How to hockey stop?

[brucen32]

Hi, I'm a beginner skater. Currently I slow down by doing a snow plow where I slowly point both toes inwards causing both skates to skid on the inside edges. But for the life of me I just can't stop with parallel skates to one side like in hockey skids. I think the problem lies with the inner foot that must be on the outside edge, it just won't skid and I'm afraid it will catch the ice and I'll just flip. Could it be that my blades are too sharp on this edge? Or is it that I'm just not leaning to the one side enough or not bending down enough? OR something else? Any tips on how I can improve in this area?

Thanks in advance for any advice,

Bruce

[Isk8NYC]

A quick search brought up these two threads, which should be helpful.

http://www.skatingforums.com/showthread.php?t=893

http://www.skatingforums.com/showthread.php?t=13403

[Team Arthritis]

well Bruce, Hockey stops are a lot easier in Hockey skates than figure skates because we have sharper edges and of course the toepicks. The trick is that you want the skates to slide/skid rather than grip. The natural thing is to dig in the edge but this will catch the edge and flip you on your head :frus: , I've done it! So you actually need to think about flattening out the blades by rolling the knees out over your ankles, just like skiing. THen you have the front back problem - too much weight on the front of the blade and you'll turn backwards and vice versa.

Overall I think that stopping is overrated and should be avoided :lol:
Lyle

[Award]

Yes, that is true indeed. Hockey stops are extremely overrated. But have to watch out when doing it with the figure skates due to the presence of the toe pick as somebody team arth mentioned.

A snow plough stop is good for beginning stops like the hockey players do. You slide more easily during a snow plough when the weight on the blades are shifted right up to the front of your blades. But for figure skates you have to watch it, because it's got toe picks that can catch the ice if you're not careful.

So once you become a master at the snow plough slide, you can begin to try EASING one skate off the ice while the other one is still sliding. At first, things will seem awkward and difficult. But the more you do this (eg a hundred times or a thousand times), the more you'll understand how your weight and body should feel to keep one foot sliding while the other one slowly eases itself off the ice. So what you can try to achieve is actually a one foot snowplough on an inside edge with most of your weight toward the front of the blade. Keeping knees bent a fair bit will help tremendously too. With a one foot snowplough slide, the stopping and slowing part comes naturally, and sooner or later you will have to put the other foot down on the ice again once the slide has slowed you down too much. The full hockey stop with both skates on the ice can be learned slowly after the one foot stop.

And that 'inner foot with the outside edge' for the two foot stop is another 'body getting used to it' thing. When you do a one foot slide on the inside edge, the other foot can then come down SLOWLY with blade positioned so that the front part of the blade (the LEAST FLAT BIT) touches the ice first.....this allows that blade to transition into a SLIDE first - very very gently and in a very well controlled way. Hockey stops are about knowing how to make your blades transition into a slide...and it is only after that slide you then apply the REAL brakes (using edges). Anyway, these kinds of stops are fun, but way overrated. They just look spectacular for those that haven't learned it before. But they're easier than powerpulls and spins that's for sure.

[Skate@Delaware]

Doing two-footed slaloms are a good way to get used to the weight-shift that goes on during a hockey stop, without the full committment of the actual stop. The slaloms are a good way learn to roll your edges and you are less likely to catch the toepick and splat.