OMG I am soooooooooo exited - and I have to share here since none of my friends or family skate, so they dont get my excitement

I have been practicing my axel on the ground for about a month. Today I went skating and figured why not just give it a shot. i warmed up my backspins, loops, waltz, and combo and then just chucked it. And OMG - I landed an axel - granted I know it was a 1/4 cheated so its not truely an axel - ut I landed on one foot and everything - I did about 15-20 attempts and almost all were the same. I am sooooooo excited! I cant believe it

Now my coach will be happy, but maybe a bit mad, since he hasnt taught this to me yet haha

congratulations! and don't worry, your coach should be proud!

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Haha thanks - I probably wont show him until it is 100% rotated though- that would be a little more exciting to him haha

Congratulations!!!! Savor this moment!!! It's important. This is a major milestone. Don't worry about the quarter rotation. As you get more comfortable with it, you'll start going all the way around. My first one's were slightly cheated too. As you get more comfortable, you'll start rotating sooner and you'll land clean! I'm really happy for you!!! Again Congratulations!!! Have your coach work with you through this so that he/she can help you get that last quarter rotation.

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Proud to be one of the few black men out on the ice

Goals
Pass my Silver Moves Test
Finish Choreography for Silver Program
Land a Clean Double Toe and Double Lutz
Work on Double Axel and Rockers
Speed up back Camel

yeah, show your coach the axel now - if you're making any mistakes other than not rotating it fully, you need to correct them now. it may be what's keeping you from doing it 100% right (e.g. something to do with the shoulders).

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I was wondering if most of the reason I wasnt rotating was since I was too wimpy to try from anything but a stand?

I think when I get comfortable and try from crossovers, the speed may help with the rotation. I also could feel I wasnt bringing my arms in all the wy either, so my rotation was slower- I think I was keeping them out to brace myself if I fell on my face hahah

blackmanskating - I noticed your jump progress in 16 months is fantastic- did you do any other sports previously? Or just lots of practice? Congrats! I have been skating for 13 months now- I wish I was where you are at!

I am sooo hoping to start doubles soon - my toe loop is high and I think I could pull it off, but my coach want me to focus on that boring stuff like footwork for now haha (I would just jump and spin if it was up to me).

you're doing your Axel from a stand? that explains why it's underrotated. I bet you get it from your xo's.
don't think you're wimpy, maybe it's your technique (can't figure out links, but if you search for a thread called "it's not my head, it's my technique" you'll see)
anyway good luck and tell us how your next attempts will go!

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My coach made me rotate them from a standstill and I didn't starting doing it from back xo's until I could land them clean like that. I hated doing it that way but I found that it makes it easier to get in a good landing position when I am doing it with speed.

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Proud to be one of the few black men out on the ice

Goals
Pass my Silver Moves Test
Finish Choreography for Silver Program
Land a Clean Double Toe and Double Lutz
Work on Double Axel and Rockers
Speed up back Camel

Keep at it from a stand still as any mistakes will be magnified from back xovers. Definitely show your coach so he/she can see if there's anything to be corrected. Congrats! Definitely exciting.

I guess I should show him - I am just afraid he'll get mad I was working on something I have not been taught yet. Oh well - I guess he'll get over it haha

I agree!!! The jump will be stronger when you practice from a standstill. The entrance is 90% of the jump and when you do it from a standstill, there is less that can go wrong.

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Proud to be one of the few black men out on the ice

Goals
Pass my Silver Moves Test
Finish Choreography for Silver Program
Land a Clean Double Toe and Double Lutz
Work on Double Axel and Rockers
Speed up back Camel

Oh I totally agree - plus until I feel like I have it down perfect I don't want to put speed behind it because I can see myself getting into bad habits that way

It's a little difficult to do it from an absolute standstill. I do not recommend going into it with speed, but if you have just a tiny bit of momentum it can really help. I first landed mine when I started from a standstill, did a small, controlled RFI mohawk then set up on a right back outside edge before pushing out onto the takeoff edge. I was just moving at a slow crawl, but it was just enough.

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

My then-coach was pretty upset when she found out I was working on the Axel without her knowledge, but she got over it rather quickly. I didn't have much more time with her after that, though, since I graduated and left...

Now that I'm coaching, I take it as a positive thing that my students are ambitious enough to want to work on something they weren't taught yet, but I would still admonish them for not doing it with my supervision.

In any case, congrats on landing the Axel

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Blog: http://chowskates.blogspot.com

Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/chowskates
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Ugh!!
I have been skating for 3 years and haven't been able to land my Axel clean. my only new problem is that when I land on my toe pick my ankle bends out to the right and i fall.
Maybe its the boots?? I have Jackson Freestyles and I am working on my doubles. Is that bad??
Well congrats!!
cough cough
**Im not jealous not even a little**

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What Nourishes Me Destroys Me

Itfigures, I've posted a thread about Jackson skates and gotten wonderful replies there, it's somewhere on this board very recently, try there.