What You Should Never Do

Everyone falls when they first start learning to drop in. Take a close look at what happens when you fall. If you manage to stay on your board all the way through, even when you fail, you'll likely land on your butt. Of course, it will hurt, but you can keep the risk of serious injuries, such as broken bones, relatively low. On the other hand, one thing you should never do is take your back foot off the board halfway through. As soon as your back foot touches the ramp, it stops in place, while your body continues moving forward and puts pressure on that leg. At that point, there's nowhere for the force to escape, and your body weight keeps pushing down on your leg until the bone may break. Since your legs are not particularly strong against sideways forces, they can break relatively easily under this kind of pressure. In other words, staying on your board may result in a fall, but the risk of injury is relatively low. Trying to step off, however, can actually make you more likely to get injured. If you're not confident yet, try practicing something else and come back to drop-ins when you're ready. And don't forget to wear proper protective gear.