Backside Heel Flip

Backside 180 + Heel Flip

This trick feels both powerful and graceful at the same time, and has a unique stylish look as the feet nearly cross

Hard

Prerequisites

Backside 180

Heel flip

Position

Quick start

Put a lot of pressure on your front foot toes

Lean just slightly forward and toward the nose

Wind up your body and pop down

Lift your front foot up with your toes down

Flick your front ankle and kick your front foot out

Catch with your back foot or with both feet

Sensation

Apply some pressure on your toes more weight on your front foot. Lean slightly forward

Interactive skateboard diagram for learning Backside Heel Flip

Tips

Put your front foot under the bolts, a bit lower if you prefer, straight, and make your toes hang off

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Put your back foot straight as well, in the inner pocket

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Apply some pressure on both of your feet toes as you bend on your knees, especially your front foot, and lean slightly forward

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You can wind up your back shoulder if you want to, but do it with your back leg, not your back arm

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Open your back arm sideways to make your shoulders rotate and guide your body in the new direction

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Make sure you are facing the direction you are moving when you are about to pop

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Turn your hips, this will help you commit into the backside rotation

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Pop the board straight down, do not scoop it

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Keep looking at your back foot, or even further ahead under your arm if you need to

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Slide your front foot up as you pop, toes down, slightly toward the outer pocket. Let the board lift vertically at first

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When your front foot reaches the outer pocket, flick your ankle up at the same time as kicking your foot out forward

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Kick out straight in front of you, or barely further, horizontally. This will make the board flatten while in the air

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The flip is initiated by the toes thanks to the ankle flick, and accentuated by the heel thanks to a sideways extension of the leg, kind of a kick

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You need both the flick and the kick to complete the whole rotation

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Lift up your back foot to give the board room to rotate

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Jump pretty high and bend your knees for a long time, the backside heel flip gets high and can be pretty slow, you need to leave room for a long time to let the rotation complete

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Push your back foot slightly backward to make it follow your front foot and take the lead

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Catch the board with your back foot or with both feet

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Apply some pressure on your new front foot just before landing to shift your weight

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Use it to pull the board if you under rotate. Be careful not to lean backward too much after landing, nor toward the nose

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Be ready to roll in switch, shift your weight if needed

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Mistakes

'I can't combine both the heel flip and backside 180 at all'

'You are either not flicking or not kicking with your front foot. Focus more on both parts, and on doing them at the same time, after sliding your front foot'

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'I can't do a whole flip'

'You are either not flicking or not kicking with your front foot. Focus more on both parts, and on doing them at the same time, after sliding your front foot'

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'I can't do a whole backside 180'

'You are focusing on the flip too much. Focus on opening your body (look, back arm, shoulders and hips). You can pivot or power slide to complete the rotation'

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'My flip is too slow'

'You are most likely not kicking your front foot hard enough, or doing it too soon. Focus on the outer pocket, and flick your ankle as well as kicking away'

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'I land with my toes on the ground'

'You are leaning forward too much. Apply some pressure on your toes but do not lean forward that much. You can stand upright as you pop if you struggle with that'

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'I slip out when I land'

'You are leaning on your nose as you jump. Try not to 'throw' your body. Control the rotation, shift your weight but not your balance, and stand upright as you pop'

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'I stop after having landed'

'You don't have enough speed. Adjust your rotation to achieve a full 180-degree rotation. The further you are from this, the more you will be slowed down'

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Helpers

Muscle memory

Stand on your back foot as if you were popping, then slide your front foot toward the outer pocket and simulate the ankle flick and foot kick. Repeat this over and over

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One foot practice

Do a backside heel flip and try to land it with your front foot only. Focus on keeping control and feeling the rotation

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Specific module

You can practice the backside heel flip on bank ramps or pyramid transfers, as the rotation in both cases is less than 180 degrees, requiring less effort and technique to succeed

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Half motion

Try to land the backside heel flip with only a 90 degree rotation and then pivot it, this should be halfway through the trick

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Variations

It is better to lift the board vertically first, but you can also do this trick totally horizontally

Transition

You can do a 90 degree rotation and then pivot to complete the missing rotation. Eventually you want to be able to fully rotate in the air, but this is totally fine for this trick. Be careful not to pause between both parts