Skate Culture Article #6 - The Manual Roll..

This is part of a series of Skate Culture Articles I've been writing as an insight into the sport of skateboarding for an outsider. You can find the rest of the articles by entering tagged skateculturearticle by tractorfactoryphotos into the BlipSearch.

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The Manual Roll...
The word 'manual' in skateboarding is either a noun or a verb. You can manual or you can perform a manual or a manual trick. It is one of the building blocks of skateboarding tricks. It is a wheelie on a skateboard, balancing on the back 2 wheels or if you are on the front 2, a nose manual.

Now I think RedBull have hit on a perfect balance between corporate sponsorship and skate competition with their Manny(manual) Mania competition series which hit Edinburgh today.

It's probably the most accessible type of competition in skateboarding as it does not require big ramps or years of training, just a street pavement and a good sense of balance. It also highlighted one of beauties of skateboarding in that you can have young just starting out kids skating alongside established professionals on equal terms. This, I think, is pretty unique in sport.

Basically RedBull turn up with varying obstacles upon which you perform manual tricks and then the most impressive or original and consistent skater wins and qualifies for a bigger finals event.

Now this may sound simple but if you consider that a manual trick starts from the moment 4 wheels leave the ground until all 4 touch back down and the obstacles can incorporate various features, adding in flip tricks in, out and midway through the manual or nose(front wheel) manual, it can get very technical.

I was only able to stay for a couple of hours but had a brill time it looked like everyone else enjoyed the event as well.

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Notes on the Picture...
This is Chris Vile who I think skates for RedBull. Although he is not at this moment doing a manual, if I remember right, he did a nose manual across this platform and was in mid 360 flip out of it as I took this shot.