By Jeremy Vest
For many of us, the frontside 50-50 is the first grind trick we learn as skateboarders. With that being said, most skateboarders learn this trick on a curb or ledge. When you bring the 50-50 to a rail, it becomes an entirely different beast. Well, not really, but if you’ve never 50-50’d a rail before, it sure feels that way. Essentially, the trick is the same. The main difference you’ll need to learn about is how to lock your trucks into the rail for the 50-50 grind. A ledge does all the work for you, but with a rail, you’ll need to find what style of locking in works best for you. In the video below, Gabe learns how to frontside 50-50 a rail for the first time as the Braille team walks him through it. Be sure to watch the video and you might just learn something, too!
How to Frontside 50-50 a Rail
- Ride at a comfortable speed toward the rail with your feet in the proper fs 50-50 position
- Approach the rail frontside and bend your knees
- Pop an ollie onto the rail, locking your trucks into the rail either cross-locked or on the heel-side.
- Balance out the grind, staying over your board, and keeping your knees bent slightly.
- Lift your front trucks up just a bit to come off the rail and ride away clean.
Foot Position
The foot position for the frontside 50-50 is the exact same position as the ollie. Put your back foot on the tail and your front foot in the middle of the board. Make sure you are confident with your ollies, and that the rail you’re trying to grind isn’t too high for you to ollie onto.
Practice Steps
Having consistent frontside 50-50 grinds on ledges will prepare you for bringing this trick to a rail. However, it can be intimidating to hop on the rail for the first time. In order to better manage some of these fears, there are a few things that Gabe does in the video that you can try, too! For example, practice hopping on to the rail while stationary. Just ollie on to it and see if you are able to comfortably lock in on either the heel-side of cross-locked. You can also try setting the rail up over some grass so that if you fall off on either side, you’ll be greeted by some soft ground. It really is more mental than anything. If you can 50-50 a ledge, you can 50-50 a rail. You just need to convince yourself to take that first step and have your trucks make contact with the rail. Once you’re up there for that first split-second, you’ll realize it’s not too bad. Gradually add some speed and start locking-in to that rail. Eventually, you’ll notice that speed actually helps you consistently lock-in and roll away from frontside 50-50 on rails.
We hope that seeing Gabe’s persistence and dedication inspired you to 50-50 a rail for yourself, or at least step out of your comfort zone and try something on your skateboard that you’ve never done before. Don’t forget to submit your clips to us, too! We want to see those frontside 50-50s so show us what you’ve got. Now get out there and SKATE!
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