International figure skating coach Page Lipe continues her discussion of the salchow. In the previous video, she discussed free leg and skating leg movements, as well as where the skater’s center of mass needs to be relative to the skating foot. In this video, she begins by talking about the back-outside-three-turn-to-forward-inside-mohawk entrance for the salchow. This has become a very popular entrance among elite coaches and skaters.
The secret to this entrance, however, is to have a complete check of the backward three turn and 100% control of the rotation before the mohawk. Page has her skaters do these back three turns at full speed to learn the proper control, and then following up with holding the back inside edge after the mohawk as well (to prove full control of that edge/rotation prior to the jump). She notes that the rhythm of this entrance is less important than being in control, but once control is fully mastered, adding back the rhythm can be very helpful.
Page also makes a point of explaining the importance of not letting the hips rotate or tip forward too much when preparing for a salchow. She likes skaters to think of keeping their “pelvis vertical” to maintain alignment and ultimately be in a better position for the explosive movements of take-off.
As with a growing number of coaches, Page does not teach a basic salchow using the forward outside three turn entrance very much anymore. She notes that most skaters lack control of their forward outside three turns (all three turns?) and since there isn’t a point in that entrance where they can reset or make sure they are under complete control, it’s harder to learn to do the actual jump movements correctly.
Even though the back outside three turn is initially more difficult for most skaters, it’s an important skill and it provides a “controlled waypoint” during the entry. The check on the back three turn has a “stronger feel.” Page sometimes does use the very simple solo-forward-inside-mohawk salchow entrance, but she likes the back three mohawk better as she explains.
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