ELLIS EDGE MASTERS CAMP 2007 - DAY 2

Here's Sheila McGinn's Day 2 report:

Ellis Edge Masters Camp Day 2 – July 27, 2007

Day Two starts with video reviews. Sue reveals her true artistic talents, illustrating the correct body positions right on the screen with an erasable marker. However, she may need to implement a seven second delay on her video replays to avoid broadcasting the, uh, unintended version.
Caleb has managed to get good footage of everyone, and we all have a chance to identify what we’ve learned and incorporated into our technique, as well as what we’ll do differently the next time. Sue doesn’t let us start by focusing on the negative things, but rather the things we’re doing right and want to keep for the future.

We also spend time on reviewing Olympic and world championship footage of both good and bad examples of the techniques we’ll be working on for the day. We see the consequences of both – and it helps to know that even the best in the world make mistakes.

Today we’ll be focusing again on the three keys – chest position with belly to thigh, a tucked butt, and ankle position – and on compacting the position proportionately rather than just trying to get low. We’re still working on our straightaway technique, especially finishing the push with a good ankle snap “down and away” to set up the next push, getting into a good recovery position with the thigh and skate blade vertical, driving the knee through to the chest and letting the ice come up to meet us. We’re reminded of the impact of chest position on the completion of the push.

We spend time on the Techni-Cords preparing for lay-ins and turns. With chalk lines on the floor and the very literal support of our training partners, we repeat and repeat the drills, working on the direction of push, the angle of the lean, and the placement of the landing foot. Later, we’ll practice the same techniques with on-ice bucket drills.
On the ice, our Feelings drills evolve into a Feelings Warm-up, continuously following Caleb through a sequence of walking forward, walking backward, bouncing, hopping, monkey skating, knee-by-mid-calf, hopping to the side, and picking-the-daisies, followed by laps to incorporate the feeling of the movements into our technique.

The bucket drills are fun, and revealing when it comes to technique. Every time we finish a drill and return to free skate focusing on our new feelings, it gets a little easier, and a little better.

The day ends with a barbeque on the Belleisle. The “kids” spend time jostling each other off the swim raft, the guys are great in the kitchen, the sun is warm, the beer is cold, and everyone mellows out after an intense and sometimes overwhelming day.

Tomorrow promises to be even more intense.