Training To Do It Wrong

Today I went in to practice and realized that I've got something wrong with my CCW back crossovers. I can't get the legs to scissor properly. The outside leg just doesn't want to cross in front of the inside leg. CW works fine. No problemo.

I gave it a few tries. Sat deeper on the edge. Worked my upper body position. Tried it on a circle. Tried it alternating with CW back cross. No go.

So I stopped practicing them.

I know. I know. There's this mantra of "practice till you get it right." But what if you don't get it right? What good does practice do?

If you fail over and over again, the same way, at the same task, you run the risk of training yourself to do it wrong. Practice is supposed to wire your brain to do a skill, so you can do it fluidly and naturally without thinking about it. Practicing a skill wrong, programs your brain to do it wrong.

Fortunately, I have a lesson tomorrow with Madam Mim. We'll work through it and she'll tell me how to fix it.

This is why we have coaches. Sometimes, we have non obvious reasons why we're failing a skill.  My coach has to look at what I'm doing wrong, and work with me to correct whatever position, edge, or other error I've worked into habit. Then fix it.

And hope I remember it....When I practice.

Getting Off the Hockey Circle

This post is for beginner skaters--so you freestylers may want to hop over to www.skatingforums.com and see what's going on in the Pro Shop or Sitting on the Boards sections.

Most ice rinks have  hockey markings under the ice; There's 5 circles on the surface, one in the middle, and one in each corner. Many rinks use the circles as placers for LTS classes. So when you start taking group classes it's tempting to practice certain skills on the hockey circles. There's a time and a place for this. First and most important, it puts you on a curve and helps you get an edge. Also, it keeps you out of the way of experienced skaters (who know what you're doing) and gives you a space to work. But eventually you won't need to skate on the circle,  it will get boring, and you'll want to do something more. This post is about how I got to the 'more'.

What do you do once you've got comfortable with the skills? How do you move forward? How do you give your skills equal time on each side?

I picked this up from Coach Amazing. I was frustrated that I was having difficulty getting 'time' on the hockey circles on crowded public session. She told me, "Just do it down the sides, alternating." Man, it was like a light went off in my head!

So remember, I AM NOT A COACH. I'm just going to lay this out as how a beginning skater might want to try getting off the hockey circle to practice some beginning skills.

Forward Crossovers. This is probably the one of the easiest skills to practice on public because you can always see what's ahead of you.  Do a forward crossover, take a stroke, switch arms, do a crossover in the other direction. If you can only do crossovers in one direction, you can still do these. You could do the crossover you can, stroke along a curve as if you could do the other crossover, repeat the first crossover.

But what if you don't feel at ease doing them one after another. If you feel you need more speed, or you want to stabilize yourself,  you could take an additional stroke or two, or glide on two feet before entering the next crossover. Do what makes you feel safe and comfortable.

Alternating crossovers would take a path something like the dark line
The dashed circles are imaginary hockey circles, just for reference

The goal here is not to do perfect alternating crossovers right away, but to get accustomed to doing one crossover one way, then the other in the opposite direction down the side. I found it built up my stamina and power. Also, it made skating more of a challenge as I had to place my crossovers so I didn't interfere with other skaters. And I gave equal time to each side.

Back Crossovers--This is pretty much the same, but harder to do on a busy public session.You may need to glide backwards on two feet after the first crossover, or take a mini stroke, then do a crossover in the other direction. Don't forget to look behind you for traffic.

If you can only do two in the beginning, that's a start. You may feel the rink is too crowded, or you're not comfortable with back crosses yet and you really do want some practice on the circle. Your safety comes first. But if you can do two along the line, that's a beginning.  Soon you'll want to do 4, then all the way down the side. Maybe it will take a few weeks, but it's really a way to build up confidence and get off the circle.

I've found when starting with these it was easier to begin at a corner so I was in familiar territory as if I was doing the crossover on the circle then 'unwinding' it down the side. 

There's also a way to do mohawks down the line.  I do a mohawk, turn forward, stroke (depending on how you count, it may be 'stroke twice'), repeat the same mohawk.  There's a way to do alternating mohawks, but I'm not there yet.

I use these mostly for warm ups, but I also have some simple (very simple) footwork drills I'm working on that I can do across the short end of the rink. There's usually some nice open space next to the coned off area and I like to have some little short footwork drills to do when a space opens up unexpectedly.

So there's some stuff I've learned over the last year based on Coach Amazing's suggestion.

Don't focus on the hockey circle so much you miss the rest of the ice!

USFSA's "Advanced Alternating Back Crossovers"

In an earlier post, I mentioned 'advanced alternating back crossovers'. I used this to describe the alternate back crossovers with two foot transition displayed in the Adult 4 Basic Skills iPhone app. There are two levels in the video, beginner and advanced.

In the beginner's version of alternating back crossovers, the skater in the video does a back cross, then brings her two feet together then does a back crossover in the other direction. The skater goes down the rink in this fashion.

In the advanced version of alternating back crossovers on the video, the 'power push' becomes involved (that's what it says on the title card).  The skater does a back crossover, steps obliquely back into the circle after the cross,which separates the feet, then shifts her weight in the opposite direction, and with the feet separated begins a back cross in the alternate direction. Yeah, you gotta see the video.

This video shows the scissor like action that must be what MommyTime and Q were describing in yesterday's comments. If this is so, then I can do that 'power push' on one side. I'm just not feeling it the way it looks, but I'm pretty sure I'm doing it.

So thanks for the question from Anonymous, and the tips from MommyTime and Q.

Tomorrow we return to our regularly scheduled pictures of cats.

Or puppies.

With occasional skating stuff in between.

Don't cry, she'll be back to doing funny tomorrow.
She just has to get this out of her system.

Back Underpush instead of a Back Crossover

Much technical skating jabberwocky in this post. Sorry.

So in an earlier post, I mentioned that when doing back crossovers I have a tendency to do an underpush on my weak side. I also mentioned 'advanced alternating back crossovers'. This post will explain both those. I assume you know basic skating terminology about edges,  inside and outside, because this post is full of that.

Back Crossovers (AKA back crossovers with a crosscut, and Big Girl Back Crossovers)
Note: I am not a coach (obviously) I'm just writing this using the editorial 'you'. Don't consider this instruction.

Skate backwards on two feet, facing inside the circle. You step obliquely back into the circle with the inside leg so that you lean inside the circle. Your blade inside the circle should be on the outside edge. Your blade on the outside of the circle should be on the inside edge. 

As you're gliding backwards on these two now separated feet, draw the front (outside) leg across the back (inside) leg so that the front boot passes in front of the back boot. Remember the front boot is on the inside edge.

When the front leg is drawn across the back leg, the front foot moves, and the back foot stays fixed (relative to your body).

The Underpush in Back Crossovers
In an underpush, the front (outside) foot stays fixed, and the back (inside) foot crosses behind and under the front leg.

The reason I get to the underpush on my weak side is because I'm on an flat on my inside leg, and a weak outside edge (or a flat) on my outside leg. In other words, on my weak side I don't have the strong lean into the circle I need. Instead I draw my stronger leg back leg (the one inside the circle), under the fixed front leg.  I know they're wrong, but I'm in my happy place doing these. This week two coaches made me fix them.

How I feel about leaving my happy place

Inherently, an underpush going backwards is not a bad move (my way is just a bad way to do them). You see it all the time in elite skaters. Maybe they use it for  positioning, timing, spacing, or setting up for the next element.  I don't know why they use it, it's just there.

Advanced Alternating Back Crossovers
This is a USFSA term from the Adult Basic Learn to Skate video. And as this post is too long already, I'll post that tomorrow.

Coach Poker--See, Raise, Fold

"Do a forward outside 3," Dance Coach said.

I did a perfectly respectable one with extended leg to a landing position.

And now begins a game of Coach Poker.

Dance Coach raises me a power 3.

I see him, then raise him doing three of them in a row--and then in the other direction. Scooorrre!

Dance Coach shuffles the metaphorical deck and has me do back crosses. I see him and raise him by doing crosses alternating between clockwise and counter clockwise.

Dance Coach raises one eyebrow, sees me, and raises me back progressives.

I see him with good edges and arm position.

I'm ahead. The chips are all in my pot.

Dance Coach starts a new hand. He opens with 5 step mohawk. I see him and raise him with good extension. He sees me, and raises the stakes.

"Inside 3 turn."

%*$@!  I fold.

In the end Dance Coach holds all the good cards