LearnWake

In this video we are going to discuss a couple of very common problems you might have if you are attempting to learn a flip that has a close relation to a standing front flip while standing on the ground. The Mexican back roll is an easy rotation that can be a great first invert if you are more comfortable flipping forward rather than side to side or back. It has a very close relation to a TS front roll which is a straight forward flip if you are practicing on the trampoline and if you look at the rotation of a TS Front roll next to a Mexican back roll you can see the similarities in rotation and position. The only real differences are in the direction the trick travels and the edge used to initiate the trick. The Mexican back roll can also be a bit less complicated then a progressive Heelside back roll since line tension doesn't play as crucial of a role in creating the flips rotation. In other words you can throw the rotation more with your body for a Mexican roll then you can with a progressive back roll which relies more on pop from line tension. The edge is still important though and we will get into that later.

The first problem we are going to discuss has to do with the angle of your rotation for the Mexican back roll. If you flip to much forward towards the boat you will probably finish the rotation with the nose of the board falling on top of the rope. This rotation is directed too much front to back instead of on an angle between parallel to the boats path and perpendicular to the boats path. A 45 degree flip axis between the direction you are edging across the wakes and the direction the boat is traveling will allow you to rotate the trick freely with less line tension and without getting hung up on the rope towards the end of the trick.

To solve this problem you must add a bit more side motion along with the forward flipping motion to direct the trick properly as you can see in this comparison between correct on the left and incorrect on the right. Mike on the left throws or directs his head and upper body back towards his starting point or the takeoff side of the wakes while amber on the right throws her head and upper body too much forwards towards the boat. Tilt your head towards your back shoulder on takeoff to direct the trick properly.

Another common problem is flattening off too much to pop the trick. Since this is a forward flip the direction of the rotation can cause you to decrease your edge as you ride up the wake. You have to flip forward and this is the same direction you would normally move your body to flatten the board or stop edging. The load on the line is similar to that of a Progressive back roll and you have to load and hold tension through the wake and release it through the top. In other words you have to use a progressive edge and hold the edge and your upper body back a bit longer to pop the trick more before throwing your body forward into the tricks rotation.

You can see in this side by side comparison between the Mexican on the left and progressive back roll on the right, the load on the line and edge is the same for both and the only real difference is how the trick is directed off the wake. For the Mexican on the left the head and shoulders come more forward while the progressive on the right the head and shoulders are turned more frontside towards the sky for a more side to side or tip to tail rotation at the beginning. But both maintain their edge all the way through the top of the wake. Hold your edge through the top and then direct the trick as discussed early.

Once you get past these common problems and get the rotation down consistently the Mexican back roll is a lower line tension alternative to a progressive back roll and can lead to easily attainable technical tricks like an early handle pass Heelside back roll to blinds or a KGB's since the angle of the rotation is directed more backside as you leave the wake. Ok, that’s for this video and we'll see you next time.