What's a "rocking horse"?

[Kat12]

Yep, newest of n00b question here, lol. Looking through some of the USFS Basic Skills requirements, one of them is this one. I try and I try but I can't for the life of me remember what, exactly, this is (I took a couple classes as a kid but it was probably 15 years ago).

I don't think I'm going to take classes right now (in large part because most sessions are halfway over by now...the only one that isn't, I already missed one class and so would have to decide in the next couple of days if I want to start in on it late and I don't want to have to decide that quickly)...might wait until the fall unless I can find a later summer session (unlikely), but I might as well at least work on the basics on my own until then. I understand gliding, stroking, snowplow stops, dips, etc., but the rocking horse is killing me and I've never seen it described anywhere.

(And, anyone know the difference between the adult Basic Skills classes and the ones for all ages? I'd rather not take a class with people 1/3 of my height and 1/4 of my age [and, the rink I was looking at--see above--offers the all-ages class during the day anyway so that doesn't work for me who works during the day], but I thought I'd read somewhere that the adult track wasn't really a "track" at all, without testing and such. From what I saw of descriptions it seemed to me that what they did with the adult classes was sort of combine some of the classes from the all-ages track, I suppose assuming that adults will learn these things faster and don't need to spend three weeks learning how to do a basic swizzle, but has anyone had experience with both?)

[Clarice]

A "rocking horse" is an exercise where you do one forward swizzle, then one backward swizzle, and repeat. It feels sort of like you're rocking back and forth. When I do these with kids, I often draw "footballs" on the ice for them and they swizzle forward, swizzle back around the pictures. You can expand the exercise into "ladders" where you swizzle forward 2x, back 2x; forward 3x, back 3x; etc. It's a prep exercise for backward swizzles.

The adult basic skills levels roughly combine two levels of the kids' track - Adult 1 is pretty much equivalent to Basic 1 and 2, for instance. The adult levels also incorporate some basic dance steps that don't appear in the kids' levels. In our program we don't test the adults, because there's only one adult basic skills class anyway, but I do check skills off on the sheet so they have some idea of how they've progressed.

[Skittl1321]

Clarice has explained the rocking horse well, so I'll skip that.

As for the adult basic skills- if you plan to go into freestyle, you will be behind by the time you get there. They skip the majority of the jump elements. More than one adult has told me they feel lost when they get to freestyle 1 because of this.

The skills are here: http://www.sk8stuff.com/f_basic_ref/lts/basic_eights.htm
http://www.sk8stuff.com/f_basic_ref/lts/basic_adult.htm

I've also found that most adults do not pass the levels in one class, because so many skills that require correct use of edges are in them. Adult 1 encompasses a HUGE range of skills for a beginner.

Another example power 3 turns are in Adult 4 and Freestyle 4 and the Bronze MITF test. It makes no sense for these to be in the basic skills curriculum if you ask me. And to be in the same level as you even LEARN 3-turns is absurd.

And while some adults don't need 4 weeks working on a swizzle, many really do. I think kids actually pick these things up faster, because they just DO it, where adults want to know how it works, and what will happen if they do it this way vs that way before they just do it.

What adults tend to have over kids though is a concept of which edge they are doing when, and better control over that- and that's a huge help!

I think on the coaches board there was a pretty long discussion about this, and most didn't care for the adult track (I think)- maybe do a search?

I think the optimal thing is to find a rink that has adult classes but uses the Basic eights. (That's what my first rink did, the second one I went to did the adult basic skills and I saw all the jumps and spins were out of it, and when I switched rinks again after one session I went for classes with the kids)

[vesperholly]

Another example power 3 turns are in Adult 4 and Freestyle 4 and the Bronze MITF test. It makes no sense for these to be in the basic skills curriculum if you ask me. And to be in the same level as you even LEARN 3-turns is absurd.
Forward power 3-turns aren't much more than a 3-turn followed by a step down, then a crossover. It doesn't say consecutive, which is a lot of the difficulty. Certainly the expectation for the power 3-turn on Adult 4 is far different from Freestyle 4 or Bronze MIF. Now, I haven't taught adults this far, but it doesn't seem unreasonable.

[Skittl1321]

Forward power 3-turns aren't much more than a 3-turn followed by a step down, then a crossover. It doesn't say consecutive, which is a lot of the difficulty. Certainly the expectation for the power 3-turn on Adult 4 is far different from Freestyle 4 or Bronze MIF. Now, I haven't taught adults this far, but it doesn't seem unreasonable.

The coaches manual for basic skills says
" skater wil perform a forward outside three turn to a balance position followed by a backward crossover. Three consecutive sets of Turns (Preliminary Moves in the Field)" They do get to pick their better side, as you don't have to do both.

Even at a WAY lower standard than the MITF test, I'm baffled that this is the same level as when a 3 turn is taught from a t-position.

Doing that back crossover, step into another 3 turn is miles above the t-position 3-turn. You still even need to learn to do it while moving.

[Kat12]

Oh, is that all it is, alternating foot swizzles?

That's good to know about the adult vs. all-ages tracks...I'll have to look into that further.

[Skittl1321]

Alternating direction swizzles- front, back, front, back.
You use both feet.

[dbny]

You can expand the exercise into "ladders" where you swizzle forward 2x, back 2x; forward 3x, back 3x; etc. It's a prep exercise for backward swizzles.

Well, thank you! Our Skating Director hasn't ordered any new instructor's manuals, but "ladders" are listed as one of the next skills on the Basic 1 attendance sheets and neither of us knew what they were.

Forward power 3-turns aren't much more than a 3-turn followed by a step down, then a crossover.

Except that it isn't really a step down. It's a push from the BI edge of the BXO to the BI edge of the other foot. May as well learn it right from the start, even though Adult Basic Skills students are not held to the same standard as Prelim or Adult Bronze skaters.

Doing that back crossover, step into another 3 turn is miles above the t-position 3-turn. You still even need to learn to do it while moving.

ITA. And on top of that, many adults find the choctaw to be very difficult. I struggled with it for years, and you are really supposed to not just step forward, but push also. That's why they are called power threes; it's all push, push, push, push.

[Skate@Delaware]

Except that it isn't really a step down. It's a push from the BI edge of the BXO to the BI edge of the other foot. May as well learn it right from the start, even though Adult Basic Skills students are not held to the same standard as Prelim or Adult Bronze skaters.

ITA. And on top of that, many adults find the choctaw to be very difficult. I struggled with it for years, and you are really supposed to not just step forward, but push also. That's why they are called power threes; it's all push, push, push, push.

We have been covering power 3's in class, and we are not cut ANY slack whatsoever. Our instructor (and also my private coach) expects the same power 3 from the adults as from anyone. They don't feel they should "dumb it down" just because we are adults.