By Luke
Mon, Jul 11 2011 1:00 am | Comments

Poke

Once you have a solid grab on a trick, your next step to better style is poking it out. First grab the board then straighten out one leg while bending the other, poking out the tip or tail. I think pokes look best when you go through these steps in order:

1. Pull up the board with your legs for the grab.
2. Grab the board.
3. Extend one leg while bending the other to get your poke on.
4. Pull both legs back up.
5. Let go of the grab.
6. Land in victory.

That seems like a lot to happen in the air, but when done properly, it all happens in the same amount of time as a normal grabbed wake-to-wake air. Change the order and you could end up looking out of control. For example, if you let go of the grab right after poking without bringing up your legs first, it will look like you’re poking the grab out of your hand.

Collin Harrington on pokes

“Poking your board is self-expression. It shows you have complete control of a trick and you’re able to make it look how you want it to.”

“The key to poking is simply grabbing first then giving it that little extra push.”

“Remember this: When in doubt, poke it out. Every trick looks better poked out.”

“Experiment. Some pokes flow better with certain spins and flips. I like to do two or three different poked grabs on every trick I do.”