If you ride a scooter and you’re looking for something new to do, learning scooter tricks could be a great move. It is going to take a dose of time and some practice to get into the major tricks you see at skate parks, but it’s not impossible. Make sure you start with one trick and progress from it to other tricks to see the best results possible on other tricks.
Types of Scooter Tricks to Learn
When you work on various tricks and keep at them over time, you can start learning more advanced tricks. Some of these tricks include the following:
- Backflip Tailwhip Tricks
- Bar Rewind Rewind Tricks
- X-Ride Tricks
- Super Willy Tricks
- Downside Heelwhip Tricks
- Double Heelwhip Tricks
- Fastplant Tricks
- Tuck No Hander Tricks
- Wallride Tricks
- Superman Tricks
- Table Top Tricks
- Can-Can Tricks
- X-Up Tricks
- Buttercup Tricks
- 360 Tailwhip Tricks
All of these tricks and more will offer you the chance to show off your skills and learn additional tricks. While scooters might be used as fun or transportation, they can also provide a vast number of tricks, and those tricks can be learned with enough time. Whether you’re looking to do big air tricks, jump tricks, or other tricks, the below options will give you a basis for any tricks.
Getting the Right Foot Stance for Scooter Tricks
Before you can start pulling off tricks on your scooter, the first thing you need to know is how to place your feet for tricks. Keep in mind that this stance for tricks is going to differ based on whether your left or your right foot is dominant. Your dominant foot should be on the back of the deck at a 45-degree angle for tricks with the outer edge pushing against the brake when working on tricks.
Those who are regularly footed (meaning your right is the dominant of your feet) should turn your legs to the right of the scooter during tricks. Those who are goofy-footed (of your feet, this means your left is dominant) will want to turn their legs toward the left of the scooter when doing tricks.
Your other foot should be on the deck next to the dominant one with your dominant foot’s toe lined up with the groove on the inside of the other foot to start tricks. The inner edges of both feet should be touching each other at this point in your tricks. Next, put your hands on the grips of the handlebars and wrap your finger around them with a firm grip as you start the tricks.
The last step when it comes to the right stance for tricks is kicking off with your back foot. The back foot will help push you forward when you want the scooter to move during a trick. Your front foot should be placed back on the deck in the same position as before while you get the stance for tricks.
The Process of Doing a Simple Bunny Hop
The simplest of scooter tricks is the bunny hop, and you can practice tricks like it on your scooter pretty much anywhere on the ground. To start hop tricks, you want to push off, so you begin moving on the scooter. Make sure you don’t push off overly hard as it’s easier to do tricks when going slower while you are still learning.
Next, you want to bend your knees and push up using your legs to start the tricks. This will make it feel like you’re jumping up off of the ground during tricks. The idea behind the hop trick is to propel from a crouching position on your scooter while you stay planted on the deck.
As you push up with your legs during tricks, pull up with your arms. The best way to do this is to pull on the handlebars in an upward position. The front wheel lifts up about 12 inches from the ground as you work through the tricks. Allow the back wheel to lift from the ground while you push and pull upward during tricks.
While you do the above movements to start doing tricks, ensure you keep yourself planted on the scooter deck. Once you’re done, the scooter will drop back toward the ground with the front and rear wheels hitting at the same time before riding forward when you can do more tricks.
Related: Best 3 Wheel Scooters for Toddlers
Learning the Tail Whip Trick Through Practice
The tailwhip is another trick that is relatively easy to learn when you’re just getting started. The first thing to be aware of is that a clockwise tailwhip is easiest with a regular stance, while a counterclockwise trick works best when you are riding goofy doing tricks.
Before you get started with this new trick, make sure you do some practice with jump tricks and tricks that involve getting air. To do a tailwhip, you have to be capable of other scootering tricks, so you want to be confident with the first trick we included before moving to other tricks. The more air you get with the initial trick, the easier time you will have when you attempt tailwhip tricks.
First, kick-off and do a hop, so you get some air during the tricks. Make sure you push off using your legs and pull up with your arms so that the front and rear wheels get air while doing tricks. Next, push off the deck from the front so the deck can spin 360 degrees around in the tricks. With this and other tricks like it, both of your legs are going to be in the air. Keep each hand on the handlebars and then wait for your deck to come back to you, at which point you can start new tricks.
Once it comes back to you, use the back leg to stop it and complete the tricks. You’ll want this side to land on the scooter as soon as it stops the spinning motion during the trick. At this point, the front of your body can land back on the deck, and the scooter itself will drop onto the ground so you can pull off other tricks like Can-Can tricks and X-Up tricks.
Learning Scooter Tricks Such as the Barspin
Another of the simplest scooter tricks is a barspin, which starts by removing your left hand from the handlebars while you are riding and ready to start with tricks. Your free hand should be just a few inches away during the tricks so you can grab back onto them as soon as they come around. A bit of practice during the initial stages can be done with a scooter that is still so you get down where your hands should be through the tricks process.
One of the tricky parts is lifting your front wheel from the ground while you spin the bars in a clockwise direction when doing the tricks. You want to spin them about 180 degrees while you keep one hand on them during the duration of tricks. Take your left hand and put it under the right one when doing the tricks before grabbing one of the handlebars.
The next step is to release your right hand while spinning the handlebars clockwise 180 degrees for the tricks. Use your left hand to spin them, this time during the tricks, while holding onto them at the same time. After that, take your right hand and grab the bars, which should now be back in the original position to do other tricks.
You may be interested our round up on the best ripstik.
Doing the One Hander Tricks Scooter
Another of the best tricks for scooters is one using the bunny hop yet again. Kick-off and start the hop for the tricks while you work to get the most air you possibly can, so you have time to pull off one of these tricks. Once you get air, let go of the handlebars with either arm, so you still have some balance while you learn one of these tricks.
At this point in the trick, hold your arm out, so it’s parallel with the environment below. You should try to keep it stretched out during the duration of tricks like this one. However, if you start to feel you’re losing balance during tricks, grab back onto the handlebars. When you land, take hold of the handlebars once more and kick-off to do this or one of your other tricks again.
Conclusion
With a bit of practice and time, learning one of these scooter tricks won’t be too difficult. Also, these basic tricks might seem simple, but they pave the way for doing bigger and better tricks to impress everyone around you. If you have a scooter and want to learn tricks, the three tricks above are a fantastic way to start, and you can build on your tricks knowledge to expand your capabilities.