What is scoop in Treflip?
It is z-axis rotation.
So what is the scoop in Treflip? Skaters have been trying to but failing to effectively answer this question NOT because they are incompetent, but because they didn't have the right tool.
Conclusions
A scoop is all about a vertical-axis rotation, which I call the z-axis rotation.
Don't even think about swinging your backfoot. Just focus on twisting your backfoot inward around the vertical axis = z-axis.
Scoop causes both 360 pop shove-it and kickflip rotations.
Twisting ankle inward causes both the 360 pop shove-it rotation and the kickflip rotation without even thinking about the front foot at all. We will talk about objective reasons why this is possible later.
Simulation
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Execution
Let's briefly summarize the entire execution process from the beginning.
1. Crouch down as you approach.
Your board may open up to the heel side as you do so. This happens due to the foot placement and weight distribution so don’t worry too much about it.
2. Start lifting up your body.
You should start lifting up your body when you are ready. But it's important NOT to start scooping just yet. With your body weight holding your legs down, you can’t quite move them. wait until your body elevates high enough so you can move them freely.
1. Crouch down as you approach.
Your board may open up to the heel side as you do so. This happens due to the foot placement and weight distribution so don’t worry too much about it.
Premises
Summary
To start with, let's re-summarize what we learned in the previous content.
- In Treflips, the front foot does not flip the board unlike kickflips. As an evidence, by the time the front foot reaches right where it should flick, it is not even in touch with the board anymore.
- Instead, Treflips are more like products of rebound. In other words, By storing and releasing energy in the rear truck, the board flips in response to the rear truck trying to go back to its original state.
- To make it happen, we need to use our backfoot in a way the rear truck can store enough energy needed for the rebound.
- As for the front foot, it does not flick. the only thing it needs to do, instead, is to hold the board down on the ground while the backfoot applies enough energy to the tail.
That said, simply put, the most important part in treflips is to store energy that causes the rebound by scooping the backfoot.
Analysis
Why does the z-axis rotation matter?
Remember, we need to find a way to store energy in the rear truck. This can be translated like this: We need to bend the hanger of the rear truck while simultaneously spinning the board.
Generally, as you scoop, since the center of gravity of your body is located in front of your board, by applying force to the tail, the board spontaneously start turning to the toe side.
So what's wrong with overflick?
Unless you focus on the z-axis rotation, you'd be just lowering the tail and rotating the board without bending the rear truck. Consecutively, there will NOT be enough energy to cause the rebound, making you land primo or on the other side of your board.
In other words, if you simply swing your backfoot to the heel side, no matter how hard you try try it, it does not flip the board because the rear truck will not have enough energy to do so.
So what do I do?
Instead of trying to swing your backfoot to the heel side, try focusing on the z-axis rotation.
By twisting your back toe inward, you can bend the hanger of rear truck while spinning the board backside. And after that, it feels pretty much automatic.
Note
It does not just FEEL automatic, it is.
This is Because it becomes a matter of rebound after storing and releasing energy.
