Misunderstanding how to ollie

[u/Oddmario33]

Hey all, I’m going into my second season snowboarding and I’d like to get into hitting jumps but I am struggling to understand how to properly Ollie.

My question is this: Is this the correct way to Ollie while actively moving? Everything I watch and read says that you jump with both feet but that doesn’t make sense to me when you bend the board for the pop from tension since the front of the board is off the ground at that point with only the tail of the board left to the ground .

This video is the closest I’ve been to understanding. Do you truly only jump off the back foot like in this video?

[u/illpourthisonurhead]

Had this talk here a few times, I know different folks describe this differently. But imo I only “ollie” when I’m jumping over something on flat ground or maybe trying to get higher than the natural trajectory of a takeoff would put me. But most of the time I just pop, which doesn’t really require you to lean back and load the back foot like this. It’s more like pumping. You just bend your knees and load your board going up the takeoff and then you rise up as you leave the lip. Timing this correctly as you leave the lip loads the tail for you. So the board snaps similarly to an ollie because you’re unweighting it right as you leave the lip, and your back foot tail are the last point on the snow. But you don’t need to rock back on your back foot as shown in the video. One can ollie off a takeoff, but you can’t pop off flat, hard ground, unless you load the board by carving.

[u/KeySterBunny → u/illpourthisonurhead]

I like how you describe this.

[u/illpourthisonurhead → u/KeySterBunny]

Thanks I never quite know how so glad it made a little sense

[u/BrassKnuckleHead187 → u/illpourthisonurhead]

This is perfect. Saved me time typing 😂

[u/Miserable_Comfort833 → u/illpourthisonurhead]

The same advice applies to almost everything that you're trying to jump with, stand up to the lip.

Doesn't matter if you're on a bike, skis, snowboard, or anything else.

[u/mrpototto]

When you do it while riding it doesn’t look as exaggerated when standing still

[u/splifnbeer4breakfast]

Another way to think about it is pushing the board forward and then jumping back over it. Doing it while moving helps get used to that.

[u/soscbjoalmsdbdbq]

Legs look weird as hell in this

When I load up for an ollie knees are bent you look like your knees are more set up for a butter

So Ill still have the majority of weight on the front foot both knees bent and kind of just press the back down to compress then lift the front leg and let the back kinda pop up

[u/ameliasayswords]

Look at videos of how to Ollie on a skateboard. It’s similar but you don’t have to slide your front foot forward to level out the board, you just level out your feet as you bring up your knees. You’re leaning too far back and trying to slow down the movement too much. It’s more intuitive than you’re doing it here.

[u/nyghtw0lf → u/ameliasayswords]

The video isn't OP. It's a clip from a tutorial video. The reason it looks weird is cause he's exaggerating the movements for demonstration purposes.

[u/Sad-Psychology9677]

There are some good videos out there, IMO the best channels out there are Malcolm Moore, Snowboard Addiction, and Taevis (who does vids for Snoboard Addiction too). Here’s a good one for ollies: link

That said, for jumps I believe what you usually will do is pop instead (Taevis has videos on this too), which is more of shifting your weight and letting your momentum take your board further off a jump

[u/popopopopopopopopoop → u/Sad-Psychology9677]

I came here to say that Taevis did a video recently specifically about ollies off side hits etc.

[u/dboybm64 → u/Sad-Psychology9677]

Yup, imo those are the best channels to get tips on. Taevis especially explains it super well and has helped me with the popping on the lips of jumps. Recommed watching his series where he breaks down the motion and weight distribution in clips of pro riders

[u/localsonlynokooks]

When you’re moving, the actual motion has you moving your weight to your front foot first, then you transition to the back and snap. Looks like you’re skipping that part in your flat ground practice, you’re like doing a butter. Load the front, transfer to the back through the hips (all in the hips), then pop.

[u/dltl]

But a skateboard. That's how you master the Ollie.

[u/juliuspepperwoodchi]

Why not just Ollie and post a video of that? You don't have to be moving to Ollie, and arguably, the best way to learn them and practice them is when you aren't moving on flat ground.

[u/Traditional_Square93]

good start! just do it while moving and play around w it and you’ll figure. i think it’s good you got it exaggerated in the video. do ollies like that and do ones where you barely shift your weight at all and do everything in between. you’ll feel it when you get it right.

[u/WideEstablishment578]

Is that snowbird at the top of the tram?

[u/9Epicman1]

It generates a lot more upward force when you are moving 

[u/RonShreds]

I think you may be overthinking it. First of all, bend your knees, like touch your boots at least. Then, as you come up, bring your front knee up towards your chest or the nose of the board off of the ground, so you are pressuring the tail and the board is flexing. At the moment you feel that energy, you bring your back foot up nice and high.

[u/-FVNT0M-]

I think you’re overthinking. Just put more weight towards the tail to build pressure and jump while the board releases the pressure to get the pop. Do that vs simply jump and you’ll feel the difference.

[u/Boy_Meats_Grill]

Don't Ollie off jumps until you have hit them normally. If you Ollie off of a kicker you will land on your ass because you are creating momentum with your back foot. The proper way to hit a big jump is equal pressure off both feet and let your speed do the work. Sure you should Ollie off side hits but only if you have already mastered using the lip/take off/random hump some 14 year old built up at a good speed where you get air automatically

[u/BalooInABeeCostume]

Yes, you load up the tail (or nose for nollies) and use it like a spring. This is why you get more pop with traditional camber.

[u/shinyswordman]

Pull that back knee out and not in. That will give the spring.

[u/shinyswordman → u/shinyswordman]

Just watch skateboard Ollie techniques try it on the flat before you get on the lift a few times. And then try it going slow af and speed it up till you start boosting to the moon. Legit just watch skateboard Ollie’s it’s the same but your board is stuck.

[u/shinyswordman → u/shinyswordman]

In a super detailed minute thought is that the longer you delay your front foot rise from your back foot press the bigger the Ollie cause once you release your back foot and bring it up the tail will come and snap you up like a skateboard.

[u/shinyswordman]

Oh I reread your post, you have a slight mix up. In snowboarding most park jumps do not require you to Ollie, the loft is built into the jump so you do mostly just lift both feet. In a simple explanation as you are seeing on YouTube tutorials (snowboard addiction seems to be pretty on the money). But you Ollie off flat stuff and natural features like cliffs, I like to Ollie off and into them rather then just ride and drop down. So from my other comments Ollie off shit and enjoy the side hits. But in the park you’ll have to learn a different way to jump, you definitely can pop park jumps but that is more advanced and lean into a steez thing. Watch slow mo x games dudes, you’ll see em wind up for their rotations but they aren’t really popping.

[u/TryingTris]

Crystal clear explanation on how to ollie in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFVWhh0Gars

[u/ClownTown15]

Bend knees,

Lean slightly on back foot as you bounce up with both legs

stomp the board down with both feet as you land coming out of a jump

[u/BadEngineer_34]

You didn’t really Ollie of off jumps

you jump off of jumps, you will get some natural pop in the board as you jump because the tail will load as you jump and approach the lip but it’s not really an Ollie it’s both legs at the same time jump.

[u/choadspanker]

Lean back less and bend down more and you got it

[u/gargensis]

As I was preparing to go downhill I fell to my side in this position, and that’s how I tore my meniscus.

I didn’t send it then but this video sent me back to those memories.

[u/aydarti]

I started doing good ollies after I began focusing on lifting my front foot as if I were stepping over something, and then bringing my back foot up to the same height. It feels more similar to a skateboarding ollie than to pushing the hips back, because when you lift your front foot your weight naturally shifts back. In my opinion, the common snowboard advice of shifting the hips throws you off balance it might work on flat ground but can cause the nose to clip on bigger jumps.

[u/tayksdad]

Sorry bro this is completely unrelated but is that mount hotham??

[u/Snowboard-Racer]

What the hell is this crap?