Camel Spin Variations And Upright Spin (Bobbe Shire)

Bobbe Shire teaches variations on upright and camel spins. As Bobbe notes, these spins all require excellent flexibility. The spins discussed and demonstrated include the “Y-spin,” the “split-spin” or “Sasha Cohen spin,” the Biellmann spin, and the “donut” spin (which Bobbe calls the “bagel spin”).

In the Y-spin, Bobbe discusses briefly how to grab the foot and she also addresses a common body position problem. She also explains that it is possible to get some acceleration in this spin by narrowing the arms. As she says, “You very often find some George to help it spin.”

In the split spin, the key is grabbing the toe pick with the opposite hand. Bobbe notes that these spins require “mileage” or lots of practice, not only to develop the flexibility, but to feel the balance and apply the necessary forces.

The Biellmann is demonstrated here but was covered in a previous video. In this demonstration, note that the skater does not pull the foot all the way over the head so she is unlikely to get credit for the position.

Bobbe spends some time discussing the proper position for the donut spin (bagel spin). She also addresses the issue of the free knee dropping in the transition into the spin. Bobbe believes that most skaters than can do it beautifully with the knee above the hip are simply naturals and those that do not do this automatically will have to work very hard to develop it. She goes so far as to say that some skaters will never be able to do it that way. She also explains that in the IJS, the skater doesn’t get credit for rotations during the grab if the knee falls below the hip.