Can anyone give me any tips on doing backspin? I just got taught it a few days ago and can't seem to get more than one revolution without having to put my free foot down to keep from falling. I know it's hard to help without seeing me do it.. but I figure there are some basic things that I should be doing, and I haven't been taught the whole technique yet.. just going into it from a right inside 3.

Some key things:

- keep your right hip under you
- don't twist your upper body. This is a very common error. The spinning motion comes from energy in the edge, and then pressing up. You don't need to crank your upper body around to get rotation
- keep your free leg in front, not to the side
- keep your right arm strongly back, left arm in front

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~No thinking, breathing, or hesitation!~

well, I'll mention mistakes i was making when i was learning- maybe you make some of these also:

Poor posture- I would bend forward ever so slightly causing too much weight going forward and making me put my foot down.

bent knee- I would bend the knee too much, when you are supposed to straighten it once you are in the spin

arms out- you should be pulling in to make a very tight position.

free leg too far out- its easier to balance if you keep the free leg in liune with your body and cross it over at the knee then bring it down like you would in a scratch spin.




also- find the best way for yourself to enter the spin.

i start my spin with LFI to RFI edge with a slight toepick drag

some people prefer LFI to RFI endge and then kind of using the toe to push up in to the spinning position.

Don't know if I can describe this very well but I'll give it a go,

the main things that have made a difference for me recently are

make sure you keep your left (assuming CCW spin) shoulder and hip strongely checked in front of you as you pull in. I was allowing my left shoulder to lead which was causing me to fall of the edge so I ended up just making a circle.

Same with the hip, I found it really helpful to think of it as leaving your left leg (hip included) in front, where it is after the 3-turn, as you start to spin and allow the right side to 'catch up' with it (rather than trying to move the leg across in front)

Thanks a lot for all of the wonderful advice. I was able to remember what you all said and managed more secure one revs and even did 2 and 3 sometimes.