How To Find Your Skateboard Stance: Are You Goofy Footed Or Regular

The difference between Regular and Goofy Skateboarding is that Regular Skateboarding is when the left foot is placed in front of the right foot on the board, and Goofy Skateboarding is when the right foot is placed in front of the left foot.

Whether you are a regular skater or a goofy foot one, your riding style doesn’t affect your riding, such as making you a pro rider or increasing your speed. Stance is all about footedness. It tells about your preference of using your foot in the front as you start riding switch.

 It is hard to tell if any style is the best one or if it is the correct one. Riding your board in the Regular style doesn’t mean you are accurate. Similarly, riding a skateboard or longboard goofy doesn’t tell you’re a better rider. However, the argument can be redeemed by our discussion below on Regular Vs Goofy footedness in any board game.

Regular Stance: Pros & Cons

• A minority of people ride in the regular stance. 
• With your left foot in the front, you brake or speed up with your right foot.
• If you are a right-hander, this is going to be your dominant stance. However, people may differ.
• It is the stance that comes naturally to a skater. The feet automatically determine where they want to be footed. Thus it is also called the Natural Stance.
• This stance is more balanced and easily achievable. 
• You can be a left-hander and still choose to ride In your preferred stance.

Goofy Stance: Pros & Cons

• Goofy stance is just a preference.
• If not preference, goofy is the stance your body is most comfortable with if you feel it is coming naturally. Do not force it!
• Goofy means riding the board with your right foot at the neck of the board, pushing it with your left foot.
• The majority of people choose to ride with a goofy board stance. But that doesn’t make it any “more valid” than the other one. 
• Most left-handed people choose to ride in goofy style. Just like the Disney character “Goofy” rode. 
• However, you can be a right-handed person and still choose this skateboarding stance. It’s all cool!

 The interesting part is, some skaters have zero difficulties at riding in either stance. Such talent gets it’s due recognition from their peers too! 

How To Determine If You Are A Regular or Goofy Skater

 Humans have a natural defense of using their dominant foot in all the leading and controlling work. In boarding games, the foot at the back of the board does the job. Well, how will you decide which is your dominant side?

Have your queries solved today as we answer everything that might pop up in your head regarding how to know which foot is your dominant!

Different Methods To Find Your Comfortable Stance

 Finding a comfortable riding stance is the most important part, even before you start learning. To achieve that, you must have an understanding of the difference between the regular stance & goofy stance. Then comes knowing your dominant foot. If you are right-handed, most likely your right foot will be your dominant foot. On the contrary, left-handed people will have their left foot dominating everything they do. 

You can choose from all the methods described below:

Run & Slide with Socks:

Grab a thick pair of wooly socks for the “slide” test. It is the most hassle-free way of finding your stance.

Make sure you have enough room space to perform the test properly. Use a smooth surface like tile or board flooring. You can do the test in a indoor basketball or volleyball court too.

Start by running freely for a while and gain speed. When you think you’re ready, switch to sliding from running. Seize the final speed and then touch down flat-footed using both feet. 

Balance yourself as you slide past the floor with your socks.Notice lastly, the foot that settles in the front is your dominant foot. It will be the same for boarding games too. 

Ask for a friend’s help:

Ask your friend or relative to rigorously push you from the back as you stand on the board freely. Now as your friend pushes you, you’ll most likely roll forward a few inches. The moment you feel you’re falling, one of your feet will automatically get hold of the board to brace your falling. That is your dominant foot. 

Be ready for mishaps in case you’re not able to hold your fall. Wear a skate helmet and knee pads.

The Lean Test: 

If you do not have a friend to work with, try doing the “lean” test. It’s similar to the “Push” test, except you make your fall deliberately.

Take a stand in a free space & lean forward to fall. Naturally, a foot will brace your fall and that’s how you determine your dominant side to choose a stance. 

The “Side by Side” walk:

To perform this test, you will need an empty staircase. Stand at the bottom of the staircase with your feet settled “side by side”. 

As soon as someone shouts “Go” for you, run upwards. This way, the foot that rests on the second last stair step or the bottom stair first, will be your dominant foot. You might notice, this is the foot which is helping you in pushing your body for the final upgrade and balancing at the same time. 

That’s how you get to choose your stance depending on your dominant foot.

Forward Roll:

As you succeed to discover your dominant foot & matching stance – do not forget that comfort matters the most when you ride. Our comfortable stance is often the opposite of our dominant side. For this reason, another way of determining the stance is to follow your gut instincts.

Get ready with a helmet and protective gear. Get to a nice, sunken space where you can ride. Ascend on your board while placing which you think is your lead foot in its position at the tail of the board deck. Gradually lower your other foot to the ground. Use it to push yourself forward. Roll a little distance and then stop. Attempt the same again.

If you are comfortable & it feels natural, that is your dominant foot. If not, switch the position of your feet and try it again. 

Drop & Kick test:

Last but not the least, this is the easiest way there is to discover your dominant brain side. Hold a football/volleyball at your chest level and drop it when you are ready for a free-kick. Have someone tell “Go” for motivation.

Then let your brain decide which foot to use to kick the ball in full force. That’s how you know which is your dominant foot. 

Other Skateboard Stances

Alongside Regular & Goofy, skaters have two or more stances that are exercised in all boarding games. These are as follows:

The Fakie Stance

In a skater’s world, riding fakie means riding backward with your feet in the opposite positions. In fakie stance, your back foot is placed near the tail of the deck and the front foot pushes- just the opposite of the natural stances; regular or goofy.

The fakie stance comes in handy while rolling down a ramp or you might find yourself riding this stance after performing a 180 or such tricks.

In today’s world, it is often confused with the switch stance but the old school skaters named it the Fakie Stance and it still prevails the same.

The Switch Stance

The switch stance is attained only after much practice and restless training as it pushes a skater’s limit.

The switch stance means to switch your natural posture, that is to push with your subservient foot and let your dominant foot lead. Your natural dominant side rests near the nose of the board. 

There’s no reason to confuse the switch with the fakie stance.

The Mongo Stance

Mongo riding style is often frowned upon in the skaters’ community. Although surfers or snowboarders exercise the Mongo like a regular stance but longboarders and skateboarders often consider it problematic and improper.

A learner’s secret is that mongo helps you learn balancing better as it gives you more time to gain balance before doing a trick. While riding Mongo, you push with your front foot instead of the dominant back one. Just as your board is gaining speed, you hop/flip on the board and place your back foot at the tail of the deck and the front one in the lead. 

Having understood the stance, it is evident that you need more space or distance to perform this stance so you can’t practice this in a short ramp.