FROM AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER TO WHIP
LOST IN LINGO? FOR THE X GAMES' 15TH BIRTHDAY, WE PRESENT A REFRESHER ON ALL THE MOVES THE ACTION CROWD HOLDS DEAR.
AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER No-handed 360 backflip in BMX; invented by vet Dave Mirra.
BODY VARIAL When a moto X rider rolls his body sideways above the bike, then remounts and lands. Most famous varial: the Carolla, by 2004 best trick gold medalist Chuck Carothers.
AMPLITUDE Height a skateboarder, BMXer or moto X rider rises above the lip of a ramp or halfpipe.
BACKSIDE When a skateboarder's back faces the arc of a jump or park obstacle.
BAR HOP When a moto X rider kicks both feet forward between his arms and over the handlebars. VARIATIONS: Shaolin A rider's legs are spread outside his arms. Electric Doom A rider backflips above the bike while holding on with one arm. Created by two-time moto X best trick gold medalist Kyle Loza.
BARREL ROLL In BMX, a complete revolution around the bike's longitudinal (front-to-back) axis. In rally, when a car flips sideways.
BLUNTSLIDE When a skater drops the board's tail and back wheels onto a park obstacle and slides.
BOARDSLIDE A skateboard grind, with the board positioned so the rail, lip or other obstacle hits the bottom of the board between the trucks.
BODY VARIAL When a moto X rider rolls his body sideways above the bike, then remounts and lands. Most famous varial: the Carolla, by 2004 best trick gold medalist Chuck Carothers.
BUNNY HOP In BMX, to jump both bike wheels off the ground.
CAB When a skater Ollies (see definition) into a kick flip (see definition) and then does a 360; short for Caballerial, named for Steve Caballero.
CAN CAN To stand on the pegs (moto X) or pedals (BMX) and kick one leg over the seat to the opposite side of the bike, A la a cancan dancer. VARIATIONS: No-footed Can Can Lift the plant foot off the peg or pedal. Pendulum No-footed can can to each side. Switchblade Fully extend both legs on the same side. Super Can Grab the seat with one hand.
CANDY BAR Midair, a moto X rider kicks one leg over the handlebars.
CLIFFHANGER In moto X or BMX, a rider lifts off his seat, hooks his feet under the handlebars, lifts his hands and rises straight above the bike.
CROOKED GRIND To ride a rail or other element on the skateboard's nose and front truck, with the back of the board angled out. In BMX, to grind a rail with the front-left peg and rear-right peg, or vice versa.
DECADE AIR A BMX trick in which a rider lifts his feet off the pedals and rotates 360 degrees around the front of the bike while holding the handlebars.
DIGGER A nasty fall while attempting a trick. On dirt, it's a Soil Simple.
ENDO In BMX or moto, when a rider brakes the front wheel, pushes forward on the handlebars and leans forward, causing the rear wheel to rise. In rally, when a car flips end over end.
FAKIE In BMX, riding backward. In skate, riding backward with feet positioned as if riding forward.
FEEBLE GRIND A skater Ollies (see definition) onto a rail and performs a rear-truck grind while the front truck juts over the rail at an angle. In BMX, a rider grinds his back peg on a rail while the front wheel hangs over the rail at an angle.
50-50 To grind a rail on both trucks of a skateboard. VARIATION: 5-0 Grind with the back truck and tail.
FLAIR A vert ramp aerial in BMX that combines a backflip and a 180. VARIATION: Double Flair BMX guru Kevin Robinson won gold at the 2006 X Games by pulling two backflips with a 180.
FLATSPIN In BMX, a rider and/or bike spins on the horizontal axis.
FOOTJAM NOSEPICK To jam a foot between front tire and fork to stall the BMX bike on top of a ramp or park obstacle.
FRONTSIDE When a skater's body faces the arc of a jump or park obstacle.
HAND-BRAKE TURN In rally, a driver throws the emergency brake, locking the rear wheels to initiate a lateral slide on a tight turn.
HARDFLIP A skate move combining a pop shove-it (see definition) and kickfl ip-the board turns 180 degrees and flips behind the skater.
HART ATTACK In moto X, a rider
puts one hand on bike seat and the other hand on handlebar and does a handstand above the bike, named by old-school rider Carey Hart.
HEEL CLICKER When a moto X rider swings his legs forward and outside his arms, then clicks his heels together.
HOLESHOT The goal of every rider in a moto X race, to shoot to the front and be in the lead out of the first turn.
HURRICANE When a skater rides toward the lip of a pipe, swings his board almost 270 degrees backside, drops a feeble grind on the lip, then pivots slightly and rolls back into the pipe. The name describes the trick's rapid, twisting motion.
ICE PICK GRIND To slide a BMX bike along a box or rail on the rear peg, with the front wheel angled skyward.
INDY GRAB When a skater grabs the toe-side of the board with his rear hand.
JAPAN AIR When a skater grabs the toe-side of the board with the front hand, then twists his chest away while pulling the board behind him. Must be seen to be appreciated.
KICKFLIP When a skater Ollies (see defi nition), then kicks out her front foot to spin the board horizontally. VARIATION: Heelflip A rider starts the spin with the front heel.
KISS OF DEATH A midair, bent-elbow handstand above the moto X bike-so the rider can practically smooch the front fender. VARIATION: Tsunami (a.k.a. Ruler) A kiss of death with straight arms.
LEFT-FOOT BRAKING In rally, a driver brakes with his left foot while keeping his right foot on the gas to turn while maintaining speed.
LUC-E GRIND When a BMX rider slides along a ledge with pedal and back peg while his front wheel and front peg hang below the ledge. Pronounced "lucky" and named for creator John "Luc-e" Englebert.
MANUAL In moto X and skate, a wheelie. In BMX, a wheelie without pedaling.
McTWIST When a skater leaves the lip of a vert ramp riding forward, rotates backside 540 degrees while performing a front flip, then lands riding forward. Invented by Mike McGill.
MELON GRAB In skateboarding, grabbing the heel-side of the board by reaching behind the front leg with the front hand.
METHOD Classic aerial. The skater grabs the board's heel edge with the front hand, then yanks it up toward his back. Popularized by Neil Blender as a method of catching more air.
MUTE GRAB A skater's front hand grabs the board between the toes, with the knees tucked inside or outside the arms.
NAC NAC When a moto X or BMX rider lifts one leg over the back of the bike. Nac nac is "can can" (a long-ago dance involving dramatic kicks) backward.
NO-HANDER When a moto X rider lets go of the handlebars and throws his hands up. VARIATION: No-hander Lander Landing no-handed.
NOSEGRIND When a skateboarder rides a rail on the front truck.
NOTHING While midair in BMX or moto X, taking all limbs off the bike.
OLLIE A classic: A skateboarder taps the tail of the board on the ground, then jumps to lift the board while keeping both feet on the deck. Pioneered by Alan "Ollie" Gelfand in the late 1970s. VARIATION: Nollie To lift the board by tapping the nose instead of the tail.
180/360/540/700/900/1080 The degrees a moto Xer, BMXer or skateboarder rotates during a trick.
RODEO When a skateboarder does a frontside 180 while throwing an inverted 360, for a total of 540 degrees. In moto X, when a rider holds the center of his handlebars with one hand and performs a heel clicker (see definition) with the other hand overhead, like a rodeo rider.
SARAN WRAP In moto X, to throw one foot forward over the handlebars, then remove the same-side hand and swing the leg back to the peg. VARIATIONS: Canadian Saran Wrap Swing the foot from the outside in. McMetz Simultaneous saran wraps on each side; named for moto legend Mike Metzger.
SLAM When a moto Xer, BMX rider or skateboarder crashes. Hard.
SHOVE-IT When a skater jumps and spins the board underfoot before landing on it. VARIATION: Pop Shove-It Ollie first (see definition), so the board spins in midair.
SMITH GRIND When a skater grinds a rail with the back truck and the board's rails. In BMX, when a rider grinds a ledge with a front peg while the back tire rolls on top of the ledge. Invented by skater Mike Smith.
STALEFISH A frontside air in which the skateboarder extends the front leg, reaches behind the rear leg and grabs the heel edge between the feet.
SUPERMAN In midair, a moto X rider throws his legs back to mimic the Man of Steel. VARIATIONS: Indian Air A Superman while scissoring the legs. Superman Seat Grab Grab the seat with one hand. Mulisha Air Grab the seat with both hands. Rock Solid Let go with both hands.
SWITCH STANCE To skate opposite the normal stance.
TAILWHIP When a BMX rider jumps, lifts his feet, swings the bike in a circle beneath him around the axis of the handlebars, then remounts before landing. VARIATION: Double Tailwhip Rotating the bike 720 degrees.
TOOTHPICK GRIND In BMX, to grind a rail with the front peg only. VARIATION: Toothpick Hangover Grind To hang the rear of the bike over the opposite side of the rail.
TRAVEL The distance a shock on a moto X bike compresses to handle impact.
TRUCK DRIVER In BMX, a 360 while spinning the handlebars 360 degrees. VARIATION: Double Truck Driver Spinning the bars 720 degrees.
TURNDOWN An aerial BMX trick where the rider turns the handlebars and his body toward the ground while the rest of the bike remains upright.
WHIP When the moto X rider lays the machine flat in midair. A classic.