Unlike skateboards that have one solid deck, ripstiks have two decks which are:

Nose – Front and narrower deck
Tail – Back and larger deck

For me, the most difficult part of riding a ripstik is getting onto it. Ripstiks’ decks are meant to move, so getting on it is tricky, but after that, it’s just pure bliss.

Here’s how I ride it:
1. Place the board in front of you (it’s near impossible and extremely dangerous to get on it backward). Make sure the nose is facing the direction you’re going (you can only go one way with a ripstik)

2. Hold on to something, lol. There’s no shame in this. If you have a friend, ask for help. Or, you can hold on to cars like I did when I was learning it. I set off so many car alarms, lmao. When you’re used to it, you can just go up and go.

3. Figure out which position suits you better and, well, do that. Place your feet in the middle of the decks for better grip.

Riding with your left foot on the nose is called “regular,” and riding with your right foot on the nose is called “goofy.”

I ride goofy.

4. To get yourself going, you can push with whichever foot is at the tail, or while you’re still holding on to something (or someone), start waving your feet in reverse directions (like when swimming) while lightly pushing yourself with your hands and let go when you’re stable.

5. To accelerate, do smaller waves.
To slow down, make bigger waves.
To turn, twist the nose toward the direction you want to go (reverse for the tail).
To stop, put whichever foot is on the tail down.

Hope this helps. Good luck and have fun riding!