How does leaning make a skateboard turn?

A skateboard has no steering wheel, yet a rider can guide it around a curve. The secret sits underneath the deck. Two metal assemblies called trucks connect the wheels to the board and allow the wheel axles to turn when the deck tilts.

Inside a truck, a hanger carrying the axle can pivot relative to the part fastened to the deck. Flexible cushions called bushings resist that movement and help the board return toward its resting position. Leaning changes the pressure on these parts, so the deck’s sideways tilt becomes a change in wheel direction.

The front and rear trucks are mounted in opposite orientations. During an ordinary turn, their axles steer in opposite directions. The wheels can then follow curved paths around a shared turning region instead of all pointing straight ahead.

The ground must still push sideways on the wheels to change the rider’s direction. If the wheels lose grip, pointing them around a curve is not enough to make the board follow it. The trucks choose the wheel directions; contact with the ground supplies the turning force.