SKATE TIP OF THE WEEK
Presented by Bont Skates
Inline secrets from the world's top skaters and coaches

This week's tip:

Scull to Maximize Your Push

By Dan Burger
August 3, 2007

Don't push past the point of no return.

A push, whether classic or under push, has an optimal range. Push beyond that range, and you actually slow yourself down.

To understand how this works, consider the classic push (regular push) to the outside:

As you start the push, the toe of your skate is pointed slightly outward. When you extend your leg, you rotate ("carve") your heel to the outside. This straightens your skate so that your toes are pointed forward.

However, if you push past this point (and lots of skaters do), you begin to apply pressure against your direction of travel. In other words, you put on the brakes.

One of the best ways to optimize your push is to practice sculling, which is skating without lifting your wheels from the ground. Sculling helps you develop a sense of what is happening in your push. It teaches you to recognize what part of your push is productive and what part is wasted motion.

Practice with one foot at a time, or both, or alternate feet. (You can also do it with the double-push.) Whatever you do, keep at it. With practice, sculling will help you get the most out of your push, without over-pushing.

So don't wrack your skull perfecting your push. Just get out there and scull.

...

Dan Burger, a former inline racer, has a B.S. in Exercise Physiology and Biomechanics and is a Certified Acupressure Massage Therapist.

• Attend Dan's SF Bay Area Clinic (Sept.8-9)

Related reading:

• Skate Tip of the Week Archive
• Beginners Guide to Outdoor Racing
• Beginners Guide to Inline Skating