When you’re just learning to skateboard, figuring out the right way to hold it can seem a lot more stressful than it needs to be.
I remember when I was younger I’d stress over how I was holding my board with fear of looking like a “poser.” Ultimately I’ve realized it doesn’t really matter how you hold your skateboard, but there are a few ways that are a lot more practical than others.
So let’s break down a few of the different ways you can hold your skateboard and how to avoid looking like a complete beginner.
How To Properly Hold A Skateboard
The most common way to hold a skateboard is to hold it horizontally with your arm stretched over the graphics and your fingers curled around the bottom edge. This will face the grip tape towards your body and place the skateboard against your hip.
With this way of holding your skateboard you don’t need to worry about it hitting anything as you walk. Not to mention it’s a lot more comfortable for your hands.
Rather than rubbing your fingers or arm against the grip tape (which can happen with other ways of holding your board), this puts your skin against the smooth underside of the deck. A very nice relief if you’re holding the skateboard for a while!
For me, the reason I prefer to hold my deck this way is that it ends up being cradled in my fingers while my arms totally relaxed. That way I don’t feel like I’m holding the weight of the skateboard as much compared to if my arm was bent.
Other Ways To Hold A Skateboard
1. Horizontally, Grip Tape Out
Similar to the method I just mentioned above, this is the same thing, but with the board flipped around. Rather than the grip tape facing towards your body, it faces towards your arm.
Holding your skateboard horizontally, extend your arm across the width of the grip tape, wrapping your fingers around the bottom edge. Then letting your arm hang, rest the graphics side of the deck against your hip, placing your trucks on either side of your body.
The one downside to holding your skateboarding like this is that the grip tape against your arm can start to hurt after a while. To solve this, try moving your hand slightly away from you. This will tip the skateboard away from your arm and rest against your hip, while your fingers are still curled around the bottom.
Then the grip tape will no longer rub against your arm!
2. Pinching The Nose
Another way to hold a skateboard is to stand the skateboard vertically, face the graphics outwards, and grab the nose of the board. This is the most common way skaters hold their boards when in the middle of skating and only temporarily holding the board.
Since this option is a lot less relaxing on the arm and hand, it’s less ideal when holding your board for long periods of time.
With that said, the main advantage to holding your board this way is that you can quickly drop it and start riding again. Especially when sessioning a spot with friends, this way of holding the board makes life easier.
3. Pinching The Side
With your skateboard laying horizontally on the ground, pinch the top edge of your deck. It doesn’t really matter whether the grip tape faces towards you or not here, so just do whatever is comfortable.
Now standing up, your board will hang off your extended arm, just below your hip, since it’s pinched by your hand. This is a good option for holding your board if you don’t plan to hold it for long. After a while, this can get a bit uncomfortable and cause your hand to cramp.
The main benefit of pinching the side of the board rather than the nose is that the board is further off the ground. As you’re walking around it’s far less likely for the tail of your deck to drag across the ground.
Although that’s not a big deal every now and then, if you always drag your skateboard when pinching the nose, you’d have some issues. Luckily, pinching the side like this will solve all those problems.
4. With A Backpack
If you are carrying your skateboard across town, getting a backpack with skateboard straps is a lifesaver. Most commonly with two velcro straps, your board is securely fastened to your bag without you needing to touch it.
The nice part about these straps is that your trucks end up resting against them, keeping your board from sliding out. I used to carry my board around like this all the time when taking transit and it was super convenient. You can find a few great skate-specific backpacks at your local skate shop, or here on Amazon.
5. Mall Grab
The final way to hold your skateboard is a controversial one. Mall grabbing your board is when your skateboard is vertical, with your hand wrapped around the top truck to hold it. This is typically the staple of a newbie skater, and some people will say “that’s how a poser holds a skateboard.”
In reality, it’s extremely comfortable to hold a skateboard this way, and a natural way of doing so as a beginner. If this is your preferred way of carrying your board, you do you. I’m not going to say what you can or can’t do.
With that said, however, there are some notable drawbacks to mall grabbing your board compared to any other method I’ve mentioned so far.
Why Is Mall Grabbing A Skateboard Bad?
The first not-so-great thing about mall grabs is that you’re grabbing the trucks, which can be the dirtiest part of your skateboard. Sliding across ledges and rails they pick up a lot of skate wax and dirt over time. When you grab them, this residue can be felt on your hands and is honestly a little gross.
The second downside to mall grabbing is that your skateboard hangs super low to the ground, making it easy to hit against things. Yes, skateboards are pretty robust, but not if you bump and drag them along the ground constantly. While mall grabbing, the likelihood of this is much higher.
Although it puts the board in a similar position to pinching the nose, pinching the nose is usually only done between tricks. Meanwhile, a lot of people will carry their board with a mall grab for an extended period of time. With a longer time spent in this position, the higher the likelihood of your tail hitting things unnecessarily.
Lastly, when you mall grab, all of your grip tape is against your leg. Especially when wearing shorts, your grip tape is going to rub against you while you walk and feel not so great. Even if you are in pants, it can scuff up the leg and it’s hard to fix afterward.
I supposed that’s why it’s a good idea to have “nice” pants and “skate” pants.
So those are a few different ways to hold a skateboard so you can feel a little more confident that nobody is judging you. Although mall grabbing is on this list (since it’s actually a way to hold your skateboard), I would try to avoid that one altogether.
That way you won’t get any weird looks if you’re trying to act all cool while holding your board like that.
As a beginner, the little things like holding your skateboard can feel like a big deal, but trust me when I say it’s not. Hold your board in a way that feels comfortable, and focus on having fun on your skateboard. After all, that’s what it’s all about!
Happy Shredding,
Brendan 🙂
