The backroll is your first invert and the trick that turns "I do wakeboarding" into "I do wakeboard tricks." It's a heelside off-axis rotation off the kicker - not a true backflip, but a rolling rotation along the line of the board. Most riders learn it before any other invert because the kicker does most of the lifting; your job is to commit and stay tall.
The biggest technical point is staying tall through the pop. Bending at the waist to "throw" the rotation is the most common failure mode - it kills the lift and you land flat on your back. Approach with a progressive heelside cut, hit the kicker centered, and extend through your legs like you would on a straight air. The rotation comes from your head and shoulders, not from folding your body in half.
Once you leave the ramp, drop your head back and look over your trailing shoulder toward the landing. Keep the handle low and pulled in to your lead hip - letting it drift up pulls you off-axis and you'll land sideways on your edge. As you come around, spot the water, soak the landing up with your knees, and ride away. Your first few will feel like a leap of faith; commit early in the cut so you're not half-in, half-out.
Watch more here:
Video by Julia Rick
Key tips
- Progressive heelside cut into the kicker - don't yank the line
- Stand tall through the pop. Bending at the waist is what flattens the rotation
- Initiate by dropping the head back and looking over the trailing shoulder
- Keep the handle low and tight to the lead hip the whole way around
- Spot the landing as you come past vertical, knees soft on impact
- Don't grab on the first few. Get the rotation clean before adding style