Intro

Spinboosting is when you spin on the ground to maintain/build momentum. Spins can either be “carved out” where the analog stick is used to carve against the rotation which builds forward momentum, or you can simply spin on the ground to maintain speed, most commonly on thick snow. The first type will be referred to as spinboost and the latter ground spin.

This technique can be learned at any skill level, but really becomes necessary once you are getting towards the lower end of 18 minutes in All Peak Race or want to get times in individual levels close to world record.

While this guide will not document every single spinboost that is used in the main All Peak Race route it should teach you what most conceivable types of spinboosts look like, so you can watch a speedrun on the leaderboard and understand what spinboost is being used and why that type of spinboost is chosen over another.

Spin inputs

Your character will continue to spin on the ground if you spin in the air right before landing. A spin input can be done either by pressing left or right on the DPAD, or as we will cover later by prewinding a spin and releasing jump in the air right before landing. Depending on how close you are to the ground, you will get different types of spin inputs. The 3 possible spin types are 180 degrees, 360 degrees and 540 degrees. The degree amount refers to how much your character spins on the ground.

360 spin input For a 360 degree spin input, press left or right on the DPAD right before you land:
Example: 2x 360 spin inputs to the right followed by 2x 360 spin inputs to the left:

540 spin input For a 540 degree spin input, press left or right on the DPAD slightly above the ground (further up in the air than 360 degrees)
Example: 2x 540 spin inputs to the right followed by 2x 540 spin inputs to the left:

180 spin input For a 180 degree spin input, press left or right on the DPAD further up above the ground than for a 540 degree input. Note: This spin input is not used, this is what it will look like if you spun too early on a 540.
Example:

Prewind buffered spin input Another way of getting a spin input is to “prewind buffer” the spin input. Instead of pressing left or right on the DPAD, the spin input is performed by holding “jump” and a spin direction prior to getting air, and then releasing jump while in the air to start the spin.
Example: One prewind buffered 540 spin input to the left

Ground spins

The main usage for a ground spin is to maintain as much speed as possible when landing, particularly on thicker snow where the maximum speed is 100 km/h instead of 109 km/h on groomed snow. There are 2 different variables in a ground spin: the type of spin input (360 or 540 degrees) and whether the ground spin is crouched or not. A crouched ground spin is when you are holding “jump” while your character is spinning on the ground.

360 ground spin Main usage: Retain speed from landing, in places where a 540 ground spin lasts for too long.
Example without ground spin:

With ground spin:

The example without the ground spin reaches 95 km/h at the highest after landing, whereas the example with a 360 ground spin accelerates up to 106 km/h.

540 ground spin Main usage: Same usage as 360 ground spin. They can mostly be used interchangeably, however certain strategies specifically require a 540 or 360 ground spin.
Example with 360 ground spin:

Same example with 540 ground spin:

In the case of the 360 ground spin, you do not make it as far and as a result you will either land before the rail and be slower or risk bouncing over the rail/bonking on it. Another note is that this ground spin has to be spun to the right to work.

Crouched ground spin A crouched ground spin is a ground spin where you start holding jump again as soon as you land. This technique can either be used to “absorb” the fall or to immediately start prewind buffering a new spin input. Another benefit for this technique is that since you are crouching you do not need to hold the analog stick forward to ride with top speed.

Example: Ground spin without crouch

Example: Ground spin in the same location with crouch

The example shows a quick succession of ground spins. Uncrouched spins can be harder to perform, as you need to return the left stick to a neutral position before pressing the spin input on the DPAD. With crouched ground spins you can perform them by holding boost and either left or right on the DPAD, and just press and release jump.

Spinboosts

In addition to spinning on the ground, what separates spinboosts from ground spins is that you carve against the rotation to build forward momentum with the left analog stick.

360 spinboost Main usage: Go from fast speed to top speed or prevent “more speed from being lost” in stations. The animation of a 360 spinboost is shorter than a 540, so it is sometimes used where the animation of a 540 lasts for too long.

This technique is performed by holding the analog stick forward, and as your character completes the last (180 degree) rotation you move the stick slightly towards the direction of the spin input:

If you press right on the DPAD → move the analog stick right
If you press left on the DPAD → move the analog stick left

Example: Green station, no spinboost

Example: Green station, same location with a 360 spinboost

In the example without a spinboost the speed drops down to 60 km/h upon landing, and in the example with a spinboost the speed goes over 100 km/h. A quick note is that this specific spinboost is often done with a “half carve 540” instead of a 360 spinboost, a technique that will be covered later.

Here is an example where after a select warp a 360 spinboost is used instead of a 540, because the animation of a 540 is too long.

Example: Throne cave warp, 360 spinboost instead of 540

Example: Throne cave warp, 540 spinboost

Although the 540 generates more speed, the animation is longer and pushes you further to the right making it a worse setup for the jump over to the left half pipe, so the 360 spinboost is a better choice.

540 spinboost Main usage: Build massive amounts of speed from nothing. Typically performed after a “select warp.” This technique is performed by holding the analog stick in the opposite direction as the spin input at the start, and at the end holding it in the same direction as the spin input:

DPAD right → hold analog stick left in the beginning → move analog stick right at the end
DPAD left → hold analog stick right in the beginning → move analog stick left at the end

Tip: If you are playing on a controller such as the Xbox controller where the analog stick is to the left of the DPAD, it can be very difficult to do a 540 spin to the left, as it requires you to press left on the DPAD and then immediately pushing the analog stick to the right. One trick is to push the analog stick to the right with your index finger, and then push the stick to the left with your thumb. I personally carve out the first half of a 540 spinboost with my index finger regardless of direction.

When moving the stick from the first carve out to the second, the analog stick input is typically smoothened by swiping the stick like an “arc” across the top of the stick bowl.

Example: No spinboost after Snow Jam forest rail warp

Example: 540 spinboost after Snow Jam forest rail warp

In the example without a 540 spinboost it takes longer to reach the groomed snow top speed of 109 km/h. A quick note about this specific spinboost is that spinning left is a requirement, as spinning right will push you to the thicker snow which will cap your speed at 100 km/h.

Another common use case for the 540 spinboost is to regain speed after a mistake:

Example: Station mistake, no 540 spinboosts

Example: Station mistake, 2x 540 spinboosts

Not doing spinboosts leaves you stuck at 30 km/h, slowly accelerating back up to 60 km/h after a long time, while doing (sometimes multiple) 540 spinboosts can quickly get you up to near top speed.

Half carve 540 The 540 spinboost features “2 carve outs,” the first one being in the opposite direction of the spin input and the second one being in the same direction. A half carve 540 is when you only carve out the second half of the 540 spin. This technique is sometimes used in place of a 360 spinboost, either because the second half of a 540 spin input is in a better place to carve out than a 360 spinboost there would be, or because the carve out window is later so it can be easier to pull off.

DPAD right → hold analog stick forward in the beginning → move analog stick right at the end
DPAD left → hold analog stick forward in the beginning → move analog stick left at the end

Example: 360 spinboost

Example: Half carve 540 (in the same location as the 360 spinboost)

180 spinboost There is currently only one 180 spinboost in use, after the bendy log rail in Snow Jam. “180” refers not to the type of input, but rather only how much you spin on the ground. This technique uses a 540 spin input but ends after 180 degrees of spinning because the rider loses contact with the ground.

DPAD right → hold analog stick left
DPAD left → hold analog stick right

As for executing this spinboost, I tend to lean slightly left on the rail, and then spin to the left. I have noticed that when I press spin earlier the spinboost pushes me more towards the left.

Prewind buffered spinboosts As mentioned earlier, spin inputs can be prewind buffered, meaning that the spin input is performed by holding “jump” and a direction on the DPAD, and timing the spin input by releasing “jump” in the air. Here is an example at the end of Black Station which shows how prewind buffered spinboosts can be chained:

Example: No spinboosts (“The walk of shame” -mouteegames)

Example: 2x prewind buffered 360 spinboost (left) + prewind buffered half carve 540 (right)

These spinboosts are very hard to do, and will start to become necessary at lower 17 minute APR times and below. The spins can be performed with the late spin input method and are equally as fast, but will require a lot more inputs in a very short time frame. It could also be argued that the half carve 540 is just a 360 spinboost, as the first 180 degrees are spun in the air.