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Right Forward Inside
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Right Back Inside
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Right Forward Outside
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Right Back Outside
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Left Forward Inside
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Left Back Inside
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Left Forward Outside
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Left Back Outside
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How is an edge created?
The Off-Ice Edge™ platform is specifically designed with angled
sections that will automatically distribute your weight onto the outside
or inside edge of your blade. When you stand on a designated section
of the platform and position yourself for a jump entry, glide, stroke,
spiral or even a check out, the exact muscles responsible for these
edge techniques will be activated!
Because the design of the platform was engineered to mimic the exact
on-ice sensation of being on an edge, it will reproduce what it is
like to be on an edge while in motion. This is truly the only way
to mimic being on an edge while you are off of the ice!
How is the sensation of moving in the forward and backward direction created?
The Off-Ice Edge™ platform contains a pitch that will create the
same force that momentum creates while you are in motion on the ice.
Like momentum, the pitch is specifically designed to shift your body weight
forward when your skate is positioned for forward edge techniques as well
as backward when your skate is positioned for backward edge techniques on
the platform.
The skater is instructed (in both the instruction manual and through
labeling on the platform) to always maintain pressure towards the back
of the blade during the forward edge exercises and towards the front
of the blade during backward edge exercises on the Off-Ice Edge™
platform. Because of this, a skater will actively shift their weight
against the force of the pitch on the platform, just as they would have
to shift their weight actively against the force of momentum on the ice.
Weight shifting correctly through your blade is a unique skill and is
much different than simply placing pressure on the back or front
of your blade. This is truly the only way to reproduce the sensation of
weight shifting through your blade while being off the ice!
To see how a figure skater uses the Off-Ice Edge,
click here.
To see how a coach uses the Off-Ice Edge,
click here.
Can the Off Ice Edge™ be used as a tool that is used by a coach as well?
Absolutely! Beyond working for the skater at home, a lot of coaches
have found it incredibly effective and are now using it as a tool during
their on-ice instruction. Many coaches tend to pull their skaters
off the ice so that they can physically place them in the exact position
that they are trying to teach. This happens to be a very effective means
of teaching movement patterns.
By incorporating the Off-Ice Edge™ to this method of position
correction, a coach will now have a very powerful benefit. A coach will
now be able to teach a position while the skater is actually on an outside
or inside edge. And it’s not as if the platform just places the skater
on one edge or the other. The engineering of the platform will uniquely
create the same reaction that occurs on the ice by mimicking the natural
forces of on-ice physics. By using the Off-Ice Edge™, a more realistic
reaction will occur in the skaters’ body during this type of position instruction
during an on-ice lesson.
Furthermore, because a skater is instructed to actively shift their weight
against the force of the pitch on the platform, he or she will shift their
center of gravity in the same way that they need to on the ice while
moving in the forward or backward direction.
By placing a skater immediately back onto the ice, coaches are witnessing
the powerful effects of proper muscle memory and are seeing dramatic changes
during their lessons.
This is really the ultimate when it comes to physically positioning a skater
off-ice during an on-ice lesson!
How does my blade stay on the platform and are there grooves to hold my
blade?
The coating on the platform is similar to the rubber matting on the
perimeter of the rink and does not contain a groove to hold your blade.
Because the coating is rubber, it will hold your blade in place while performing
edge techniques and will not dull your blade.
How is it possible to maintain my balance while using the Off-Ice Edge™?
The Off-Ice Edge™ comes with stability poles that will enable the skater to
train all of their edge techniques with the proper amount support to work on
their balance. These poles are intended to be used in a similar fashion to
the way a ballerina uses a ballet barre for support while learning various
movement patterns. The poles are meant to be utilized gently, so that most
of the control is coming from the skaters own center of balance without fully
relying on the external support of the poles.
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