Thanks for recording these Tom.
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Tr, I think these clips and Gaston talking about skating is the best resource you can find anywhere on introducing the stride with the proper weight transfer. The backward skating is especially good with him teaching the side to side motion and then the backward stride. I see most coaches showing a C cut backward where the end of the C would be pushing against the motion.
There are a lot of other videos with Gaston in the A section of the videos.
Gaston travelled the major cities of the world as a feature skater for ice shows. He has a Doctorate in Body Mechanics and taught univeristy in Switzerland, was Olympic figure skating coach and fitness coach for speed skating. He also worked as a skating instructor in Davos where Juhani met him while coachng there.
Look at the powere his son produces on his forward and backward strides. Jr. was a pretty good defenseman but got jumped in a junior practice by a huge 20 year old when he was 16. The concussion was so bad he couldn't even ride an exercise bike for 6 months. He lost his desire to play after that.
I think the intro to skating technique is like the intro to shooting. In shooting you start with the sweep or power shot off the outside foot. Some coaches have even had success teaching the slapshot first because it has the four components of projection. 1 windup, 2 force production, 3. Contact, 4. Follow through.
Most players learn shooting off the outside foot with a puch - pull motion and then when they get strong enough they keep the puck in front with the hands away from the body and learn to shoot in stride off the inside foor using the wrist or snap shot.
Skating is the same. To get the side to side weight transfer the leg is brought back to the midline and the sideway motion is practiced with a 45-50 degree angle on the thrust. As the players get stronger the stance is wider and the leg comes to about shoulder width apart with the same angle 45-50 degree angle finishing the stride. The quicker the return the faster the player. So the follow through at the end of the stride is low to the ice so the next stride can be started as soon as possible.
The Coaches Site just had a symposium in Vancouver with some really good speakers like Ken Hitchcock. You can get access to the videos of the talks for thirty days for $50. It is well worth the cost.
I am watching a video from the coaching symposium put on by the Coaches Site. Adam Redmond is presenting data from research on skating. http://www.grumpmedia.com/hcc/ppv_reg.asp . Data like the faster the recovery the faster the stride rate and the faster the stride rate the faster the skater. Optimum puck is at a 45-50 degree angle allows the skate to grip the ice better. Most kids push at only 20-30 degrees (they skate with a running motion instead of side a behind.) Slide boards help mimic the motion of skating.
Ken Hitchcock gave a great presentation on 'Coaching Millineums'. Really interesting how the coach must interact with today's players.
Troy Ward talks about communicating with the language of hockey.
There are presentations on shooting, team development, 16 presentation in all. I have many more to watch.
Tom,
I have watched all of the keynotes and most of the breakouts from the Coaches Site conference. Great stuff. Hitch is a good speaker. Guy Gadowsky gave a great talk, too.
This is video from the first skating session at our camp in Jasper National Park.
Gaston and his son Gaston Jr. work with a group of 25 players ages 6-16 at our Skating and hockey camp in Jasper. The first day was to get used to the ice and have good weight transfer side to side.
I have broke it down into sections. Included also is Gaston talking about the mechanics of skating and him and Jr. demonstrating on ice. The video section A has more videos of Gaston teaching things like the start, stop, defenseman pivot, etc.
I point out Ava my grand daughter in the video. My grandson Aidan is #4 in the light blue, he is 10 and Ava 7. Ava started playing two monts ago.
A3 Jasper Skating Group 2012
This is the group of 25 skaters we worked with. Ages 6-16 and ability group from beninner to U18 AAA. Our camp has 7 skating and 7 hockey session. Our focus is skating, game sense and puck handling. This narrow focus allows the players to be competent in the foundation skills of the game.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=2012073013502219
A2 Edges Jasper 2012
This edges and balance warm up gets the athlete in the proper body position and trusting their edges.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=2012073013391092
A2 Forward Stride Basics -Jasper 2012
Skating is a sideways motion falling one way and then the other. Good knee bend and full extension maximize the power. This is an on ice introduction to the forward stride.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=20120730134842975
A2 Crossover Basics -Jasper 2012
Gaston introduces the concept of the cross over turn. Rotate the upper body to the inside
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=20120730132855771
Backward Skating Basics - Weight Transfer and Stride
Weight shift and then the stride are introduced.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=20120730101924982
Figure Skating Jasper 2012
This group of figure skaters was on the ice 14 times from Monday to Friday with Gaston and Sonia who instucts in Banff.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=20120730135359141
Assistant Instructors
Jim, Gaston Jr. were the assistant instructors. Gassy is an exceptional skater and Jim is as good with the puck as any of the NHL players I have coached. So they are great demonstrators and terrific with the young players. Ava my grand daughter and her dad Mike are also at the table.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/album.php?aid=25&page=1
Dr. Gaston Schaeffer Talks Skating Technique
Gaston talks about teaching skating and proper technique.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/video.php?n=2008072311322256
Dr. Gaston Schaeffer and His Son Demonstrates Skating Technique
Gaston and his son show how to work on skating in all directions.
http://www.hockeycoachingabcs.com/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=20080723113220687
'Enjoy the Game'