Understanding Vert Skating: 5 Classic Vert Skating Tricks

Vert skateboarding is an aerial style that involves skating a transition from a horizontal surface to a vertical one, such as you find in a ramp, half-pipe, bowl, or pool. In street-style vert skating, skaters use rails, stairs, and any other ledges that can be found in an urban environment to perform aerial tricks. Vert skaters need plenty of speed and momentum to get enough air to pull off complex aerial maneuvers or complete grinds.

Surfers who were pool skating in the mid-1970s to simulate wave-riding on dry land created vert skating when they rode up and over the edges, catching air. From backyard pools, vert skating moved to skateparks, which often include pools and bowls, and vert ramps such as half-pipes and quarter pipes. As vert skating rose in popularity, street skaters began to incorporate more of their own maneuvers into the style, using moves like Alan Gelfand’s “ollie” to start catching air.

Many talented skaters, like Steve Caballero and Tony Hawk, found their niche in vert skating. Tony Hawk’s mastery of the style allowed him to compete in 103 pro contests, winning a record 73 of them, with 19 second-place finishes. From 1984 to 1996, Tony Hawk had been crowned vert skating’s world champion, earning Thrasher magazine's inaugural “Skater of the Year” title in 1990. Vert skateboarding stayed in the professional arena until around 2008, with its own feature in ESPN’s X Games competitions.

Although going vertical can be intimidating, flying up in the air off of a vertical wall is one of the purest thrills there is in skating, and you can use that air to perform eye-popping tricks. If you’re a skater looking for thrilling new moves to try on a vertical ramp, check out the following vert tricks:

1. 1. The McTwist: For a McTwist, the skater rides up the vertical surface, popping into the air, and performing a 540-degree rotation.
2. 2. The Madonna: The Madonna is a fun vert trick that involves the skater popping into the air, kicking their leg down, and turning 180 degrees.
3. 3. Caballerial: Also known as a cab, full cab, or half cab (for the 180-degree version), the caballerial is named for Steve Caballero, the first skater to pull off this spinning wall jump. This skateboarding trick combines a fakie—how a skater changes directions on their board without turning—with a backside 360 ollie.
4. 4. Invert: Also known as a handplant, this trick involves the skateboarder riding up the wall and balancing on one hand while holding the board with the other.
5. 5. Backside smith grind: A smith grind is an advanced skateboard trick similar to a feeble grind that was named for its inventor Mike Smith. To perform the backside smith grind, the skater rides up the side of the vertical wall, leading with the back foot, and grinding across the coping with the lip balanced between the wheels of the back truck.

Whether you’re just learning how to ollie or ready to tackle a Madonna (the vert trick, not the singer), the MasterClass Annual Membership can help you find confidence on your board with exclusive instructional videos from skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, street skater Riley Hawk, and Olympic hopeful Lizzie Armanto.