In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Hockey Players - Help! (please)
roboman
Member Posts: 6,436
Howdy. I've been hittin' the ice as much as I possibly can (3 times a week or so) and I've improved greatly, but I still have some skating issues. I was hoping some of the hockey players here could help me diagnose what's wrong.
First, when I do the hockey stop, my skates chatter and make a kind of honking noise. Any idea why? They've been recently sharpened and still make the same noise.
Second, is there some way to learn the Gretzky turns easier? I just can't seem to make those sharp, cutting turns that I see other people doing. Any advice on what do for this?
Third, I'm looking for any kind of advice as to improve backward skating and backward crossovers. I'm completely lost on the backward crossovers and really want to learn how to do them.
Other than these issues, I'm a decent skater that has the majority of the basics of skating down. Once I correct these three issues all I need to do is continue skating to improve overall skill.
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated! [^]
"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long..."
First, when I do the hockey stop, my skates chatter and make a kind of honking noise. Any idea why? They've been recently sharpened and still make the same noise.
Second, is there some way to learn the Gretzky turns easier? I just can't seem to make those sharp, cutting turns that I see other people doing. Any advice on what do for this?
Third, I'm looking for any kind of advice as to improve backward skating and backward crossovers. I'm completely lost on the backward crossovers and really want to learn how to do them.
Other than these issues, I'm a decent skater that has the majority of the basics of skating down. Once I correct these three issues all I need to do is continue skating to improve overall skill.
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated! [^]
"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long..."
Comments
Second- Practice,practice practice, as in life there is no solution better than hard work. Try to get a couple of friends to do two on one drills with you, in time you wont realize how well you will turn. BTW, you will NEVER turn as well as Wayne Gretzky.
Third- Same as above, remember to keep your weight on the inside skate and practice and fall as much as possible. Do some backwards skating drills in a large circle to your left, increasing in speed until you are out of your realm then do the same to the right. Practice , Practice, practice, good things happen to those willing to work hard.
BTW this was a generic response sent out by an anonymous, computerized, information base.
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878<P>
I'm in complete shock! Josey1 has spoken to me directly! I feel blessed. Mark this day in history!
In all seriousness though, thanks for the advice. I'm not sure if the skates are too sharp, because they were chattering and honking before I had them re-sharpened. A man at the rink said I needed to bend both knees more when I stopped. Could this have to do with it?
Hey, you never know, if I work hard enough maybe I COULD turn better than Gretzky! [:o)] (just kiddin about that)
And about the backward crossovers, I don't even know where to start so that I can practice. Say I'm skating backward and trying to head to my right through crossovers, do I take my left leg and lift it around and behind my right? When I watch other people do it, it looks like the outside leg isn't even going behind the inside one. To me it appears that would be defying the laws of physics. Color me confused [:I].
"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long..."
"If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate for an outright ban, picking up all of them, "Mr. and Mrs. America, turn them all in," I would have." -Sen. Dianne Feinstein
Unlike others I only speak when I have something to contribute rather than to see myself type.
quote:In all seriousness though, thanks for the advice. I'm not sure if the skates are too sharp, because they were chattering and honking before I had them re-sharpened. A man at the rink said I needed to bend both knees more when I stopped. Could this have to do with it?
I'm not sure if you are asking about a hard stop or an easy stop. On an easy stop the angle of your skates in relation to the ice wil not be a severe as a hard stop. If your skates are chattering, first give them a good rub on some wood to get the edge down. On a hard stop, you want to bend your knees and crouch into the slide with your skates at a steeper angle. Again I can not stress the importance of practice, there is no magic formula for success on the ice, it is as much a feel for the ice as it is anything else. Yes you know what I am going to say next, don't get frustrated and practice, practice, practice.
For backwards crossover here is an excellent site for information with pictures;
http://www.omahahockey.net/drills_backward_skating.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878<P>
[brUnlike others I only speak when I have something to contribute rather than to see myself type.
Well, I like to hear myself talk.[:D][:D] I admit it.[:D]
As far as the stopping and the turns, I gotta go with Josey. I've skated for only a few years and never remember analyzing my stopping or turning. It's like riding a bike, you do it enough and it'll come.
Two tips - stopping: can you stop at any distance? I remember practicing long hockey stops as well as the sharp instant stops. The long stops would give me a better feel for the ice and what the skate is doing during a stop. The long ones definitely improved my sharp stops.
Backward crossover: Josey hit it on the head again. Skate in large circles backward. Don't attempt full crossovers at first as you'll lose your balance. Do the crossover motion but don't completely cross the skates - almost like baby steps. As you get more comfortable with how the skate acts in that field of momentum and with controlling your center of mass, you'll be able to take bigger steps and more of a full crossover.
Sorry for the wordiness, I'm a little tired and having trouble condensing my thoughts.
Frog
GO NAVY, BEAT ARMY
First off your skates may not be tight enough, the place you had them sharpened did a lousy job or the blades may be warped . Second, Nobody can turn like Gretzky, Third PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE!
When I was talking about a Gretzky turn, I mean it's the move where you lean in and have one foot practically in front of the other on the edges. It allows you to turn very fast on a small radius.
"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long..."
[brWhen I was talking about a Gretzky turn, I mean it's the move where you lean in and have one foot practically in front of the other on the edges. It allows you to turn very fast on a small radius.
I don't think he really thought you wanted to turn like Gretzky. I knew what you meant and think he probably did too.
Frog
GO NAVY, BEAT ARMY