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Skate skills: This week's tip:
World Team member Christopher Creveling practices on a bike path. By Patrick Creveling Have you been doing your wall sits and low walks? If so, you're ready to move on to the most important part of skating — staying down. In my first tip, you learned how to practice skating on a line while landing on the tops of your wheels (rather than on the inside or outside edges). In my second tip, I outlined two dry land exercises (wall sits and low walks) to help you build leg strength. Now it's time to combine the drills and skate on a line while maintaining a low position. To do this, start by finding a nice straight line, such as a bike lane, to skate on. Skate on the line as you did in my first tip with wheels landing straight up and down, not angled to one side or the other. Now use the strength you gained from walls sits and low walks to lower your skating position. Bend your knees until they form nearly a 90-degree angle. To achieve this, visualize what you looked like doing the low walks and wall sits. At first, you will find this drill difficult. But stick with it. It is so worth it! Start out slowly. Remember that speed is not the answer here, it's the result. Practice this drill until you can do it for at least 10 kilometers (the longer the better.) As you skate, push straight out to the side, perpendicular to the line you are skating on. Keep working at it! The speed will come to you. ... Be ready for it, because you're about to be able to go longer and faster than ever before! Final thought: The more quality you put into this drill, the more efficiency you will get back — and with efficiency comes speed. So go slow! ---
• Send Pat an email.
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