How-To : Front Flip with video!

[Mark]

Front flips are something I've wanted in my arsenal FOREVER. I paid a high price for learning them yesterday but i am SUPER STOKED anyway.

Ok so check this out. Learn these on a somewhat small jump which you are INTIMATELY familiar with how much speed you need and how the jump throws you.

Step 1 : Call your mother and tell her you love her.

Step 2 : Come into the jump really low, as you feel the pop, dive straight forward with your arms outstretched, and then grab the back of your knees and start looking for your landing. It really is THAT simple. It's a very strange and suicidal feeling to just dive forward off a jump like that, but in reality it is a very simple thing to do.

Step 3: Land clean and avoid claiming until the cameras turn off.

This is not a move you can half ass, you have to be absolutely sure you are ready to do it.


here's the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qM_jIiQU3Y

[Jens]

Nice video Mark. It seems "more natural" to me than a backflip. Would a frontflip be easier?

[ny300z]

that just takes BALLS...i dont have those kahonas yet

[Mark]

I found the front easier then a backflip

[mctwist311]

I'm liken all these new stunts your throwing man keep it up
Definatley miss riding with u guys this. Year

[bec2745]

Soon to come the "Not-How-to Video"

[kirk]

Following Mark up, heres some more advice...

Front flips are super easy. I'd rate them maybe about as hard as a 360 off of a mid size jump. Years ago I use to huck them all the time off of little jumps, but I hadn't thrown one in probably 7 years until the superfronts yesterday. Thowing them as superfronts feels much more natural and looks 1000x better. Try this on a 20' or so jump at first. You can huck them on smaller stuff, but it will feel more natural with extra air time... and make sure you can safely hit the landing.

1. KNOW you are doing a front flip. If you have not done a front flip on a trampoline, into a pool, ect - start there first. You should know what it is going to feel like before trying it on the snow. As long as you can do it on a trampoline, ect, you won't have any trouble at all with this. Picture, and convince yourself 100% that you are going to do it (you already know how) and you will be fine. If you have hesitations, remove them or don't try it.

2. Don't throw down, throw forward. The actual flip is the easy part, the hard part is getting your body in position and making it look good. When I first learned front flips, I use to pre-wind and huck hard. This not only made it look really ugly, but it also made it harder to land because I couldn't time the flip. Part of the reason superfronts are popular is because they are easier to do cleanly. Throwing your weight forward makes it possible to spot the landing and time the rotation.

3. Land. Assuming you did everything else right, the flip part will be easy and natural. The only hard part is getting the landing timed right. After you initiate the flip, you are just going to have to wait until it "feels right" to land. Front flips are blind until just before you land, so it might take a few tries to figure this part out. If you have done fronts on a trampoline, this part will feel really similar.

4. DOUBLE CLAIM HARD. You probably just landed your first flip on the snow, don't be scared to show your stoke! Worry about the effortless one for video when it is.. well... effortless. After you get home, look up Marks Lincoln Loop How To and try that next time out.


The only other thing to note is that physics are NOT on your side when you initiate this trick. You have to fight the curve of the kicker and really throw your weight forward to initiate it. Once you're in the superman position, your momentum is set, so the flip is easy. Backflips are much more "natural" - the physics behind the jump shape want you to flip backwards, and you can spot the landing most of the way.

[Jens]

Thanks for that Kirk!

When I do jumps (nothing fancy, let's say 10ft jumps), I find it very freaky to imagine doing a backflip, whereas a frontflip seems easier since I tend to actually jump at the top of the jump.

[Kirk S]

following mark up, heres some more advice...



4. Double claim hard. You probably just landed your first flip on the snow, don't be scared to show your stoke! Worry about the effortless one for video when it is.. Well... Effortless. After you get home, look up marks lincoln loop how to and try that next time out.

absolutely

[DennisEvans]

Following Mark up, heres some more advice...

Front flips are super easy. I'd rate them maybe about as hard as a 360 off of a mid size jump. Years ago I use to huck them all the time off of little jumps, but I hadn't thrown one in probably 7 years until the superfronts yesterday. Thowing them as superfronts feels much more natural and looks 1000x better. Try this on a 20' or so jump at first. You can huck them on smaller stuff, but it will feel more natural with extra air time... and make sure you can safely hit the landing.

1. KNOW you are doing a front flip. If you have not done a front flip on a trampoline, into a pool, ect - start there first. You should know what it is going to feel like before trying it on the snow. As long as you can do it on a trampoline, ect, you won't have any trouble at all with this. Picture, and convince yourself 100% that you are going to do it (you already know how) and you will be fine. If you have hesitations, remove them or don't try it.

2. Don't throw down, throw forward. The actual flip is the easy part, the hard part is getting your body in position and making it look good. When I first learned front flips, I use to pre-wind and huck hard. This not only made it look really ugly, but it also made it harder to land because I couldn't time the flip. Part of the reason superfronts are popular is because they are easier to do cleanly. Throwing your weight forward makes it possible to spot the landing and time the rotation.

3. Land. Assuming you did everything else right, the flip part will be easy and natural. The only hard part is getting the landing timed right. After you initiate the flip, you are just going to have to wait until it "feels right" to land. Front flips are blind until just before you land, so it might take a few tries to figure this part out. If you have done fronts on a trampoline, this part will feel really similar.

4. DOUBLE CLAIM HARD. You probably just landed your first flip on the snow, don't be scared to show your stoke! Worry about the effortless one for video when it is.. well... effortless. After you get home, look up Marks Lincoln Loop How To and try that next time out.


The only other thing to note is that physics are NOT on your side when you initiate this trick. You have to fight the curve of the kicker and really throw your weight forward to initiate it. Once you're in the superman position, your momentum is set, so the flip is easy. Backflips are much more "natural" - the physics behind the jump shape want you to flip backwards, and you can spot the landing most of the way.

If we have snow in the park I'm trying one today...tell everyone how it's going later on.

[edit] Park's not open, my resort isn't either, work it tomorrow and through the weekend.

[MitchK]

I intend to go to the pool tomorrow or Friday for a bit, and then try get these down come Saturday. Woo!

[bec2745]

[edit] Park's not open, my resort isn't either, work it tomorrow and through the weekend.

The whole place is closed? lol

[DennisEvans]

The whole place is closed? lol

Yup, the whole place closed and is opening up tomorrow again with well groomed stuffs

[bec2745]

strange. id be pissed. cause i never check snow report before i go. they would never close my whole resort tho. and just one park at a time. altho one time it was shut dpwn casue of no power tho. i drove out for nothing. early in the season tho