How to Ollie on a Fingerboard: The First Trick, Step by Step
The ollie is the first real trick in fingerboarding and the foundation for almost everything else. It's a two-finger motion where one finger pops the tail down and the other drags across the deck to level the board mid-air. The whole trick lasts less than a second. Learning it is 90% about finger placement and 10% about timing — most beginners get placement wrong and blame their timing. This guide walks through the exact finger positions, the drag motion, and the drills that build the muscle memory.
What an ollie actually is
An ollie is the fingerboard equivalent of an ollie on a full-size skateboard — the deck pops off the surface without your fingers holding it up, using two coordinated inputs. One finger snaps the tail down against the surface, which sends the front of the deck rising into the air. The other finger drags forward across the top of the deck to level the deck as it flies up.
When done correctly, the deck rises up, floats level for a split second, and comes back down flat. When done incorrectly, the deck either doesn't leave the ground (weak pop) or flies up nose-first and lands badly (weak drag).
Finger placement — the thing beginners get wrong
Two fingers. Almost always the index and middle fingers of your dominant hand. The index finger goes on the front of the deck (over the front truck bolts, roughly one-third from the nose). The middle finger goes on the tail — right on the raised kick.
The specific placement of the middle finger on the tail is the single most common failure point. Too far forward and you don't hit the raised kick — the tail doesn't slam the ground properly. Too far back and the finger slips off the edge when you press down. It should sit exactly on the peak of the tail kick, where you can feel the wood curving up under your fingertip.
Practise finding this position without popping. Put your finger on the tail, lift it, place it again, lift it. Do this until you can find the exact spot without looking.
The pop — first half of the trick
With fingers in position, press down sharply with the tail finger. The motion is a snap, not a push — a short, quick downward stab that hits the tail against the surface and immediately releases.
As the tail hits the ground, the front of the deck rises up on its own — the tail acts as a pivot. Your front finger is not doing the lifting; the physics is. The front finger's job is to stay in light contact with the deck as it rises, ready for the drag motion.
A common error: pushing down slowly on the tail instead of snapping. Slow presses don't generate the sudden force that makes the front of the deck rise. Sharp, quick, release.
The drag — second half of the trick
The moment the tail hits the ground and the front of the deck starts rising, your front finger drags forward toward the nose. The drag motion is what levels the deck — it presses down on the nose as the tail is bouncing up, which balances the deck out horizontally in the air.
The drag is not a slap. It is a smooth forward slide across the top of the deck. If you drag too hard, the deck flips forward; if you don't drag enough, the deck stays angled tail-down and lands nose-first.
Timing: the drag starts immediately after the pop — there is no pause between the two motions. It feels like a single continuous action, not two separate ones.
The landing
As the deck starts falling back to the surface, both fingers should stay in light contact with it, guiding it flat. When it lands, both wheels touch down at the same moment.
If the deck lands nose-down, your drag was too gentle or too short — the front finger didn't level the deck out. If it lands tail-down, your drag was too aggressive — the front pushed too much.
The final position of your fingers is roughly where they started but with the deck slightly further along the surface than it was.
Drills that build muscle memory faster
Drill 1: pop only. Practise the tail-pop motion alone, without the drag. Feel the front of the deck rise. Do it 20 times, aiming for the same height every time. This isolates the timing of the pop.
Drill 2: pop and drag, in one motion. Add the front-finger drag. Don't worry about clearing the ground yet — just feel the two motions connect. Do 20 reps.
Drill 3: obstacle-free ollies at moderate height. Aim for a specific height (say, 3–5mm off the surface) rather than 'as high as possible'. Consistency beats altitude at this stage.
Drill 4: ollie over a small object. Place a coin or a small piece of wood in front of your fingerboard. Pop, drag, land on the other side. This trains you to time the lift with forward motion.
If you can do Drill 4 five times in a row cleanly, you have the ollie. Everything else is variations.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to learn a fingerboard ollie?+
For most people, one to three focused sessions of 15–30 minutes each. The bottleneck is finger placement, not timing — once you're consistently finding the correct position on the tail, the motion clicks fast.
Do I need special trucks or wheels to ollie?+
No. Any working fingerboard setup can ollie. If your trucks are so tight the deck can't lean, that's a tuning problem, but no special hardware is needed.
Why does my board keep landing nose-first?+
Your drag isn't strong enough or isn't long enough. The front finger has to slide forward across the deck to level it — a gentle touch on the nose doesn't do it. Try a firmer, longer drag.
Why does the board barely leave the ground?+
Your tail-pop is too slow. The pop is a snap — a quick downward stab that immediately releases. Slow presses don't generate the sudden force that lifts the deck. Try sharper, quicker.
Which fingers should I use?+
Index and middle fingers of your dominant hand — index on the front (over the front truck bolts), middle on the tail. Some riders use index and ring, but index and middle is by far the most common and stable position.
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