Spin specialist Kim Ryan continues a spin lesson with a skater working on improving a combination spin. In Part 1 the focus was on the camel spin position and lunge entry. This part of the lesson focuses on the A-frame and suggested alternate spin that follows the camel in the combination. Kim begins by testing the skater’s flexibility in terms of reaching the A-frame at a standstill and she notes that the skater is flexible enough for it. So she spends some time offering tips to help the skater execute it in the spin.
Kim explains that doing an A-frame from a camel is helpful because the free hip is stacked on the camel and on the A-frame “you need to keep that stacked hip.” After asking for camel to A-frame, Kim predicts during the preparation that the skater won’t be able to catch the free toe on the A-frame since the camel is so fast and strong from the powerful lunge entry. To address this, Kim suggests going from the camel “around to a halfie sit” so the skater can bend the skating knee slightly to catch and then straighten and lock it again after the catch. The skater can’t quite make the grab on the next attempt and Kim explains she needs to let the free leg come more in front as the grab is more difficult to the side.
As the skater continues to struggle with these A-frame concepts, Kim switches gears to try for a different position. This new position is intended to be an upright spin with the free leg tucked behind with a catch. On the first attempt the skater does a full sit behind, which isn’t what Kim was trying for, and she asks the skater to think of this as a “non-basic” spin position. Kim discusses the position more, including arm position options and grab variations. She recommends this alternate position for this skater because she can get to this position “pretty quickly.”
In the second video below, the skater continues to work on this alternate position. She nearly straightens the skating leg entirely on the first attempt, approximating the position Kim is shooting for. Again they abandon the camel and instead just work on the desired spin with less rotational energy. Kim again asks for “bringing the (foot) around more like you’re going to do a sit spin” as a way to make the transition “more compact” but the skater struggles with alignment and balance. So they return to the camel spin preparation for this alternate upright position. To finish the video, Kim recommends some additional hand placement changes to improve comfort and balance/alignment.
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