Flair

A flair is a BMX trick where the rider does a backflip with a 180 degree turn off a quarter pipe or vert ramp and lands back on the ramp. It combines a backflip and a 180 into one smooth motion.

Overview

The flair is a ramp trick. The rider rides up the transition, leaves the coping and flips backward while turning half a rotation. The two rotations happen together, so the body corkscrews through the air instead of doing a flip and then a turn. The rider then lands on the ramp and rides out.

It looks smooth when done well, and it is hard. It needs a lot of air above the coping, a good sense of where you are while upside down, and a confident backflip. Most riders learn it only after they can backflip on a ramp without thinking.

How to do it

These steps assume you already land backflips and 180s on a ramp. Take them slowly, and work up through the heights.

1. Land your backflip first. Be consistent on the same ramp where you plan to try the flair. A flair on an unfamiliar ramp adds risk.
2. Get a clean 180 over the coping. Practise 180s at the height you will reach on a flair. Know which direction you naturally turn.
3. Choose your rotation direction. Most riders have a stronger side. Pick the 180 direction that feels most natural and commit to it.
4. Roll in with steady speed. Aim to reach the top of the ramp straight, not at an angle.
5. Take off with height. Pop out of the transition and let the bike rise above the coping. You need extra height to finish both rotations.
6. Start the flip. Throw your head and shoulders back and pull the bars toward your chest, as you do for a backflip.
7. Add the turn. As the bike starts to rotate, turn your head and shoulders in your chosen 180 direction. The turn works with the flip, not against it.
8. Spot the ramp. Look for the transition as you come around. When you see it, open your legs and prepare to land.
9. Land and ride out. Push the bike down onto the transition. Land with both wheels and roll away.

Variations

• Flair barspin: a barspin during the flair. It is usually tried only after the plain flair is steady.
• Flair tailwhip: the frame whips during the flair. It is a very advanced combination.
• Flair on different obstacles: riders also adapt the idea to spines and hips (see hip and spine), though the ramp shape changes how it feels.
• Direction: some riders flair in their natural direction only. Learning both directions takes extra time.

Common mistakes

• Not enough height. The flair needs extra air above the coping. If you do not climb high enough, you cannot finish both rotations.
• Starting the turn too early. Turning before the flip is underway can leave you sideways on the way down.
• Turning too hard. Over-rotating the 180 puts you facing the wrong way on the landing.
• Looking at the sky. You have to find the transition on the way down. If you wait too long to look, you open up blind.
• Rolling in off-line. A crooked approach turns into a crooked flair.
• Skipping the steps. Trying a flair before a solid backflip is the quickest way to get hurt.

History

Mat Hoffman is widely credited with pioneering the flair in BMX. The trick became a staple of ramp riding in the following years, and many riders have added their own versions since. As with many tricks, the early accounts vary, so this page describes the common view and does not claim every detail.

In BMX it is tied to the backflip and the quarter pipe, and it has become one of the best known big ramp tricks in park and vert riding.

Related tricks

• Backflip
• 180
• Barspin
• Tailwhip
• Tabletop