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L ongboard Stances

Basic Stances

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Longboard stance intro

If you are familiar with shortboard skateboarding, then many stance terms will be familiar to you. There are additional stances in longboard styles, because of the greater board length. It makes a big difference if you are positioned closer to the nose or closer to the tail. Most maneuvers require the stance to be at the appropriate spot on the board.

Basic stances

Regular stance

The basic group of stances are all regular stance positions, and don't involve crossing your legs. Regular stance means your favorite pivot foot is back and your other foot is front. For most right handers, regular stance is right foot back. I think this is because the right foot, being the stronger or kicking foot, is best for the pivot foot.

Middle stance

Middle stance means you are parked between the front and rear trucks. This is about the most stable place to be on a long skateboard. The middle stance is a neutral area where the longboarder has the option of moving to the nose or tail. This shot shows a crouching middle position. In the crouch, my weight is mostly on the front foot, and my back foot is rolled onto the "inside edge" of my foot, or the instep. I might use this type of stance for going fast or dropping down a bank.

Here is a middle stance position, a bit less crouched, on a somewhat shorter street longboard. The stance is more like a stance on a shortboard, spread across the board and right over the bolts, only wider to fit a 46 inch board. This shot is in the context of a set up for a slide.

This is an example of a more upright middle stance. This is the type of posture I take when longboarding in the traditional style. Where the crouch position is suggestive of speed, the upright stance suggests relaxation. As with many traditional longboard moves, relaxation may be more in the attitude and the upright look, as the legs and upper body may actually be working pretty hard. The middle stance in this shot is a setup for a difficult back cross step.

Tail stance

The tail stance on a big board looks pretty different than anything you'd see with shortboard skating. The stance is pushed way back onto the tail, leaving a lot of nose sticking out. Many of my routines start in the tail position. It opens up space on the middle and nose for walking the board. It can be uncomfortable at first to ride tail stance, because it's squirrely, especially with loose trucks. But this is where you have the most control over a long heavy board, and you have limitless options for walks and other tricks. This shot shows a wide tail stance, in a semi-crouch position. It's really the back third of the board I'm standing on, with my weight slightly forward. This is a good stance for a turn or kick carve.

This shows a more upright tail stance. This has more of a traditional longboard surf feel to it. In this shot, I'm about to walk forward off the tail at the start of a sequence of steps.

Narrow stance or side by side

Narrow stance is a stance in which the feet are close together, less than shoulder width, or touching side by side. Narrow stance often follows a step sequence or is the setup for a step or turn.

Nose stance

Since traditional longboard has a great deal to do with getting to the nose and nose riding, the nose stance is an important element. This shot shows a nose stance well forward with my back foot over the front truck, close to my front foot. The front foot is slightly toes over the nose, a subtle "hang five." Almost all the weight is on the back foot, and the front foot rests lightly on the nose. My arms are out for balance in a way that's more for function than style or posing.

This shot is a more stable form of nose stance, more suitable for going fast or going into a maneuver while at the nose.

Fakey

Fakey is a regular stance going backwards. Many fakey tricks are performed to turn the board and get the nose pointing forward again. In my big board styles I would probably only talk about fakey if it were a tail stance. If I were off the nose and going backwards I would probably call it switch because switch walking would be involved which is much harder than fakey tail stance. Fakey at the tail feels pretty comfortable so I still consider it a basic stance. In the two shot sequence, my normal back foot is on the tail, which temporarily is the nose while I'm going backwards. I'm starting a fakey frontside slide.