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Thursday, July 17, 2014

That's Tight!

Faster has spent a good chunk of the last two weeks working on tight stopping and direction control. In anticipation for the launch of our new 59mm wheels, we have been putting the new 59's... and our brains through the paces. We have found a few key ways to use the beveled front and overall shorter wheel to execute tighter direction changes, and sharper stops.

 Ewan from Team Canada illuminated the need to 'close the door' on the outside lines. She showed the Team Canada skaters a great way to transition from ineffectively coming up to the line backward, to tightly setting on the line. I think we've all had the moment while trying to transition out of a brace or partner block, just to feel the jammer escape behind our back on the line. Mastering the door close will help you get all the way to the line, while being ready for contact when you get there.




The second major task was to get real familiar with tighter stops. Truly there is no better way than falling on your face a million times to work out backward hockey stops... especially set to French tunes. The real key to this backward hockey stop is stacking your feet one in front of the other while edging backward, and remember it's your outside foot that goes behind.



We had a bit of a revelation in applying an oscillate technique to move between plow stops and duck runs, providing tighter speed control. This comes in handy to keep your hips level with your friends, and fellow blockers. The death knock of several blocking formations is when one person's hips are pushed ahead (or behind) of the others. Figuring out a way to quickly gain and subtract speed to keep all players on the same plane will enhance the structural integrity of your walls and formations.


While we had a reason to use the new Faster 59's, you certainly can knock these drills and ideas out on whatever setup you ride... just keep it tight.

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