Hi

I just learnt this jump last night. My coach said that my jumping technique for loop jump is correct, though I have the tendency to use toe picks. Do you know how I can get rid of the problem?

It is only my 2nd week learning this jump, and getting rid of this bad habit now will be great, as otherwise once it is stuck in my mind, I could hardly get rid of the bad habit.

londonicechamp

What do you mean by using toe picks? I always thought in loops, you ride the back right outside edge until the hook, and then take off from the toe pick. The initial landing is also on the toe pick (I thought that was true for all jumps) The toe pick reaches the ice first and then the rest of the foot follows for a smooth ride out of the landing edge.

__________________
~Always Dream!~

Check my progress at www.freewebs.com/sk8tegirl06

I think she means your weight is too far forward. When learning the Loop jump it is scary to ride on the flat of the blade and not rock up to the toe while going backwards. One trick my coach tried with me is to lift the free foot off the ice, then place it back down on the ice, before jumping. By lifting it off the ice, it forces your body back on your skating foot.

However, if you just learned it last night, I would give it some time and listen to what your coach is telling you. Having a coach able to watch you, your posture, you gliding, etc. will give them a much better ability to answer questions like this than us just guessing what is going on.

Rob

__________________
Geriatric Figure Skating Crew - President for Life!
Georgia Figure Skating Club - President (again)
Facebook
____________________________________________
"I'm too old to die young, and too smart to be happy" - Kinky Friedman, The Mile High Club

2010 Adult Nationals - earning a gold - "Priceless"
2009 Adult Nationals - competing with a cold is not much fun.
2008 Adult Nationals - Too little sleep, too much vodka!

You're dragging your toepick along with the edge.

The key to a good loop is to ride the outside edge on a bent knee, then deepen the edge before quickly rolling up and taking off from the front of the blade. The last thing to leave the ice is a toe pick, but it's just a bite mark on the ice, not a long, deep carving.

__________________

You have to learn to trust the back edge and really sit into it. Pull your right shoulder back and keep your left arm forward and your left hip closed and lean into the edge so that it starts to tighten up and don't lean forward!

It does take practice, and honestly the best thing you can do is have your coach watch you do it and correct what you're doing wrong. She will be able to see exactly what you're doing wrong and correct you much better than people here who can only give general advice.

btw, I thought you posted some weeks ago about doing both loops, and being confused by the difference between them and half-loops?

I don't do loop jumps, but I do occasionally practice the take-off position (to encourage my husband, who does do them, to get it right), and it is indeed a serious temptation to go up on one's toe too early, as it slows you down to what feels more manageable! Try doing the entrance edge more slowly, don't rush it, and you may find it easier to stay off your toe-rake until the relevant moment.

__________________
Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

practicing consecutive back three turns with the free leg in a loop position helps b/c if you hit the toe too much you won't be able to turn

Don't even think about the jumping skate in a loop jump.
Your focus really needs to be on how you lift the free
leg / knee up when you do the jump. That is what pressures
the edge into the ice and makes the jump work. When
you quickly lift the free leg, and blade edge bites
and holds the ice for the jump. Really, your knee
should come well above your waste in the jump,
and then the free skates drops quickly into the cross
leg position to increase the spin and complete the
turn. If, instead, you just focus on the jumping
edge, you'll be fighting with that jump for a long time.

johns

This takes time & practice to get the timing so you don't drag the toe. You are probably just anticipating the jump so the toe pick is digging in early. Just keep working on the timing and riding the back edge around before you jump.

I have my skaters get onto that BO edge and ride it until it curves into a corkscrew stop, with the proper checks. It really helps develop the control needed for the non-scratchy takeoff.

__________________

Everyone will tell you to bend your skating knee more deeply, and they are right. However, I find that it is even better to think of bending my *ankle* and pressing into the ice with the ball of my foot, or the area between my arch and the ball of my foot. That gives a more solid edge without all the toe scraping.

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

Gaah, I'm hating the loop right now. Just learning it, and coach teaches it from a FI 3-turn. It kind of terrifies me. . . but thank you for all the tips! They will surely help!

__________________
"Go wash an elephant if you wanna do something big." -Baby Gramps