Grabs in
skateboardingSkateboarding is the act of riding and performing tricks using a skateboard. A person who skateboards is most often referred to as a skateboarder, or just skater....
are different ways to hold the
skateboardA skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a quad wheeled, dual "truck" and quad bearing system designed for both movement and stunts, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The modern skateboard originated in California in the late 1950s...
during an
aerialAerials are a type of skateboarding trick usually performed on half-pipes, pools or quarter pipes where there is a vertical wall with a transition available. Aerials usually combine rotation with different grabs...
usually combine aerials with rotation as the skateboarder grabs and holds the board.
Grab tricks
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| Airwalk grab || The skateboarder grabs the nose of the skateboard and kick the front foot in a gay spin is when the rider take his/her front hand and touches their hee, the trick was named like that in honor of Tony Hawk. back foot back of the board, resulting in a split kick while holding the nose. Good skateboarders can kick it the other way while in the same aerial and make a walking motion. This trick was invented in 1983 by
Tony HawkAnthony Frank "Birdman" Hawk , better known as Tony Hawk, is an American professional skateboarder. Tony gained significant fame for completing the first 900 at the 1999 X-Games as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision.-Early life:Hawk was born in San Diego, California,...
, who performed it on ramps and
half-pipeA half-pipe is a structure used in gravity extreme sports such as snowboarding, skateboarding, skiing, freestyle BMX and inline skating. The structure is usually wood, although sometimes the surface is made of another material such as concrete, metal, dirt or snow...
s. In 1986,
Rodney MullenJohn Rodney Mullen , known simply as Rodney Mullen , is a professional skateboarder considered by many to be the most influential skater in the history of the sport...
invented the Ollie Airwalk, a flatground version of the Airwalk. The name Ollie Airwalk is often mistaken by the Ollie Airwalk trick in
Tony Hawk's Pro SkaterTony Hawk's Pro Skater, released as Tony Hawk's Skateboarding in Europe, is a skateboarding video game. It is the first entry in the Tony Hawk video game series. It was originally released for the PlayStation on September 30, 1999 and was later ported to the Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, and N-Gage...
games series. In the version in the game, the skateboarder only kicks his/her legs off the board and doesn't grab the nose. This is not considered a "real" airwalk.
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| Backside grab || Any grab with the either hand on the back rail of the board between the heels. Variations include: Melon, Method, Mosquito.
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| Benihana grab || A grab where your legs are split with one leg stretched out across the board while the hand opposite the leg holds the hey tail of the board.
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| Cannonball grab || The skateboarder
olliesThe ollie is an aerial skateboarding trick, invented by Alan "Ollie" Gelfand in 1978. When doing an ollie the skateboarder leaps into the air bringing the board into the air without using their hands. The board appears to magically lift with the feet remaining in contact with the board throughout...
, then grabs both ends of the board (nose and tail) and holds them. This makes the skater crouch and appear small and round in shape, like a cannonball, hence the name. This trick can also be done as an early grab, in which case it is commonly called a smallie, a smurf, or a bunnyhop.
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| Christ Air ||:An air trick made popular by Christian Hosoi where the skater grabs the board out from under their feet and forms a "T" shape with their body as if on a cross with the board outstreched in either hand.
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| Crail Grab ||:For a Crail Grab, the skater grabs the toeside nose with the back hand brought in front of the body.
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| Del-Mar Indy || Created in the city of Del-Mar, CA its essentially an indy but you tweak your body to the side (either) and you endup with your legs behind you most of the time.
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| Double Grab ||The board is grabbed with one hand on the frontside of the board and the other hand on the backside of the board.
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| Early grab ||Any trick where the rider grabs before the coping or lip. Tricks such as indy's and bonelesses, etc... are common early grabs. Early grabs waste a lot of speed and inertia because of compression and squatting down prematurely, as opposed to "spracking" an ollie or "Bonking" off the coping. A later grab generally has more height and is more extended, therefore early grabs are considered to be obsolete, with a few notable exceptions.Darell Stanton is known for doing these down stairs.
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| Frigid Air || Similar to a Judo, though the front foot is kicked out on the heel side, rather than the toe side, rail. Though the trick has been done on vert, it was most common during the mid '80s jump ramp craze.
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| Frontside Air Double Grab || A frontside air to slob.
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| Frontside grab || Any air where the board is grabbed with the either hand between the toes on the front rail of the board - hence "front" side. Style dictates that the inside of the elbow of the back arm must be wrapped around the knee of the back leg for a "tuck-knee" frontside. The other variation being where the arm is not around the back knee, but rather straight between the legs. This is known as a Stinkbug air or Bob air (supposedly named after Bob Schmeltzer of
Back to the FutureBack to the Future is a 1985 science fiction adventure film directed by Robert Zemeckis, co-written by Bob Gale and produced by Steven Spielberg. The film stars Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly, as well as Christopher Lloyd, Crispin Glover, Lea Thompson and Thomas F. Wilson...
fame). The frontside air was the first air performed on vert. Although contested as to who did the first fronside air, credit is generally given to
Tony AlvaTony Alva is one of the original Z-Boys and is considered to be one of the most influential skateboarders of all time.He is Professional Skateboarding's first World Champion in history. He won this title in 1977....
.
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Indy grabAn indy grab is an aerial skateboarding, snowboarding and kitesurfing trick during which the rider grabs the middle of his board, between his feet, on the side of the board where his toes are pointing....
|| An Indy grab is a simple grab in which the rider uses their back hand to grab the toe side of the board while in the air.
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| Japan grab || With the front hand grabbing toeside between the heels, the legs are then bent and folded to the back of the board. Named after the
Tony HawkAnthony Frank "Birdman" Hawk , better known as Tony Hawk, is an American professional skateboarder. Tony gained significant fame for completing the first 900 at the 1999 X-Games as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision.-Early life:Hawk was born in San Diego, California,...
penned Transworld Skateboarding Magazine article in which it first appeared.
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| Judo Air || The board is grabbed with the front hand on the heel side of the nose. Then the front foot is kicked forward off the board.
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| Lien Air || Lien air is another name for a frontside air backside grab. It was named after the inventor Neil Blender (Lien is Neil spelled backwards). Variations: Lien-to-tail, Finger Flip Lien-to-tail, Crossbone (Chris Miller), Method Lien.
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| Madonna grab || Originally known as the Madonna Lien to Tail, it originated as a Lien to Tail where the front foot is kicked out behind the skater. Invented by Jesse "the Mess" Martinez" at Hosoi's ramp, It may have been simultaneously invented by
Tony HawkAnthony Frank "Birdman" Hawk , better known as Tony Hawk, is an American professional skateboarder. Tony gained significant fame for completing the first 900 at the 1999 X-Games as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision.-Early life:Hawk was born in San Diego, California,...
who got the credit for it because he was more famous at the time.
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| Melon Grab || backside air and you grab heelside with your front hand by reaching behind your front leg (reaching between is a Grosman grab)
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| Method-air || Contrary to popular belief, this grab did not originate from
snowboardingSnowboarding is a sport that involves descending a slope that is either partially or fully covered with snow on a snowboard attached to a rider's feet using a special boot set into a mounted binding. The development of snowboarding was inspired by skateboarding, surfing and skiing...
, but was invented by Neil Blender as a "method" to get higher on a backside air. When the board is grabbed the knees are bent so the board is raised backwards and the skater appears to be kneeling in mid-air.
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| Mute-Air || A backside air where the leading hand grabs between the toes.
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| No foot-air || you grab your board and virtually do a one handed superman pose, similar to a trailing haded christ air, without the rigid body positioning.
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| Nose grab || For a nose grab one grabs hold of the board with the front hand. This is one of the easiest grabs to perform.
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| Nuclear || :Similar to a Crail grab, where you grab the heelside of the nose with the trailing hand.
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| Roast Beef || A frontside air where the trailing hand reaches between the legs to grab the heel edge of the board. Invented by Jeff Grosso.
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| Rocket Air || Similar to a nose grab. Except both hands grab the nose, and both feet move to the tail.
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| Sean Penn || A backside Madonna, or a frigid air to tail. Possibly invented by Mark "Gator" Rogowski.
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| Seatbelt grab || In this grab the front hand is brought across the front of the body to grab the toeside tail of the board. Invented by Remy Stratton.
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| Slob Air || A frontside air where the lead hand grabs between the toes.
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| Stalefish grab || Named by
Tony HawkAnthony Frank "Birdman" Hawk , better known as Tony Hawk, is an American professional skateboarder. Tony gained significant fame for completing the first 900 at the 1999 X-Games as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision.-Early life:Hawk was born in San Diego, California,...
, in honour of the quality of food at the Swedish Skate Camp where it was invented (although this is disputed, as many credit
Mark GonzalesMark Gonzales , also known as "Gonz," is a professional skateboarder and artist. He is known in the skateboarding world as the pioneer of modern street skateboarding, currently skateboarding's most popular form....
with inventing the grab). The back hand grabs the heel side of the board behind the back leg. This results in a bending of both legs which can be emphasised to create more style. When this is done on a trick it is called a 'tweak'.
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| Superman grab || The board is grabbed on both sides (one hand each) and is brought in front or above the skater's body. Named after the pose that
SupermanSuperman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective Comics, Inc...
does when flying.
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| Tai-pan grab || A tai-pan grab is where the skateborder takes his/her front hand and wraps it around their leg from behind so they grab the toe side of the board.
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| Tail grab || A tail grab is where the back hand grabs the tail of the board. This is a deceptivly difficult grab to learn.
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| Tuck Knee || A tuck Knee is a grab consisting of putting you're knees on the board with the soles of you're shoes facing towards the tail, and bending you're legs backwards while one hand grabs the side of the skateboard.
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| stiffy || A stiffy is a variation of an indy grab where both feet on the board are moved in front of the chest. this trick has been said to have been invented by jordan mole but its origins are questionable.