District Ride: These tricks score points

TRICK-LEXIKON: Moves 2017

Slopestyle pro Martin Söderström explains the 2017 super tricks.

1 Backflip double tailwhip
For many years, the flip-whip (backflip tailwhip) was one of the banger tricks. You could win competitions with it. However, most riders can now do the flip-whip in their sleep. A backflip double tailwhip, on the other hand, is a completely different matter because it's damn difficult and dangerous to boot. In the past, only a few riders have performed the move in competition. That will change in 2017. I'm sure we'll see this trick in every contest this year.

2 Opposite Tricks
Everyone has a favourite side. Doing a 360 in the opposite direction, for example, requires enormous fine motor skills. However, riders have become so good at doing their tricks "the wrong way round" that it almost looks better than turning in the usual direction. This is a nightmare for the judges; they have to memorise the riders' best sides, as opposite tricks score more points. Last year we saw the most difficult moves opposite, such as Brett Rheeder's Opposite Cork 720 or Antoine Bizet's Opposite Cashroll. Who knows, maybe "the wrong" will actually become "the right" direction in 2017. 3 flatdrop tricks
Last year, we witnessed a revolution: flatdrop tricks. Riders were suddenly doing tricks over so-called boner logs (tree trunks without a jump lip) that were just as difficult as normal jumps. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw 360 downside whips and flip whips jumped from boner logs. In 2017 we will see the same revolution in flatdrops. I'm going to put some real pressure on the riders by saying: I wouldn't be surprised if we see a flip-whip off a flatdrop this year! 4 Stylish tricks
Personally, I'd like to see the judges give more weight to stylish tricks in 2017. Because I miss the big, extended tricks like a superman seatgrab, nac nac or the 360 tabletop. By "extended" I mean the extreme execution. For example, a completely stretched Superman. I think that a run only deserves a top score if at least one stylish trick has been jumped. 5 Fakie manoeuvres
At Crankworx, Brandon Semenuk showed off his new approach to slopestyle. Instead of jumping forwards from the drop, he rolled backwards. In skiing, this is called a switch. In biking, we call it a fakie. To roll backwards quickly without the pedals turning, you need a special freewheel hub. They have become established in BMX and I can imagine that the same thing is now happening in slopestyle.