How to jump on a snowboard
Want to catch air? We don’t blame you! It’s darn impressive and hella fun. So, strap in for our guide on how to jump on a snowboard and prepare to fly high.
You’re feeling mega confident on the slopes. In fact, you can ride at high speeds and execute heelside and toeside carves with your eyes closed (although we don't advise it!). Now, your attention’s turned to jumping.
In our step-by-step jumping guide, we’ll teach you to nail basics and eventually go full park rat. But it’s not just about style. Hitting jumps is also an awesome foundation for other, more advanced snowboarding tricks. Oh, and you want to look fire while flying, right? Pair your new skills with our new styles. Freshly dropped below.
Prepare to catch air
Get your body into position
Straight-line the jump at a comfortable speed
Pop off the lip
Land and bend your knees
Progress to Ollies
Practice makes perfect
FAQs
1. Get your body into position
Jumping is all about balance. So how do you get your body into the proper position to stay upright and zen? It’s all about having a stacked, relaxed stance! And we have a few tricks up our sleeves to help you maintain this power position:
- 1Bend your knees slightly
- 2Keep your back straight and your head facing the end of the takeoff
- 3Distribute your weight evenly between your back and front foot
- 4Place one arm forward and one arm back
- 5Move your front hand so it’s over the board’s nose and your back hand over the tail (but don’t open your lead shoulder too wide)
- 6Make sure your shoulders are stacked over your knees and parallel to your board
Keep this body position throughout the approach, takeoff, airtime, and landing. Lean too far back or forward and you’ll fall. Also, avoid twisting your shoulders when first learning. This makes your board twist, which will throw everything off. Instead, pretend like you’re riding forward on the slopes.
2. Straight-line the jump at a comfortable speed
Approach the jump at a moderate speed. It’s tempting to approach cautiously, but this is likely to throw off your balance or not give you enough air to clear the jump. In this case, you could slam the knuckle (the flat section after the lip). Don’t go rocket-fast, either. You don’t want to overshoot the landing and land flat.
Try to ride straight toward the jump without any last-second speed checks, as you’re likely to catch an edge or throw off your trajectory. Sure, when learning, you might need to experiment to figure out your perfect run-up speed, but once you crack it, the jump itself will feel smooth ‘n’ steady.
3. Pop off the lip
Nearing the jump’s lip? It’s time to pop – as demonstrated in the above video from Snowboard Addiction. Popping involves using both legs to release energy like a spring, giving you a higher jump, more airtime, and greater distance. Just follow our steps:
- 1Approach the jump with your base flat on the ground
- 2Prepare to pop by bending your knees deeper than usual: getting low is key!
- 3When your front foot reaches the lip, extend your legs until they’re almost straight
- 4Allow your feet to push against the board to achieve that ‘pop’ and create an upward momentum
- 5Once in the air, suck your legs up
- 6Keep your arms relaxed and avoid windmilling. Remain in that chilled, stacked stance mentioned above
You can also coast first! Coasting is all about riding straight over the jump with a relaxed stance and zero leg extension, allowing gravity to do its thing. This is a rad way to get used to jumps before progressing to pop. However, if you want to travel the same distance as popping, you need to carry a little more speed going into the jump.
4. Land and bend your knees
It’s awesome to feel like you’re flying. But what goes up must come down. So, it’s time to pinpoint your landing and angle your snowboard parallel to the ground as you near it. This flat-base technique helps set things up for a smooth descent.
To absorb impact, bend your knees. And touch down with the whole length of your board, letting it naturally run forward. We know it’s super tempting to speed check the second you land, but you’ll experience whiplash. Instead, let the board do its thing and ride forward a few meters to gain stability. You can then turn to the side and slow down.
5. Progress to Ollies
Once you’ve got your pop locked in, it’s time to Ollie on takeoff. Think of an Ollie as a mega-pop, giving you more of an arc, and so boosted height. To Ollie:
- 1Crouch down low, as if you’re going to jump onto a chair
- 2In one quick motion, shift your weight from your front foot to your back foot
- 3Lift the nose. You should find yourself in a tail press position with the front half of your board bending up
- 4Use the tail like a built-up spring and jump, tucking your knees into your body
Over time, an Ollie will feel like one smooth movement. Plus, knowing how to Ollie helps you launch on and off rails and boxes, and spring over obstacles while on flats. Being able to Ollie also transforms the whole mountain into your playground, letting you hit natural features in the backcountry and boost side hits on the slopes.
6. Practice makes perfect
Jumping can be really scary at the start. But the only way to get comfy is to just keep doing it. Over and over. And it’s vital not to rush your progression. Remember, you should always start with small, beginner rollers when first learning. Then work your way up to the bigger jumps and kickers when you feel fully confident and ready.
With that in mind, we have a few extra tips to help build your skills and confidence, and eventually progress to next-level jumps and tricks. These include:
- Practice Ollies outside the park, even while standing still or cruising groomers
- Practice Ollies outside the park, even while standing still or cruising groomers
- Watch other riders hit jumps. People-watching lets you assess the right speed and movements
- Ride behind another boarder and follow their exact moves. Known as being ‘towed in’, this is a great way to get the right speed for a jump when hitting it for the first time
- Learn how to fall safely to prevent injury. This involves knowing how to reposition your body in the air if you realize you’ve launched too short or too far
- Really suck your knees to your chest on takeoff. That way, you have more airtime to incorporate grabs and tricks when you feel ready
Want more tips on how to hit jumps? Check out the video below:
FAQs
We put together some of the most asked questions when it comes to jumping. Check them out below!
What are some common jumping mistakes?
Mistakes happen. But if you learn from these three jumping missteps, you can avoid them yourself….
- Landing on flat ground. Slamming into the knuckle or flat is a big no-no, as you can seriously hurt yourself. Instead, aim for the sweet spot. This is the part of the landing that’s past the knuckle and has the greatest degree of slope for the softest impact.
- Rushing the takeoff. Moving too quickly often results in a lack of control. So, focus on feeling stable with a centered stance. It does wonders in building confidence.
- Rotating in the air. Accidental mid-air rotations happen. And this is typically because your body isn’t straight. To prevent twists, keep your weight centered and align your shoulders with your board before takeoff.
How to jump higher on a snowboard?
The secret to jumping higher lies with mastering the Ollie! The action of raising your board’s nose automatically sees you achieve more of an arc than popping. But to get even higher, you have to really load up that Ollie by placing greater pressure on your back foot for extra flex and spring-like action. Just remember to pull that tail up after you jump!
What is the best stance for jumping on a snowboard?
The best stance for jumping on a snowboard is a duck stance (front foot angled slightly forward, back foot slightly back, e.g. +15°/-15°) with your feet set about shoulder-width apart. This gives you balance for both takeoff and landing, while keeping you comfortable riding switch.
Wrapping up
Who else is ready to spend less time on the ground and more time in the air? Remember, practice is the vital ingredient! So, don’t rush the process, and only progress to the next stage and bigger jumps once you feel confident, strong, and comfortable. We can’t wait to see it.
Have a jumping tip you’re desperate to tell us about? Or want to show us your skills in your new Dope Snow gear? Drop us a message, video, or most of your camera roll via crew@dopesnow.com. We always love to hear from you!
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