A kickflip is a skateboarding trick where the rider makes the board spin completely around lengthwise in the air before landing back on it. Picture flipping a pencil end-over-end on your desk: a kickflip does something similar, except the skateboard rotates along its length while you're jumping above it.

To perform a kickflip, a skateboarder pops the tail of the board down while simultaneously flicking the front foot off the edge, which makes the board spin beneath them. The skater has to jump high enough to let the board complete its rotation, then land back on it as it finishes spinning. Getting the timing right takes serious practice.

The kickflip is one of skateboarding's most iconic tricks. When skater Rodney Mullen invented it in the 1980s, he revolutionized the sport. Before then, most skateboarding tricks happened on ramps and half-pipes. Mullen's kickflip helped create “street skating,” where skaters perform tricks on flat ground, stairs, and rails.

Landing your first kickflip is a milestone for skateboarders. It can take weeks or months of failed attempts, scraped knees, and determination.