Ollie

The ollie is the basic snowboard jump, the one every other trick is built on. Unlike skiing, snowboarding lets you ollie without a kicker (a park jump): all you need is to load and release the flex of the board.

How to Ollie

Starting Position

1. Neutral stance: feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent
2. Weight distribution: 60% on your back foot

The Move

1. Load: lower your center of gravity by bending your knees and shift your weight onto your back foot, loading the tail
2. Drive: snap your back leg straight, pressing the tail into the snow
3. Pop: the tail springs back and launches the nose up; help it by lifting your front foot
4. Air: pull your knees to your chest and keep the board level
5. Land: extend your legs, land on both feet at the same time, knees soft to absorb the impact

Common Mistakes

• Jumping with your arms: your pop comes from your legs, not your arms
• Weight too far forward: make sure you load your back foot properly
• Stiff landing: keep your knees soft when you land

When Are You Ready to Ollie?

When you can traverse comfortably on both edges, heelside and toeside, and control your speed without effort. You don’t need any other tricks first.

Progression

Once you’ve got the ollie down, the next steps are the nollie (popping off the nose), the fakie ollie, and then steering the jump for your first 180s.