The Years Best Skating Videos
With figure skating season officially started this month, you may be looking to brush up on some of your skating skills before getting back on the ice. Whether you’re a seasoned skater or just starting out in the sport, have you ever wondered about the history of figure skating and why it is called that? Let’s take a look back. Archeologists have found long deer bones with leather lacings in Scandinavia dating back as far as 1100 BC. Skating was originally used as transportation across frozen Dutch canals during the winter months. When some of the English princes were in exile in Holland, they observed the locals going about on the frozen ponds and waterways. Upon returning to England, they had blades made by the finest sword makers in the known world, Sheffield steel. Ice skating became all the rage in England when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were fitted with a royal pair of custom skates. Prince Albert nearly drowned when he crashed through the ice in a pond on the grounds of Buckingham Palace! The term figure skating comes from the ornate tracings that were made on the ice surface. Old world stylists such as Gillis Grafstrom of Sweden spent hours perfecting and making figure 8’s and every other design in between. Later, many of the elements of free skating such as the jumps and spins were added during the early 1900’s and named for the skater who first executed them. For example the Axel jump is named for Axel Paulson of Norway. Likewise the Salchow is named for Eurich Salchow and so on.
Later school figures became obsolete in favor of free skating and moves in the field. Later ballet and artistry were added which give us the unique form of figure skating we see today. To get a firm understanding of free skating moves, here are a few videos you might wish to view:
Flipping Over Skating with 2 time Canadian National Medalist, Dan Hollander & World Team Coach, Mitch Moyer. Geared more for children just starting out, this video offers something for anyone wishing to get the basics of ice skating. This video gives you some really good information that you can actually put to use. Turns, two foot spins, stopping and much more are covered. Coach Moyer walks through the techniques first which allows you to get the big picture. For example, the bunny hop and toe tap glide were very simply broken down, then shown at full speed. Hollander is delightfully comical while bringing home useful skills for ice skating. It will keep both your child and you interested and wishing to watch it over and over again. If skaters can master the basic elements on this tape, they will be well on their way with a good foundation for the future. Repetition is the key to success!
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