Hey all

Obviously everyone has different ability levels/guts/balance etc, but how long did it take you to nail 360s?

I've been snowboarding about 7 or 8 times now and can confidently land decent air at speed. This winter I'm going to do a season in Whistler and I really want to take my boarding to the next level, which for me is start learning spins.

So how long did it take you land spins? Did you start by nailing 180s first or just go for it? Also, what is generally easier - backside or frontside?

Any other advice would be great too, I just want to see how it was for you when you learned.

Cheers

Snake

Hi Snake
So you're going to Whistler, that's cool, a bunch of us on here work there every season. Ride with us if u get the chance.

So with learning 360s, don't worry about how fast everyone else learns them. Just focus on what's the best way for u to learn them.
First decide if u want to learn a frontside or backside 360. Then break the 360 up into parts. It's good to learn both front side and backside 180s (and the same in switch) to be able to spin and land in every direction, but lets say u decide to learn a Backside 360.

The minimum u must know is:
*You must first become very comfortable riding switch (including jumping and landing switch)
*Then learn how to backside 180 (Get confident spinning off the toe edge)
*Then learn how Switch frontside 180 (cab 180) because it is the second half of a backside 3.
*Then try a backside 360! The difference will be with a back 180 your head will turn to face back up hill. With a backside 360 your head must turn (looking over your rear shoulder) and keep looking that way until it's facing forward again.

A frontside 360 is basically the reverse of that - learn a front 180 and a switch back 180 then try a front 360.

Getting a park lesson can help u understand all this way better but in a short message this is the best I can do.
Good luck, remember all u need is a small jump or little natural feature for a 360, and focus on getting as many different 180s as possible first. They are sweet tricks too.

Spin to win!

Andy - cheers for the in depth reply!

I've spoken to a couple of other guys on another thread I'm definitely gonna come along to the Boardworld dinner in Whistler.

I think I'm gonna go for backside (they look cooler for start), really good advice about learning to ride switch, haven't really done that too much yet.

I used to skateboard loads and always found tricks on frontside easier but I just love the movement of a backside turn. Hopefully by the end of the season I'll be bi-spinning!

And hopefully I'll get to ride with you guys soon as well!

Hey Snake,

The most important skill you can learn to assist freestyle progression is switch. Ride switch as much as possible and your progression will be faster, smoother, and safer.

I like to teach everything in simple building blocks. I think it's the easiest way to train your body to learn new tricks. Before you can think about 360s, you need you get your 180s on lock. You can't do a 180 until you can either take off or land switch; therefore the most crucial skill to learn is switch. If you try to learn 360s before you can do 180s, you're going to be hucking your spins, out of control.

OK, so you're getting better at switch; really focus on getting a feel for your edges. From here you can work on your 180s. It's a good idea to get comfortable with both frontside and backside. You can also work on cab 180s (cab is a switch frontside spin) and switch backside 180s (probably the hardest of the 180s).

A frontside 360 is essentially a frontside 180, followed by a switch backside 180. If you are comfortable with these two tricks, it's easy to piece together. Same goes for a backside 360; it's a backside 180, followed by a cab 180. If you can do both those 180s, it's only a matter of time before you can put them together. You get the idea...

In regards to backside or frontside, each person has their preferences. Some people think frontside is easier, some think backside is easier. Just go with whatever feels more natural to you.

Check out the backside 360 trick tip here: http://www.boardworld.com.au/snowboarding/content/category/backside-360/

If you ever want to buy the freestyle program from Snowboard Addiction (highly recommended), use the promo code boardworld and you'll get a 10% discount on any of their products. Their tutorials are fantastic!

Andy Aitken - 19 October 2011 01:26 AM

Hi Snake
So you're going to Whistler, that's cool, a bunch of us on here work there every season. Ride with us if u get the chance.

So with learning 360s, don't worry about how fast everyone else learns them. Just focus on what's the best way for u to learn them.
First decide if u want to learn a frontside or backside 360. Then break the 360 up into parts. It's good to learn both front side and backside 180s (and the same in switch) to be able to spin and land in every direction, but lets say u decide to learn a Backside 360.

The minimum u must know is:
*You must first become very comfortable riding switch (including jumping and landing switch)
*Then learn how to backside 180 (Get confident spinning off the toe edge)
*Then learn how Switch frontside 180 (cab 180) because it is the second half of a backside 3.
*Then try a backside 360! The difference will be with a back 180 your head will turn to face back up hill. With a backside 360 your head must turn (looking over your rear shoulder) and keep looking that way until it's facing forward again.

A frontside 360 is basically the reverse of that - learn a front 180 and a switch back 180 then try a front 360.

Getting a park lesson can help u understand all this way better but in a short message this is the best I can do.
Good luck, remember all u need is a small jump or little natural feature for a 360, and focus on getting as many different 180s as possible first. They are sweet tricks too.

Spin to win!

Excellent advice here too. I probably should have read this first but I didn't want it to influence my thought process. Looks like we were both on the same page.

No worries
Yeah so definitely learn to ride switch really well first, cause u will need it for the 180s.
I actually learned front 180s first and front 360s first. But they are the same difficulty as backside, it's just which ever u choose to practice.
Backside 180s and 360s definitely look and feel cooler in my opinion though.

I learnt frontside 180s and 360s first too. It just felt more natural (or easier) to spin that way. I guess that blind feeling of spinning backside 180s can take some getting used to.

Now I much prefer backside 180s to frontside 180s. It's such a smooth trick.

Another point I like to make about doing 3's:

a 180, especially a frontside 180 can be done with only lower body movements. by pre-spinning your upper body, and be rotating in the direction you want to spin, once your board leaves the ground, it's like 95% all lower body movements. to make the FS180.

In order to complete a 3, the whole body must rotate around.


On a BS3, the last half of it is a switch to regular 180, at this point recall the body posture mentioned above, and complete the final 180 with lower body movements.
the goal is at the end of the first 180... the BS180, do a FULL BODY rotation and when half way into the spin have your upper body tweaked forward so the last half of the 3, is a simple lower body 180.



Honestly. all these words can get lost between the ears.
I think snowboardaddiction.com has posted and shared a 360 video online for free... if you can find it. even so their training videos are WELL worth paying for, especially as he talks about approach to the lip, and taking off from a platform, etc... things that are hard to understand with just words.

Welcome home slider!!!!!

How ya been????? How's the little riders?????

Hey man, good to hear to coming to Whistler! I think 360's are a trick you can learn fairly quickly. But it takes a long time to get them smooth and solid. You can crank and twist a 360 off about anything but doesn't mean you want to. It definitely took me a few years to get mine looking smooth. I would recommend a frontside 3 to start. Only because on you rotate it towards the jump, instead rotating backwards, which can be a scary thing to commit to. Everyone has there own preference of what's easier. I've put together three parts of a frontside 360 that I run through my head before spinning them.

1 Take Off
You want to spin a frontside 360 off your snowboard on the heel edge, and pop it evenly off your heels. So plan three turns up to the jump, so that you're half ways throughout a heel turn as you get to the lip. Popping evenly off your heel edge will help you get more height, clear the lip of the jump, and keep your snowboard level in the air. If you pop evenly off your heels, you should land on your snowboard evenly on your toe edge.

2 Wind up
The 360 spin comes from winding your body up. For a frontside 360 wind your upper body back, then as you pop off the lip rotate your upper body forward toward the jump. Keep your core stiff to bring your legs and snowboard with you. You want to rotate enough to get the 360 around, but not too much or you’ll over spin, or revert out on the landing. A good rule is to spin just over 300 degrees, then twist out the last few degrees.

3 In the Air
When you're in the air you need to be doing two things. Bend your knees and keep your head looking for that landing. Bending your knees keep you compact in the air, and make it easy to grab your snowboard. Looking for your landing helps get the 360 spin around, and when you’ve spotted your landing, tells you when to get out of your spin, and brace for the landing.

Just a few things to think about before the mountain opens. There are lots of great riders in Whistler that can help take you through the full progression. Good Luck!