World and Olympic coach Kori Ade gives a lesson to two young skaters. This basic skills lesson focuses on blade awareness and usage, and some introduction to jumping.
To start the lesson, Kori has the skaters do a series of backward-to-forward-to-backward 2 foot turns down the blue line. By hanging on to the skaters, Kori can influence their knee rhythm and timing and help them move across the ice.
Next, Kori takes the time to make sure the skaters know the shape of their blades. She describes it as “the bottom of a rocking chair.” She has them close their eyes and rock back and forth on the blade to understand the concept of the rocker and to build awareness of the feeling. Then Kori explains that turns from backward to forward happen slightly closer to the back of the blade and turns from forward to backward happen more toward the ball of the foot. By having the skaters draw blades on the ice, Kori ensures that they understand and are more likely to remember it.
Next, Kori has the skater do the same exercise down the blue line, but this time she has them jump the 2-foot turns. This forces the skaters to engage their edges on the ice and use proper knee and ankle movement. It also serves as a introduction to the basics of jumping.
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