SKATE TIP OF THE WEEK
Inline secrets from the world's top skaters and coaches

This week's tip:

Tuning Up With the Line Drill

By Patrick Creveling
 

Ready to tune up your skate technique for the New Year?

A great place to start is with the line drill, which forces you to land on the top of your wheels when you set down your skates.

By the top of the wheels, I mean the part that touches the pavement when you put your foot straight down on the ground — with no pronating (turning your foot outward) or supinating (turning your foot inward).

On new wheels, the top is marked by a line around the circumference of the urethane formed during the molding process.

Now that you've found the top of your wheels — also called the center edge — find or draw a straight line on a stretch of pavement. The stripe of a bike lane works well, just make sure it's dry, so it won't make you slip.

Now skate the line, keeping it perfectly centered under your body and landing your wheels on the line on every stroke.

That's all you have to do and — presto! — inefficiency is gone!

Master the line drill. It will put you in touch with your edges and give you the kind of wheel control you'll need to perfect the double push.

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Patrick Creveling was the U.S. indoor national champion in 2001 and a member of the World Team in 2003. Born into a family of skaters in Pennsylvania, he is brother of 2006 World Team members Chris and Chelsea Creveling. A gifted teacher, he started giving his Camp Creveling skate clinics in the summer of 2005.

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Related reading:

• Skate Tip of the Week Archive
• Beginners Guide to Outdoor Racing
• Beginners Guide to Inline Skating