I went to the Santa Cruz skate park this past week, and had my first experience pumping a bowl. I rode the mini bowl there for a while, and finally learned that I need looser trucks. I could drop in the mini bowl and pump the hips and generate a little speed. I know I need lots more practice.
Came home today and went to the skate park here in Santa Barbara, and the only bowls here are totally round. No "hips" to pump. I have searched around a bit and found people talking about pumping the roundwall, but I don't really get it yet. I am expecting to be able to go around the 15 foot diameter bowl and think I can push up and down on my board and generate speed. It's not happening. So do I somehow generate speed carving up and down the walls, if so how? I don't really even know what I'm asking, it is just some ideas I picked up in my searching.
I went to the Santa Cruz skate park this past week, and had my first experience pumping a bowl. I rode the mini bowl there for a while, and finally learned that I need looser trucks. I could drop in the mini bowl and pump the hips and generate a little speed. I know I need lots more practice.
Came home today and went to the skate park here in Santa Barbara, and the only bowls here are totally round. No "hips" to pump. I have searched around a bit and found people talking about pumping the roundwall, but I don't really get it yet. I am expecting to be able to go around the 15 foot diameter bowl and think I can push up and down on my board and generate speed. It's not happening. So do I somehow generate speed carving up and down the walls, if so how? I don't really even know what I'm asking, it is just some ideas I picked up in my searching.
Pumping roundwall is like pumping a swing. Unweight, push up, float, push down. Riding bowls fast and aggresively is tricky sometimes. Don't try to surf as much of the wall as you can with one carve, but try to treat it like a wave: Get up and on it, then bomb back down. Rather than trying to surf a wide line through the bowl, try to criss-cross the bowl, hitting individual walls as high as you can. Kidneys, Mickey Mouse, and Clamshell bowls all have different lines and possible angles. Get your imagination flowing and it will come.
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Thanks for the attempt at explaining this, but I still don't get it. When i pump a swing, I swing me legs and pull with my arms. I know how to pump a half pipe, I have on in my front yard I can pump all day long. I can get in a bowl and pump up and down (like the half pipe). In a bowl with abrupt transistions, I was starting to get the hang of pumping around. It's the totally round sides. Maybe that's my problem, and you're telling me to go up and down the wall? hitting individual walls as high as you can
You kinda just have to do it a lot; but you have to pump the vertical transition like on a halfpipe and the horizontal transition of the roundwall at the same time.
I bet, although I was trying in a completely round 7 foot diameter bowl, and still was not really getting it. I hear the other guy too, practice practice practice. But I'm not sure yet what to practice
How are ya bro? I have been hittin the park here quite a
bit. Two things that I can suggest
1) A little like pumping your Pintail on flatland, if you can get up a fair
amount of speed initally, it makes it much easier to learn/sustain
the pump in the bowl.
2) Find a park where there is someone really good at pumping the bowl
and watch them and ask questions, most dudes are glad to offer tips,
this has helped me.
@ HotWheels, good advice, thanks. Speed is key to pumping, as on flat land (at least when learning).
@sk8norcal, either bowl. I watched the second video clip several times, and my bad eyes don't really see him pumping at all when up in the deep end. What I mean by that is when he is riding horizontally along the deep end. I think what I see is that it is still all about transistions, not the round wall. While the round wall maybe somewhat pumpable, it is really the transitions where the speed is gained. Watching a few other videos I see guys appear to pump in turns as well I think.
the 'transition' is where the speed is gained..
when he goes up and down the round wall, there is two transitions right there....
the pump in the deep end in more subtle,
but its there...
just look at his arms,
there is pump on the way up, and on they way down...
in that run, he kinda of just carved that frontside,
but pumped the backside.. in the deep...
if he didn't pump, he wouldn't have that frontside air over the hip...
in your park, you need to go into those bowls fast...
think of it as a very big 'corner'
the 'transition' is where the speed is gained..
when he goes up and down the round wall, there is two transitions right there....
the pump in the deep end in more subtle,
but its there...
just look at his arms,
there is pump on the way up, and on they way down...
in that run, he kinda of just carved that frontside,
but pumped the backside.. in the deep...
if he didn't pump, he wouldn't have that frontside air over the hip...
in your park, you need to go into those bowls fast...
think of it as a very big 'corner'
I see the pumps in the transitions from the wall to bottom, and the round wall to flat wall areas, but still can't see a pump when he is just riding the round wall. But I think I am beginning to understand that while I may not see a pump on just the round wall, it is the pumps in all the other transitions that are key, especially for learning. And that once I practice those, perhaps I will also figure out how to pump on just the round wall, and pump while carving on those walls.
Additional explanations welcome, but I think now I need to get out and skate some more.
Try to pump slower and more gradually so you're not fully stretched or compressed when going into the corners and pump against the roundwall. I'm alsos learning this and it seems my problems most of the time are solved by loosening up, bending knees more and pumping slowly bottom to top and vice versa rather than one hard pump and the bottom and one hard pump at the top.
pumping roundwall (bowls)
