Watch videos of pros or good riders on the slope and you might find it hard to identify just how they achieve this fabled 'pop'. I'll break it down a little here for yous.

First of all you will learn from riding your board where to get the most flex and then accompanying snap back form the tail (or nose in the case of nollies). Too MUCH pressure on your tail and you might slip out or over extend you body weight to the aft of the board. Inversely too little and you'll do a funky little bloop of a hop about the height of a pencil...on its side. Finding the right amount of pressure to apply to the tail takes time and practice, but the key is to get low and DON'T try to 'lean' back or 'pull hard with your front foot' - this will not work. Practice while stationary on flat snow.

Secondly you gonna need solid leg strength to get the explosive ollie power of say the likes of Gigi Ruf or Müller, so get squatting. Better yet do squats, whilst on a balance board, with you heaviest mate on your shoulders. (don't try this early season tho.... :(

And thirdly is that key ingredient - timing. Time your movements to get that sweet-spot pop from your board and then suck your knees to your nipples and hang your arms like a monkey, or whatever, and FLY.

Not all boards will give great pop and some significantly more than others. A lot of high end park boards have good pop, but then some are buttery soft for more railtown action. I currently ride a "2011 RIDE Arcade UL" and it has just about the most pop I've ever seen in a snowboard - like get it right ... and you just jumped off a trampoline with those spring loaded stilts and then ignited a jetpack kind of thing....

Get out there and experiment with your board or try your buddies whatever, and learn how to time those jumps just right. Try on flat ground first. Timing when riding over a bump or off a kicker is a whole new thing so start small and build up... those SLOW signs on the piste make great object to try your new found power ollie on, just remember to look cool if you bail and ride away like you meant it.

Happy hangtime! Peace.