Figure skating spin specialist Kim Ryan goes through a thorough spinboard warm-up that she recommends to all skaters at the beginning of each spinboard practice session. You can learn more about spinboards here and purchase a spinboard directly from Kim. This presentation is a condensed description of the warm-up and more detailed information can be found in Kim’s Spinboard Tutorial series (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3).
Kim starts with forward upright spins, and notes that the foot should be well forward on the spinboard, with the skater’s shoe hanging about a half inch over the front of the spinboard. Next, she has the skater simply stand on the spinboard and balance there in the positions they will use while spinning, especially the “skinny-V” position. The warm up drill is “half turn, half turn, whole turn, whole turn, two turns, two turns, three turns, three turns, front scratch, front scratch.” Notice the initial set or preparation position and how the skater goes back to this position before every spin. To clarify the front scratch, Kim has the skater demonstrate the desired sequence of positions. Notice that the free hip is really never open after getting to the “skinny-V.” You can see how the skater is stacked over the skating side.
For backward spins, the process is essentially identical, with a few additional details for position and movement. The set or preparation position is different, but even the description of the back scratch is the same as the front scratch.
Kim makes a point of noting that the skater should stop the rotation on the spinboard with the free foot out in front of the skating foot, by simply putting the free toe down, rather than the whole foot. This keeps the majority of the skater’s weight on the skating foot. Working on precisely stopping at half and full turns is beneficial for developing an awareness for spinning.
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