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WATERSKI MagazineCalling yourself a big-time kneeboarder? Then you must be nailing a back roll, right? Close, but no Cuban? You're not the only boarder who's just a trick away from being the big dog on the lake.
The back roll is kneeboarding's defining move: If you can throw it, you know what you're doing on your knees. If you can't, you're just another wanna-be getting by on surface turns and wake jumps. That's why the back roll is a must-learn move.
A lot of boarders attempt it, but few pull it off with consistency. To help you on your way, here are four of the most common problems associated with the back roll, along with no-fail tips to help you in your quest.
The Problem: You're coming into the wake sideways.
How You Know It's Serious: Your sides are killing you – because you keep landing on them.
The Quick Fix: Boarders encountering this problem have a mental block to begin with: They view the back roll as a barrel roll. You need to think of it as a twisting motion. Imagine yourself as a corkscrew.
Approach the wake like you'd take a wake jump – nose pointed toward the wake – and edge up it. Once you leave the wake, take the nose up and away from the boat. You must bank it out. It's not a side-to-side motion like a barrel roll; it's a corkscrew motion.
The Problem: Leaving the wake too early.
How You Know It's Serious: Basically, you're trying your hardest to bust your eardrums – you have no lift or pull.
The Quick Fix: Leaving the wake too early is a result of being too anxious; you initiate the rotation before you even go up the wake.
To really roll on your next try, be patient. Before you head for the wake, relax. Don't tense up. Then, wait until your knees reach the crest of the wake before you spin the board.
The Problem: Leaning forward on takeoff.
How You Know It's Serious: Your face hurts. So does you chest, your chin and your uvula. You find yourself falling on your face as you come out of the flip.
The Quick Fix: Stay centered over the board. You'll know you're in the right position if your weight is over your shins and you feel the most pressure in this lower-leg area. If anything, stay a little bit back.
The Problem: Letting your arms out at the apex of the trick.
How You Know It's Serious: You start the trick fine, but can't finish it. Midway through, you're a mass of flailing arms and falling like a meteorite toward the water.
The Quick Fix: First, quit letting go. Give the rope a good pull as you initiate the trick, then bring the handle back in toward your waist once the tension on the rope has been released. Always keep the handle close to your body.
Former national champion and world record holder in tricks Mario Fossa runs a kneeboard-only camp in Land O'Lakes, Florida; 813-996-3958. He is sponsored by Hydroslide, MasterCraft, Oakley and Intensity.
