The frontside 5 is the natural move to learn after you’ve gone through the spectrum of 180s and 360s. Actually, for some people, it’s easier than landing a frontside 3 because you don’t have to stop the momentum your body’s gained in the air. You should try a frontside 5 from your toes first, since it seems a little easier to spin from that direction. Take a progressive cut at the wake from about 10 feet out, and stand really tall off the top of the wake. It’s important to get in the air first before you move your board at all. Make sure you take off with some weight on your front foot so you’ll have a good axis for the spin. Although Andrea’s not doing it here (she’s a lot better than most of us), the best way to learn a frontside 5 is to pull the handle to your back hip with BOTH hands. This will naturally spin you almost 360 degrees, and all you’ll have to do is make the handle pass and keep going with the flow. Keep your head and chest up, even if your eyes are on the water, and try to keep the handle moving across the small of your back. The trick to landing the 5 is to get up in the air first and then pass the handle cleanly and quickly.
