Hi, everyone--

What are the building block skills needed for the layback spin? That is, what should one be able to do to be ready to learn this spin?

I'm going to ask my coach the same question, and it's going to be a good long while before I get to the point where I'm ready to learn it, but I just wanted to know what to work up to.

I would say if you have a really solid, centered one-foot spin, then you are okay to start on a layback. The most important thing is to take it slow. You're basically spinning upside down, and learning to overcome the dizziness takes time just like basic spinning did. Don't try to throw yourself into the position. Don't think of it as a lay *back*, think of it as curving into an arch. Your chest should be raised like someone put a bar below your shoulderblades and you're leaning over it. You can practice this at home off-ice, in fact you ought to practice the whole position because simply leaning forward on your spinning leg is a whole different balance than upright.

If you don't feel quite ready for the layback, work on the attitude spin instead. This basically doing the layback position with your free leg but not bending back at all. Also, do one-foot spins with your arms held out straight in front of you instead of to the sides or pulled in.

I am "relearning" my layback spin in the proper direction (have always done it CW for some reason) and damn if it isn't hard.

Both of the coaches I have had utilized a "baby steps" approach:

Start with learning/practicing an attitude spin. It differs slightly from the one foot in that you have to turn out your free leg hip just slightly. Continue with the attitude, perfecting the turned out foot position. Start experimenting with arms: out to the side, rounded forwards in a semi-circle, arms overhead. After this feels comfortable, start with the actual layback, which as Vesperholly described, is more of creating an arch. The way I was taught to do this is to start pushing forward and out with your hips as far as you can, and then the back will get into its natural layback position. When you feel comfortable, you can drop the head back. And then, voila, you have your beautiful layback.

One thing I found helpful was to stretch the hip flexors and quads, to help with the "forward-out" push.

Hi Mika,
I can show you some tips for the layback sometime. I think the most important thing to think about is to first go up, then back. It's like the fancy straws with the crinks in them. First you elongate the straw (your back), then bend back. Also think of taking a puppy out of a playpen. You first lift the puppy up and over the pen, and then bring it close and hug (your hips will naturally go forward to balance the wt. of the puppy. There's something in ballet similar to this that you probably familiar with - I can't remember the name! Also stand at the boards and have the tips of your blades touching. Then push your hips forward until they touch the boards.
Have fun with it. It's my favorite spin, and one I had long before a decent scratch spin.