Tips by David Ngiam
Video : Daniel Grant (BS Boardslide)
Photo : Jeff Langley
A Backside Boardslide or a Frontslide Lipslide is basically a slide where your board is sliding sideways perpendicular to the rail with your body facing the direction of travel. The difference between the 2 is basically in the direction of approach (see Sliding Terminology for more detail).
Whether you are approaching FS or BS, keep your handle in and low. As you ride or ollie up the rail, get some pop and turn the board sideways while squaring your shoulders off towards the front. Bring the handle towards the center of your body for better balance.
It is important to keep your weight a little over the front edge of the board to prevent yourself from slipping out backwards. There is a natural tendency for riders to lean too much on the back edge as this is how we would ride on the water surface if we were to go into a side slide. However, the rails hard surface can’t grip the board like water, but don’t worry, you can’t catch a front edge either like you would on water.
If you are riding a skinny rails, this slide would probably work better than the 50-50 slide as your board will have more surface area laterally to stay in contact with the rail.
You are getting pulled out early, try approaching the rail a little more aggressively so that your line stays slack a little longer during your slide without pulling you off prematurely as it tightens up. However, remember to ease off on your edge right before you hit the rail.