You can't pop your tail at the edge of some stair set and just hope all goes well. You have to follow through and stay focused the entire time.
Another thing you "may find useful" is to know that attempting gaps can be very dangerous. Work your way up in terms of size and always be careful. Also, confidence can really make or break you with this stuff, so try to have a good attitude rolling up to the spot you're trying to hit.
Doing The Trick
Positioning:
There are many ways you can do an ollie. But when you're going to take it down or over a gap, certain methods are better than others. This stands especially true when attempting to do an ollie down the bigger sized gaps.
With this being the case, you want to find a positioning of the feet that will allow you to get a solid pop and leveling out of the board.
The back foot will need to be square on the tail. You can move it around a tiny bit if it better suits you. Make sure you don't have too much foot hanging of because this can end up making it very difficult to land.
The front foot is best placed just a few inches behind the front bolts. This will allow you to maintain control easily, level out easily, and you can get enough height out of your ollie with this position to clear most things. If you need to adjust it a little bit for comfort, feel free to do so as comfort is very important.. But I wouldn't suggest you get too far from this location.
The angles of your feet should be the same as with a regular ollie.
Motion:
Firstly, you have to judge the proper amount of speed you're going to need to tackle the gap you're after. If possible, check somebody out hitting the same gap and use their speed as reference. As you get better skating gaps, you'll become better at judging speed.
So now you're set up correctly and you're approaching your gap with proper speed. Timing is going to be all too important. It's crucial that you pop your tail just before the gap.
Smack your tail down and perform your ollie. Be sure you level out.
Now you're in the air over said gap. Keep your feet still, as the slightest movement of them could knock your board away from you.
Spot your landing and try to have both feet over bolts. Absorb impact and ride away thinking of what you'd like to throw down it next.
Video Trick Tips:
Troubleshooting
This may very well be the most important part of this guide. A large amount of errors can pop up when trying ollies down gaps, so check these out and be prepared to not let this stuff happen.
-The ollie goes well and all is good... But when I land I fly forwards off of my skateboard
This is a very easy mistake to make and can lead to some pretty rough falls. The reason this is happening is because you're leaning too far forward when you hit the ground. You need to make more of an effort of keep your body over the skateboard.
-I'm landing, but when I do I fall backwards and my board shoots out in front of me
The reason this is happening is the opposite of the problem above. When you're landing, you are leaning too far back and losing control of the board. You need to make more of an effort to keep your body over the skateboard.
-I can't get the board to stay with me over the gap
It's going to be pretty damn hard to land a trick if the board isn't under you, isn't it? This error can come as the result of many things. One of them being that you're moving your feet in the air. Once the board is under you, there's not much you need to do. Hold your feet still to avoid pushing it out in any direction.
Also, this could be the result of lack of commitment. Don't get scared and kick it out unless you think you absolutely need to.
-When I land, my back foot slips off of the skateboard
You don't want to rip yourself apart because you're forced into doing the splits, so when you're setting up for this one you have to make sure the placement of your back foot is square on the tail and that it's not too far back. Having your foot too far back on the tail can result in all sorts of bad things happening, none of which you want.
-When I try to absorb the impact, I lose control and fall off my board
This is something that can easily happen if you don't do things right. One reason this may be going on is because you're bending too far down. There's no need to ollie off a curb and let your ass scrape the ground after you land (I don't care what you see in the Pig skate videos).
Another factor that might be playing a role in causing this problem is your speed. Going too slow can cause you to have to bend further down to absorb impact, thus making you lose balance. Also, too much speed can result in the same issue. Try to figure out what is the best speed for the gap based on it's height, length, and the type of surface you're going to be landing on.
If you still find this problem happening to you, and you're sure you're absorbing the impact correctly and your speed is good, then there's one more thing that it can be. When you're absorbing the impact, you're letting your upper body lean back. Leaning too far back means you're likely going to fall off your board or that it's going to slide out from under you. Make more of an effort to stay over your board when landing and not allow yourself to lean any direction.
Where Do I Go From Here?
Where do you go? Well.. You can attempt other tricks down the gap you just ollied, or you can try to find a bigger gap to pop an ollie down. It's up to you. Whatever you do, stay safe and good luck!
