Tricks are the bread and butter of snowboarding. They add fun and flavor to an already exciting sport.
One super popular trick for snowboarders is the Caballerial, or cab for short.
Cab or Caballerial in snowboarding refers to a front or back-side switch maneuver, popping off the nose of the board. There are different types of cab depending on the degree of rotation of the snowboarder.
The cab may appear like a tall order for newbie snowboarders. But with consistent practice, you can become a cabbing pro.
In this article you’ll learn the different cab types in snowboarding… and how to perform them.
As outlined above, a caballerial or “cab” means starting out in switch (riding the opposite foot forward to normal) and then rotating, popping off the nose of the board and spinning around in the air.
Who Invented The Cab?
Named after living legend Steve Caballero, this trick owes its origins to skateboarding. In Snowboarding, cabs are perfect for sending off rollers, small jumps or even on flat ground.
Types Of Cab In Snowboarding
The cab was originally a 360-degree turn. However, the trick has since evolved.
The types of cab include:
- Half-cab or Cab 180. In a half-cab, the snowboarder makes a 180-degree twist before landing (hence the other name “Cab 180”). Riders usually perform this when they want to face forward while riding with their backs.
- Full Cab or Cab 360. As its name suggests, a full cab involves a complete 360-degree aerial maneuver before landing. It’s basically double the “turn” of a half-cab spin. Remember you’ll be starting and landing switch (“backwards”).
- Cab 540 or Cab 5. This cab takes the full cab a notch higher. Instead of one complete turn, the snowboarder now rotates to 540-degrees before landing. You can’t perform a Cab 540 if you haven’t perfected a full cab.
- Cab 720 or Cab 7. Cab 7 involves more rotation than Cab 540. You need to do a 720-degree body twist before landing.
The direction of spin helps to work out if it’s a frontside or backside cab (read this article if unsure).
How To Perform A Cab In Snowboarding
Now that we know what a snowboard cab means, it’s time to take it to the slopes. Oh-yeah!
We’ll start with the classic half-cab.
How To Half Cab (Cab 180) On A Snowboard
Often used as a link between park features, a half-cab (or cab 180) is a great way to revert back to your regular stance after landing in switch.
Here is a perfect example of a frontside half-cab (courtesy of our friends at Whitelines).
- Start out “backwards” with your right foot forward (in goofy). Bend with the knees, ready to pop upwards.
- “Pre-wind”/rotate your upper body in counter rotation*
- Begin to pop off the back leg (which is actually the nose of your board as you’re backwards!).
- Rotate your upper body around whilst popping into the air
- Allow your legs and board to start to rotate too.
- Align your upper and lower body, preparing for landing
- Crouch to absorb the landing. As you’re landing going “forwards” again, this bit will be simpler than you think.
*It’s worth reading about the concepts of rotation and counter-rotation if you haven’t already.
Goofy riders: The above steps will obviously be reversed for you.
How To Half-Cab On A Snowboard (Video)
How To Cab 360 On A Snowboard
Now we’re moving onto the big dawg… the full cab!
Before sending a full cab, make sure you’re comfortable landing switch. Remember, you’ll be taking off AND landing in switch this time.
Without further ado – roll the tape!
What’s The Difference Between A Cab 360 And A 360 Spin?
Mostly that a cab is done from switch (riding with your opposite foot forward to normal).
So what’s the difference between a switch 360 and a full cab?
Great question!
The important difference is that with a cab, you’re popping off the nose of the board (a nollie).
With a switch 360 spin, you tend to initiate the spin by carving hard on the heel or toe edge of the board. This doesn’t necessarily need much pop, especially when performed off a side-hit or jump.
How To Cab 5 Snowboarding
I think by now you get the idea. A cab 5 simply requires more counter-rotation and rotation.
For more detail on how to cab 5, watch the video above till the end.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully I’ve well and truly answered your question of what does cab mean in snowboarding?
Starting life as a skateboarding trick, we have long since adopted the cab into our snowboarding trick arsenal. And so should you!
Build up stepwise from 180, 360, 540, and eventually 720!
To really understand how to get spin those higher numbers, you should definitely revise the concepts of rotation and counter-rotation.
