Understanding pumping

 By Cameron Manthe

You may have seen me mention "pumping" a time or two here on these posts and I felt like it was something I should cover for beginners. It is a skate park essential for gaining speed and can be used anywhere with a ramp. Learning this will keep you from having to push around the park all the time.

Skateboarder Bending Knees
Photo by Jim De Ramos

Pumping is the act of using momentum and the transfer of weight to gain and maintain speed on ramps. When you are going up a ramp you want to bend your knees to absorb the transition as you approach into it. This makes you lighter on your board as you ascend. When going down a ramp you want to do the opposite and extend your legs. This pushes your board and momentum down speeding you up and helping you make it up the next side.

Skateboarder in Bowl
Photo by Cameron Manthe

This lesson in physics is best understood in person as it is something that you will have to get a feeling for. The process becomes somewhat rhythmic and an after thought after a while. I would recommend learning this in on a mini ramp or by going back and forth in a bowl. For an in depth explanation check out Never Stop Improving on YouTube. No matter the size or type of ramp it works on all of them, even banks, although the timing may be a little different.

Sources:

Pumping on Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pump_(skateboarding)

Never Stop Improving on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AJKN3QTfoE

Photo by Jim De Ramos

https://unsplash.com/photos/man-playing-skateboard-uuatHnj0mRM

Photo by Cameron Manthe