Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen discusses the process of learning a cantilever. The cantilever is a well-known balance skill made famous by Mr. Frick (Werner Groebli) in the old days of Ice Follies, as Sheila notes. The cantilever has enjoyed a bit of a renewal in interest in recent years as a number of elite skaters (including Alexandra Trusova and Shoma Uno) have used it, especially in exhibition and show programs.
Sheila explains the initial steps to learning a cantilever, focusing initially on a bent knee spread eagle, where the skater gradually increases the knee bend until the hips are down very low near the skates. Skaters can learn to control the edges and position by weaving down the ice on inside and outside lobes.
And although Sheila does not provide a how-to on getting the desired back bend with the back down and parallel to the ice, you can see from the demonstrator how this can be developed. Some skaters learn this off the ice, and others simply figure it out on the ice. It can be helpful to have a coach or friend assist or spot to develop the necessary balance without taking lots of falls, but as Sheila notes, the falls are not dangerous or even scary. Skaters can also place a hand on the ice for balance and control, and this technique is easier to learn if a skater first masters the upper body and head “steering” that Sheila describes in this video.
Below Sheila’s video we have included a couple YouTube videos of excellent cantilever examples, and you can see how many of the skaters initially hit the position Sheila describes and then simply lean back while continuing to press the knees away.
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