Subject: Recreational Figure Skating FAQ - Index
From: RSSIR FAQ maintainer <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 04:10:08 GMT
Newsgroups: rec.sport.skating.ice.recreational,rec.answers,news.answers

Archive-name: sports/skating/ice/rec-skate/index
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URL: http://home.pacbell.net/anamga
Last-modified: Apr 4 2004
Version: 1.016

Recreational Figure Skating FAQ

   Copyright © 2002-2003
   © 1995-2001 Karen Bryden

   This  archive  was  originally written and maintained by Karen Bryden.
   Subsequent  updates  and  additions  to the original document are done
   with her permission.

   Some  portions  of  this  archive  are used with permission from their
   originators.

   A  version  of  this archive is periodically posted to the Internet by
   the  Owner,  and  may  be  freely  distributed  on the Internet in its
   entirety without alteration provided that this copyright notice is not
   removed.

   Private  individuals  are  granted  permission  to make a copy of this
   archive  for  their  own personal use, provided that the copy includes
   this copyright notice.

   This  archive  or  any  part  thereof  may  not be sold for profit nor
   incorporated in other documents without the Owner's permission.

   This  archive resides at PacBell.net, and is mirrored at Achilles.net.
   It may NOT reside at any other website (use links, please) without the
   permission of the Owner.
     _________________________________________________________________

Table of Contents

  Foreword

     * Scope of This Archive
     * Charter of rec.sport.skating.ice.recreational
     * Notes on posting to r.s.s.i.r.
     * Please Read This Disclaimer
     * Other FAQ's on Skating
     * Other URL's on Skating
     * Acknowledgments

  1.Questions and answers

     * 1.1 Should I buy skates or rent them?
     * 1.2 Should I buy figure skates or hockey skates?
     * 1.3 Why are there different kinds of blades for figure skates?
     * 1.4 How often do I need to sharpen my skates?
     * 1.5 Are hand-held sharpeners useful?
     * 1.6 Will figure skates give me enough ankle support?
     * 1.7 How do I know my skates are worn out?
     * 1.8 What is skating leg, free leg, outside edge, inside edge, LFO,
       RBI, etc.?
     * 1.9 Why do I skate mostly on my inside edges?
     * 1.10 Why do most skaters spin and jump counterclockwise?
          + 1.10.1  Is  there  an  easy  way  to  tell  what my "natural"
            spinning direction is?
     * 1.11 Why can I do X on my right leg but not my left?
     * 1.12 What's the difference between a crossover and a progressive?
     * 1.13 Turns. What's a counter, rocker, bracket, 3-turn?
     * 1.14 Turns. What's a mohawk, Choctaw?
     * 1.15 Are spin trainers any good?
     * 1.16 Will inline skating improve my ice skating?
     * 1.17 What are USFSA, ISI, Skate Canada, NISA, etc?

     * 1.17.1 Should I join ISI or USFSA?

     1.18 What are MITF?

     1.19 Sessions; patch, freestyle, dance, open, public; what are they?

     1.20 How do you make an outdoor rink?

     1.21 Why does my music sound terrible in the ice rink?

     1.22 How do I find a suitable private instructor?
     * 1.22.1 What are the guidelines to deal with coaches?
     * 1.22.1.1 Should I tip my instructor?
     * 1.22.1.2 What are the rules for taking a coach to competitions?

     1.23 Is there a painless way to leave my coach?

  2. Basic Skating

     * 2.1 First time out
     * 2.2 Falling and protective equipment
     * 2.3 Stopping
          + 2.3.1 Snowplow stops
          + 2.3.2 Hockey stops
          + 2.3.3 T-stops
     * 2.4 Posture
     * 2.5 Stroking
     * 2.6 Skating backwards
     * 2.7 Forwards and backwards cross-overs
     * 2.8 Forward 3-turns
     * 2.9 Backward 3-turns
     * 2.10 Mohawks

     * 2.10.1 Open and closed mohawks
     * 2.10.2 Where does the name "mohawk" come from
     * 2.10.3 Tips to learn a mohawk

  3. Adult Skaters

     * 3.1 Adult beginner skaters
          + 3.1.1 The skater mother and other horrors
          + 3.1.2 Talent vs. determination
     * 3.2 Amount of practice needed to make progress
     * 3.3 Adult-Onset Skating Syndrome (AOSS)
     * 3.4 Lessons
     * 3.5 The pay-off!
     * 3.6 Skating programs for adults
          + 3.6.1 USFSA adult testing track
          + 3.6.2 Skating competitions for adults

  4. Boots

     * 4.1 Selecting new boots
     * 4.2 Breaking in your boots
     * 4.3 Maintenance
          + 4.3.1 Waterproofing
          + 4.3.2 Re-plugging the screw holes
     * 4.4 Selecting used boots
     * 4.5 Lacing
     * 4.6 Children's skates

  5. Blades

     * 5.1 Buying new blades
     * 5.2 Three ways of checking used blades
     * 5.3 Mounting
          + 5.3.1 Problems with warping
          + 5.3.2 Checking for mounting problems
     * 5.4 Rocker
     * 5.5 Grind or hollow
     * 5.6 Advanced blade features
          + 5.6.1 K-pick
          + 5.6.2 Side honed, parabolic and tapered blades
     * 5.7 Sharpening explained by an expert
     * 5.8 Maintenance

  6. Figure skating skills

     * 6.1 Dance
     * 6.2 Freestyle skating
          + 6.2.1 Waltz jump
          + 6.2.2 Salchow
          + 6.2.3 Toe loop
          + 6.2.4 Loop jump
          + 6.2.5 Flip jump
          + 6.2.6 Lutz jump
          + 6.2.7 Axel jump
          + 6.2.7.1 Axel exercises
          + 6.2.8 Two foot spin
          + 6.2.9 Forward Scratch spin
          + 6.2.9.1 about dizziness
          + 6.2.10 Back spin
          + 6.2.11 Sit spin
          + 6.2.12 Camel spin
     * 6.3 Synchronized skating
     * 6.4 Figures

  7. Injuries

     * 7.1 Concussion
     * 7.2 Arm injuries
     * 7.3 Knee injuries
     * 7.4 Foot injuries
          + 7.4.1 Bumps on feet

  8. Off-ice training and endurance

     * 8.1 Weight training
     * 8.2 Improving turn-out
     * 8.3 Knee strengthening exercises
     * 8.4 Plyometrics
     * 8.5 Pilates
     * 8.6 Off-ice warm-up

     * 8.6.1 The cooling down

  Appendices

     * Commonly available blades, radius, hollow and price
          + Dance blades
          + Synchronized skating blades
          + Beginner Freestyle and all-purpose blades
          + Intermediate and Advanced Freestyle blades
          + Advanced and Elite Freestyle blades
     * Test requirements
          + ISI tests: Freestyle and Dance
          + USFSA Adult freestyle test requirements
          + USFSA test dances
          + FFSG freestyle "Club" track test requirements
          + NISA freestyle test requirements
     * Comparative table of national freestyle tests
     _________________________________________________________________

Foreword

  Scope of this Archive

   Welcome  to  the  news  group  rec.sport.skating.ice.recreational. The
   charter  of  the  group  (below) encompasses a wide variety of skating
   activities  aimed  at  the  active  recreational  skater. This archive
   contains  responses  to  frequently asked questions about ice skating,
   and  contains  outstanding  contributions to the news group which have
   appeared  in the past. It is aimed at the recreational and lower level
   competitive figure skater.

  Charter of rec.sport.skating.ice.recreational

   Appropriate  topics  for  this group include public skating, social or
   dance  sessions  and  outdoor  skating;  learning  to  skate  and more
   advanced  group  or  private  instruction;  equipment  selection, use,
   maintenance, and troubleshooting; and stretching, training and fitness
   issues.

   Discussion  of  skating  skills  on  both hockey and figure skates are
   welcome.   The  group  is  aimed  specifically  at  skating  from  the
   participant perspective.

  Notes on posting to r.s.s.i.r..

   In  general,  if  you  follow  the Usenet etiquette rules you can't go
   wrong.  Everyone  will  be  grateful if you try to stay on topic, make
   sure  that the subject of your post corresponds to its actual contents
   and  ignore  outrageous posts and trolls. In particular, pay attention
   to these points:
    1. In  general,  avoid  cross-posting  to  other  groups  as  much as
       possible.  Even  when  cross-posting  to  other skating or related
       groups is justified, this practice sometimes results in a bunch of
       off-topic  posts  addressed to r.s.s.i.r. Similarly, check and, if
       necessary,  edit the "newsgroups" and "follow-up" headers of posts
       you reply to.
    2. Sharing  movies and pictures is popular and very useful to receive
       feedback  about  your  technique  and  for general discussion of a
       skill,  but  please,  do  not send those files in the body of your
       post  or  as  an  attachment.  Read the FAQ on posting binaries to
       newsgroups  to  understand  why.  The best procedure is to put the
       file  in  a  web site and post the URL to the group. Be aware that
       doing this will generate lots of visits to your page. If your file
       is  very  large  and  you  have  a  bandwidth  restriction on file
       transfers,  access  to the page may be temporarily blocked by your
       provider.  To  avoid  this  situation, double-check the conditions
       that apply to your site.
    3. It  has  become common practice in the group not to refer to one's
       skating  instructor(s)  by their names as a matter of course (many
       people   use   nicknames).   The  main  reasons  to  do  this  are
       1)preserving the instructor's privacy 2)avoiding that a particular
       miscommunicated  or  out of context instruction or comment affects
       the  reputation of the instructor. This practice does not apply if
       the  identity  of  the instructor is already public knowledge (for
       instance,  if  you are posting about a publicly advertised skating
       camp with famous coach X, it is OK to quote X by name).

  The Following Disclaimer Applies to This Archive

   This archive is furnished "as is" without express or implied warranty.
   If  you  wish  to  learn  figure  skating,  please sign up for a class
   (offered  at many rinks) so you can have an instructor demonstrate the
   proper  techniques  and  help  correct  you  if you're doing something
   wrong.  Rely  on a good instructor to help you select skates and other
   equipment.

  Other FAQ's on Skating

   There  are  five  other FAQ's posted regularly to rec.sport.skating.*,
   rec.answers  and  news.answers.  They are the amateur and professional
   figure/artistic  skating  FAQ  list  posted  by  Sandra Loosemore, the
   Inline  Skating  FAQ by Tony Chen, the Conventional Roller Skating FAQ
   and   the   Skate   Books   FAQ  by  George  Robbins  and  Welcome  to
   rec.sport.skating.* posted by Charles MacDonald.

  Other URLs on Skating

   Charles   MacDonald  keeps  a  current  listing  of  Skating  URLs  at
   http://home.achilles.net/~cmacd/sk-lnk.html

  Acknowledgments

   This  archive  represents  the  collective  wisdom  of  the news group
   rec.sport.skating.ice.recreational      and      the     mail     list
   [email-masked]. Many people have contributed to this work, far too
   numerous  to  mention. However special thanks go to George Robbins and
   Janet Swan-Hill, who have written major portions of this document.
     _________________________________________________________________