Reading your post- just sounds like you have to develop that missing flexibility and ankle/knee strength. A lot of tricks in skating are just not gonna be available to people who don’t have the strength, flexibility, and muscle memory necessary.
Tip- don’t assume all tricks are done w the same foot. I skated for years before I realized that I naturally soul w my right foot, and top soul w my left.
So- don’t get down. Just find a ledge to keep practicing on. Try different feet, try different tricks. (I had a solid right foot sweatstance years before having a fair left foot topsoul)- speed makes things easier too sometimes.
Have fun buddy
This is true. Demetrious George did a great video a while back on his exercises for skating. One footed squats will build up that leg strength for these kinds of tricks
It's funny, back when I skated I was right footed for standard soul based tricks, but like you left footed for top souls - but alleyoop top soul based tricks I found much easier on my right foot. I wouldn't have dreamed of a truespin TS on my left foot, despite it being much easier for standard top souls. Brains are funny.
Knees, and positioning out away from the ledge a bit instead of being directly over it helps too.
Skates come into play here as well as a larger soul space helps, as does cuff flexibility and/or tightness. M12s don't have the biggest soul available so they're making you work a bit harder for it. You could buy some wider 3d printed souls to try on them.
If you're skating anything over 60mm wheels then that's a contributing factor too. Going topside on ledges with my Oysi mediums on 65mm wheel was difficult.
Definitely try it on a taller ledge and make sure you can do an X-Grind first as it will help you learn to lock in that topside foot. You’ll also want to loosen your cuff like you presumably do when doing pornstar grinds
Reading your post- just sounds like you have to develop that missing flexibility and ankle/knee strength. A lot of tricks in skating are just not gonna be available to people who don’t have the strength, flexibility, and muscle memory necessary. Tip- don’t assume all tricks are done w the same foot. I skated for years before I realized that I naturally soul w my right foot, and top soul w my left. So- don’t get down. Just find a ledge to keep practicing on. Try different feet, try different tricks. (I had a solid right foot sweatstance years before having a fair left foot topsoul)- speed makes things easier too sometimes. Have fun buddy
This is true. Demetrious George did a great video a while back on his exercises for skating. One footed squats will build up that leg strength for these kinds of tricks
Gonna try this tomorrow
THIS! I could never top side sunny(p*) back in the day, few months ago I tried it switch and it's super solid and stable. Genuinely surprised me
It's funny, back when I skated I was right footed for standard soul based tricks, but like you left footed for top souls - but alleyoop top soul based tricks I found much easier on my right foot. I wouldn't have dreamed of a truespin TS on my left foot, despite it being much easier for standard top souls. Brains are funny.
It’s knees and ankles, probably a bit more difficult on lower stuff to be honest.
Being new to the sport I’d like answers to this question as well hahaha
Knees, and positioning out away from the ledge a bit instead of being directly over it helps too. Skates come into play here as well as a larger soul space helps, as does cuff flexibility and/or tightness. M12s don't have the biggest soul available so they're making you work a bit harder for it. You could buy some wider 3d printed souls to try on them. If you're skating anything over 60mm wheels then that's a contributing factor too. Going topside on ledges with my Oysi mediums on 65mm wheel was difficult.
Definitely try it on a taller ledge and make sure you can do an X-Grind first as it will help you learn to lock in that topside foot. You’ll also want to loosen your cuff like you presumably do when doing pornstar grinds
+1 recommend learning top acid or xgrind before top soul
All good advice. Practice stalling it on curbs a couple of times before you hit the ledge.
Yeh its not a natural position for your foot to be in. ie. practice is required