The manual: the balance trick that unlocks all your lines

Everyone wants to land kickflips. Nobody wants to work on the manual. Yet, it’s the trick that separates beginners who plateau from those who progress. Your balance, your flow, your lines — it all starts here.

⏱ Reading: 5 min

Why the manual is the foundation of everything

The manual is riding in balance on your two back wheels. Period. But behind this simple definition lies the most rewarding trick for your entire progression. Daewon Song made it his signature, Rodney Mullen pushed it to the absurd, and the best lines in modern parts are almost always linked by a manual.

Why does it matter to you? Because holding a manual teaches you to feel your board. You work on your dynamic balance, your foot placement, your center of gravity. You’ll find these sensations in your pop, in flat tricks, in grinds. Without this foundation, you’ll hit a wall fast.

And the bonus: a clean manual in a line is 100 times more stylish than a botched kickflip. Just ask Daewon Song, who built a career on it.

The setup that truly helps you progress

You can learn the manual with any board. But two low-cost adjustments will save you months of struggle: hard bushings to stabilize your trucks, and riser pads to gain leverage without risking wheelbite when you pop on the tail.

If you’re still starting with wheels that are too soft or trucks that are too loose, you’ll spend your time correcting oscillation instead of working on your balance. Invest 15 bucks, you’ll save 3 months.

The 5-step method to ride your first manual

1. Find the stopped position, without rolling

On carpet or grass, place your back foot on the tail (but not on the very end — about 1 cm before the edge). Front foot just in front of the front truck bolts. Lean back until the nose lifts. Find the balance point. Hold for 5 seconds. Repeat ten times.

2. Push gently, two back wheels on the ground

Push off at maximum walking speed. No faster. The faster you go, the quicker you lose balance. Roll straight. Feel where your feet are.

3. Lift the nose by shifting your weight

The classic mistake: pushing the tail with your back foot. Wrong. The manual comes from your hips. You shift your weight backward, the nose lifts on its own. Keep your feet loose, your knees bent.

4. Open your arms, look ahead

Your arms = your counterweight. If you keep them glued to your body, you’ll fall. Extend them as if you’re walking on a tightrope. And look 3 meters ahead of you, never at your feet. Your gaze guides your balance.

5. Land cleanly

Before you fall, gently put the nose down. A manual that ends in a crash doesn’t count. Aim for 2 clean seconds first, then 3, then 5. Distance will come on its own after that.

Why you’re struggling (and how to fix it)

You hit the tail on the ground after 1 second? You’re lifting the nose too high. Reduce the angle. You’re just trying to get the nose a few centimeters off the ground, not point it at the sky.

You fall forward immediately? You’re not shifting your weight enough. Think about moving your hips back, not your feet. Your feet are sensors, your weight is in your hips.

You’re going crooked? Your shoulders are turning. Lock them parallel to the board. You can also ride on a line on the ground to self-correct.

Your board wobbles sideways? Bushings too soft. Tighten your kingpins a quarter turn. If that’s not enough, change them for hard ones (see block above).

The nose manual and the logical next step

Once you can hold a classic manual for 5 seconds, tackle the nose manual: same principle, two front wheels. It’s harder — you can’t see the front truck — but it definitively locks in your balance.

Next? Manuals over longer distances, manual with a turn, manual to kickflip out, and the big step: manual on a ledge or table. That’s when you join the big leagues. And you’ll understand why the kickflip or the 50-50 almost become easy by comparison.

The thing to remember: nobody progresses without working on the manual. It’s invisible, it’s boring for the first few weeks, and it’s exactly what will make you fluid when others are still robotic. Work on it 15 minutes per session, every day. In a month, your board will respond to you.