Moves in the Field Videos | Golden Skate

Moves in the Field Videos

sarahspiral

Rinkside
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Hi. I'm an adult skater who is trying to practice for my pre-bronze moves in the field test. I'm having trouble with some of the elements. None of the moves themselves are hard but I'm having trouble with some of the details especially with Waltz 8's like which arm is supposed to be in front when, how far around the circle do I have to hold the 3 turn before starting the back edge, etc... Can anyone recommend any GOOD videos I can watch? I've seen tests that people have uploaded to You Tube but I don't know if they are good examples are not. Even if they say that they passed the test, they still might have done something wrong that the judges forgave/overlooked so I don't want to watch just anybody. I'm even willing to buy a DVD if there is one out there that shows the elements. Thank You!
 

gkelly

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
1) Are you working with a coach? You'll get better information from an experienced coach who has taken many skaters through tests, including some other adults, than you'll get from posters here or from a video.

2) The judges won't judge you on where your arms are -- they'll be looking mainly at the blades and your whole-body alignment and general movement through space/across the ice. If you can do the pattern correctly and smoothly with an unusual arm position, that should be fine. However, what you do want is to use arm positions that make it easier to execute the correct edges on the correct pattern. That's the kind of information that coaches are for.

3) If you go to youtube and search for the name of a move, you can find some videos made by coaches that explain the move. They won't teach you how to do the move the way regular lessons with a coach would, but they might answer some of your questions differently from videos of skaters posting their recently passed tests. (Coach videos will show how the move should look ideally. Videos of actual tests will show more or less what skill level is needed to pass the test.)

Here are a couple that I found for the waltz eight:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYfolqefOv0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9lpgXh1hVk

4) Here's an old set of videos available for purchase: https://www.amazon.com/Moves-Field-Revised-Instructional-Volumes/dp/B008HFK6G8. Keep in mind that some of the moves or which moves are on which tests have changed since these videos were produced. Also it's a lot of money for your purposes. You'd probably be better off putting that money toward a real-life lesson.

5) Here's some really old written instruction on the waltz eight with diagram, by Maribel Vinson Owen:
http://iceskatingresources.org/Chapter4Waltz8.html

6) If you look at the pattern for the waltz eight in the rulebook or find it online (and as mentioned in the first video linked above, and in Owen's instructions), the circle is divided into thirds, each of which should be held for 6 counts. (Sing yourself a waltz inside your head.) The first third is the three turn, so that's 3 counts on the FO edge and then turn on count 4 and hold the BI edge through count 6. Then the BO edge and FO edge are 6 counts each.
http://www.iceskating.hk/3-turns
 

sarahspiral

Rinkside
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Wow, thank you so much, GKelly. That's some great information. I am currently working with a coach but I don't have a lesson every week, due to the cost. So I spend a lot of time working on things by myself. I take lots of notes when I'm with them but sometimes I miss things. So I like to look at videos as well because I can slow the speed down and really take my time analyzing what the skater is doing with their hips, arms, head, etc...... Thank you so much for taking the time to respond!
 

Silver Ice

On the Ice
Joined
Feb 13, 2018
The counting that gkelly mentioned is really helpful. When I was preparing for my test, I would count out each movement in my head, and eventually it came naturally.
 

sarahspiral

Rinkside
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Thanks, Silver Ice. Yes, I'm glad that GKelly explained the counting to 6 thing. It's definitely good advice.
 
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