This weeks trick is the Royale. the Royale is a variation of the frontside grind Your front foot is like in a normal frontside, but your back foot is grinding on the outside edge. To do so, you need to bring your back foot in, and push your ankle over, so that you ride on the outside frame, you might ride on the outside boot as well. Lots of skaters practice the Royale by landing in frontside, and then slowly switching to Royale, but this kind of practice will not make you any better, you'll just have to relearn the whole trick from scratch. The landing is the most difficult part about this grind when you have landed in the right way, nothing will get you down from the obstacle!
Try to keep your weight in the front as much as possible otherwise your momentum will sweep you away. Land with as spread legs to keep the balance, and then lean forwards, but not specifically on the front foot. When learning the Royale you can lean as much weight as possible in the front, and then just keep the back foot trailing afterwards in the Royale position. When you get the feel of the Royale grind later, you can put weight on the back foot. When you do so, it is easier if you grind on the frame AND on the outside boot this will lock the skate to the position.
If you look straight down on your skates, your back foot should be a little behind the spot you're looking at. Like all other tricks, this trick looks best when you're as low as possible. For some skaters, the Royale is really hard, but for others, it comes naturally. For those who think it's hard, well…just keep practicing because it will get there if you just try hard enough. When you're an experienced Royale grinder', the next thing you should learn is the backslide!
