Backwards Skating
I'm getting back into quad skating after a long absence. I never learned how to skate backwards and need some tips to help me stay on my wheels. I feel out of my element when I start to roll backwards. I get the concept of stroking but have a hard time stopping and can't get the crossover down. Thanks!
Comments
Well it is hard to explain, but when I was a kid on quad skates.
I use my whole body to get in swing to roll backward. For stopping I used nose stop break.
Preventing backwards falling, it helps to stay in walking position.
From The Netherlands
With you feet next to each other, aim your toes slightly toward each other.
You now have no choice but to skate backwards as you physically can't
skate forwards with your feet positioned this way. As you push out, your
feet will get farther apart from each other. When this distance in your
stance becomes wider than you are comfortable having, simply lift one foot
up and move it towards the other foot back on the floor again. Repeat.
You need to have a pretty good lean going and some speed (dont have to be going fast, but enough momentum to carry you while on 1 skate) to do a crossover. I agree with BMW325 that standing more upright helps with balance and stability. Not sure if we are allowed to post youtube links, but if you google it, Dirty School of Skate has several really good videos on how to get rolling backwards.
Also very hard to learn from video, just do it, just do it.
At one moment your brains skills will be activated!
From The Netherlands
I think there should be experienced people to guide how to practice in reality.
The tragedy of the world is that those who are imaginative have but slight experience, and those who are experienced have feeble imaginations.
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There are plenty of videos on YouTube etc. They can help in some way. The general sequence of movements can be grabbed an memorized from them. The technique for crossovers is the same for quad, inline skates and ice.
In fact there are several variants of backward crossovers: two wrong, one acceptable and one advenced. The difference stays mainly in the weight distribution among the legs and in the skates paths during the sequence.
I don't like to suggest bad habits, but a "wrong" technique is better than nothing, and can be adjusted once you get the feeling.
In brief:
- I assume you are trying to do backward crossovers on a counterclockwise path
- get some backward speed you are confident with
- start the curve: put most of your weight on the left leg, external to the curve, and apply more force on the inner wheels
- this leg is (mostly) your steering leg and it keeps your balance
- at the same time rotate your torso toward the center of the curve, and your head even more (good if you can see where you are going); open your arms as if you should embrace the curve
- now spread the two legs apart this way: lift the right skate, move it towards the center of the curve, place it down applying very little weight
- still keeping most of your weight on the left leg, let the right skate do a "sweeping action", moving to the outside the curve, and so crossing the other leg
- you should feel the right skate as if gently "sweeping dust" from the center of the curve to the outside
- once reached a (deep enough) crossed position, lift again the right skate and repeat the sequence
The overall feeling (in this elementary crossover execution) is that your left leg always controls the path. It's your rudder. It never leaves the ground.
The right leg does the pushes, with repeated "sawtooth-blade shaped" movements. Only later you'll realize how to push with the left leg too. At the moment such simplified crossovers should give enough pleasure and act as a spur to improve.