POV Skate Tutorial #12: How to VARIAL KICKFLIP

In this video I’m teaching you how to varial kickflip. This video teaches you how to varial kickflip from your point of view in no time!

The varial kickflip is the first combination trick that I learned and that’s why it’s the first flatground combination trick that I’m teaching you on my channel. The varial kickflip is not the steeziest looking trick, it’s also a really disliked trick for a game of skate… at least that’s what I know from my experience. It’s a very exciting trick when you first learn it but once you get your 360 flips down you kinda forget about ‘em… poor varial flips.

To be honest the reputation of varial kickflips totally sucks, you don’t really wanna do ‘em a lot in public but you gotta learn this trick cause it’ll help you progress so stay motivated!

Since the varial kickflip is your first combination trick you wanna make sure that you’re already able to do three other tricks. Those three other tricks are, the first one, very obvious one the Ollie, number two the kickflip and number three the pop shove-it. Since you’re watching this tutorial I figure you can already do those but if not, don’t worry, I’ve got tutorials for all of them.

No let’s get in to the foot-positioning. You wanna place your front foot kinda like a kickflip. Place it right beneath the bolts. Just with a little bit more of an angle than you would for a kickflip. Just like you see it here. A little bit more of an angle because you have to flip it forward a bit because of the combination of the pop shove it and kickflip.

You backfoot is gonna be in the same position as you would for a pop shove it. Place your back foot on your tail and place it a little bit more forward than you would for an Ollie for example. This helps you to scoop your board better.

Now let’s take a look at the movement. This really is a really important part.
I first really wanna say it once more, since the varial kickflip is a combination of a kickflip and a pop shove it. Make sure you have those down!

Now let’s really get into it.
Step 1: Pop and flick. While jumping up, you have to obviously pop and flick. You already know how the popping part works since you’re able to do pop shove its. The difference is really all in the flick. For the kickflip you really flick to the side but for this one you have to flick it forward a bit, just really a bit. It does feel different than a kickflip but the concept is the same. Practice flipping your board only if this is difficult for you.
Step 2: Staying above your board. After the flick it’s really all about having control over your board and staying above it. To stay above your board you already have to jump forward a bit when popping. Stay in control and keep it beneath you.
Step 3: Catch and land. You wanna make sure you catch your board at the right time. It’s more of a feel than that you really look at it and wait to catch it. After you catch it you gotta stay in control, land and ride away. Your balance is really crucial in this part so make sure you keep your balance when landing and while you bend your knees after you land.

The first common mistake with this trick is flipping your board too much in front of you. This comes from not staying above it and not trying to keep your board beneath you. One reason for this is if you’re too scared to do it but I’m here to tell you that you shouldn’t be. Just stay above it and maybe try to land it with your backfoot first and than with both feet. You’re also less likely to get hurt if you believe in your self and if you just commit a full 100% to the trick.
The second common mistake is not getting the flip completely right. This is a logical problem since this is your first combination trick and that’s why it might be a little harder. To fix this just practice flipping your board alone and once you’re able to do that, put all your effort into staying above it and flipping your board at the same time.
Don’t get discouraged if you’re struggling to learn this trick. When I started out skating I still remember both of my shins were full of yellow spots. Yes it’s probably gonna be hard and even painful but if you really wanna learn this trick you can! Be patient. Don’t stop and just keep practicing.