So you want to learn how to do a 360 on your snowboard?
First things first, before you attempt any trick (especially a pro trick like this) you need to make sure your snowboarding skills are up to scratch. For the 360 trick, you need to at least be an intermediate snowboarder, and you need to ensure you’re comfortable, confident and secure riding your board. It sounds obvious (we know) but you’d be surprised how many people try to run before they can walk. Always have your basics skills perfected before you start attempting any tricks like this. If you are in anyway unsure – get some professional snowboard coaching.
Tip 1: Make sure you can Ollie and Pop
These are more basic tricks in a snowboarders repertoire, but you’ll find it’s a very similar set of techniques and skills involved. If you can ensure you’ve got your basic tricks mastered, then mastering the frontside 360 will be a little easier for you.
Tip 2: Pick a slope you’ll be comfortable practising on
We recommend taking a look at the different hills and slopes around the course and finding an area that’s quiet and not too crowded. You’ll want to be able to practise your trick without too much interference and without worrying about bumping into anyone.
Now it’s time to learn the trick itself…
Step 1
Use your bend and crouch positioning when you jump, to bring your board high off the ground. The bend and crouch position gives you good momentum and helps you stay up for longer too.
Step 2
Traverse into the spin on your heel edge, while rotating your arms in the direction of travel – so in the direction you’re spinning. This helps to pull your body around faster, giving you more chance of clearing the full 360 turn. Some people may prefer doign this in the opposite direction, traversing on their toe edge.
Step 3
As you pop into the air, rotate your arms back towards the direction of travel.
Step 4
Really use your knees. Bend them as you jump, so that you can get some air between your board and the snow. This will also help you clear the full 360 spin too.
It really helps when learning this trick to give yourself plenty of room to practise. You’ll probably be up and down as you fall and learn, but it’s all part of the process and all part of the fun. It can really help to watch others doing the trick too – they might have slight variations of technique – and you might find something that works well for you and your snowboarding style.